Experiential Learning without Student Exploitation?

Co-authored by University of North Texas students and faculty in the Colleges of Information and Visual Arts and Design, this autoethnographic paper reports on the Latino Art, Museums, and Preservation fellowship—an initiative to strengthen the creation, production, and access to history and cultural activities of Latino communities in the US. Using an experiential learning approach, the fellowship serves the needs of graduate students through adaptive curriculum design, relationality through mentorship and cohort building, on-site learning at the Mexican American Civil Rights Institute (MACRI), tuition support, internship stipends, as well as funding for lodging, travel, and sustenance. Beyond supporting individual fellows, the fellowship catalyzed a graduate certificate program in cultural heritage stewardship. Preliminary results include growing interdisciplinarity and collaboration between students, faculty, and cultural heritage stewards outside of academia, as well as an increased educational capacity that is sustainable for future cultural heritage training efforts—even in the absence of federal funding.