Two Southern Studies graduate alumni began working at new jobs last spring. Kerry Taylor moved to San Francisco, California, in May 1997 to work as a research assistant for the Martin Luther King Jr. Papers Project at Stanford University. He is assisting in publishing a 14-volume set of King's most important documents by annotating the papers that will be included in the upcoming fourth volume of the set. Taylor's job as a research assistant involves writing brief biographies of individuals mentioned in King's correspondence of 1957 to 1958 as well as penning contextual headnotes. While in the Southern Studies program, Taylor analyzed the civil rights movement in the Delta; he feels that his new job's focus on a national civil rights figure is enhancing his previous research. Anyone interested in donating copies of their King-related letters, tapes, sermons, or speeches to the King Papers Project can contact Taylor at 650-725-8833.

Walker Lasiter joined the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities last April as its assistant director. His primary duties as part of the Endowment staff are to assist with the minigrant program and perform editorial and business duties pertaining to Louisiana Cultural Vistas. In addition to his Southern Studies degree, Lasiter holds a law degree with a specialization in copyright and entertainment law. Lasiter left a job as public relations director of New Orleans music club Tipitina's to assume his position at the Endowment. His new work phone number is 504-523-4352.