Keri Adams, MA & Museum Studies Certificate

Senior Lecturer of History & Assistant Director and Manager of the Center for Public History
School of Humanities College of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences

678-839-5275
madams@westga.ed5ehCEi27LQdez9OygnrJNA4rf0WKdTBiSoedcx3l5fdBmPu

Technology Learning Center - Room 3209
Office Hours
Student Drop-in Office Hours
Wednesday, 9:00-11:30, Library 012
Thursday, 1:00-3:30, TLC 3209
By appointment, email to schedule

Department Office Hours (TLC 3209)
Tuesday, 8:00-3:30
Thursday, 8:00-3:30
By appointment, email to schedule

Center for Public History Office Hours (Library 012)
Monday,8:00-3:30
Wednesday, 8:00-3:30
By appointment, email to schedule

The Center for Public History is located in Ingram Library in the Special Collections Suite on Level G. Call 678-839-6141 for access. Email cph@westga.edu to schedule an appointment.

Download curriculum vitae for Keri Adams, MA & Museum Studies Certificate in MS Word
Keri Adams, MA & Museum Studies Certificate
Biography

Keri Adams (she/her) is a history educator and practicing public historian. Her scholarly interests focus on cultural and social history of the American South with an emphasis on state and local history. As the Assistant Director and Manager of the UWG Center for Public History, she co-directs and contributes to the University History Project, West Georgia Textile Heritage Trail, and the Regional Music Project alongside public history faculty and students. Personal research includes conducting oral histories of Trappist monks (OCSO) and contextualizing the foundation of their Roman Catholic Cistercian monastery, the Monastery of the Holy Spirit, in mid-20th century rural Conyers, Georgia. Adams has consulted and served as a docent to the Arabia Mountain National Heritage Area Alliance's guided tour program with the Monastery of the Holy Spirit (Conyers). Ongoing interests and practices include digital history, oral history, education and interpretation, curation, storytelling, local history, material culture, and multi-disciplinary projects.

Education / Degrees
  • B.A., Art History, University of West Georgia, 2008
  • B.S. Minor, Anthropology, University of West Georgia, 2008
  • M.A., Public History, University of West Georgia, 2013
  • Graduate Certificate, Museum Studies, University of West Georgia and the Atlanta History Center, 2013
Courses Taught
Course Sections and Syllabi

Fall 2025 Sections

Summer 2025 Sections

Spring 2025 Sections

Fall 2024 Sections

Spring 2024 Sections

Fall 2023 Sections

Spring 2023 Sections

Fall 2022 Sections

Spring 2022 Sections

Fall 2021 Sections

Spring 2021 Sections

Fall 2020 Sections

Publication List

“A National Recreation Area, 1973-1984,” in 'A String of Pearls...Too Valuable to Let Go': Administrative History, Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area,” Ann McCleary, Julia Brock, Keri Adams, and Andrew Schulz, Washington, D.C.: National Par [View Publication External Resource]

“Interpreting African American History at Andersonville National Historic Site,” in In Plain Site: African Americans at Andersonville National Historic Site, Evan Kutzler et al. Washington, D.C.: National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior,  [View Publication External Resource]

The Center for Public History at the University of West Georgia, The West Georgia Textile Heritage Trail. Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing, 2015. [View Publication External Resource]

Other Information

Peer-Reviewed Exhibits

  • Bowdon Spur Wayside Exhibit, co-editing curator with Ann McCleary, curated by Chanell Lowery, West Georgia Textile Heritage Trail, Bowdon, Georgia, March 2018.
  • Bremen Spur Wayside Exhibit, curator, West Georgia Textile Heritage Trail, Bremen, Georgia, September 2015.
  • Carrollton Spur Wayside Exhibit, co-curated with Andrew Carter, West Georgia Textile Heritage Trail, Carrollton, Georgia, June 2012.

Exhibits

  • Making a Better Life for Our Rural People, contributing curator and project manager, University History Project, Center for Public History, Department of History and Office of the Provost, University of West Georgia, May 2019 to March 2020.
  • Stitching the Fabric of Community of the West Georgia Region, assistant curator, Sewell Mill, Bremen, Georgia, April 2012.

Presentations

  • “Public History Parents: Leaning In, Opting Out, and Finding Work Life Balance,” facilitated by Erin Gregory, A. Nicole Hill, Emily McEwen, Sue Nguyen, and Ellen Rankin, discussant with Elyssa Ford, Lynn Kronzek, Christine L. Ridarsky, and Andrea Ringer, National Council for Public History 2020 Conference (virtual due to novel coronavirus pandemic).
  • “Weaving Community Projects in Georgia,” facilitated by Jennifer Dickey, participant with Rico Chapman, Ann McCleary, Candy Tate, and Kathryn Wilson, National Council for Public History 2020 Conference (session canceled due to novel coronavirus pandemic).
  • “Gateways to Completion (G2C): Why It Matters to Students, Faculty, and Administrators,” Co-presenter with Keith Pacholl, USG Teaching and Learning 2019 Conference, Athens, Georgia.
  • “West Georgia Textile Heritage Trail,” poster session with Hannah Givens and Chanell Lowery, National Council on Public History 2016 Conference, Baltimore.“Telling the Stories of Carrollton’s Textile History,” with Dusty Dye, Georgia Association of Historians Annual Conference 2014 Conference, Athens, Georgia.
  • “Creating the West Georgia Textile Heritage Trail,” with Keith Hébert, Ann McCleary, and Andrew Carter, Georgia Trust Preservation Month Lecture Series, Rhodes Hall, Atlanta, May 2012.

Other Publications

  • The Center for Public History at the University of West Georgia, The West Georgia Textile Heritage Trail. Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing, 2015.
  • Ann McCleary and Keri Adams, “West Georgia Textile Heritage Trail,” Georgia’s Great Places, Fall - Winter 2015-2016, 26-30.
  • Keri Adams and Ann McCleary, “The Clothing Center of the South,” West Georgia Living May – June 2015, 21-25.