People
Meet the Spirit & Place team!
Pam Blevins Hinkle
Pam Blevins Hinkle–arts administrator, song leader, composer, officiant, tree-lover, and kazoo fanatic–has devoted her life to projects that blend creativity, community-building, and spirituality. She has served as director of Spirit & Place since 2006, and is a certified trainer in Civic Reflection Dialogue (focus on race and racism) and Restorative Practices with additional training in Arts Based Community Development and Mental Health First Aid. In addition to her work with Spirit & Place, Pam leads spontaneous group singing for conferences and events, co-leads SongSquad Indianapolis with her brother Adam, co-produces the Indy Winter Solstice Celebration, and more. As a composer she specializes in short, layer songs than are taught by ear in minutes to audiences of all skill levels. Pam has received numerous awards including the IUPUI Inspirational Woman Award and the Creative Renewal Arts Fellowship from the Arts Council of Indianapolis.
LaShawnda Crowe Storm
Community Engagement Director LaShawnda Crowe Storm is also a mixed media artist, activist, community builder and occasionally an urban farmer. Whether she is making artwork or sowing seeds, Crowe Storm uses her creative power as a vehicle for dialogue, social change and healing. Crowe Storm has worked with diverse communities to build collaborations, empower community voice and pioneer creative approaches to addressing difficult dialogues, community organizing and addressing social ills. LaShawnda has an M.F.A. from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and a B.A. in Mass Communications and English Literature / Creative Writing from the University of Michigan. She is a Civic Reflection Dialogue trainer with a focus around race and racism. Her training includes, but is not limited to Arts-Based Community Development, Racial Justice Leadership Institute. Trauma Informed Community Development, Community Leadership Certification, and Comprehensive Community Development Training.
Erin Kelley
A native Hoosier, Kelley completed her bachelor’s degree in sociology and history from Ball State University and earned her master’s degree in public history from IUPUI. As the Program Director for Spirit & Place, she oversees the annual Spirit & Place Festival by working with 100+ community partners to design and host events. Kelley also supports Spirit & Place’s Powerful Conversations on Race series by serving as a certified Civic Reflection Dialogue facilitator and trainer. In 2018, Kelley was selected as one of twenty recipients from across the country for Civic Saturday training by Citizen University. She has evolved that series into Spirit & Place’s current Civic Circle gatherings which aim to nurture a shared sense of (little “d”) democratic fellowship. Prior to Spirit & Place, she served as Director of Education and Community Engagement for the Indiana Historical Society. Kelley is an active member and past president of the League of Women Voters of Indiana where she advocates and educates on issues ranging from voting rights to redistricting reform.
Spirit & Place
Indiana University – Indianapolis
425 University Blvd., CA 003B
Indianapolis, IN 46202
317-274-2462
festival@iu.edu
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