[Archived] Nominations for Fort Ward Interpretive Planning Committee

Office of Historic Alexandria Invites Nominations to Serve as a Member on new Fort Ward Interpretive Planning Committee

For Release: November 13, 2015

On January 24, 2015, the Alexandria City Council approved the Fort Ward Management Plan to provide strategic guidance for the management and preservation of natural, cultural and recreational resources within Fort Ward Park. One recommendation included in the plan is for the City’s Office of Historic Alexandria (OHA) to formally invite key stakeholders from the Fort Ward and Seminary African American Descendants Society, Civil War historians, naturalists, educators and community representatives to participate in a new advisory committee working on the development of an interpretive plan for the Park.  This new committee will replace OHA’s Fort Ward History Work Group which previously assisted with historical research on the park that supported development of the Management Plan.

Specifically, the work of this new committee will be threefold; 1.)  to identify the significant themes, stories and features associated with the cultural, historic and natural resources of the park; 2.) to assist the City in  selecting  an appropriate consultant to prepare and develop an educational  philosophy and plan that will  enhance public understanding of the park’s broad range of resources; 3.) to guide development of the plan in support of a broad-based program of creative and engaging educational techniques. 

OHA is soliciting eleven members from the greater Alexandria community to serve on this this new committee, comprised of representatives in the following organizations or recognized experts in the following professional fields:

• An expert on the American Civil War
• An expert of the “Defenses of Washington” system of forts and batteries which protected the nation’s capital during the Civil War
• A member of the Friends of Fort Ward non-profit organization
• A member of the Fort Ward and Seminary African American Descendants Society non-profit organization
• A descendant  of an individual known to have lived or been interred within Fort Ward Park
• An expert in African American History and Culture (with a desired concentration on the Civil War, Reconstruction and Civil Rights )
• A local secondary or post-secondary educator  associated with the fields of anthropology ,history or the social sciences
• A museum public programming educator, curator or interpretive planning professional
• A Northern Virginia natural history expert
• Two at large members with an interest and understanding of the unusual history of Fort Ward Park

The Fort Ward Interpretive Planning  Committee will be staffed by the Office of Historic Alexandria and Department of Recreation, Parks and Cultural Activities, with other City departmental resources brought in as needed. It is expected that the Committee will meet monthly or bi-monthly as needed, from 7:30 to 9 p.m. on the second Thursday of each month, over a period of approximately 12 months, beginning in January 2016.

The membership of the Fort Ward Interpretive Committee will be based on a call for nominations publicized to the community. OHA is now seeking nominations for the above-referenced representatives and/or experts for consideration.   Those interested in serving on the Fort Ward Interpretive Planning Committee should submit a cover letter of introduction and a current resume or biography which supports representation in one of the above listed groups or which demonstrates clear and specific expertise in one of the fields identified.  All nominations should be sent to Nicole Quinn at nicole.quinn@alexandriava.gov by December 18, 2015. Nominations may also be mailed to the Office of Historic Alexandria, Lloyd House, 220 North Washington Street, Alexandria, VA 22314.

For any questions regarding the nomination process or the new Fort Ward Interpretive Planning Committee, please contact J. Lance Mallamo, Director, Office of Historic Alexandria, at 703.746.4554 or at lance.mallamo@alexandriava.gov.