City Historian

City Historian

Dr. Andrew Lovato is the new City of Santa Fe Historian for 2024. A native of Santa Fe, Lovato is a descendant of Pueblo and Hispanic cultures. He has spent his career as a professor at The College of Santa Fe and Santa Fe Community College, teaching many courses related to the history and culture of Santa Fe, and as an author promoting empathy and respect for differing cultural perspectives. 

The City Historian is a community-engaged position, and the theme for the current historian is Cultural Storytelling. Lovato’s proposed projects include collaboration with local organizations such as Littleglobe, the Santa Fe Public Library, and The Museum of New Mexico, focusing on storytelling as a medium for education and social change; the creation of a radio and podcast series to broadcast local storytelling on public radio, with an intergenerational and intercultural lens; collaborating with the City of Santa Fe Arts Commission, of which he is currently chair; and focusing on the arts as a vehicle for storytelling through visual arts, dance, theater, film, and music. 

Lovato received his Ph.D. in Communication with an emphasis in Intercultural Communication from the University of New Mexico in 2000 and was selected as a Fulbright Scholar in 2008. His books include Santa Fe Hispanic Culture: Preserving Identity in a Tourist Town and Elvis Romero and Fiesta De Santa Fe: Featuring Zozobra's Great Escape, and he is a contributing author to four additional books related to New Mexico's history and culture. He has also written numerous articles and has given lectures to diverse groups such as the Santa Fe Fiesta, the Institute of American Indian Arts, and the Newcomers Club of Santa Fe. He has given two TED talks: Keeping Cultural Authenticity: A Santa Fe Story and Why History Matters. His weekly radio show, "Our Santa Fe," exploring the city's past, present, and future through conversations with notable Santa Feans, airs every Thursday from 6:30-7:30 pm on KSFR. 

Click Here to invite the City Historian to your program or event.

Role of the City Historian

This is a ceremonial position given to an individual who has a demonstrated knowledge of Santa Fe cultural history from within local, regional and transnational perspectives, a commitment to and passion for sharing information about the diverse ethnic groups and historical processes that have contributed to Santa Fe's cultural development; and embraces the opportunity to engage in inclusive civic discourse.

The City Historian position was created by City Resolution No. 2017-41 on May 31, 2017. The position is appointed by the Mayor with the consent of the Governing Body.

Purpose

The Santa Fe City Historian is a ceremonial position that encourages opportunities for individuals to be educated about Santa Fe's rich regional history and cultural heritage.

 The goals for the position are:

• Conserve, promote, document, and share Santa Fe's diverse cultural heritage within historical and contemporary contexts, engaging local, transnational and global influences on the region's cultural development.
• Engage broad community participation to understand and embrace the value of stewardship of both tangible and intangible cultural history; and
• Advertise, publicize and promote historical tourist-related attractions, facilities, and events.

Duties

The duties of the City Historian are threefold:

1. Conserve and share Santa Fe's cultural heritage through an innovative lecture series highlighting key figures, events, and attractions with attention to local, transnational, and global processes and cultural influences that have shaped the multi-cultural landscape of New Mexico and the southwest. The City Historian shall research and develop all lecture and audiovisual content in consultation with scholars, community groups, museums, libraries, and other resources to make content accessible to multiple audiences.
2. Engage diverse communities in understanding and embracing stewardship of cultural history, practices, traditions, foods, etc., through the production of short articles, videos, podcasts, and other media. The City Historian shall research and develop all content, including historical photographs, maps, charts, and other visual aids. The City Historian will make themself available at a mutually agreed upon time to create media content for various platforms. They may be required to provide additional information to ensure high-quality media materials. All content shall be made available and accessible to diverse audiences on various City media outlets (social media, YouTube, TOURISM Santa Fe, etc.)
3. As mutually agreed upon, the City Historian will provide information for and review historical content for official City documents, publications, proclamations, etc. They may also serve as a resource to City officials for the development of such documents.

The City Historian may utilize alternative formats and approaches to ensure broad participation and engagement in carrying out these duties.

Eligibility & Terms of Service

Individuals 18 years of age and over living within Santa Fe county may serve as City historians. A minimum of a Bachelor of Arts with an emphasis in history, ethnic studies, sociology, anthropology, linguistics, arts, or related fields is required. A background in communications and public relations is desired but not required. 

The City Historian will receive an honorarium of up to $10,000, including applicable taxes, to offset costs associated with the position. Funds will be dispersed in four equal payments, distributed quarterly.

The City Historian will serve for 12 months, starting from the appointment date. If the City Historian cannot fulfill their contract due to extended illness, relocation, or other circumstances, the City may appoint a new City Historian based on previous nominations to fill the remainder of the term.

The City Historian will be required to enter into a professional services agreement with the City and obtain the New Mexico CRS number, City of Santa Fe Business Registration, and applicable insurance coverage.

The City retains a license to publish and distribute the content created as part of the City Historian program for noncommercial purposes, including but not limited to use in city-related advertising, brochures, media, publicity, catalogs, or other similar publications.

The City Historian must abide by the City Historian's Code of Conduct.

Becoming City Historian

Individuals interested in the position of City Historian shall submit the following by the published deadline:           

1. Letter of interest stating the individual's qualifications, why they should be considered, a description of their interest, and a proposal for fulfilling the duties.
2. Resume/curriculum vitae
3. Links to websites, publications, social media, and video content serves as examples of the individual's engagement in public history or cultural work.

An advisory group consisting of individuals representing a variety of constituencies and expertise will review all applications and make a recommendation for an appointment. The appointment is not final until approved by the Governing Body.

The panel will evaluate all eligible nominations based on the following:

• Qualifications
• Uniqueness of approach
• Past work

Click Here to read about past City Historians

Click here to apply to be the next City Historian