The Friends of the Columbus-Lowndes Public Library and Mississippi University for Women partner for the final April Table Talk presentation. MUW students, who are taking Dr. Erin Kempker’s course, Religion in American History, will present their research on “New Perspectives on Local Religious History” on Wednesday, April 30, starting at noon.
The students spent the semester learning about how religion influenced the American experience and have put their skills to the test by conducting research into local religious history at the Local History Department of the Columbus Lowndes Public Library and the MUW Archives.
“History is not just about passive learning, although most of us really enjoy good story-telling,” said Dr. Kempker. “The study of history requires that students ‘do’ history, which means that they conduct original research and ideally share it with the public.”
“We are very excited to have the opportunity to share our work,” Kempker noted. “The projects reveal the diverse interests of the students, but all the projects uncover different facets of how religion influenced the local community and local history.”
“There’s a great variety in the students’ concise, focused presentations,” said Friends member Jo Shumake. “We hope that everyone will take advantage of this opportunity to learn more about our past.”
The students’ presentations cover the following topics:
Table Talks are held at the Columbus-Lowndes Public Library, 314 Seventh St. N. Doors open at 11:30 a.m. for those wishing to bring their lunch and socialize before the program begins. The Friends will serve iced tea.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 37 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.