Project Overview
In Florida, the increase in public and state-funded folklore presents great potential for collaboration. The state’s population growths, shifts, and diversification overlap with significant cultural, economic and environmental issues, and public folklore programs could potentially facilitate dialogue in these arenas. This project traces the historical development of public folklore programs in Florida with attention to how they have partnered with other agencies that might engage in such issues. This survey of public folklore’s interaction with other sectors aims to identify trends, examples, and areas of potential in order to better understand public folklore’s past and present social role and orientation. This point of understanding can in turn help contextualize and perhaps even inform future program goals and identities. The results of this research are presented in this website to provide background information and resources to others interested in involvement in this area.
For this project, "public folklore" is understood to mean programs that are funded in some way by a governmental or non-profit organization, and that exhibit the scholarly standards of the field while being outside strictly academic endeavors. Public folklore is in some way responsible to both the citizens and folk groups it engages, in the sense that the public must be "served" through a deliverable product or event that results from the folklore research. "Collaboration" is here used to mean engagement with another agency or group beyond the primary organization behind the folklore project. Work with a specific folk group is not considered in itself collaboration, unless the folk group possesses particular agency in executing the project or presenting and utilizing its products.
Public folklore is in negotiation with many forces, including funding sources and availability, community expectations and responsibilities, and the pressure for visibility and promotion. It's understood identity as a service to the community positions it to be especially influenced by these forces. At the same time, this identity allows for advocacy and empowerment initiatives, whose terms arise, ideally, from the communities being served. This project provides an overview of how these factors have manifested themselves in public programs over time, particularly in terms of partners of folklore programs.
The main page provides quick links to an interactive map of Florida featuring highlighted projects, folklorists, and the names of relevant regions, as well as a link to the summary analysis of the research findings. The menu on the top right links users to the other major pages. In the About section, an overview of the research is given, as well as brief definitions of public folklore and collaboration as they are used throughout the site. An author biography and contact information are found there, as well as a link to a forum aimed to engage conversation on this topic. The Timeline pages provide a chronology of Florida public folklore policy, programs, and collaborations. The Projects & Publications page investigates specific programs, with attention to how and by whom the programs have been funded, the programs’ aims and methodological approaches, the range of groups engaged (not limited to the “folk” group itself), and how the programs’ “products” are realized in the context of the community. The Collaborations section categorizes the projects by types of agencies engaged and includes background on some of these agencies. The Folklorists page offers biographies of a selection of scholars involved throughout the history of public folklore in Florida, and the Links & References section details the resources used in this research and offers links for further investigation, as well as a guide for how to cite these webpages. Folklorists, projects, and collaborating organizations are linked throughout the site to facilitate an understanding of the interconnection between various parties and programs.
In Florida, the increase in public and state-funded folklore presents great potential for collaboration. The state’s population growths, shifts, and diversification overlap with significant cultural, economic and environmental issues, and public folklore programs could potentially facilitate dialogue in these arenas. This project traces the historical development of public folklore programs in Florida with attention to how they have partnered with other agencies that might engage in such issues. This survey of public folklore’s interaction with other sectors aims to identify trends, examples, and areas of potential in order to better understand public folklore’s past and present social role and orientation. This point of understanding can in turn help contextualize and perhaps even inform future program goals and identities. The results of this research are presented in this website to provide background information and resources to others interested in involvement in this area.
For this project, "public folklore" is understood to mean programs that are funded in some way by a governmental or non-profit organization, and that exhibit the scholarly standards of the field while being outside strictly academic endeavors. Public folklore is in some way responsible to both the citizens and folk groups it engages, in the sense that the public must be "served" through a deliverable product or event that results from the folklore research. "Collaboration" is here used to mean engagement with another agency or group beyond the primary organization behind the folklore project. Work with a specific folk group is not considered in itself collaboration, unless the folk group possesses particular agency in executing the project or presenting and utilizing its products.
Public folklore is in negotiation with many forces, including funding sources and availability, community expectations and responsibilities, and the pressure for visibility and promotion. It's understood identity as a service to the community positions it to be especially influenced by these forces. At the same time, this identity allows for advocacy and empowerment initiatives, whose terms arise, ideally, from the communities being served. This project provides an overview of how these factors have manifested themselves in public programs over time, particularly in terms of partners of folklore programs.
The main page provides quick links to an interactive map of Florida featuring highlighted projects, folklorists, and the names of relevant regions, as well as a link to the summary analysis of the research findings. The menu on the top right links users to the other major pages. In the About section, an overview of the research is given, as well as brief definitions of public folklore and collaboration as they are used throughout the site. An author biography and contact information are found there, as well as a link to a forum aimed to engage conversation on this topic. The Timeline pages provide a chronology of Florida public folklore policy, programs, and collaborations. The Projects & Publications page investigates specific programs, with attention to how and by whom the programs have been funded, the programs’ aims and methodological approaches, the range of groups engaged (not limited to the “folk” group itself), and how the programs’ “products” are realized in the context of the community. The Collaborations section categorizes the projects by types of agencies engaged and includes background on some of these agencies. The Folklorists page offers biographies of a selection of scholars involved throughout the history of public folklore in Florida, and the Links & References section details the resources used in this research and offers links for further investigation, as well as a guide for how to cite these webpages. Folklorists, projects, and collaborating organizations are linked throughout the site to facilitate an understanding of the interconnection between various parties and programs.