From 2016 to 2022, a team of public historians, scholars, academic advisors, subject-matter experts, museum practitioners, and educators were dedicated to researching and developing Unvarnished and its teacher resources. In addition to providing the national context, the project’s consortium did extensive research into their own community’s legacies of segregation and housing discrimination. Following best practices, a team of nationally recognized scholars peer-reviewed the exhibit content.
The project also had an extensive audience research component. Nearly 15,000 teachers, museum professionals, museum-goers, and the general public participated in the research component of the exhibit and curriculum development. Fifty museums participated in the audience research, including the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, Historic New England, History Nebraska, National Civil Rights Museum, George Washington’s Mount Vernon, Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello, and the Wisconsin Historical Society.
SCHOLARLY ADVISORY COMMITTEE
Dennis Cremin, Ph.D., Lewis University, Romeoville, IL
Estevan Rael-Gálvez, Ph.D., Creative Strategies 360°, Santa Fe, NM
Gretchen Sorin, Ph.D., Cooperstown Graduate Program, SUNY Oneonta, Cooperstown, NY
Thomas J. Sugrue, Ph.D., New York University, New York City, NY
Noelle Trent, Ph.D., National Civil Rights Museum, Memphis, TN
CULTURAL ADVISOR
Charmaine Jefferson, J.D. Kélan Resources Los Angeles, CA
AUDIENCE RESEARCHER
Susie Wilkening, Wilkening Consulting, Seattle, WA
SELECT CONSULTANTS, RESEARCHERS, AND WRITING SUPPORT
William Adair, Museum Education Consultant, Philadelphia, PA
Melanie Adams, Ph.D., Consultant, Washington, D.C.
Dina Bailey, Consultant, Mountain Top Vision, Atlanta, GA
Sarah E. Doherty, Ph.D., Historian, North Park University, Chicago, IL
International Coalition of Sites of Conscience, New York City, NY
Paige Glotzer, Ph.D., Historian, University of Wisconsin, WI
James W. Loewen, Ph.D., Sociologist, Washington, D.C. (1942-2021)
Michelle Moon, Saltworks Interpretive Services, Atlantic Highlands, NJ
EXHIBIT DEVELOPMENT AND DESIGN
Night Kitchen Interactive