03-05-2025
Frank and Jane Gabor West Virginia Folklife Center receives statewide honor
FAIRMONT — A statewide organization has bestowed its highest honor on the Frank and Jane Gabor West Virginia Folklife Center at Fairmont State University.
The West Virginia Association of Museums recently named the local folklife center Institution of the Year. The award recognizes the center for its contributions to preserving and celebrating Appalachian culture and heritage and also comes with a $500 prize to support the Center's various programs.
The award comes on the heels of the Center's director, Lydia Warren, being honored by the City of Fairmont Arts and Humanities Commission for leadership in the arts. The award honors Warren for advocacy for the arts and her efforts to expand cultural programming and deepen community engagement in the region.
'It is an honor to receive both of these awards and be recognized by WVAM and the Fairmont Arts and Humanities Commission,' Warren said. 'A large part of my goal is to be a good steward of the Folklife Center, which was founded by Dr. Judy Byers. To me, that means ensuring support for local and regional folk traditions, artists, and musicians while providing learning and entertainment opportunities for the community. These awards show that we're on the right track, and I couldn't be more honored!'
Since serving as director of the Frank & Jane Gabor West Virginia Folklife Center since 2022, Warren has fostered the University's connection to local and regional arts by hosting events by and for community members, including jams, dances, concerts, and grant-funded arts exhibitions.
Her goal is to create free opportunities for the community to participate in the arts while ensuring that local artists are featured and paid fairly. Warren also serves as a member of the Marion County Convention and Visitors Bureau board of directors and the West Virginia Humanities Council. She has served as a grant panelist for the National Endowment for the Arts.
Warren has a doctorate in critical and comparative music studies from the University of Virginia, a bachelor of arts in music from Smith College, and a Five College Consortium Certificate in ethnomusicology. She also has an associate of science in music from Middlesex Community College.
Housed in a restored historic barn on the Fairmont State University campus, the Folklife Center is home to notable collections, including the Ruth Ann Musick folklore archives, the Phyllis W. Moore West Virginia Authors archives, and the Patty Looman collection. These resources support scholarly research and student exploration in folklore and museum studies, two of the undergraduate programs housed within the Center as part of the University's College of Liberal Arts.
