Collection Timeline

2020 to 2024

2020
Presented by the Idaho Humanities Council, Context is our way of connecting you to experts, scholars, and ideas. Our goal is to help provide context on topics, both fun and serious, which shape the world we live in. We hope to strike the spark on your sense of exploration and discovery as you listen.
People generally know Boise's agricultural history, but little about its industrial history. Jennifer Stevens will treat the audience to an overview of the city's robust 20th century industrial history and the systematic dismantling of its industrial relics to make way for Boise's modern "green" identity. Dr. Jennifer Stevens is an urban environmental historian and an Assistant Clinical Professor. She earned her Ph.D. in History at University of California, Davis, and her B.A. at University of California, Santa Barbara in History and Political Science. Her current research, funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities, focuses on the impact of deindustrialization on the American West and western urban identity.
General Manager Kevin Greene will talk about the incredible history of baseball in Idaho Falls. He’ll speak to all the notable players that have come through the city in the last 80 years and also cover the history of the ballpark, not just Melaleuca Field built in 2008, but all the professional stadiums in Idaho Falls which have always been on this same lot. Also, not only did the Idaho Falls Chukars win the 2019 Pioneer League Championship, the team had its highest attendance since 2007 and the Chukars contributed over $80,000 in charitable donations throughout the 2019 season. Kevin Greene, President and General Manager of the Idaho Falls Chukars, was named 2019 Pioneer League Executive of the Year, it was the 5th time in his 27-year career as the President and General Manager of the Idaho Falls Chukars, previously winning the award in 1995, 1998, 2001 and 2013.
Larry LaRocco recalled his time with Senator Frank Church and the battle to establish the wilderness at the core of Idaho. Larry LaRocco was elected to two terms as U.S. Representative from Idaho’s First District, where he served on the House Banking and Interior Committees. While in Congress LaRocco passed legislation into law creating the Morley Nelson Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area. Previously he was North Idaho Field Director for Senator Church. Subsequent to Congress, he was a managing director of the American Bankers Association and established a public affairs and government relations firm, LaRocco and Associates. He is past president and board member of the US Association of Former Members of Congress. He is a graduate of the University of Portland and Boston University and studied at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies. LaRocco served in the US Army from 1969 -72 in Military Intelligence attaining the rank of captain. He and his wife, Chris, live in Boise.
Scott Slovic discussed a unique program at U of I in which he is a part of. Semester in the Wild is a program which has taken students from across the world into the Frank to learn about the environment and understand how the wilderness exists and functions. Dr. Scott Slovic is an English professor at the University of Idaho. Dr. Slovic teaches courses in interdisciplinary environmental humanities, American and comparative literature, environmental writing, and nonfiction writing. He has been an IHC board member since 2014.
From the 1955 "Boys of Boise" scandal to the recent Supreme Court decision affirming LGBTQ rights under the 1964 Civil Rights Act, Idaho’s LGBTQIA+ community has faced a long struggle for equality. Cheryl and Gabrielle will discuss key historical events and current issues shaping the community today. Bio: Cheryl Oestreicher is the Head of Special Collections and Archives/Associate Professor at Boise State University. She curates and preserves archival collections documenting Boise State University, Boise, and Southwest Idaho, covering topics such as politics, the environment, Basque culture, gender, and more. She holds a PhD in Modern History and Literature from Drew University and an MLIS from Dominican University. Gabrielle Davis is a respiratory therapist and currently serves as a COPD Educator and Nicotine Cessation Coordinator for St. Luke’s in Boise. She holds master’s degrees in public health and counseling. Beyond healthcare, Gabrielle is an adjunct professor at Boise State University and facilitates a local LGBTQIA+ youth group. She is passionate about advocating for Black Queer and Trans Lives, promoting allyship, and raising awareness about nicotine addiction. Gabrielle lives in Boise with her wife and dog, enjoying travel whenever possible.
Terry and Kam will explore the contemporary Black experience in Idaho, discussing topics such as growing up in the state, gender, queerness, and other aspects of identity. Their conversation will highlight how these experiences intersect—not only within the Black community but as part of the broader human experience. Terrence (Terry) Scraggins (He/Him), LSW, is a United States Navy veteran and an alumnus of Boise State University’s Graduate School of Social Work. Originally from Boise, ID, he earned a BA in Social Work with a minor in Family Studies. As a former foster youth and veteran, Terry’s achievements are significant—joining the mere 3% of foster alumni who successfully earn a postsecondary degree. He is also the first individual in his family to graduate with a degree. Terry successfully completed an internship with Family and Children Services and is employed with a governmental agency. Terry sits on the Board of Directors for a local non-profit organization in the Boise area. He continues to advocate for the LGBTQ+ community and, in the summer of 2018, successfully published a policy report addressed to Congress in Washington, D.C., in collaboration with Senator Wyden [OR] and the Senate Finance Committee. Terry also presented on how to support and empower LGBTQ+ foster youth in February 2020 for the University of Oklahoma. He is currently in the process of creating a podcast focused on social justice matters. Aspiring to return to D.C. one day, Terry has plans to obtain his Master’s degree either in Social Work or Public Policy (or both,) and continue to advocate for social justice matters. Kam Diaz (They/Them) is a GLAAD campus ambassador and recipient of the Boise State Inclusive Excellence award.
The Idaho Anne Frank Human Rights Memorial is the only Anne Frank memorial in the United States, is one of the few places in the world in which the entire text of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is on public display, and is recognized as an international Site of Conscience. Constructed in the heart of Idaho’s capital city, how did it happen and what is its import to the community and state today? Dr. Dan Prinzing is the executive director of the Wassmuth Center for Human Rights, which built and now stewards the Idaho Anne Frank Human Rights Memorial. The Center’s mission is “to promote respect for human dignity and diversity through education and to foster individual responsibility to work for peace and justice.”
Post-World War II Idaho politics were marked by unpredictability and frequent intraparty challenges. Partisanship ran high—often reflected in how newspapers covered candidates—and anti-Communism emerged as a defining theme of the era, fueling emotional, divisive, and often decisive debates. The political turmoil of the time produced several notable figures. It brought an end to the career of Democratic Senator Glen Hearst Taylor, who was arguably the most liberal politician ever elected in Idaho. Perhaps most remarkably, given the state's current political landscape, it also helped launch the unlikely career of Senator Frank Church. Marc Johnson, a political historian and former chief of staff to Idaho’s longest serving governor, Cecil D. Andrus, speaks about Glen Taylor’s colorful and controversial political career and his influence on Idaho and the nation. Johnson is the author of "Political Hell-Raiser: The Life and Times of Senator Burton K. Wheeler of Montana", published in 2019 by the University of Oklahoma Press. He is a former board member and chair of the Idaho Humanities Council. Johnson’s writing on politics and history have appeared in Montana The Magazine of Western History , The Blue Review , The California Journal of Politics and Policy , the New York Times and many Idaho and regional newspapers. Johnson’s next book – Tuesday Night Massacre: Four Senate Elections and the Radicalization of the Republican Party – is the story of how independent expenditure campaigns began and how those campaigns upend politics beginning with Senate contests in 1980. The University of Oklahoma Press will publish that book in 2021.
The future of nuclear energy in the U.S. is evolving, and the Idaho National Laboratory, recently designated by Congress as the National Reactor Innovation Center, is at the forefront of this change. Along with its cutting-edge research, the lab and its partners are moving forward with plans to build and demonstrate advanced reactor designs, including small modular reactors and micro reactors. Ryan Weeks has over a decade of experience in providing engaging tours that bridge technical content with common language and interesting historical facts. Weeks has been with tours team at INL providing visitors with unique access to INL facilities and in-depth understanding the lab's capabilities. He says the best part of his job is showcasing the amazing work INL does. He has held his current role for five years. Before joining INL, he spent eight years in the tourism industry, working with scenic railroads in Alaska and Colorado. Weeks is an Idaho native and graduate from Brigham Young University- Idaho with a degree in Communications. Ryan has a busy home in Teton with three energetic daughters.
Minidoka: An American Concentration Camp tells the story of Japanese Americans, most of them American citizens, who were forcibly removed from their Pacific Northwest homes during Word War II. They were held in squalid conditions in temporary detention centers, and then put on trains to a concentration camp in the desert of southern Idaho. Innocent of any crime, many of them would remain imprisoned at Minidoka for over three years. In the compelling voices of survivors of the camp, the film explores the unconstitutional suspension of the civil rights of these Americans and the long-lasting impact of the incarceration on their community. Minidoka examines what happens when a group of Americans are imprisoned solely on the basis of race, and examines the relevance of this story today. Hanako Wakatsuki is the Chief of Interpretation and Education at the Minidoka National Historic Site and the Liaison for Honouliuli National Historic Site. She has approximately 12 years of experience in the museum and public history field. In the past she has worked for the Idaho State Historical Society, Tule Lake National Monument, and the U.S. Navy Seabee Museum.
In this presentation, we'll look at some writings of American Indian women who encountered the colonial, domestic education propagated by federal Indian schools and white women reformers who lived and worked in Indian communities throughout North America. We'll see how these Indian women writers altered the course laid out for them by these reformers and teachers, for in learning to practice the rituals of domesticity they also learned to write about those domestic rituals and sentimental values in syncretic ways. Dr. Amanda Zink is Associate Professor of English at Idaho State University where she teaches courses in ethnicity, indigeneity, sexuality, gender, and intersectionality in literature. Her research and teaching focuses on American literatures from the margins, with particular emphasis on American Indian literature from the late-19th century to the present. Her first monograph came out in 2018 from the University of New Mexico Press and is titled "Fictions of Western American Domesticity: Indian, Mexican, and Anglo Women in Print Culture, 1850-1950". With the support of an IHC Research Grant, she is currently compiling an anthology of literature written by students at the Indian boarding schools in Montana, Idaho, Washington, and Oregon.
In 1908, Idaho’s first state park was created by an Act of Congress. It was named for Sen. Weldon B. Heyburn, who famously said “[state parks] are always a subject of political embarrassment.” This presentation traces the roots of the system from the Harriman Alaska Expedition in 1899, through the war years of the Farragut Naval Training Station, to the brilliant gift deed Gov. Robert E. Smylie arranged with Roland and Averell Harriman to create a dedicated park agency resulting in today’s system of 30 state parks. Rick Just worked for the Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation for 29 years. Among other duties he was the agency historian. Rick has written two books on Idaho’s state parks and several more on other Idaho subjects. He writes a daily history blog called “Speaking of Idaho” which has about 9,000 followers. He founded the non-profit organization Friends of Idaho State Parks in 2013 and currently serves as the organization’s president.
The refugee resettlement process is a long and taxing process, not one for the faint hearted. Salome takes us on a truncated journey through the process from fleeing one’s home, adjustments in the host country, until one is finally resettled in a third country. Salome Mwangi is a resident of Idaho’s Treasure Valley since 2004. She was born and raised in Kenya and relocated to the United States as a refugee with her daughter and the daughter’s father, who had fled his native Ethiopia, seeking refuge in Kenya, where they met, got married and started a family. As the Refugee Speakers Bureau coordinator at the Idaho Office for Refugees, she supports former refugees in crafting and sharing their stories in culturally appropriate ways in communities around the Treasure Valley and beyond.
While Idaho was an women’s suffrage state, it was one of the last to ratify the 19th amendment. Idaho’s Senator William Borah played a major role both in 1896 and in 1920. This presentation will discuss the politics surround both women’s suffrage episodes, the women activists and their tactics that were crucial for both campaigns, and Borah’s complicated position. Katherine G. Aiken is professor of history emerita at the University of Idaho where she also served as College of Letters, Arts & Social Sciences Dean and Interim Provost and Executive Vice President. She was a member of the State Department of Education Professional Standards Committee for six years; she is committed to K-12 curriculum development and has led numerous professional development workshops. Aiken was chair of the Idaho Humanities Council, served on the Council for seven years, and has been lead scholar for the Council’s Teacher Institute. She is a Latah County Historical Society board member and is on the University of Idaho Library Advisory Board. Aiken’s American history scholarly areas of interest include social and cultural history, labor history, women’s history, mining, and the environment. She is the author of four books and many articles dealing with those topics--often with an Idaho focus. She participated in the Idaho Public Television production “Idaho’s Trial of the Century” and in the Idaho Experience series.
In the age of information, why is so hard to be a well-informed citizen? Developing our news literacy can help us navigate the media landscape, and that means more than checking facts and spotting hoaxes. Yes, facts are important, but we also need a broader understanding of how news and information are produced and consumed in the digital age. What’s happening to real news, and how is it constructed? Are you in a filter bubble, and how can you break out? Are you the customer or the product in the attention economy, and how can citizens reclaim their power? Drawing on history, psychology, sociology, and politics, this conversation can help you increase your news literacy and teach others to do the same. Seth Ashley, PhD, is associate professor of journalism and media studies at Boise State University, where he also serves as faculty advisor for student media. He is the author of "News Literacy and Democracy," and his research on media literacy, media sociology and communication policy has been published in a range of peer-reviewed journals. Ashley received his PhD and MA from the University of Missouri School of Journalism. He has worked as a writer and editor for newspapers and magazines and as a designer and technician for film and theater.
In this talk, Dr. Hunter will be examining the question of how best to approach the US Constitution. Among other things, he takes on the position of Chief Justice Roberts who argues that justices should approach the Constitution as neutral umpires calling balls and strikes. Dr. Hunter began teaching at The College of Idaho in 1988 and was named the Idaho Professor of the Year by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement in Teaching in 2008. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Washington. Hunter teaches political philosophy and constitutional law and holds a biannual Mock Supreme Court course in which nine students are selected to play the role of a current justice on the U.S. Supreme Court. For this course, the students study cases currently before the Court, hear oral arguments on the cases presented by attorneys in the area, and write opinions as if they were sitting on the Court. Students find this course particularly challenging and rewarding. Past participants include a Rhodes, Marshall, and Truman Scholar.
In the 1920s and 1930s, fascist dictator Benito Mussolini celebrated a number of ancient Roman centennials, coopting Roman imagery and symbolism to inaugurate his own “rebirth” of the Roman Empire. But did these symbols mean the same thing to the ancient Romans that they did to Mussolini? Where did these symbols come from, and what role did they play in the Roman Republic? By tracing the evolution of the Roman triumphal parade in the Roman Republic, this presentation will demonstrate why the triumph was so important in Roman society, explain how it came to underscore and shed light on why this ancient military and religious procession continues to resonate into the modern world. Alyson Roy is an assistant professor of ancient history at the University of Idaho. Her research focuses on the Roman Republic, ancient military history, material culture and numismatics. Her forthcoming book project, Circulating Triumph: Conquest Imagery and its Reception in the Roman Republic , explores the use of triumphal imagery in the provinces to extend and reinforce conquest. She holds a Ph.D. in history from the University of Washington.
Carole talks about the term “Independent Film” and what it means. She shares some things about a few of her favorite independent filmmakers as well as some of her memorable movie-going experiences. She loves watching and talking about movies and looks forward to questions and thoughts from the audience. Carole was born at Ft. Lewis, Washington and was raised in the Army, moving every two years throughout her childhood. Army posts usually had a roller rink, a bowling alley and a movie theater so Carole became an avid movie - goer all her life (she can also bowl and skate). Carole earned a B.A. in English Literature at the University of Washington (as well as the money it took to attend by working full time). Carole and husband Rick opened their independent theater, The Flicks, near downtown Boise in 1984. Rick is full of ideas, many of them good ones! Carole books the movies that play at The Flicks and still enjoys doing so. She has so much more help there than she did in the early years. The staff is a wonderful and caring group of people and The Flicks continues to succeed because of them. Carole and Rick hope independent theaters throughout Idaho (and the entire US) will survive this pandemic.
A brief survey of how the American wildland fire scene has evolved, beginning with the 1880 census map of forest fires to the present day. Topics will include the Big Blowup of 1910, the CCC, the cold war on fire, the fire revolution of the 1960s and 1970s, the mashup of institutions and policies that characterizes today’s scene, and the quickening of threats that is leading us into a new fire age. Steve Pyne is an emeritus professor at Arizona State University, mostly a fire historian, and the author recently of Between Two Fires: A Fire History of Contemporary America, Year of the Fires: The Story of the Great Fires of 1910, and To the Last Smoke , a 9-book series of regional fire surveys.
Since 1993, October has been designated National Arts & Humanities Month to encourage Americans to explore new facets of the arts and humanities in their lives, and to begin a lifelong habit of participation in the arts and humanities. Join Michael Faison, Executive Director of the Idaho Commission on the Arts (ICA) and David Pettyjohn, Executive Director of the Idaho Humanities Council (IHC) as they discuss the essential roles the arts & humanities play in Idaho. They will also provide information on how their state-wide organizations enhance the social, economic, and cultural lives of Idahoans through programming, grants, and opportunities to engage. Michael Faison is the executive director of the Idaho Commission on the Arts. Faison previously served as the director of the Arts in Education Division of the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, the assistant director of the Oregon Arts Commission, and the executive director of the Center for Arts Management and Technology at Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He served as an information technology consultant for Pittsburgh’s Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild and was a high school art teacher in the Austin Independent School District, Austin, Texas. Faison is a member of the boards of the Western States Arts Federation, National Assembly of State Arts Agencies, Heinz College, Carnegie Mellon University Alumni Association, and the Boise Sunrise Rotary Club. He holds a bachelor’s degree in fine arts from the University of Texas at Austin, a master’s degree in arts management from Carnegie Mellon University, and multiple Texas teaching certifications.
Idaho novelist Vardis Fisher served as state director of the Federal Writers’ Project, a national New Deal program designed to put writers to work during the Great Depression. Meregaglia will discuss Vardis Fisher's Boise , a never-before-published manuscript written by Fisher. Finished in 1939, Fisher never found a sponsor for this guidebook to Boise, so it sat forgotten in the Library of Congress for 80 years. Through Meregaglia’s research on Caxton Printers, he located the manuscript, edited the text, and brought it to publication earlier this year through Rediscovered Books. Meregaglia will talk about the process of finding the manuscript as well as explaining Fisher’s larger role as Idaho state director of the Federal Writers’ Project. Alex Meregaglia is an archivist and assistant professor at Boise State University’s Albertsons Library, where he has worked since 2016. He holds a Master of Arts in history, with a focus on 20th century American history, and a Master of Library Science, specializing in archives and records management, from Indiana University. Vardis Fisher’s Boise is part of a larger research project on Caxton Printers of Caldwell, Idaho. His research is supported, in part, with grants from the Idaho Humanities Council, Boise State’s Osher Institute, and the Bibliographical Society of America.
How do the Renaissance and Reformation look different when viewed through the lens of gender? Join us for an exploration of women as both the subjects and creators of art. We’ll explore popular themes in art, such as Mary Magdalene and the Virgin Mary, and the great works of artists such as Artemisia Gentileschi, Caravaggio, Leonardo da Vinci, Barbara Longhi, Fra’ Fillipo Lippi, and Judith Leyster. Lisa McClain is a Professor of History and Gender Studies at Boise State University. She specializes in the history of Christianity during the Reformation era and the intersections of gender, religion, and popular culture. She is the author of the books Divided Loyalties? Pushing the Boundaries of Gender and Lay Roles in the Catholic Church, 1534-1829 (Palgrave MacMillan, 2018) and Lest We Be Damned: Practical Innovation and Lived Experience among Catholics in Protestant England 1559-1642 (Routledge, 2004), as well as numerous book chapters and journal articles. She is a past Idaho Humanities Council Research Fellow.
The life of American Western artist Archie Boyd Teater is recorded through his art, the construction of his studio/home, and in the extensive collection of archival material and artifacts left after the death of he and his wife, Patricia. Born in Boise in 1901, Teater became a prolific impressionist painter. With a popular studio in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Teater found success painting western scenes, commissioned portraits, and the Teton Range. His art funded trips around the world, and in the 1950s, a studio/home in Idaho designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. The only Frank Lloyd Wright designed structure in Idaho, Teater's Knoll still overlooks the Snake River. Teater's legacy reaches across disciplines and generations, still touching the lives of people who knew and study him. This conversation will explore Teater's life and ongoing impact through the many sources that recorded his story. Henry Whiting, owner of Teater's Knoll in Hagerman, Idaho. Henry is an expert on Frank Lloyd Wright and he has written two books about his home in Hagerman. Lester Taylor is a former economics professor who wrote the book on Archie Boyd Teater. His book, The Life and Art of Archie Boyd Teater , was published in 2016. He owns hundreds of Teater paintings and met Archie when he was alive. Employed by the Idaho State Historical Society, Chelsee (she/her) is a public historian with a background in archives and museums. She earned her MA from Boise State in 2017.
The history of the Silver Valley, Shoshone County Idaho reads like a dime novel with MURDER, MINING, MAYHEM, MEN, MONEY AND PROSTITUTION! Many of the Mining Laws of 1972 were written from the court cases filed in the Coeur d’Alene Mining District. The military highway through the South fork of the Coeur d’Alenes opened the territory to prospectors and adventurers. Wallace and the Silver Valley are mining camps, the railroads came because of the money to be earned shipping ore concentrated to the smelters. The industry has evolved with the changing times, environmental regulations and the communities are ready to continue their sustainability with changes as well. Shauna moved to Wallace in 1980, because the wind does not blow here! Wallace is the best small mountain town where a person could reside. It is on the Interstate 90 corridor, near to Spokane, Washington, and Missoula, Montana. (If one must go to the city.) It is in the middle of mountains, rivers, hiking trails and outdoors sports. She finds the history of the Coeur d’Alene Mining District, Shoshone County and the railroad transportation fascinating and surprisingly modern. She is curious and an avid reader, of all kinds of topics. It is a pleasure to reside and work in Wallace as we define ourselves as a mining camp, a tourist destination, a trailhead on crown jewel bicycle path, and a hometown.

2021
Although the US constitution dedicates relatively little space to the executive branch, it is specific about the Oath a president must take. Over the last two centuries, the inaugural ceremony accompanying the formal oath of office has varied quite a lot. From people who were inebriated and rambled through the speech, to people who spoke so long they became ill; I will discuss some interesting and politically important inaugurations. In addition, I will discuss who typically gets an invitation to inaugurations and how this impacts Idahoans. Bio: Matthew Miles is a professor of Political Science at BYU-Idaho where he teaches undergraduate courses on the Executive Branch and a longtime member of the Presidents and Executive Politics section of the American Political Science Association. He has authored a book and more than a dozen peer-reviewed articles. His research on the Executive Branch has been published in Public Administration Review , Policy Studies Journal , The International Journal of Press/Politics, and Presidential Studies Quarterly .
This presentation explores the unique history of the Basques from the late 19th century to today, their global immigration, and their impact on communities, especially in Idaho. Attendees will learn about Spain and France before mass Basque emigration, the region’s transformation into a major tourist destination, and the hardships Basques faced during the immigration process. The talk will highlight their perseverance in establishing communities across the western U.S. and their lasting impact on local culture. The Basque Museum & Cultural Center preserves and shares these stories to connect people of all backgrounds and celebrate the dignity of the human experience. Bio: Annie, a fourth-generation Basque-American, was born and raised on a cattle ranch in Paradise Valley, Nevada. She attended a small three-room grade school before continuing her education in Winnemucca. Active in student leadership and athletics, she carried that passion to Boise State University, earning a degree in Spanish with minors in Basque Studies and Business. She joined the Oinkari Basque Dancers, serving as a board member, dance director, and liaison for a decade. Her deep connections with Boise’s Basque community led to study, travel, and work opportunities in the Basque Block. Since college, Annie has worked in education and became the Education Program Specialist at the Basque Museum & Cultural Center in 2013. In 2016, she was appointed Executive Director, continuing the mission of preserving, promoting, and perpetuating Basque history and culture for future generations.
Rural lands are vanishing across the Treasure Valley and Idaho, impacting individuals, households, and communities. Join Dr. Jodi Brandt and Dr. Rebecca Som Castellano from Boise State University for a discussion on how these changes are measured, their implications, and the social effects of disappearing farmland. Bios: Jodi Brandt is a researcher at the Human-Environment Systems Research Center at Boise State University. Her work examines how human societies and ecosystems can thrive on a rapidly changing planet. She focuses on quantifying human-environment interactions and works with economists, ecologists, anthropologists, farmers, hunters, and tribal communities. Rebecca L. Som Castellano is an Associate Professor of Sociology at Boise State University. She earned her Ph.D. in Rural Sociology at The Ohio State University, an M.A. in Sociology from the University of Kentucky, and a B.A. from Western Washington University. Her research examines food policy, inequalities in sustainable agriculture, food insecurity, and climate change adaptation. She is currently studying the experiences of Latina farmworkers in Southern Idaho and land use changes affecting farmland and sagebrush steppe. She is also exploring how COVID has shaped local food consumption. Som Castellano has received national awards, including a USDA National Needs Fellowship. Her research is funded by the American Sociological Association, the USDA, and the Mountain West CTR-IN Program for Clinical and Translational Research.
This talk follows the cultural, economic, social and political impediments under which the Weimar Republic in Germany was born in 1918 and how the nearly constant assault of the conservative right wing upon a form of government it never accepted created opportunities for the extremist Nazi Party to take advantage of political paralysis, economic chaos, social panic and cultural despair to use democratic structures to come to power, establish a dictatorship, and increase popular support among Germans for the Nazi agenda. It will focus on Nazi use of traditional, conservative, populist and nostalgic themes to present a palatable program for non-Nazi members of the upper and middle classes that cut across traditional cultural cleavages in Germany, including religion, region, social class, gender, age, the rural-urban divide and the military-civilian divide. Key issues include revision of the post-World War I treaty system, destruction of the perceived leftist threat to Germany, stabilization of the economy, and restoration of self-esteem and solid German values to social and cultural life. Finally, it explores the Nazi presentation of WWII in terms that made it possible for non-Nazis to participate willingly in perpetrating Nazi crimes. Bio: Dr. Peter Black was the Senior Historian and Director of the Division of the Senior Historian at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum from 1997 until his retirement from federal service in January 2016. Previously, from 1978 until 1997, he served as a staff historian and (after 1986) as Chief Historian for the Office of Special Investigations (OSI), Criminal Division of the United States Department of Justice. Since January 2016, he has been active as an independent historian/consultant, whose most important client is the USHMM, in particular the Division of the Reference Historian. Educated at the University of Wisconsin (BA: 1972) and Columbia University (Ph.D in 1981), Dr. Black has held various teaching positions at George Mason University, Catholic University, American University and Columbia University.
Humanity struggled to contain infectious diseases long before the concept of microscopic germs emerged. The histories of smallpox, polio, and covid-19 illustrate how vaccine development has changed—and in some ways, not changed—in the last 300 years. Bio: Laura Jenski is a retired university professor and vice-president for research. She received her PhD in oncology and postdoctoral training in immunology from the University of Wisconsin and bachelor's and master's degrees in biology from Northern Illinois University After decades of authoring original scientific research articles, Laura now writes what she loves to read—serious mysteries and farces—for her independent publishing company, Snowbound Stories LLC.
This presentation will explore the circumstances that allowed for the development of women’s clubs in the United States between the early 1800s and early 1900s and the underlying ideologies and sentiments that spurred the growth of activism and organizing during Progressive Era. With this foundation the presentation will then explore the emergence of women’s clubs in Idaho, the specific work of these clubs, and the impact that these clubs had in their communities. The work of club women at the turn of the century supported various facets of the community, including health, education, the arts and humanities, and political and civic engagement. The presentation will end with an exploration of how some of these clubs adapted and continued to serve their community well into the 20th and 21st centuries, and how, thanks to the record keeping of these organizations, we (with the help of historians) can learn from the women leaders of the past. Bio : HannaLore graduated magna cum laude with a B.A. in History and Ethnic Studies from the University of Colorado, Boulder and received a Western American Studies certificate from the Center of the American West. She has a M.A. in Applied Historical Research from Boise State University. HannaLore has served on the Boise State Alumni Association Board of Directors since May 2016 and is also heavily involved with The Junior League of Boise, Inc. She has served on the Tango Boise, Inc. Board of Directors and currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Center of the American West.
Since Godzilla’s debut nearly 70 years ago in Gojira, the King of the Monsters has become a global icon and a symbol of Japan. But what can a fire-breathing movie monster reveal about Japanese culture and history? This talk explores how the 33 Godzilla films reflect Japan’s resilience in the face of disaster, the worldwide appeal of Japanese creature features, and how societies confront fears of invisible threats, from radiation to pandemics. Bios: Bill Tsutsui specializes in the economic, environmental, and cultural history of modern Japan. Educated at Harvard, Oxford, and Princeton, he has authored or edited eight books, including Manufacturing Ideology and Japanese Popular Culture and Globalization. His 2004 book Godzilla on My Mind was called a 'cult classic' by The New York Times. Tsutsui has received Fulbright, ACLS, and Marshall Fellowships, and won the John Whitney Hall Prize and the William Rockhill Nelson Prize for Non-Fiction. He has served on the boards of the Association for Asian Studies, the US-Japan Council, and the Federation of State Humanities Councils. From 2014 to 2019, he was President of Hendrix College and is now Professor Emeritus of History. His research focuses on Japanese environmental and popular culture history. Lisa M. Brady is a History professor at Boise State University, specializing in global, Asian, and environmental history. Her research explores how military activities shape the environment. Her book War upon the Land was published in 2012. She is working on volumes for Oxford University Press and a book on the Korean War’s environmental history. Brady was editor-in-chief of Environmental History from 2013-2019 and became History Department chair in 2021.
Stonewall National Monument is a new national park unit located in Christopher Park, part of New York City's Historic Greenwich Village . It is a park in progress with limited services, and in the coming years services will be added to the park in cooperation with our partners. The monument sits across the street from The Stonewall Inn, a National Historic Landmark known for its involvement in the beginning of the modern struggle for civil rights of gay and lesbian Americans. The Stonewall Inn exists as a private establishment and working bar. Stonewall was a milestone for LGBTQ civil rights that provided momentum for a movement. In the early hours of June 28, 1969, a police raid on the Stonewall Inn provoked a spontaneous act of resistance that earned a place alongside landmarks in American self-determination such as Seneca Falls Convention for women’s rights (1848) and the Selma to Montgomery March for African American voting rights (1965). Demonstrations continued over the next several nights at Christopher Park across from the Stonewall Inn and in the surrounding neighborhood. When asked to describe the difference that Stonewall had made, journalist Eric Marcus observed that before Stonewall, “For most people, there was no out, there was just in.”
From 2008 to 2014 a team of archaeologists conducted a series of excavations in the north Idaho town of Sandpoint. Ultimately, the project proved to be one of the largest projects in the state’s history recovering several hundred thousand artifacts. There are multiple themes that came out of this project. In this talk Dr. Warner will talk about two of their findings: a broad question of Sandpoint’s early economic connections to the world and a local question that many don’t think about - namely the economics of prostitution in Sandpoint. Underlying this talk is a goal of sharing how archaeology of the recent past can contribute in unexpected ways to understanding (and sharing) the past. Bio: Mark Warner is an historical archaeologist with over thirty years of experience in archaeology. He has worked in many parts of the U.S. and conducted major excavations in Maryland, Oklahoma, and in the Inland Northwest. Recent work in the region included the Sandpoint Archaeology Project (the largest CRM project in the state’s history), and multiple public archaeology projects in Boise and Moscow, ID which were visited by approximately 3500 people. A native of Michigan, Warner did his Master’s work at the University of Maryland and his Ph.D. at the University of Virginia. He has been teaching at the University of Idaho since 1998. While at Idaho, he has authored or edited four books, two thematic journal issues, multiple articles and generated over $900,000 in funding. He is the immediate past president of the Society for Historical Archaeology.
The Fremont cultures of the northeastern Great Basin and northern Colorado Plateau are understood as the northernmost maize agriculturalists in the North American Southwest. Because of the relatively recent timing of the Fremont foraging-farming transition (AD 300-1300), we can learn a great deal about the subtle interplay between climatic conditions and social decisions leading to the intensification of farming, the formation of early agricultural villages, and the development of complex societies. The Cub Creek reach of Dinosaur National Monument in northeastern Utah is a case study in the socio-ecological dynamics of Fremont culture. Bio: Judson Finley is Associate Professor of Anthropology and is Department Head of Sociology and Anthropology at Utah State University. Judson has spent his life and career living and working in western Wyoming, southern Idaho, and northern Utah. He specializes in the intersection of archaeology and earth sciences and it relates to the region’s cultural and natural history.
Ritualized festivals in Francophone Belgium (Wallonia) are central to civic pride and historical commemoration. Many saint-military marches, featuring hundreds in Napoleonic-era uniforms escorting a saint statue, received UNESCO recognition in 2012 as 'Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.' These processions often involve families with generations of participation. Binche is famous for its Carnival, featuring les Gilles—masked men with ostrich plume headdresses. In Mons and Ath, saint processions evolved into large-scale celebrations: Mons' festival includes mock combat with a dragon, while Ath’s features giant statues. The Carnival of Binche (2003), Le Doudou of Mons (2005), and La Ducasse of Ath (2005) all hold UNESCO recognition. These traditions, dating back to the late medieval period, ceased during the French Revolution but were revived in the 19th century. This talk explores their reinvention, 20th-century evolution, and their role in modern community identity. Bio: Dr. Erik Hadley earned his BA in History from the University of Montana and his MA and PhD from the University at Buffalo, specializing in Early Modern Europe and the Atlantic World. He is a lecturer in the History Department at Boise State University, teaching medieval and early modern Europe and oceanic histories. His research focuses on cultural history, folkloric rituals, identity, and commemoration in Western Europe and indigenous cultures of the Americas and Hawai’i. Dr. Hadley received a 2019-2020 Fulbright Research U.S. Scholar grant to Belgium to study the historical evolution and public memory of UNESCO-recognized folkloric festivals. He has authored numerous articles on cultural identity in French-speaking Belgium.
While the fall of the Alamo on March 6, 1836, has become an iconic moment in Texas--and due to the influence of Hollywood in American history--it was only one event in a chain that began decades earlier in Mexico's struggle for independence from Spain and stretched through the American Civil War. The siege and battle of the Alamo is a good way, then, to examine how ethnic, racial, political, economic, and social tensions in the westering of the United States worked themselves out in the face of Mexican and indigenous interests in what was to become the American Southwest. Bio: Jesús F. “Frank” de la Teja is Regents’ Professor Emeritus and University Distinguished Professor Emeritus of History at Texas State University in San Marcos. He obtained the Ph.D. in Latin American history from the University of Texas at Austin, and between 1985 and 1991 he worked in the Archives and Records Division of the Texas General Land Office. In 2018-2020 he served as Chief Executive Officer of the Texas State Historical Association. He has published extensively on Spanish, Mexican, and Republic-era Texas, including the award-winning San Antonio de Béxar: A Community on New Spain’s Northern Frontier, and most recently Faces of Béxar: Writings on Early San Antonio and Texas. He served as book review editor for the Southwestern Historical Quarterly from 1997 to 2014 and as managing editor of Catholic Southwest: A Journal of History and Culture from 1991 to 2005.
John Denver was one of America’s greatest country-folk singer-songwriters. With over 30 albums, he was more than a performer—he was an actor, environmentalist, and humanitarian. His music captured everyday life with deep conviction, especially in 'Take Me Home, Country Roads,' now one of West Virginia’s four state anthems. Bio: Robert Santelli was named Executive Director of the GRAMMY Museum in Los Angeles in 2006. Under his leadership, the Museum opened new locations, curated over 65 exhibits, produced 600+ public programs, and partnered with the White House and The Kennedy Center for education. A noted blues and rock historian, Santelli has contributed to Rolling Stone and The New York Times and authored over a dozen books, including the New York Times bestsellers Greetings From E Street and The Bob Dylan Scrapbook. He was an original curator of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and its first Director of Education and VP of Public Programs. In 2000, he became CEO of Seattle’s Experience Music Project (now MoPOP), the first interactive music museum. He also developed the UK’s first pop music museum, the British Music Experience. In 2012, Santelli co-produced Woody at 100: The Woody Guthrie Centennial Collection, earning a GRAMMY® nomination. After the GRAMMY Museum merged with the GRAMMY Foundation in 2017, he was named Founding Executive Director and now oversees its traveling exhibits and external projects.
In this talk, Riché Richardson reflects on the life, activism, and lasting impact of Rosa Parks. She explores Parks’ legacy, her work with children, and how it shaped Richardson’s own journey—from student activism at St. Jude Educational Institute in Montgomery, Alabama, to her career as a professor and artist engaging with Parks through writing and art. Richardson discusses her book, Emancipation’s Daughters: Reimagining Black Femininity and the National Body, which includes a chapter on Parks, along with her art quilts featured in solo shows at the Rosa Parks Museum in 2008 and 2015. Riché Richardson is a professor of African American literature at Cornell University’s Africana Studies and Research Center. A Montgomery native, she received a Ford Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship in 2001. Her work has been featured in NBC’s Today Show, CNN, Al Jazeera, and the New York Times, and her Op-Eds have appeared in Public Books and HuffPost. She has published nearly 40 essays and is the author of Black Masculinity and the U.S. South: From Uncle Tom to Gangsta, named an ‘Outstanding Academic Title of 2008’ by Choice Books. Emancipation's Daughters was published by Duke University Press in 2021. She is also the editor of the New Southern Studies book series at the University of Georgia Press and a visual artist whose quilts have been featured in national exhibitions.
The Berlin Wall, Polish Solidarity, Tiananmen Square, the dissolution of the Soviet Union: the end of the Cold War created cultural and political reverberations around the globe. Americans celebrated the United States’ triumph over the Soviet Union, having “won” a conflict that had dominated international affairs for half a century. Yet the end of the Cold War wrought changes in American culture that are sometimes difficult to trace, especially in comparison to the waves of revolution and mass demonstration that characterized other parts of the world between 1989 and 1991. This talk will explore some of the subtle ways that the end of the Cold War influenced American culture, many aspects of which have only become apparent in the three decades since. I contend that the experience of the 1980s and 1990s not only helps us understand American culture in the era since September 11, 2001, but also lends insight into the lasting influence of these decades in American culture today, from pop culture to politics. Bio: Dr. Sarah Robey is Assistant Professor of History at Idaho State University, where she teaches courses in American history, the history of the Cold War, the history of science and technology, and the history of energy. Her research focuses on the intersection of American culture and public life and the history of nuclear science and technology. Her first book, Atomic Americans: Citizens in a Nuclear State, will be published with Cornell University Press in early 2022. She also has a forthcoming chapter in Energy Cinema (West Virginia University Press, 2022), which explores how popular entertainment served as public nuclear education in the early Cold War. Robey holds a PhD in History from Temple University and has held past fellowships at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, the Miller Center for Public Affairs at the University of Virginia, and the Philadelphia History Museum.

2022
In 1847, Presbyterian missionary Henry Spalding acquired handmade Nez Perce artifacts and sent them from north-central Idaho to his friend and supporter, Dudley Allen, in Ohio in exchange for commodities. This was the fate of many early Native American materials, to be appropriated by non-Natives and removed from the hands and lands that created them. The shirts, dresses, baskets, horse regalia, and more—called the Wetxuuwíitin’ (formerly Spalding-Allen) Collection—would not return to their rightful home until they were purchased by the tribe from the Ohio Historical Society in 1996 for $608,100. On November 23rd, 2021, the Ohio History Connection (formerly the Ohio Historical Society) returned $608,100 to the Nez Perce Tribe. Burt Logan of the OHC stated that if the collection was “in the possession of the Ohio History Connection today, we would freely return these items to their rightful home.” The reclamation of these Nez Perce artifacts is the subject of a new WSU Press book, “Coming Home to Nez Perce Country,” published in June 2021. Bios: Nakia Williamson-Cloud, Director Nez Perce Tribe Culture Resource Program Trevor Bond, Associate Dean WSU Libraries and Director of the WSU Center for Arts and Humanities
An overview of Sacajawea from 1805-106 and the Lewis and Clark Expedition's time in Lemhi County, Idaho. Jumping back to today, a look at the different portrayals and representations of Sacajawea throughout the 20th and 21st century and the establishment and mission of the Sacajawea Center today. Bios: Suzy Avery, Director of the Sacagawea Interpretive, Cultural, and Educational Center, Salmon, ID Mike Crosby, Historian and Author
During the 20th century, hundreds of communities in the American West vanished due to river development projects—massive dams built for irrigation, hydroelectricity, and flood control. These projects displaced towns, tribal communities, farms, and ranches along the Snake, Colorado, and Columbia Rivers. The Atlas of Drowned Towns (drownedtowns.com) is a multimedia public history project dedicated to recovering these lost histories. This talk explores its objectives and key questions: How did displaced communities react—with enthusiasm, acquiescence, or resistance? Why? What was it like to leave these places behind? And what can we learn from these histories as we face future displacement? Bio: Bob H. Reinhardt is an associate professor of history at Boise State University, specializing in the American West, environmental history, public history, and public health. He is the author of The End of a Global Pox: America and the Eradication of Smallpox in the Cold War Era (UNC Press) and Struggle on the North Santiam: Power and Community on the Margins of the American West (Oregon State University Press). He previously served as Executive Director of the Willamette Heritage Center museum in Salem, Oregon, held a postdoctoral fellowship at Carnegie Mellon University, and taught at Western Oregon and Willamette Universities. He is also the founder and director of the Working History Center at Boise State.
This conversation will explore the role of the judiciary in the history of American’s struggle to form a more perfect union. A Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals Judge, a United States Bankruptcy Judge and a law clerk for the District of Idaho will discuss the role that the judiciary has played in history in either serving this effort or preventing it with a specific focus on cases in Idaho that have impacted our efforts as a nation to secure liberty, justice, and equal protection of the law for all citizens.
What does it mean to be a citizen? What are the obligations of citizenship in a Democracy? What responsibilities are intertwined with civic duty? Dr. David Gray Adler, Dr. Caroline Heldman, and Dr. Lara Brown share insights and answer questions from the audience in a timely special discussion. This program is funded by the 'Why It Matters: Civic and Electoral Participation' initiative, administered by the Federation of State Humanities Councils and funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
3 political science professors from Boise State University to discuss issues facing Idaho voters, both on the local and national level. Topics for discussion include voter apathy and voting patterns and each panelist will bring their own specialty to this timely discussion. This program is funded by the 'Why It Matters: Civic and Electoral Participation' initiative, administered by the Federation of State Humanities Councils and funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
What makes voters want to vote? What makes them want to be engaged in a certain election versus another? Dr. Caroline Heldman from Occidental College in Los Angeles and Dr. David Adler from the Alturas Institute will explore the impacts of voter apathy in smaller states and those deemed “safe” in the presidential election, such as Idaho. The discussion will also touch on the different ways various groups feel disenfranchised to vote, even on local ballots. This program is funded by the 'Why It Matters: Civic and Electoral Participation' initiative, administered by the Federation of State Humanities Councils and funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
The electoral college has been part of the US voting systems for more than two centuries. Debate on why it is still in use rather than the popular vote is very present from the general population. Comments such as “outdated,” “anti-democratic,” and “arbitrary” fly around as critiques against the institution. Join us as we discuss the history of the electoral college, if it should remain, and the mechanics behind the scenes. This program is funded by the 'Why It Matters: Civic and Electoral Participation' initiative, administered by the Federation of State Humanities Councils and funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
The United States has been around for more than 250 years, and the mechanisms for the way people vote has changed as the US matures. Many people wonder what voting can look like in the future. Voting on an app? Voting being done without paper? A national holiday for the presidential election? This panel will discuss path towards new voting means, and the issues preventing them. This program is funded by the 'Why It Matters: Civic and Electoral Participation' initiative, administered by the Federation of State Humanities Councils and funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
Join IHC for a panel discussion with prominent journalists Maria Hinojosa and Mark Trahant. They discuss why we view media as so polarizing, and the role journalism plays in our democracy. This panel was moderated by Bill Manny of Idaho Public Television and the IHC Board of Directors, and introduced by Monique Michel of IHC’s Board of Directors and director of Ballet Folklorico Mexico Lindo . These panel discussions were made possible with funding from the Mellon Foundation and the Federation of State Humanities Councils.
Listen to Kurt Ikeda, Director of Interpretation and Education, Minidoka national Historic Site briefly discus the impact and the history of the Minidoka Site in Idaho. This is the first episode in a three part series created in partnership with the Friends of Minidoka. Speakers: Kurt Ikeda Director of Interpretation and Education, Minidoka National Historic Site Robyn Achilles Executive Director, Friends of Minidoka
Dr. Donna Nagata from the University of Michigan discusses multi-generational trauma and the psychosocial consequences of the World War II incarceration and historical trauma on Japanese Americans with Robyn Achilles.
This panel discussion focuses on the impacts, stories, and legacies of Minidoka through the lens of survivors and descendants from the camp. The panel includes the following panelists: Paul Tomita, Survivor (Sansei) Mary Abo, Survivor (Nisei) Karen Hirai Olen, Survivor (Sansei) Wendy Tokuda, Descendant (Sansei) Stephen Kitajo, Descendant (Yonsei)
This three-part series presented by Dr. Liz Redd of Idaho State University will help listeners: 1) articulate pervasive myths and stereotypes of native American peoples often perpetuated in mainstream education/society 2) reframe discussions to dispel common misconceptions about Native American peoples, their histories, and their persistence & resistance 3) describe the unique sovereign political status of Native American Tribes in the United States as informed by history and policy 4) explore ways to incorporate diverse voices and perspectives throughout curriculum and programs Key concepts include representation, U.S. Native American Law & Policy, erasure, resistance, and sovereignty.
This three-part series presented by Dr. Liz Redd of Idaho State University will help listeners: 1) articulate pervasive myths and stereotypes of native American peoples often perpetuated in mainstream education/society 2) reframe discussions to dispel common misconceptions about Native American peoples, their histories, and their persistence & resistance 3) describe the unique sovereign political status of Native American Tribes in the United States as informed by history and policy 4) explore ways to incorporate diverse voices and perspectives throughout curriculum and programs Key concepts include representation, U.S. Native American Law & Policy, erasure, resistance, and sovereignty.
This three-part series presented by Dr. Liz Redd of Idaho State University will help listeners: 1) articulate pervasive myths and stereotypes of native American peoples often perpetuated in mainstream education/society 2) reframe discussions to dispel common misconceptions about Native American peoples, their histories, and their persistence & resistance 3) describe the unique sovereign political status of Native American Tribes in the United States as informed by history and policy 4) explore ways to incorporate diverse voices and perspectives throughout curriculum and programs Key concepts include representation, U.S. Native American Law & Policy, erasure, resistance, and sovereignty.
Adam Sowards, Professor Emeritus at the University of Idaho, joins us to provide context on the American Landscape through four laws, two places, and two people.
Kyle T. Mays, Assistant Professor of African American Studies, American Indian Studies, and History at UCLA, joins us to provide context on Afro-Indigenous History of the United States with a focus on the Black Power and Red Power movements.
Celebrity historian Raffi Andonian explores the history of the American dream from the founding of the US to present day through people, art, and objects.
Join Dr. Markie McBrayer as she explores political party systems through US history. This includes shifts in party values, names, and structures.
Join Dr. Markie McBrayer from University of Idaho as she discusses the history of third parties in the United States' two-party system.
A small town weighs the economic compromises of growth in the Rocky Mountain West. Dr. Ryanne Pilgeram from University of Idaho joins us to discuss her book on Dover, Idaho titled "Pushed Out." What happens to rural communities when their traditional economic base collapses? When new money comes in, who gets left behind? Pushed Out offers a rich portrait of Dover, Idaho, whose transformation from “thriving timber mill town” to “economically depressed small town” to “trendy second-home location” over the past four decades embodies the story and challenges of many other rural communities. Check out her book at the Book People store in Moscow or Vanderford’s in Sandpoint.
Join Dr. Rebecca Scofield from University of Idaho as she discussed how history is collected, told, and organized. She also explores the pitfalls of these processes, including how to navigate nuances in the tapestry of history.
Join Dr. Rebecca Scofield as she shares her family's story in Idaho. Throughout the story, Dr. Scofield shines a light on the overlapping experiences a place can hold.

2023
Join Susan Anderson, History Curator at the California African American Museum as she walks us through gold rush California. She will look at this time period in California history through the lens of African Americans and their stories.
Join Dr. Marie Stango, Assistant Professor - 18th- and 19th-Century U.S.; Women, Gender, and Sexuality; African American and African Diaspora studies at Idaho State University in a talk about the multiple facets of Abolition in the U.S.
Historian Dr. Ida Meftahi, from Boise State University, joins us in a fascinating conversation about her pioneering work in documenting the history of Iranian Dance and her personal journey as a dancer, scholar, and educator.
Dr. Gautam Basu Thakur is the director of the critical theory minor at Boise State University and chair of a new department and major- Humanities and Cultural Studies. He joins us to talk about this new program and the value of applying critical theory to literature.
Dr. Ann Campbell, a professor of English Literature from Boise State University, joins us to talk about why Jane Austen is the author of our go-to comfort reading and viewing, despite publishing only 6 novels over 200 years ago.
Dr. Nick Underwood, a professor of historian modern Jewish and European history from the College of Idaho joins us to talk about the essentials of Jewish history, antisemitism, Idaho’s Jewish history, and the value to all Idahoans of our religious diversity.
Arlie Sommer makes media art about and for Idahoans, exploring this place and the people who make Idaho unique. She joins us to talk about her latest project, a short documentary about an “Idaho Babe.”
Dr. Sydney Freeman, Jr. from the University of Idaho joins Johanna to talk about the Black History Research Lab and the important work he is performing as a memory keeper.
Dr. Johann Neem from Western Washington University joins Johanna in this episode to talk about the history of American public schools and the wrestle they are facing today about how to teach our nation’s history.
Join Johanna and Rachel Stewart, Vampire Scholar, to talk about the history of vampires in literature, TV, and film. They also discuss how women have played a central role in the fate of vampires in popular media.
I am blooming from the wound where I once bled. –Rumi Idaho is fraught rich with stories of loss hope. Stories of failure resilience. Stories of doubt belief in a better future. Some of those stories are often repeated and some have not yet been told. It’s time to revisit our narratives from the past, to revise our stories for the future, to re-story a state and its beings whose destiny relies on what kind of storytellers we raise and what kind of ancestors we are going to become. In this interactive session that blends story, poetry, traditional ecological knowledge, science, and history, CMarie Fuhrman, Idaho writer in residence resistance will guide you on a journey of re-storyation. She will provide prompts, pedagogies, and poems to mix with imagination and literature to teach hope, resilience, and love and show how the craft of literature can make the stories and beliefs that change the future.
In this episode, Dr. Sara Dant explains the history of how we use public lands in the West and how federal land management agencies have stewarded those lands for the public. Dr. Dant’s presentation can best be viewed on YouTube and is geared toward students and teachers.
Join us for this episode to learn about the remarkable project co-directed by our guests that is working to preserve wartime stories, experiences, and objects to help communities connect with the history of war.
Sir Alfred Hitchcock is arguably the most celebrated and admired film director in history. Dr. Douglas Cunningham joins Johanna to talk about the essential Hitchcock films everyone needs to watch and what we learn about ourselves through his work.
Johanna is joined by Dr. Russell P. Johnson from the University of Chicago Divinity School to talk about our favorite holiday films.
Blake Lingle, founder and owner of Boise Fry Company and author of Fries!, An Illustrated Guide to the World’s Favorite Food teaches us everything we ever wanted to know about French fries! Including, why they are not really French!
Johanna and Dr. Rebecca Schwartz talk about a little-known area of World War II history in Idaho that significantly impacted Idaho families. Note: The Long Afterlife of Nikkei Wartime Incarceration by Karen Inouye is the correct title of a book referenced in this episode.
In this episode Johanna is joined by Dr. Matthew Levay from Idaho State University to discuss the history and value of comics and recommends some must-read favorites!
In this episode, our guest is Kári Tulinius, an Icelandic poet and novelist. Join Johanna to learn about the unique literary culture of Iceland that culminates in a book flood every year at Christmas time.

2024
Johanna is joined by European historian Dr. Alexandria Ruble from the University of Idaho to learn about the surprising history of women’s rights in Germany after World War II. Dr. Alexandria N. Ruble is an assistant professor of European history at the University of Idaho. She earned her Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2017. Her research focuses on central Europe, Germany, Nazi Germany and the Holocaust, the Cold War, and women’s and gender history. Her first book, Entangled Emancipation: Women’s Rights in Cold War Germany, was published in December 2023 by University of Toronto Press.
John Poole from BYU-Idaho joins Johanna this week to talk about how he became an advocate of social justice in the classroom and how teaching about the Holocaust has inspired him. John Poole is a professor of English education at BYU-Idaho. Prior to that, he was a teacher and a principal at an alternative high school. He started his career as a high school English teacher. He has been interested in social justice issues since he encountered a white supremacist student in his high school English class. He is a lifetime resident of Idaho.
Sharon Stoll is an award-winning teacher and director of the Center for ETHICS at the University of Idaho. She discusses with Johanna the value of honor and integrity in athletics and how to teach moral reasoning. Dr. Sharon Stoll serves as the Director of the Center for ETHICS* at the University of Idaho. She is considered one of the leading authorities in competitive moral education intervention techniques for college-aged students in America. Also, a professor of Physical Education, Dr. Stoll is a Distinguished Faculty Member and winner of many awards. A former public school teacher, coach, and athlete, Dr. Stoll holds a Ph.D. in Sport Philosophy from Kent State University and is the creator and director of one of the few programs in America that is directed toward moral education with competitive populations. Dr. Stoll is well known for her knowledge of teaching and methodology as applied to pedagogy in moral education and character development. She is also the author of 8 books and is an active consultant and lecturer.
Randy’L Teton talks to Johanna about her new book It’s Her Story: Sacajawea and her special connection to this incredible heroine in Idaho history. Randy’L Teton – Randy’L is a member of the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes of Fort Hall, Idaho. In 1998, Randy’L was chosen as the Shoshone model for the US Golden Dollar coin aka the Sacajawea dollar coin, Since then, Randy’L has gained wide recognition for her work in tribal history, tribal government, communications, and museum curation. She is proud to serve her family, tribe, state, and Indian Country by helping Tribes tell their story from an Indigenous perspective. She currently lives in southeastern Idaho with her three children and enjoys collecting coins. Randy'L also serves on the board of trustees of the IHC and is a valued colleague and friend of our work.
Dr. Caitlin Cieslik-Miskimen joins Johanna to talk about how valuable student newspapers and yearbooks are to study American history. Caitlin Cieslik-Miskimen is an assistant professor in the School of Journalism and Mass Media. She received her Ph.D. in Mass Communication and History from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and joined the University of Idaho faculty in 2019. In addition to media history, she teaches courses in public relations and strategic communications. As a media historian, she explores the cultural role that print products played in communities in the early 20th century. Part of Dr. Cieslik-Miskimen’s research has focused on media coverage of American high schools and the origins of high school journalism. She recently published a book chapter, " A Window into the World of Students: An Analysis of 1920s High School Student Newspapers ," and is currently working on a journal article about media coverage of high school student protests in the 1920s.
Johanna is joined by Dr. Ashley Kerr to learn about how the Buenos Aires Zoo was used to shape the debates around immigration, women’s rights, and labor unions in Argentina in the early 20th century. Ashley Kerr is an associate professor of Spanish and Latin American Studies. As an undergraduate, Kerr spent a year living in Chile. After graduation she taught English in Argentine Patagonia as a Fulbright English teaching assistant. She has also taught abroad in Valencia, Spain; Montevideo, Uruguay; and sailed around the Atlantic as a faculty member on Semester at Sea. At the University of Idaho, she teaches upper-level courses on Latin American culture, literature and film. Her research focuses on race and gender in Argentina and Uruguay in the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries. Her first book, Sex, Skulls, and Citizens: Gender and Racial Science in Argentina (1860-1910), was named the 2020 Best Book by the Nineteenth Century Studies section of the Latin American Studies Association.
Dr. Jim Gentry joins Johanna to share a little-known story from Twin Falls history, highlighting the resilience of communities in times of growth and hardship. A history professor at the College of Southern Idaho from 1969 to 2010, Dr. Gentry earned his Ph.D. in History from the University of Utah in 1985. While working on his dissertation, he developed a passion for local history, leading to several publications. His works include In the Middle and on the Edge: The Twin Falls Region of Idaho (2003), Meeting Needs and Developing Opportunities: A History of the College of Southern Idaho (2015), Transformations: A History of First Baptist Church of Twin Falls (2020), and The 51 Tunnels that Saved Twin Falls: Twin Falls Canal Company’s Bold Solution to a Big Drainage Surprise (2023).
This special episode of Context is dedicated to families impacted by organ donation. Johanna is joined by Heather Platts and Bruce Michael Miller, the musical duo Crazy Love. Heather donated a kidney to Bruce, and together they created an album to share their story and inspire others facing the organ donation process. Heather Platts is a passionate performer whose style is reminiscent of Bonnie Raitt and Grace Potter. She earned a BA in Music Composition from the University of Idaho in 1996 and has released two albums recorded in Nashville. She has performed at the Boise Music Festival, Thousand Springs Festival of Art, Sisters in Songwriting Concert Series, and the inaugural Chick Singer Night in Boise. Heather teaches voice, piano, and songwriting in Twin Falls. Bruce Michael Miller is an award-winning songwriter, producer, and guitarist who has toured with Paul McCartney, Kenny Loggins, and Laura Branigan. A professional songwriter for 25 years in Nashville, he has had over 40 songs recorded, including a No. 1 international hit with country artist Ashley Puckett. As a songwriting consultant and educator, he has mentored writers on over 14,000 songs and was a professor at Nashville State College. Since relocating to Idaho in 2017, Bruce has embraced the region’s landscapes and community. As president of the Idaho Songwriters Association, he teaches songwriting workshops and works with private clients. Heather and Bruce perform throughout the West as Crazy Love and are part of the Inquiring Idaho program.
In March, Boise State sociology professor Dr. Sharon Paterson offered a workshop course about Taylor Swift. Learn about the sociology of a pop star as Johanna discusses the course with Dr. Paterson and students Sophie Pederson and Jazmyne Hartogh. Dr. Sharon Paterson’s 30-year career has been dedicated to implementing programs that increase college students’ success and learning, mentoring students’ academics, research and leadership, and teaching sociology courses on broad topics such as gender, inequality, work and higher education. Dr. Paterson’s passion is engaging students’ intellectual curiosity and helping them apply concepts to everyday life. Sophie Pederson is a senior at Boise State University. She majors in Sociology and is also passionate about Anthropology and Psychology. After graduating, she plans to continue her studies in sociology or evolutionary psychology. In her free time she enjoys skiing and camping. Jazmyne Hartogh is a senior at Boise State University, graduating this upcoming May of 2024. She is graduating with a bachelor’s in integrated media and strategic communications with an emphasis in Integrated Media, as well as earning certificates in Public Relations and Sports, Information, and Culture.
Johanna interviews Kim Madsen Dill about the veteran’s literature class she teaches at the College of Southern Idaho, that was inspired by her father’s military service. Kim Madsen Dill has taught in the English Department at the College of Southern Idaho since 2004 and recently retired. She was the Writing Program Administrator for the English Department. Kim oversaw the writing program and was the Faculty Liaison for Dual Credit teachers. She also volunteered teaching English at the CSI Refugee Center.
Johanna is thrilled to be joined by Dr. Emily Wakild from Boise State University to learn more about one of Idaho’s most beloved governors, and the last Democrat to serve as governor of Idaho, Cecil D. Andrus. Dr. Wakild is a professor of environmental studies and the Cecil D. Andrus Endowed Chair for the Environment and Public Lands at Boise State University. Raised in eastern Oregon, she earned her B.A. from Willamette University in Salem, Oregon in 1999 and her PhD from the University of Arizona in 2007. Dr. Wakild’s main academic research excavates documents, images, interviews, and fragments of the past to explain why and how large spaces for nature conservation were built throughout the Americas. She is the author of Revolutionary Parks: Conservation, Social Justice and Mexico’s National Parks (Arizona 2011), which received awards from the Conference of Latin American History, the Forest History Society, and the Southeastern Council on Latin American Studies. She has also written extensively about environmental pedagogy, including with Michelle K. Berry, A Primer for Teaching Environmental History, (Duke 2018) and the article "Pedagogy for the Depressed: Empowerment and Hope in the Face of the Apocalypse" in The Routledge Handbook of Environmental History. In 2024, her study of national parks in South America will be published. Her research has been supported by the Fulbright Foundation, the National Science Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Humanities. Dr. Wakild is currently working on several Idaho-based research projects including essays on "Mispronouncing Idaho" and work celebrating the ways conservation brings Idahoans together.
Russell Meeuf from the University of Idaho joins Johanna this week to talk about his book White Terror: The Horror Film from Obama to Trump . He argues that horror films are a form of social and political critique for both conservatives and liberals and discusses how that was seen in the Obama era and the election of Donald Trump. Dr. Russel Meeuf is a professor in the School of Journalism and Mass Media and the director of the film and television program at the University of Idaho. He received his doctorate from the University of Oregon and specializes in research on popular media and culture. In particular, his work focuses on celebrity culture, popular cinema, masculinity studies, and disability studies. His writings have appeared in journals. Reflecting these interests, he is the author of several books on media culture, including White Terror: The Horror Film from Obama to Trump (Indiana University Press, 2022), Rebellious Bodies: Stardom Citizenship, and the New Body Politics (University of Texas Press, 2017) as well as John Wayne's World: Transnational Masculinity in the Fifties (University of Texas Press, 2013). He is also the co-editor of several collections on film and popular culture.