Amy Mills is the program coordinator for folk arts and accessibility. She manages programs that support New Mexico’s folk and traditional arts through grantmaking, documentation, public programs, and fieldwork research, as well as advising on accessibility best practices.
From 2016-2023, Amy worked for the National Council for the Traditional Arts (NCTA), designing and producing national folk festivals in five states and supporting partnerships with the National Endowment for the Arts and National Park Service. She has also served as programs manager at the Western Folklife Center, managing the National Cowboy Poetry Gathering and other regional programs. Other roles have included Northwest Folklife program coordinator, cultural historian, documentary filmmaker, dance teacher, and project manager for a computer company.
Amy has conducted ethnographic research from Oregon to Maryland, Romania to New Zealand. She is also an accomplished dancer of traditional styles ranging from ballroom to Balkan, swing to Scandinavian. She holds master’s degrees in anthropology and folklore from the University of Oregon, and bachelor’s degrees in anthropology, history, and international studies from the University of Washington. She grew up in New Mexico and is thrilled to have returned home to support our folk artists and traditional communities.
