Webinar: Ohio’s First Female Architects
Wednesday, March 22nd – 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm
Ohio has over 4,000 listings on the National Register of Historic Places. Of those, very few are attributed to women architects. In celebration of National Women’s Month, we will look at some of the buildings in Ohio designed by pioneering women architects, as well as other historic buildings outside of our state that were designed by women with Ohio roots. We hope you’ll join us to learn more about this important legacy.
Presenters
Melinda Shah is an architect with Schooley Caldwell who has spent 20 years working on historic buildings for public and private clients. Through this experience, she has gained valuable knowledge of how to work with existing buildings to preserve them while bringing them to life for new and modern uses. She is also experienced at working with the various requirements for buildings listed on historic registries, in districts with design review, and with historic tax credits. She has worked on over 30 buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Melinda received both her Bachelor and Master of Architecture degrees from the University of Cincinnati, where she had the opportunity to co-op with other design firms and gain significant experience in preservation design. In addition, she received a Certificate of Historic Preservation from the University of Cincinnati.
Amanda Fuson is an architectural designer who has been with Schooley Caldwell since in 2015. She is a graduate of Miami University and has a Master of Architecture and a Master of Historic Preservation degree from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Her role involves architectural design and document support on various projects, including the Hoster Brewery, Newark Arcade, Lakeside, and Perry County Courthouse. Outside of work, Amanda loves to travel and see new places — she caught the travel bug when she lived in England for a year as a child. She is also obsessed with all things history (art, architectural, film, U.S., European…really, any).
Webinar: First Ladies Foundations
Wednesday, March 8th – 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm
Come learn about the park! First Ladies National Historic Site is the home to an extensive collection of stories, places, and artifacts. Representing all of the First Ladies of the United States – past and present – our site covers a large expanse of American history. Join us virtually as we explore the lives and legacies of the first ladies, the historic buildings at the park site, and our museum and research library.
Presenters
Rebekah Knaggs serves as a Park Guide and Volunteer Coordinator at First Ladies National Historic Site in Canton, OH. As a park guide, Rebekah gets to work with the public through programing, house tours, education for students, digital media, and community outreach. First Ladies National Historic Site is the third National Park detail she has had, along with William Howard Taft National Historic Site and James A. Garfield National Historic Site. Rebekah has an MA in History-Museum Studies and license in Historic Preservation from Cleveland State University, following a BA in Archaeology and license in Historic Preservation from the University of Cincinnati. Outside of work, she exercises her passion for historic preservation and history with various community groups in her hometown of Medina, OH.