By Kristine McCusker
February 2021 Newsletter
We hope that, during in the difficulties of a pandemic and political and economic uncertainty, you are surviving.
The OHA is navigating the perils of the pandemic well, thanks to the hard work of Council, volunteers and our intrepid Program Associate Faith Bagley. We are busy planning #OHA2021 and are pursuing positive approaches to holding a meeting in a time of pandemic. We are still monitoring the situation, preparing for the possibility of another virtual meeting, and will know more soon. Once we know for certain, we will send an email to the membership.
In the meantime, we are finding new opportunities to promote the organization:
- This year, we will conduct two oral history trainings for regional library systems in Tennessee.
- Thanks to support from the National Endowment for the Humanities, we are publishing online our most compelling 2020 conference sessions. They will be available by the end of February and will be open to the public.
- Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez will be conducting an OHA-sponsored workshop on Latinx oral histories for the Organization of American Historians on April 15 from noon-1:30 p.m. EST. Special thanks to Virginia Espino for organizing this session. Pre-registration with OAH is required.
We are also helping Troy Reeves, the OHA’s new treasurer, ease into his job. He has already been a stellar support, providing good observations and wry asides as we make finance and insurance decisions. He also enjoys horrifying us southerners with horror stories of snowy Wisconsin.
We are in the process of setting up new financial systems (e.g. making Paypal a payment option) that will make it easier for our members.
As always, if there’s anything the OHA can do, please let us know. Until we hear from you then, best–or at least better–for 2021.
