WKU News

Feb 21st, 2024

Julius Ayin, a senior studying anthropology and folklore, will present “To Leave the Dead in the House: Deathways, Community, and Change in Yap Island” as part of the Department of Folk Studies and Anthropology’s monthly Brown Bag Lecture Series.

Feb 21st, 2023

WKU will host Dr. Marilyn White this Thursday, February 23rd, at 5:30 in the Western Room of the Kentucky Museum, as part of the Folk Studies 50th anniversary speaker series. Dr. White is president of the American Folklore Society and former WKU faculty.

Jun 7th, 2022

Folk Studies graduate Taylor Dooley Burden has received a prestigious Archie Green Fellowship, awarded by the American Folklife Center (AFC) of the Library of Congress, to support her project “The Occupational Lives of Religious Workers in Kentuckiana.

Aug 20th, 2021

The Kentucky Folklife Program (KFP) is proud to release its third consecutive volume of the online publication.

May 13th, 2021

The Department of Folk Studies and Anthropology is very proud to congratulate Dr. Tim Frandy, assistant professor of folk studies, for his selection as recipient of the 2021 Potter College Faculty Award for Excellence in Research and Creative Activity!

Apr 26th, 2021

On Friday, April 16, the WKU Graduate School honored the Outstanding Graduate Student Awardees from each college, including Folk Studies MA student Georgia Ellie Dassler who was chosen as the Potter College of Arts and Letters Outstanding Graduate Student

Apr 5th, 2021

On April 8th at 5:30pm, the Potter College Alumni Speaker Series will host alumnus Dr. Jon Kay for a virtual keynote talk titled, "Folklore, Art, and Aging: The Power of Creative Practice in Later Life."

Mar 4th, 2021

Folk Studies graduate student Ellie Dassler was recently featured in the WKU News for her research associated with the capstone project she is completing as part of her program.

Nov 30th, 2020

Two members of WKU’s Kentucky Archaeological Survey, Dr. David Pollack, KAS Director, and Dr. Justin N. Carlson, KAS Project Director, are co-editors of a new book on Ohio Valley archaeology.

Nov 9th, 2020

On Friday November 6th, the Kentucky Historical Society awarded WKU Folk Studies MA alumnus Tommy Hines ('86) with the Frank R. Levstik Award for Professional Service.

Nov 3rd, 2020

WKU Folk Studies MA alumnus Andrea Kitta (?03) is a 2020 recipient of the American Folklore Society?s Chicago Folklore Prize for her 2019 book The Kiss of Death: Contamination, Contagion, and Folklore (Utah State University Press).

Oct 27th, 2020

Folk Studies MA alumna (2005) Emily Hudson Mitchell is associate producer on the new documentary "Hank Locklin: Country Music's Timeless Tenor," premiering on WRSE (a PBS member station) on October 29th.

Oct 14th, 2020

This week, October 13th through October 17th, students, faculty, and staff in the Department of Folk Studies and Anthropology will be attending, presenting, and receiving awards at the American Folklore Society’s 2020 Annual Meeting.

Oct 8th, 2020

Folk Studies MA student Taylor Burden is interning with the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage on the project, "American Ginseng: Local Knowledge, Global Roots."

Sep 29th, 2020

Join the Kentucky Folklife Program for virtual Folkstreams Documentary Watch Parties!

Aug 17th, 2020

The Department of Folk Studies and Anthropology is happy to announce the establishment of a new Museum Studies Concentration in the MA Program in Folk Studies, formalizing a longstanding strength of the program in preparing students for museum careers.

Jul 14th, 2020

Students in the Folk Studies MA Program continue to engage in internship and research opportunities this summer, preparing them for careers in public folklore and/or continued academic study, despite the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Jul 1st, 2020

Samuel Kendrick, a 2020 graduate of WKU's Folk Studies MA program, has been awarded a 2020 Archie Green Fellowship from the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress.

Jun 23rd, 2020

We are delighted to announce the awarding of a 2020 National Heritage Fellowship to Mino-giizhig (Wayne Valliere), a longterm collaborator of WKU Folk Studies’ own Tim Frandy.

Jun 16th, 2020

In accordance with Western Kentucky University’s dedication to social justice, as outlined recently in We Are One WKU, the Department of Folk Studies and Anthropology stands in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement.