In April, Bernice notified the Folk School board of my life changes and application to grad school.  Starting in May, talks began with the leaders and teachers at the Folk School about my potential departure for grad school.  Many expressed interest in developing a leadership team to keep the Folk School in operation at the Walker Stone House.   Late May (when I was extended the offer for school and my visa was approved), we organised a leadership team at the Folk School to develop a plan for this community music space to continue on with new leadership.  In early June, we got approval from Experience Fayetteville to request a lease transfer. After getting approval and encouragement that the board would be receptive, we moved forward with developing a plan to present to the A&P commissioners.  Early July, we sent in the proposal for the lease to be transferred to another organization (Ozark Folkways) that would continue the mission and operations of the Folk School. This plan provided a path forward with Ozark Folkways as the new parent organization.  We were told the proposal would be presented to the board prior to the July 28th meeting. Bernice, along with the future leadership of the Folk School, attended the July A&P meeting anticipating questions about our proposal.  Unfortunately, it seems the information we provided wasn't shared among the board members prior to the meeting and everyone on the board was caught by surprise.  Unfortunately, the vote on a lease extension and the transition plan were tabled until the August 25th meeting.

We cannot presume to know what the A&P board will decide on August 25th, and due to the timeframe of Bernice’s departure the first week of September, programs ended August 9th.  
A plan is in place to donate essential "assets" for Ozark Folkways if a lease transfer/extension is given.