The State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) of the West Virginia Division of Culture and History is accepting applications for scholarships, offering up to $327 for individuals to attend Cemetery Workshops at the Culture Center, Charleston, W.Va., from Sept. 21-23. The funding is available to support registration and lodging expenses for the workshops. In addition, the SHPO is offering up to $900 to attend the National Trust for Historic Preservation Conference in Nashville, Tenn., from Oct. 13-19. The scholarship funding for the Conference is for lodging, registration and plane transportation.
Members of historic landmark commissions with Certified Local Government status will be considered first, but all individuals, community leaders, elected officials, planning staff, Main Street Program volunteers, government employees, members of historic landmark commissions, other organizations involved in historic preservation efforts in West Virginia also are encouraged to apply for the scholarships.
The scholarship program provides individuals an opportunity to study historic preservation issues by attending the conference, learning from examples, and networking with other people who have similar issues. Applications will be awarded on a competitive basis.
Eligible applicants must be West Virginia residents who can demonstrate an interest in historic preservation by at least one of the following criteria: volunteering on preservation related projects; holding a membership on a local preservation committee, planning board, Main Street organization, or other preservation related organization; holding an elected office or being employed by a government in a planning/preservation capacity; or owning or developing historic properties in West Virginia. In addition, applicants must demonstrate how they will be able to develop historic preservation in their community, agree to attend educational sessions at the conference and provide a brief cover letter describing sessions that were attended and thoughts regarding the conference.
Applications also will be selected by how attendance will assist in addressing a local issue; how it will provide training to a novice or experienced person in the field of historic preservation and how it would allow attendance to those with limited budgets.
Applications to attend the Cemetery Workshops in Charleston, W.Va., must be received by mail or fax before the end of the business day Thursday, Aug. 6. Those wishing to apply for scholarships to the National Trust for Historic Preservation in Nashville, Tenn., must have their application in before the end of the business day, Tuesday, Sept. 1.
Applications should be mailed to West Virginia Division of Culture and History, SHPO Scholarships for 2009, The Culture Center, 1900 Kanawha Boulevard, East, Charleston, W.Va. 25305-0300 or faxed to Pam Brooks, (304) 558-3560. For more information about the scholarships or to receive an application visit our Web site at www.wvculture.org/shpo/forms.html, or contact Brooks, grants coordinator for the SHPO, at (304) 558-0240, ext. 720, or by e-mail at pam.brooks@wvculture.org.
For more information about the Cemetery Workshops, contact the SHPO at (304) 558-0240 or visit the Web site www.wvculture.org. For information about the National Trust for Historic Preservation Conference, contact the Trust at (800) 944-6847 or visit its Web site at www.preservationnation.org/resources/training/npc.
The West Virginia Division of Culture and History, an agency of the West Virginia Department of Education and the Arts, brings together the state’s past, present and future through programs and services in the areas of archives and history, the arts, historic preservation and museums. Its administrative offices are located at the Culture Center in the State Capitol Complex in Charleston, which also houses the state archives and state museum. The Culture Center is West Virginia’s official showcase for the arts. The agency also operates a network of museums and historic sites across the state. For more information about the Division’s programs, visit www.wvculture.org. The Division of Culture and History is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.
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