ASU's Heritage SITES receives $560,600

A total of $560,600 in National Scenic Byways grants was given to ASU's Arkansas Heritage SITES (System Initiatives for Technical and Educational Support) program on Sept. 8.

 The Arkansas Heritage SITES program has needed funding for a long time.

Ruth A. Hawkins, director of the SITES program and executive director of the Arkansas Delta Byways, said that this program was established 10 years ago here at ASU.

Hawkins said the university owns three heritage sites that operate as museums and educational centers and all three have programs that appeal to both tourists and people coming for educational purposes.

These three heritage locations are the Hemingway-Pfeiffer Museum and Educational Center in Piggott (1999), the Southern Tenant Farmers Museum in Tyronza (2006), and the Lakeport Plantation in Lake Village (2007).

Hawkins said these sites provide economic development with communities to help bring in more money and they "serve as educational laboratories for our students."

These sites are tied in with the Heritage Studies Ph.D. program. Students in the program do a lot of laboratories and research at the sites, but all ASU students can benefit from these "educational laboratories."

The SITES program has two national scenic byways: Crowley's Ridge Parkway, which covers 10 counties in Arkansas, and the Arkansas Great River Road, which covers 15 counties.

These byways allow SITES to receive grants and funding, and without them, the program would still be in desperate need for money.

Hawkins said that Arkansas Delta Byways contracts with ASU for the university to provide services for some of its programs.

"We work with communities to help them develop tourism," Hawkins said. "We're a link between the delta region and the university in terms of benefiting economically and educationally."

Two of the grants are worth $25,000 each. Hawkins said those funds will help with paying for administrative costs, her salary and some general expenses in the region.

"We pretty much [have gotten] those two every year, for about the past five years," Hawkins said.  

The largest grant, which is $510,600, will be used in many ways.

 Part of it will be used to help finish paying for Beth Weidower, a representative for the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

Three years ago, the Arkansas Delta Byways region received a grant from the Kellogg Foundation and the National Trust for Historic Preservation to develop a Rural Heritage Development Initiative. Two areas were picked - Kentucky and Arkansas. The grant paid Weidower to work with the area to develop the tourism potential of the region.

However, the grant ended this year, but the new grant will help pay Weidower to continue working another two years to finish some of her projects, such as the Music Heritage Trail, the African American Heritage Trail, Birding the Byways and Delta Made, which promotes local businesses in rural areas in the delta region.  

Weidower said her programs "focus on the development of heritage-based areas" and the Heritage SITES program is very important.

"Without the SITES program, I wouldn't be here doing what I'm doing," Weidower said. "They're really our anchors. Without them, we wouldn't be able to build the heritage-based infrastructure we're doing now."

Another part of the grant will be used to put together a comprehensive marketing plan.

The SITES program is trying to find the answers concerning what can be developed, who the target markets are and how to advertise and promote these sites to get people to see these attractions.

Also, another big component will be to develop some exhibits related to the region in our ASU museum. Hawkins said they might develop an exhibit for Crowley's Ridge and expand on the Old Town Arkansas exhibit in the museum.

Smaller pieces of the grant will be used for the Web site. Currently, there are four Web sites related to the SITES program, one for each of the three sites and one for the byways.

Hawkins said the Web sites need to be changed and possibly turned into a completely new Web site.

Another piece of the grant will be used for interpretive signage along the Delta Byways routes.

Hawkins said they're developing some themes, such as a Civil War theme, along the routes.

Also, some of the signs need to be changed to make them more noticeable to tourists.

Hawkins said all of these tie in with ASU in that "we use students to help out for the major projects and for research…and interviews and so forth."

"We've got a whole lot going on in preservation and promotion tourism, and because of the two byways we can get money to help carry out projects and involve students in these projects," Hawkins said.