GAMBIER — An exhibit of photos, stories and video interviews about Latinos who live in Knox County will be shown in December at Kenyon College and in January at the Mount Vernon Public Library.
The project called “Latinos in Rural America” features colorful, bilingual banners with photos of local residents. It required hundreds of hours of research and interviews by Professor of Spanish Clara Román-Odio and two Kenyon students.
The free exhibit will be on display Dec. 1-18 in the Presidential Lobby of Olin Library, 103 Gambier Drive, during regular library hours. Check times at www.lbis.kenyon.edu/about-lbis/hours. The exhibit moves to the Mount Vernon Library, 201 N. Mulberry St., from Jan. 13-27, viewable any time the building is open.
The public is invited to receptions from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. on the opening days at both locations: Dec. 1 for the Kenyon library and Jan. 13 at the Mount Vernon Library. Fiesta Mexicana restaurant in Mount Vernon will serve authentic food, such as guacamole and salsa.
Román-Odio received a $17,000 grant for the project from the Columbus, Ohio-based non-profit organization Ohio Humanities. She wanted to chronicle the lives of Latinos who have been recorded as living in Knox County since the beginning of the last century.
A demographic database shows that 789 Hispanic people lived in Knox County in 2013, which is about 1.3 percent of the population, she said. While this figure is proportionally small, the county’s Latino population doubled in the preceding decade, indicating a steady growth that is likely to continue, she said.
People who visit the exhibit will come away with a better understanding of the meaningful contributions Latinos make to the community, Román-Odio said.
“Latinos are part of the diversity of the fabric of this place,” she said. “I invite the community to come. I feel like they will be surprised and enriched by the information.”
Two fluent Spanish majors, senior Patricia Mota and junior Amelia Dunnell, helped record interviews with about 15 people, touching on journey stories, family life, food traditions, church involvement and perceptions of inclusion.
The research resulted in two other community-engaged learning projects developed by students in one of Román-Odio’s Spanish classes: a pamphlet to serve as a primer on cross-cultural interactions and a class at the Salvation Army in Mount Vernon to help area Latino youths prepare for college.
Kenyon students created the pamphlet about Latino culture, values and communication norms that will be distributed at the county Health Department, in schools and at social service organizations. At the college-prep class requested by parents, Kenyon students help high-schoolers and middle-schoolers learn the application process, research potential schools and study for the SAT and ACT.
After the exhibit’s showing in Mount Vernon, the display will move to Ohio State University in February and Miami University in southwest Ohio in March.
Visit the project website at http://www.kenyon.edu/academics/departments-programs/latinoa-studies/lira. For more information, contact Professor of Spanish Clara Román-Odio at romanodioc@kenyon.edu or (740) 427-5275.
