Mary Frances
For our Road Scholars Speakers Bureau, this scholar is fully booked through 2025.
However, you may book them outside of any Illinois Humanities affiliation using the contact information in the “Booking Information” section below.
Educator Mary Frances shares her passion for African-American history, research, and public speaking with audiences throughout Illinois.
Mary Frances was a college teacher for 20 years and has given lectures and presentations as well as led discussions for live and online audiences. In 2024, she founded Untold Histories, a nonprofit to promote research, publication, and education about local African American history.
Fully Booked
Untold African American History
Mary will present research findings about each one of the ten large images of African Americans in her presentation and encourage discussion regarding the historical contexts of slavery, Civil War, Reconstruction, Spanish-American War, Jim Crow, Great Migration, and Great Depression.
Program Logistics
This one-hour program includes a 40-minute PowerPoint presentation and 20 minutes of discussion. Visuals are presented using the speaker’s laptop and HDMI cord. A television or projector is necessary.
Bio
Mary Frances grew up in a Lebanese and European family in Butler, Pennsylvania, and has lived in Springfield for 37 years. She has a BA in anthropology from the University of Iowa, an MA in environmental studies from the University of Illinois Springfield, and four years of doctoral work in environmental sciences from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She has spent time in Chile, Canada, Mexico, and Spain as well as many parts of the United States. In 2020, she began following her passion for history, which has culminated in a documentary film, articles, a book, and a traveling/virtual exhibit. In her spare time, she antiques, creates art, and beautifies her community.
Learn More and Follow Mary
Book this Road Scholar
Follow the steps below to book a presentation.
- Contact Mary to schedule a date and time via email at owl2810@protonmail.com.
- Once you and Mary have agreed upon a date and time, complete the online Road Scholars Host Organization application.
Contact Us
Nicole Rodriguez
Senior Manager of Community Conversations
speakers@ilhumanities.org
(312) 374-1558
Contact
Suite 650, 125 South Clark St.
Chicago, IL 60603
312.422.5580 312.374.6787 Fax
Illinois Humanities is supported in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and the Illinois General Assembly [through the Illinois Arts Council], as well as by contributions from individuals, foundations, and corporations.
Illinois Humanities respects the privacy of its audiences and will at no time sell or distribute personal information to any party not directly affiliated with Illinois Humanities and its programs.
Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed by speakers, program participants, or audiences do not necessarily reflect those of the NEH, Illinois Humanities, our partnering organizations, or our funders.
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