Fellowship MDAH Board of Trustees

The Mississippi Department of Archives and History (MDAH) is accepting applications for the 2023 Eudora Welty Research Fellowship and the 2023 Medgar and Myrlie Evers Research Fellowship. The competitive scholarships may be used for research at MDAH for a minimum of two weeks during the summer.   

Offered in partnership with the Eudora Welty Foundation, the annual Eudora Welty Research Fellowship awards a $5,000 stipend to one graduate student to conduct research using the Eudora Welty Collection at MDAH for at least two weeks during the summer. The deadline is March 3, 2023. 

The Eudora Welty Collection is the world’s finest collection of materials related to Welty and one of the most varied literary collections in the United States. The collection is divided over forty-five series and includes manuscripts, correspondence, photographs, drawings, essays, family papers, and audio and visual material that spans Welty’s entire life. 

The Medgar and Myrlie Evers Research Fellowship is in partnership with the Medgar and Myrlie Evers Institute and awards a $5,000 stipend to one graduate student or faculty member within the first five years of their academic career to conduct research using the Medgar Wiley and Myrlie Beasley Evers Papers at MDAH for at least two weeks during the summer. The deadline is March 24, 2023. 

The Medgar Wiley and Myrlie Beasley Evers Papers at MDAH include Evers and Beasley family papers dating from the early 1900s to around July 1964, when Myrlie Evers and her children moved to Claremont, California. The papers are divided into four subgroups: the papers of Medgar Evers as Mississippi field secretary of the NAACP; family papers of Medgar Evers; family papers of Myrlie Evers; and records relating to the case of the State of Mississippi v. Byron De La Beckwith. 

For more information about the fellowships visit https://www.mdah.ms.gov/careers-volunteering/fellowship-opportunities.  

For additional information and questions about the Eudora Welty Fellowship, email ecambonga@mdah.ms.gov. 

For additional information and questions about the Medgar and Myrlie Evers Fellowship, email lheller@mdah.ms.gov. 

Carter Burns, executive director of the Historic Natchez Foundation (HNF), has been elected to the board of trustees of the Mississippi Department of Archives and History (MDAH). The action took place at the regular meeting of the MDAH Board of Trustees on Friday, January 21. His nomination will be submitted to the Mississippi State Senate for confirmation.

“We are excited to welcome Carter Burns to the MDAH Board,” said board president Spence Flatgard. “Not only does he have deep roots in Natchez, but he brings valuable expertise in historic preservation. With MDAH focused on two major projects in Natchez—at Historic Jefferson College and Grand Village of the Natchez Indians—Burns will be a tremendous asset to the board.”

A Natchez native, Burns has served as the executive director of the HNF for three years, where he is responsible for all staffing, operations, and programs. He holds a bachelor of arts in English from Millsaps College, a juris doctor from the University of Mississippi School of Law, and a master of historic preservation from the University of Georgia. He is a former board member of the Mississippi Heritage Trust and currently serves on the board of the Mississippi Historical Society and the National Preservation Partners Network.

Burns succeeds Helen Smith, who retired after two years on the board. Throughout her board service, Smith offered strong support and encouragement to the MDAH staff.

“Helen was an outstanding board member who represented the department with distinction on Natchez and brought a valuable perspective on historic preservation to board deliberations,” said MDAH executive director Katie Blount.

The board also reelected Spence Flatgard, Ridgeland, as president and Hilda Povall, Cleveland, as vice president of the board. Betsy Hamilton of New Albany, was elected to her third six-year term, and Kimberly Campbell of Jackson, was reelected to serve a six-year term, after fulfilling the remainder of Reuben Anderson’s term.

Board nominees must be confirmed by the state senate. Members serve six-year terms. The other members of the board are Nancy Carpenter, Columbus; Betsey Hamilton, New Albany; Web Heidelberg, Hattiesburg; Edmond E. Hughes Jr., Ocean Springs; and Mark Keenum, Starkville.

The Mississippi Department of Archives and History is the second-oldest state department of archives and history in the United States. The department collects, preserves, and provides access to the archival resources of the state, administers various museums and historic sites, and oversees statewide programs for historic preservation, state and local government records management, and publications. 

On Friday, July 16, the Board of Trustees of the Mississippi Department of Archives and History elected a new board member and approved the establishment of the Mississippi Historic Site Preservation Fund. The Legislature created the program to provide funds to acquire and protect significant and endangered sites related to historic battlefields, Native American archaeology, and Civil Rights history, and to encourage tourism to these important destinations.

The Mississippi Historic Site Preservation Fund will award grants to defray the costs of land acquisition to protect historic properties. Grants will be awarded through a competitive application process and a one-to-one match is required. Colleges and universities, historical societies, state agencies, local governments, and 501c (3) nonprofit organizations are eligible to receive a grant through the program.

The deadline for applications is September 30, 2021. Access the application and learn more about the new grant program on the MDAH website at https://www.mdah.ms.gov/historic-preservation/preservation-planning-development#grants.

Reuben Anderson retired from the MDAH board after serving since 2007. Board members elected Kimberly L. Campbell of Jackson to fill the unexpired term of Anderson. Campbell, the State Director of the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), is an attorney and former member of the Mississippi House of Representatives.

Members of the board serve six-year terms. At its April 16 meeting, the board selected Spence Flatgard of Ridgeland to serve as its president beginning in October.

Other members of the board of trustees of the Department of Archives and History are Hilda Cope Povall of Cleveland, vice president; Nancy Carpenter, Columbus; Betsey Hamilton, New Albany; Web Heidelberg, Hattiesburg; Edmond Hughes, Ocean Springs; Mark Keenum, Starkville; and Helen Moss Smith of Natchez.

The Mississippi Department of Archives and History is the second-oldest state department of archives and history in the United States. The department collects, preserves, and provides access to the archival resources of the state, administers various museums and historic sites, and oversees statewide programs for historic preservation, state and local government records management, and publications. For more information call 601-576-6850 or email info@mdah.ms.gov.