The Moton Museum is excited to welcome Katherine Buchholz as our Guest Services & Operations Intern for the fall of 2021. Katherine is from Arlington, Virginia and a graduate of Wakefield High School. Katherine is a Senior at Longwood University. Katherine has a deep interest in museums, preservation, and public history. She is excited to learn more about the work of the Moton Museum and is excited about what the opportunities gained this semester will mean for her future. We are so excited to have Katherine working with us this fall. Welcome Katherine!
- Where do you attend school, what is your major?
I am a History major and Anthropology minor at Longwood University in Farmville, VA. - How did you first come to learn about the Moton Story?
I first learned of the Moton story when I came to Longwood as a freshman through the Honors Leadership Retreat. I am a part of the Cormier Honors College, so I came to Longwood a week earlier than all other freshmen and we learned all about Farmville. One of the places we went was the Moton Museum where we learned that Farmville played a big role in the Brown v. Board of Education case. I did not know about Moton story before then and I am glad I know about it now. - What interested you in working with the Moton Museum?
I applied for the Moton Internship Program because I have always liked museums and been intrigued by what goes on behind the scenes to make a museum easy for the public to understand. Also, I want to get to know the story of the museum even better than I already do now. It is important for people to interact with history and my aim interning here at the Moton Museum is to help people do that and see how museum staff work together to make sure the museum is the best it can be. - What are your future goals and how do you hope your work with Moton will impact that work?
My future career goals are to work either in the museum industry or a similar industry that preserves the history of a place, person, or group. Moton will help me do this by teaching me what goes on behind the scenes at museums and helping me understand the teamwork that is necessary to keep everything running smoothly. My work here will help connect me with other people in these industries who might want to give me a job in the future. - What is your favorite quote that motivates you?
My favorite quote is from Albus Dumbledore in the third book of the Harry Potter series. It is, “Happiness can be found in even the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light.” - Who is someone you really admire and why?
One person that I really admire is Michelle Obama because she has raised awareness for so many different things from healthy eating to showing that voting is good for us all to do. She always listens to people and gives people great advice. She helped our country grow quite a bit when she was the First Lady, and she continues to help the country to this day. Michelle Obama is a great example of someone who is a leader who listens to everyone and tries to come up with a solution that works for everyone. I strive to be as compassionate as her one day. - What has been your favorite college course and why?
My favorite college course so far has been the Intro to Race and Ethnic Studies class I took in Spring 2021 with Dr. Tricker and Professor Betts. This was the first time it was offered too because the Race and Ethnic Studies minor is a new minor at Longwood. I really liked the class because it touched on topics that many people would not discuss in their everyday life because they are sensitive topics like the BLM movement and how we put Native Americans into boarding schools and forced them onto reservations when we wanted the land. Also, we were able to understand the impact of the environment and other topics through guest speakers who came to the class including Cainan Townsend from the Moton Museum talking about the Black population at Israel Hill in Farmville. This class helped me understand why everything has turned out the way it is in the present day.