Thursday 12 Noon–1:30 PM

87 ACA/PCA Salon E
Chair: Peter Rollins
William R. Ferris, Chair, National Endowment for the Humanities
As an author, folklorist, filmmaker, and academic administrator, William R. Ferris has compiled a distinguished record of achievement and leadership in the humanities during a career spanning nearly three decades.

Before becoming chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities in November 1997, Dr. Ferris served for 18 years as founding director of the Center for the Study of Southern Culture at the University of Mississippi in Oxford. Under his leadership, the University of Mississippi developed the most comprehensive southern studies curriculum in the nation, and the center, with an interdisciplinary approach incorporating popular, folk, historical and literary subjects, attained national recognition as a model for regional studies centers. In 1993 the center was named a nongovernmental organization affiliated with the United Nations.
A professor of anthropology and a prolific author, Dr. Ferris spearheaded the creation of the best-selling Encyclopedia of Southern Culture, published in 1989. Containing entries of every aspect of southern culture and widely recognized as a major reference work linking popular, folk and academic cultures, the volume was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. Dr. Ferris’s scholarship covers the fields of folklore, American literature, music and photography.

Dr. Ferris’s honors include the presidentially bestowed Charles Frankel Prize in the Humanities, the American Library Association’s Dartmouth Medal, the Mississippi Institute of Arts and Letters Award, and France’s Chevalier and Officer in the Order of Arts and Letters. He has also been inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame.

Before coming to the Center for the Study of Southern Culture in 1979, Dr. Ferris taught at Yale University (1972-79) and at Jackson State University in Mississippi (1970-72). He has M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in folklore from the University of Pennsylvania, an M.A. in English literature from Northwestern University and a B.A. from Davidson College. Born in Vicksburg, Mississippi, in 1942, Dr. Ferris is married to Marcie Cohen Ferris.

87a Room 306
Luncheon for Agnes Nixon
Nixon began her amazing career writing for the radio soap Woman in White. Since then, Nixon has served as head writer for Guiding Light and Another World. She created One Life to Live as well as All My Children. The luncheon is $30. Checks may be sent to Lisa Tatham, Popular Culture Conference 2001, Bowling Green State Univ., Bowling Green, OH 43403.

88
Library Company & Historical Society Tour
Antonio Lara and Paul Rich will lead a visit to the Library Company of Philadelphia and the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. These two historic collections are a fifteen-minute walk from the hotel. They are two of the oldest libraries in the United States and display many curious items. Meet at conference registration desk at 12 noon.

89
ACADEMICS SESSION I
Italian Market Walking Tour 1 1/2 hours
Better known to Philadelphians as the “Ninth Street Market,” the area on Ninth Street between Christian St. and Washington Ave. has had a long and interesting multi-cultural history. This walking tour will look at its history and end up at an ethnic Market restaurant for those who wish to try a “Philadelphia style lunch.” The tour is limited to 15 people. Please wear comfortable walking shoes. Contact Professor Daniel Evans or Arlene Caney by email to make reservations (devans@ccp.cc.pa.us) (acaney@ccp.cc.pa.us).

90
ACADEMICS SESSION II
The Philadelphia Art Museum
This tour will take the participants through selected galleries at the Museum. The participants will meet at the Museum, which is located at 26th and the Parkway, in front of the West ticket counter. There will be an entrance fee into the museum. The tour is limited to 15 persons. Contact Professor Arlene Caney by email to make reservations (acaney @ccp.cc.pa.us).