FILM SCREENING & PANEL DISCUSSION: "Return of the Sacred Red Rock"

This program is brought to you by the Trails Head Chapter of the Oregon-California Trails Association and the Missouri River Outfitters Chapter of the Santa Fe Trail Association, in cooperation with the Harry S. Truman Presidential Library & Museum.

ABOUT THE PANELISTS

SYDNEY PURSEL

As the first Curator for Public Practice at the Spencer Art Museum on the campus of the

University of Kansas, Sydney initiates ways to involve community and incorporate

feedback into exhibitions and programs. Her interests include community-based and

socially engaged art; Indigenous art, culture, identity, and representation; and disability

art, accessibility, and multisensory learning. She serves on the Native Faculty and Staff

Council, Powwow and Indigenous Cultures Festival Committee, and the Indigenous Arts

Initiative committee at the University of Kansas. She received an MFA in expanded

media from KU and a BFA in painting from the University of Missouri. Sydney is a

citizen of the Iowa Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska.

JAMES PEPPER HENRY

James Pepper Henry is a nationally recognized museum professional with over

forty years’ experience working with museums, libraries, and archives. He

currently serves as President of the Kanza Heritage Society, a non-profit

organization dedicated to the preservation and perpetuation of Kaw culture,

language, and historic sites. He is also Principal at Pepper & Associates, a

museum and exhibition development firm. Recently, Pepper Henry finished a

four-year term as Vice-Chairman of the Kaw Nation.

Pepper Henry is Director Emeritus of First Americans Museum (FAM),

Oklahoma’s premiere cultural institution located in Oklahoma City. Its mission is

to educate the broader public about the unique cultures, diversity, history, and

contributions of the 39 federally recognized tribes that were removed to Indian

Territory, now the state of Oklahoma.

Prior to his tenure at FAM, Pepper Henry was the Executive Director of Tulsa’s

premier art, history, and culture museum, the Gilcrease Museum. He co-led the

successful $65 million campaign to update and expand the facility. Pepper

Henry also served as a commissioner on the Greater Tulsa Area Indian Affairs

Commission and was a key proponent and facilitator to establish “Native

American Day” as an official City of Tulsa day of recognition.

Prior to Gilcrease Museum, Pepper Henry was the Director and CEO of the

Heard Museum in Phoenix, AZ, Director and CEO of the Anchorage Museum at

Rasmuson Center in Anchorage, AK, and former Associate Director of the

Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian. He played a pivotal role

in the establishment and launch of the American Indian Museum on the National

Mall in Washington, DC that opened to the public in 2004.

Pepper Henry is a graduate of the University of Oregon and a graduate of the

Museum Leadership Institute at the Getty Center in Los Angeles, California.