Staff of The Vermont Folklife Center
Brent Björkman, Executive Director
info@vermontfolklifecenter.org
His initial connection to the world of folklore came as a student of material culture, ethnology, and traditional wood design at Västerberg Folk High school near Sandviken, Sweden. Upon returning to the U.S. in 1996 Björkman followed this practical application of material culture with a MA in Folk Studies from Western Kentucky University. From 1998 through 2004 Björkman held the position of folklife specialist with the Kentucky Folklife Program. During this time he oversaw much of the KFP’s ongoing programming which included fieldwork and documentation projects, a biennial state-wide folklife festival, a folklife project and folk art apprenticeship granting program, and educational outreach programs for teacher’s and community scholars. Björkman has provided consulting expertise to national and state organizations including the National Endowment for the Arts and National Council for the Traditional Arts, Southern Arts Federation, Northwest Folklife, the Maine Arts Commission, West Virginia Folk Art Apprenticeship Program, The Mississippi Arts Commission, the Illinois Arts Council and the Ohio Arts Council. Prior to joining the VFC in July 2007 Björkman was Associate Director of the American Folklore Society based in Columbus, Ohio
Gregory L. Sharrow, Director of Education/Folklorist
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Greg Sharrow serves as the VFC's Director of Education and Folklorist. Sharrow brings to the Center a history of academic excellence and years of teaching experience. He holds a BA from Oberlin College, a MEd from UVM and has his PhD in Folklore and Folklife from the University of Pennsylvania. Sharrow taught at the Braintree School in the Orange Southwest Supervisory Union (Vermont) for several years and was named Outstanding Teacher of the Year for that district in 1983. He was also appointed as the Mellon Graduate Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania for the 1987-88 Academic Year. His current research interests include the interplay of folklife and personal identity and the role that culture plays in our construction of self.
Andy Kolovos, Archivist/Folklorist
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Andy Kolovos is the VFC's Archivist and a staff Folklorist. He earned a BA in Literature from Bennington College, and holds an MA in Folklore and an MLS, both from Indiana University. He is currently struggling toward his PhD in Folklore from Indiana. He has worked as an Instructor for the Department of Folklore and Ethnomusicology at Indiana University, a researcher and archivist for Traditional Arts Indiana, a fieldworker for the Polis Center at IUPUI, project assistant for the Folklore volume of the MLA International Bibliography, and the librarian and archivist of the American Society for Psychical Research. His research interests include audio field recording, audio preservation and the history and development of folklore and folklife archives. He maintains the Vermont Folklife Center's Audio Field Recording Equipment Guide.
Sarah Stahl, Operations Manager
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Sarah joined the VFC staff in November, 1999. She came to us from the Shelburne Farms Welcome Center and Farm Store where she directed all aspects of operations and coordinated visitors, volunteers, weekend tours, and other special events. She has a background in graphic and commercial interior design and has taught Art History. She was also co-owner of Store Two, Inc., in Middlebury for twelve years. She earned her BA from the University of Vermont and attended Syracuse University.
Maria Schumann, Folklorist
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Maria Schumann grew up in Glover, Vermont, where she still lives. She holds a B.A. in Women’s Studies from Yale University and is completing her Masters from the Curriculum in Folklore at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Her diverse experience includes working as an archivist at the Southern Folklife Collection at UNC; performing, leading workshops, and directing the chorus at the Bread and Puppet Theater in Glover, Vermont; and making artisnal sheep cheese at Bonnieview Farm in Albany, Vermont.
Deborah Laframboise, Accountant
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Bob Hooker, Administrative Assistant
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Hours of Operation
Vermont Folklife Center
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