Kenneth Kurtz, Black Mountain College faculty, 1938-1944. BMC Research Project, Box 91. Courtesy of Western Regional Archives.
Studies Building construction, Kenneth Kurtz painting building, Black Mountain College, 1940-1941. Courtesy of Western Regional Archives.
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ATTENDANCE
Listed under faculty information in College bulletins, "Kenneth Kurtz English and American Literature Jamestown College, A.B.; Yale University; Oxford University, B.A., M.A. Positions at Western State College, Colorado, 1933-1936; California Institute of Technology, 1937; Deep Springs College, 1937-1938; Colorado State College of Education, summer sessions, 1937, 1938. Rhodes Scholar for North Dakota, 1930-1933. Black Mountain College since 1938."
In Kurtz's faculty file there is a recommendation of his character that states, "Kurtz is a quiet, unassuming, serious guy, but he is not retiring nor shy. His bearing, appearance, and manners are excellent. I feel sure that the impression he must invariably make is a good one. He is quite at ease, has a pleasant voice, talks in a cultivated way but unpretentious way. There can be no question about his interests in a multitude of directions being very genuine ones: literature, music, biology, social problems, education, etc. etc.. I gathered that he is an excellent violinist among other things. He says that likes teaching better than anything else, and Dean Kimpton told me that he is a fine teacher. Kimpton also said that Kurtz had to be watched so that he did not take on too much, and overwork himself."
He participated in many committees and was involved in Negro History Week at the College in 1943, where he spoke of Negro Contributions in Literature. He was a faculty member teaching english, literature, and political science from 1938 to 1944.
Birth and death dates are unknown, but he was born in 1904 and passed in 1994.
Relationships
Wife: Fellow BMC faculty, Annarrah "Anne" Kurtz
Amanda Hartman is the creator of BMC Yearbook, serving as the lead director, engineer, and researcher. She holds a MLIS in archive/ collections management, MA in art/ museum education, and BA in design. After working in museums and archives for a decade, she made the transition to tech and is now a software developer specializing in applications for museums, archives, and higher education.
Her interest in Black Mountain College began while working as a digital archivist with the Asheville Art Museum's BMC archive collection. She transcribed and digitized over 1500 documents created by the college. While working closely with these archives, she began independent research on the interracial program and Negro Week activities BMC, writing biographies of lesser known students and staff members. That research transformed into this BMC Yearbook project.
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