Author: Fred Atchison

Anthea Scouffas is passionate about connecting people to the arts and to each other. She works every day to do just that as the Engagement and Education Director at the Lied Center of Kansas. She studied History and Education at Eastern Illinois University and worked at the University of Illinois, Krannert Center for the Performing Arts before coming to Lawrence. Scouffas is also responsible for grant writing and oversight of grants which lead her to a unique creative collaboration on North, the musical.

The idea for the musical came from Ashli St. Armant a Los Angeles vocalist, writer and arts educator. St. Armant has performed for young audiences all over the country. She grew up in New Orleans and she has been greatly influenced by the music and history of that great city. North is the story of a mother and son who escape slavery in Louisiana and undertake a perilous journey north which includes a stop on the Underground Railroad in Lawrence. Scouffas worked closely with St. Armant to develop the musical and a teachers guide for North. The world premier of North will be at the Lied Center on October 26 at 7:00 p.m. There will also be special performances for fourth and fifth grades. North pays tribute to an important piece of history and celebrates the music of New Orleans.

Jennifer Raff developed an early love of science, earning advanced degrees in Genetics and Biological Anthropology from the University of Indiana. She is an Assistant Professor of Anthropology at the University of Kansas, utilizing genetics to study the origin of humans in the Americas. Her best selling book “Origin“, published February 2022, tells the dramatic story of how genetics has changed our understanding of the history of the Americas. It was believed for many years that humans crossed a land bridge between Asia and North America through an ice free corridor and quickly populated the two continents, killing off the megafauna in the process. DNA recovered from ancient peoples reveals a wealth of scientific information about the origin and movement of these peoples, and tells a much more complex story. Many scientists now believe that humans were here some 25,000 years ago and utilized a coastal route to populate the Americas.

Unfortunately, there is a history of scientists sometimes exploiting native people . Raff makes a case for the importance of researchers respecting tribal sovereignty. The study of early humans is a field that is changing very fast with the discovery of new sites and advances in the science. Raff also presents public talks and writes on aspects of science literacy. She has numerous publications, podcasts and interviews to her credit.

Ancient animal bones can tell a story according to French zooarcheologist Lauriane Bourgeon. Bourgeon spoke by Zoom to talk about her work at Bluefish Caves in the Northern Yukon. She is an expert in the study of animal remains and is trained to identify signs of humans, including fire signs, cut marks and fracture patterns. Bourgeon was recently working on the Kansas University Campus and traveled to Bluefish Caves as part of a research team. What the team found was what they believed to be an ice age hunting camp. The excavation produced bone remains of elk, deer, mammoth, wolf, bison and horse. A number of the bones bore scrape marks believed to be made by humans.

The bones were dated and found to be quite old, the oldest dating to 23,000 years ago. The work at Bluefish Caves is controversial as the archaeology community believed for many years that human presence in the Americas was dated to 12,000-13,000 years ago. No human remains were found at the site, perhaps because it was a temporary camp. It is hoped that the far north will yield other sites to study and to compare to the findings at Bluefish Caves. Bourgeon described the remoteness and difficulty of working at the site. The team traveled to the site by helicopter and had to deal with difficult supply and weather conditions. Bourgeon is hoping to return to the area to work on a newly discovered cave.

It is important to understand the history of a place and honor the people who lived in that place. Dr. Eric P. Anderson, Chair of Indigenous Studies, Haskell Indian Nations University, explained the concept of a Land Acknowledgement Statement. Many institutions have adopted statements that speak to the history and presence of native peoples who lived on the land in the past. These statements identify these tribes as a demonstration of respect for their history and culture. Dr. Anderson has assisted in the writing of Land Acknowledgement Statements for Watkins History Museum and the Symphony in the Flint Hills annual event. He cautions that these statements are in no measure a threat to the present system of land ownership.

Dr. Anderson grew up in Wichita and did his undergraduate and graduate work at the University of Kansas. His primary research interests include American Indian education and the system of federal boarding schools established in the 1900s. He is also interested in American West studies. Dr. Anderson is a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation.

Barbara Ballard was elected to the Kansas State House of Representatives in 1993 and presently serves as the House Minority Chair. Ballard attributes her career success to a number of factors, starting with her family. Her parents raised her with the expectation of achievement and the belief that she would do something special with her life. She serves on key committees dealing with appropriations, transportation, redistricting, mental health. She believes her political success is due to hard work, the ability to compromise and work across the isle, a civil temperament, and the ability to change her mind. Ballard answered questions on the big issues of the day, including redistricting, the new Panosonic Plant in De Soto and the August ballot measure on abortion.

Ballard graduated from Webster College and earned advanced degrees from Kansas State University. She has served in a number of Kansas University administrative positions and is Associate Director of the Dole Institute. Ballard also serves on numerous boards and professional associations.