Christine Ballengee Morris History

Dr. Ballengee Morris is Professor Emeritus from the Arts Administration, Education, and Policy Department. She was the founding director of The Multicultural Center at OSU and co-leader in developing the American Indian Studies. She has written several books including her book with Kryssi Staikidis, Contemporary American Indian Art, Pedagogy, and Research.

She has received numerous awards such as The Ohio State University Diversity award, 2014; National Art Education Association Fellow, and the YWCA Women of Achievement 2016.

Ballengee Morris’ research interests include self-determination, identity development, Indigenous arts, integrated curricula, service learning, visual culture, and arts-based research. She has served as editor for Art Education Journal, Studies and serves on several editorial boards.  She is past president of the United States Society for Teaching through Art. Dr. Ballengee-Morris's teaching experiences include: fourteen years in the public school system, twenty years as an artist-in-residence in public schools and five countries, higher education since 1992, and international teaching.
 
Christine Ballengee Morris’ community involvement includes two different strands.  From 1996, she has been involved with advocacy for and education about the Earthworks in Ohio. This commitment turned into being a part of the World Heritage Steering Committee. Dr. Ballengee Morris also is an active member of the Healing Hearts of Central Ohio.  She is their editor of the newsletter and is a certified visitor, which means she visits heart patients at the Ross Heart Hospital giving “patient” advice.  She also serves on several advisory committees for The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. 

Milestones

1960-73
Participated in regional powwows
1972
Participated in community theatres in Dayton, Ohio in productions such as: Gypsy, Carousel, and West Side Story.
1976-79
Performed weekly at a Greek Restaurant as one of the belly dancers.
1980-84
Became a mother and chose to teach dance at community centers.
1984
Developed “Art Trunks” Sunrise Art Museum, Charleston, West Virginia.
1982-1985
Board member, treasurer, Children’s’ Theatre, Charleston, West Virginia.
1988-1991
Yung Yung Tsuai Dance Company, Rochelle, New York, performances included Charlotte, NC, Marymount NYC, Rochelle, NY, Sanford, NC
1985-2018
Flatfoot dancer with The David Morris Band/The Morris Brothers, West Virginia. Includes residences at schools in New York; State College, PA; Berera, KY; multiple K-12 public schools in West Virginia; multiple K-12 schools in Ohio for the TETAC project (OSU).*
1992-1993
Co-producer WV Cultural Arts, West Virginia Parkways, Economic Development and Tourism Authority
1992
Developed dance curriculum for Fort New Salem, Salem, West Virginia.
1993
Interviewee and performer on a West Virginia Public Television documentary film, “What is West Virginia.” 
1996
West Virginia mountain cultural arts and cultural colonialism. Paper and dance performance at the Chicago Folk Festival, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois.
1998
Didn’t I Dance, Women Conference, Granville, OH
2000
Indigenous issues in the US arts.  Paper presented and evening dance performance at the Mapuche Center, Temuco, Chile.
2001, 2004
Artist in residence for the Ohio Arts Council at sister city in Temuco, Chile’. *
2002
Appalachian culture and dance. Presentation at the University of British Columbia. Vancouver, Canada.
2002
Indigenous moments.  Paper presented and performance at the International Society of Education through the Arts World Congress, National Museum of the American Indian Smithsonian Institution, New York City.
2004
Appalachian cultural arts.  Paper presented, dance workshop and performance at the Ohio Appalachian Women Conference, Zanesville, Ohio.
2006
Identity and indigenous people. Paper presented and performance at the Federal University of Goiania, Brasil.
2009
Identity and Visual Culture paper and performance at. University of Deageon, Korea.
2015
Harlan County and the Arts, The Wexner Center for the Arts Theatre with David Morris and Barbara Kopple.
2016
Hollywood Film Festival Master Class with Barbara Kopple. Harlan County USA Visual Culture. Los Angeles, CA.
2018
West Virginia Music Hall of Fame Inducting Ceremony, The Morris Brothers-flatfoot danced.

* Artist-in-Residence

2017
Mount Vernon Bluegrass Festival, OH September
2015
Don West Festival, Pipestem, WV, July.
2003
Ohio University Appalachian Women’s Conference, October.
2002
The Ohio State University, Mansfield, February.
2002
State of Ohio and Country of Chile’, August.
2001
State of Ohio and Country of Chile’, October.
2001
State of Ohio, The Ohio State University Scholars Conference, July.
1999
State of Ohio, Malabar Middle School, November.
1999
State of Ohio, Cherry Valley Elementary, Newark, February.
1998
State of Ohio, Tussing Elementary, May.
1997
State of West Virginia, Mountaineer Montessori, Sept-May.
1996
State of West Virginia, Mineral Wells Elementary, May.
1996
State of West Virginia, Pax Elementary, April.
1995
State of West Virginia, Scarbro Elementary, December.
1995
State of West Virginia, Sissonville Elementary, October.
1995
State of West Virginia, Weston High School, July.
1995
State of West Virginia, Morgan County, Paw Paw School, K - 12, January.
1994
State of West Virginia, Jackson County, Elementary School, November.
1994
State of West Virginia, Fayette County, Pax Elementary, November.
1994
State of West Virginia, Railroad Days, Hinton, October.
1994
State of West Virginia, Youth Museum, Beckley, August.
1994
State of West Virginia, Cass Community, July-August.
1993
State of West Virginia, Youth Museum, Beckley, July, August.
1993
State of West Virginia, Fort New Salem, April.
1992
State of West Virginia, Fort New Salem, April.
1990
State of New York, Yung Yung Tsuai Dance Company June - July.
1989
State of North Carolina, Yung Yung Tsuai Dance Company , April.
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