Curriculum Vitae

Education

May 2026

Middle Tennessee State University

Doctor of Philosophy in Public History
Concentration in Historic Preservation with special skills in Digital Tools and Museum studies.

August 2022

Middle Tennessee State University

Master of Arts in Public History
Concentration in Historic Preservation and Material Culture.

The Preservation of a Historic Black Farm: Matt Gardner Homestead in Giles County, Tennessee.

December 2019

Morehead State University

Bachelors of Arts in Public History
Minors in Agriculture and Social Media

Summer 2019

Study Abroad

KIIS Berlin Summer Program
KIIS Slavic Europe Program

Experiance

August 2021 - May 2022

Graduate Assistant, MTSU Center for Historic Preservation

Research assistantship has focused on two major exhibit/historic sites projects: the Gardner Farm, a historic Black farm in Giles County, and the Two Families, Two Revolutions exhibit that focuses on a Black and White family and their different experiences of freedom as the Center's primary America 250 public program

January 2022 - Current

Archives and Curitoral Assistant, Travellers Rest Historic Home Museum

Primary responsibilities include: the cataloging, identification, and digitization of the Dickinson Era Arabian Horse Collection; creating an online database for the Enslaved Persons Documentation Project; and establishing a similar database for the decorative arts collection. Additional duties include assisting the collections manager with curation and conservation of objects in the collection.

August 2022 - May 2023

Exhibit Manager, Bradley Academy Museum & Cultural Center

Co-Exhibit Manager for an exhibit produced by MTSU students for Bradley Academy, which is the city's primary Black history institution. Stories from Black Murfreesboro and Rutherford County was a combined effort of museum staff, the local African American community, and MTSU graduate students. As the co-exhibit manager, my duties included working with museum staff to help facilitate the acquisition of donated objects for the exhibit by community members. Other responsibilities included coordinating students working on different aspects of the exhibit, editing panels and exhibit labels, installing UV film and exhibit cases, and working with museum staff and IT on installing the digital components of the exhibit.

May 2021 - August 2021

Research Intern, Land Trust of Tennessee / Tennessee Civil War National Heritage Area

The project was focused on the Matt Gardner Homestead in Elkton, TN. Research included some of the material culture objects in the museum's collection. A Family tree was created and researched to compile a detailed family history for a museum exhibit. An Omeka site was created to serve as a database for the museum collection and future online exhibits.

August 2020 - May 2021

Graduate Research Assistant, Middle Tennessee State University History Department

Research assistantship with Dr. Aaron Treadwell to compile data on congregations within the AME Church. Responsibilities included creating an Excel spreadsheet containing the different conferences and the churches within those conferences. Under the supervision of Dr. Molly Taylor-Poleskey, I administered the Graduate History Department's social media, on Facebook and Instagram.

Research & Presentations

Two Families Two Revolutions exhibit at the Heritage Center of Murfreesboro and Rutherford County, ongoing.
State Board Programming Grant for Travellers Rest Historic House Museum through the Tennessee Historical Records Advisory Board, September 2023.
Travellers Rest Enslaved Persons Documentation Project, Omeka site, Summer 2023.
Why Rural Black Landscapes Matter: The Matt Gardner Homestead Museum, National Council on Public History Annual Meeting, Poster Session, April 2023.
Chapman-Singleton Artifact Report, Spring 2023.
Bradley Academy Museum and Cultural Center Digital Collection, Omeka site, Spring 2023.
Stories from Black Murfreesboro and Rutherford County exhibit at Bradley Academy Museum & Cultural Center, Fall 2022 & Spring 2023.
The Moore Family Farm Brochure, Fall 2022.
The Preservation of a Historic Black Farm: Matt Gardner Homestead in Giles County, Tennessee, Master’s Thesis, Summer 2022.
The Selma to Montgomery March Campsites: The Robert Gardner Farm, Fall 2021 & Spring 2022 Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2023.
Executive Preservation Report for the Green Book House in Franklin, TN, Spring 2021.
Farm Equipment and Their Uses Beyond the Field, Spring 2021.
Biographies for the Benevolent Cemetery National Register Listing, Fall 2020.
Preserving A 18th Century Home in A Growing Urban Environment, Conference in L’viv, Ukraine, Summer 2019