Berea College

The Woodworking School at Pine Croft, a division of Berea College Student Craft, is now registering for spring 2023 classes.

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Ten different classes covering an array of woodworking skills will be offered and taught by woodworking instructors visiting Berea from around the country. One special class offered in the spring will be The Chairmaker’s Toolbox, a program aimed at bringing people together through access and equality in the field of chairmaking.

“We are extremely excited to have The Chairmaker’s Toolbox with us in the spring,” said Andy Glenn, head of Pine Croft. “The Chairmaker’s Toolbox is working to raise awareness of traditional woodworking techniques to those who may be interested, but do not otherwise have access to this type of program. By eliminating barriers to education and providing chairmaking tools to those who participate, we are literally growing a new generation of chairmakers. Bringing this nationally known program to Berea College is a great way to raise awareness.”

Kelly Harris from Brooklyn, New York, will lead the class, along with Alexandra Mavrikis and Aspen Golann.

The Chairmaker’s Toolbox course requires an application process. All other classes are available to the public, regardless of previous experience.

“There are no requirements for these classes,” Glenn said. “Some are more challenging, so previous woodworking experience helps, but regardless, all are welcome to attend.”

Glenn said the classes offer more than just woodworking skill.

“This is a chance to be involved with a supportive community,” he said. “Every time we offer classes, I am impressed by the students, how they help and encourage one another and how they share their excitement for this craft.”

Hunter Elliot, the director of apprenticeships at Student Craft who has completed three previous Pine Croft classes, encourages everyone—regardless of skill level—to attend.

“Whether you are a beginner or have had experience in woodworking, there’s always something to learn,” Elliot said.

Both Glenn and Elliot agree on one thing—The Woodworking School at Pine Croft is beneficial for both the Berea community and beyond.

“We offer renowned instructors from around the country, and students travel from afar,” Glenn said. “But we also have had students from Madison County, Rockcastle County and Estill County who attend. We love that these classes have such a great mix of attendees—meaning that there’s even more for attendees to experience.”

The Woodworking School at Pine Croft is nestled in the hills of Appalachia, within Berea College’s 9,000-acre forest tucked up against the Berea Pinnacles.

"It’s a great place to enjoy the craft, learn and challenge yourself and spend some time with other invested people,” Glenn said.

For more information and to registration and classes, visit&nbsp;<a href="https://pinecroftwoodschool.com/">https://pinecroftwoodschool.com&nbsp;</a>or call (859) 985-3224.

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Registration Now Open for Spring Classes at The Woodworking School at Pine Croft

Berea College’s Music Department and The Willis D. Weatherford, Jr. Campus Christian Center (CCC) will present “A Celebration of Christmas,” the annual Christmas concert, on Friday, December 2, and Saturday, December 3 at Union Church.&nbsp; The concert will begin at 7:30 p.m. on both nights.

“A Celebration of Christmas” welcomes the community to two nights of performances from eight ensembles: Folk-Roots Ensemble, Bel Canto Treble Singers, Concert Choir featuring Chamber Singers, Wind Ensemble, Black Music Ensemble, Mariachi Berea, Jazz Ensemble, and Bluegrass Ensemble. Each group will bring its own style as it sings and plays jubilant rhythms to usher in the Christmas season.

“The concert happens annually during the celebration of Advent, celebrating the movement from darkness to light, the light of the Coming Christ,” stated by Reverend Dr. LeSette Wright, the Dean of the Chapel. “This is the message that propels us daily to press forward and overcome the challenges and difficulties inherent to our journeys. This year proclaims that message in a special way as we gather together for the first time since COVID-19 impacted the world. This year, we recognize that light through the lenses of all we have experienced throughout the pandemic. It is in this light that we go forward—in faith, hope, love, and the greatest of these is love.”

All are invited to attend this musical celebration, one of the most anticipated performances on the College’s calendar. Seating is limited and ticket reservations are required. The concert is free for Berea College students and children 2 years old and younger. General admission tickets for each performance are $5 per person. Student chaplains from the CCC will serve as ushers.

To secure a ticket, visit <a href="https://www.eventbrite.com/e/a-celebration-of-christmas-2022-tickets-457014772487">https://www.eventbrite.com/e/a-celebration-of-christmas-2022-tickets-457014772487</a>.

The concert will also be livestreamed at <a href="http://www.livestream.com/bereacollege">www.livestream.com/bereacollege</a>

Berea College Hosts the Annual Celebration of Christmas

Multiple Grammy Award winning recording artist, songwriter and musician Janis Ian has donated her entire archives, along with her father’s 1937 Martin D-18, to Berea College’s Special Collections and Archives at Hutchins Library, where they will be made available for viewing and study in the future.

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Not only will her devoted and loyal fans around the globe be able to view the memorabilia and materials of her decades-long career, they will be able to support the efforts to preserve, catalog, digitize and display the priceless items at Berea and eventually in an online archive. Ian and Berea College are jointly establishing a fund to preserve the legacy of her career in perpetuity.

While many artists have received significant amounts of money for turning over their archives, The Janis Ian Archives are entirely different–Ian’s belief in Berea College is so strong that she has donated all materials without compensation. Her only stipulation is that records remain open to the public, not just academic researchers. To learn more about the Janis Ian Archives Fund or to donate, visit <a href="https://legacy.berea.edu/give/jiaf/">https://legacy.berea.edu/give/jiaf/</a>.

The Janis Ian Archives are a unique resource for music history research, offering public access to evidence of Ian’s life and career, including publishing, recording and live performance contracts, copyright paperwork, tax returns, contracts and correspondence dating back to 1964. The extensive archival collection includes Ian’s grandparents’ immigrant papers, circa 1916. It also chronicles the House Un-American Activities Committee years with insights into her parents’ FBI files (and what FBI surveillance cost the family over the decades). Additional materials document the journey of Ian’s 1937 Martin D-18 guitar and her involvement in the civil rights, women’s and gay rights movements.

“We are honored Janis Ian has chosen Berea College to house the archives from her remarkable life, and we look forward to making these items available to the public so others can get a glimpse of the significant mark she has made in the music industry and really all of American society,” said Berea College President Lyle Roelofs.

Archivists at Berea College are currently cataloguing the collection, which will be available for public viewing in 2023.

“As a historian and archivist, it is truly amazing to be working to catalogue and make available this priceless collection,” said Tim Binkley, head of Berea College’s Special Collections and Archives. “Traditionally, a collection of this magnitude would only be found in a big city. To have a collection like this at Berea College is quite an honor, and we look forward to completing the cataloguing of these items so they can be shared with the community and the world.”

Born in Farmingdale, N.J., in 1951, Ian released her last solo studio album this past January. Titled “The Light at the End of the Line,” it garnered Ian her 10<sup>th</sup> Grammy nomination – coincidentally the exact same category as her first Grammy nomination.

“It takes a certain amount of maturity to realize that you don’t have to keep proving you can write,” Ian says in her biography, which can be found on her website at <a href="https://janisian.com/">janisian.com</a>. “I’ve already created a body of work I’m proud of, and I’m old enough to realize that it’s the light at the end of the line that matters. And I’m not calling this retiring. It’s rewiring.”

<em>More information about the Janis Ian Archives can be found <a href="https://legacy.berea.edu/give/jiaf/">here</a>. </em>