“Telling Our Stories”: A Certificate in Writing and Documentary Studies
Collaborating groups: NW Documentary
Faculty contact: Joanne Mulcahy, Kim Stafford
Collaborating groups: NW Documentary
Faculty contact: Joanne Mulcahy, Kim Stafford
The “Telling Our Stories” project will build on twenty years of existing courses and strong community connections to launch a certificate program in writing and documentary studies in the fall of 2009. In the spirit of James Agee’s classic book, “Let Us Now Praise Famous Men,” we see this project as a way to uncover untold stories and local heroes, to lead teachers, counselors and writers onto new storytelling paths. We plan to engage participants as documentarians of their local communities and new landscapes as well. The program will cover training in methodologies to include writing, video and film, photography, and audio recording. Each will be linked to cultural inquiry, ethnography and creative expression. We’re especially interested in how documentary methods can help individuals and communities explore issues of race, class, ethnicity, gender and social inequality. We encourage work that crosses cultural boundaries and may involve translation.
