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The OU Institute for Quality Communities recently hosted a Route 66 Placemaking Retreat in collaboration with the OU Arts and Humanities Forum. The retreat was funded by an Oklahoma Humanities “Community Discussions” grant that an interdisciplinary OU team received in November.
The team is led by Vanessa Morrison, interim director of the IQC, and Kimberly Marshall, faculty director of the OU Arts and Humanities Forum. The team is also supported by Ron Frantz, director of the Environmental Design program, and Rebecca Blaine, IQC research fellow and Gibbs Ph.D. student.
Team members on their site visit in Texola, OK.
This retreat built upon the team’s site visits and community discussions in several historic towns along Route 66. This semester, students and grant partners visited the Threatt Filling Station outside Luther, Oklahoma and the historic towns of Hydro, Texola and Quapaw, Oklahoma. At the site visits, students gained a deeper understanding of the local community members and their priorities.
Team members riding Oklahoma's oldest wooden carousel in Hydro, OK.
Following these trips, the IQC gathered community partners and resource teams at Gibbs College for a day-long planning retreat. The retreat was comprised of presentations and discussions about humanities-rooted placemaking in preparation for the upcoming centennial celebration of Route 66.
Marshall opened the presentations with a talk entitled “Humanities Tactics for Community Development.” She explored how key humanities themes can be mobilized for rural community development by focusing projects on the priorities of belonging, values, heritage and each community’s uniqueness.
According to Marshall, projects that lead with meaning, values, identity and culture are the most impactful on rural communities. Humanities focused projects help attract tourists while also increasing civic pride, building on local values and enhancing belonging.
A presentation on the Texola, OK site visit during the retreat.
Marshall’s opening remarks were followed by presentations from professionals around the state, including Kelly Burns from Oklahoma Humanities, Lynda Ozan from the State Historic Preservation Office, Lenae Clements from the Oklahoma Department of Transportation and Kelly Tompkins from Hive Appeal. Oklahoma State University professors Ed Kirtley, Tyson Oschner and Stacy Tomas also gave presentations.
Additionally, students who attended the site visits gave briefings to explain their key findings. These students include Anahita Niknejad, Brianna Haley, Logan Gray, Emily Pendergast, Rajith Kumar, Mahathi Akella and Natalie Young.
A presentation on the Luther, OK site visit during the retreat.
Following the site visits and retreat, the IQC will prepare a public report with key takeaways, design concepts and placemaking initiatives across the state. Learn more about this project and the Oklahoma Humanities Grant.
This program is funded in part by Oklahoma Humanities (OH) and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in the program do not necessarily represent those of OH or NEH.
The Christopher C. Gibbs College of Architecture is pleased to announce that Dr. Tamar Zinguer, Associate Professor of Architecture, has been selected to participate in the prestigious 2026 Summer Residency at the National Humanities Center (NHC).
Tanvin Mahtub Fariha, a first-year Master of Landscape Architecture student in the Gibbs College of Architecture and a Graduate Teaching Assistant in the Division of Planning, Landscape Architecture and Design, has earned recognition for her work.
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