October 23, 2026
In fall 2025, the AIA-Nashville Society was awarded a Society Outreach Grant for some of their 2026 Outreach events.
The first event was on August 12, an Odyssey-themed screenwriting workshop, “The Odyssey: Epics, Empire and AI in Hollywood.” Dr. Jerod Hollyfield, an associate professor of media arts and film studies at Middle Tennessee State University, led an engaging workshop. He delivered a short presentation about the Homeric epics and filmmaking, then provided screenwriting exercises. Attendees created their own epic stories and pitched them to the group.
As to the second event, quarterly the AIA-Nashville Society-sponsored book club holds discussion of books related to museums, archaeology, and classics. This year, the Parthenon further invested in the book club to incorporate two live presentations by authors. Dr. Helen Sanders and Kaity Hinson both helped coordinate programming held at the Parthenon (Nashville). Lauren Bufferd assisted AIA-Nashville Society President Wesley Paine in leading the AIA-Nashville Society Book Club meeting on the Odyssey, and inviting the book club authors to attend. Sam Kean joined virtually from Washington, D.C., to talk about “Dinner with King Tut,” and poet Maria Zoccola joined in-person for discussion of her book Helen of Troy, 1993, a poem about Helen of Troy, but set in Tennessee in the year 1993.
Finally, the Society has a “Polychromy at the Parthenon” learning program and part of the grant went towards new supplies to further expand this program. On this, AIA-Nashville Society Officer Katie Petrole said “The additional supplies allow us to also keep the program boxed stocked even when our team is off-site or can’t return materials after an outreach. This allows our sponsored program to be available at the Parthenon, even when AIA-Nashville officers are not present. For example, the program was previewed for 23 STEAM teachers in at a resource fair held on August 5. These teachers are at schools that will bring their 6th graders to the Parthenon for STEAM Expeditions in 2027– and do our AIA-Nashville Polychromy at the Parthenon program!”
The AIA-Nashville Society’s 2026 outreach reflects some of the many ways that AIA Societies collaborate with other organizations and how Society Outreach Grants can be used. Interested in learning more about what AIA Societies have been up to recently? Check out our Society News here.
