Lisa Rathje is Executive Director of Local Learning: The National Network for Folk Arts in Education and co-edits the peer-reviewed, multimedia Journal of Folklore and Education. She directs teacher and artist training institutes and advocates for the inclusion of culture in diverse learning spaces. She consults nationally, including currently a 5-year consultancy for the REACH (Race, Equity, Art, & Cultural Heritage) program of the University of South Florida funded by the U.S. Department of Education to strengthen arts and culture programming in the nation’s educational system. Through the project Teaching with Primary Sources: Teaching with Ethnographic and Oral History Collections she directs a national consortium of folklife partners to develop curriculum and disseminate through teacher professional development and publication through the Library of Congress’ premier educational program. Rathje also has taught courses on cultural partnerships and fieldwork in the Goucher College Masters in Cultural Sustainability degree program, and has multiple publication and film credits. She serves on the Arts Education Partnership National Advisory Board. She has a PhD in English from the University of Missouri.
