Biography
"Judith Simundson grew up in an assortment of North Dakota towns with her head stuck under the bedcovers, reading with a flashlight until 2 a.m. When she wasn't reading, she was talking or singing."
- Vicki Voskuil, BISMARCK TRIBUNE, Bismarck, ND, April 2, 1999
Simundson is on the Rosters of Artists in five states: Iowa, North and South Dakota, Nebraska (Humanities Council) and Missouri (Young Audiences). She tours regularly in the U.S. and in Norway. A graduate of Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota and the University of Southern Illinois, Carbondale, Simundson spent thirteen of her career years teaching speech and English on the coasts of America, south Boston, the San Francisco Bay Area, and New Orleans. Returning to the Midwest she was spurred by arts advocate Ruth Nash of Dubuque, Iowa to make a career of her family heritage of Norwegian folk culture.
PUBLICATIONS
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WEAVING A LEGEND, short story and DREAMING A STORY, poem, to be published in INKING THROUGH THE SOUL: Writers on Writing, Creativity and Life, edited by Mark Waldman, Tarcher/Putnam (a member of Penguin Putnam, Inc.) scheduled for release, January 2001
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NORWEGIAN TALES OF ENCHANTMENT, spoken word CD recording, ©1998 (I don't mean that these titles need to be in all caps, I just use them because I know they'll get through to your computer.)
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TEACHER’S GUIDE, NORWEGIAN TALES OF ENCHANTMENT ©2000
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GOING HOME TO SCANDINAVIAN-AMERICAN COUNTRY, folk song cassette collection, ©1989
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HILDA'S STORIES AND FOLK TALES FROM TUSS OG TROLL, collection of folktales, cassette ©1989—sold out
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Judith...Sings Norse Songs,” a classical song collection LP and cassette, 1985sold out
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Articles in: Dubuque's TELEGRAPH HERALD (part-time features writer 1991-2000)
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JULIEN'S JOURNAL
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SOUND POST, published by the Hardanger Fiddle Association of America
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GALLERY, published by the Dubuque Area Writer's Guild.
FOREIGN STUDY, HONORS, AWARDS
- Folk Arts Apprenticeships, Iowa Arts Council, a Divi sion of the Department of Cultural Affairs, and the National Endowment for the Arts, study of Telemark folk songs in Norway, 1990-91, 1989-90,— two separate grants awarded for 15 weeks study in Norway with traditional singers, Ellen Nordstoga of Vinje, Telemark, 1990-91, Margreta Opheim of Voss (commencing March 1987-90) and with archival assistance and study with Jacqueline Pattison Ekgren, Music Institute, Oslo. These studies continued independently in subsequent years.
- Faculty Development Award, Northeast Iowa Community College, study of emigration, Norwegian Folk Museum, Oslo, September 1996
- Sons of Norway King Olav V Norwegian-American Heritage Fund grant, Ole Bull Academy, Voss, Norway 1990-91
- Artist Project Grant, Iowa Arts Council, a Division of the Department of Cultural Affairs, Research of Emigration, Norwegian Folk Museum, Oslo and preparation of one act monologue AMERICA FEVER, the story of the Gunhild and Nils Hegland family emigration in 1886-87. This one-woman one-act play has toured in Iowa. It was translated into Norwegian and adapted for two actors. A company of three, Judith, Ellen Nordstoga and Odd Nordstoga toured with AMERIKAFEBER in Norway's elementary schools (using the Norwegian language) for thousands of students and adults, sponsored by the Norwegian Concert Association (Rikskonsertene). Skien area, 2000; West Telemark, 1998; East Telemark, 1997.
- Norwegian government Emigration Fund Commissioned in 1975, study and collection of Norwegian songs in Norway, 1987
OTHER GRANTS
- A rtist Project Grant, Norwegian Tales of Enchantment, Compact Disc recording, Iowa Arts Council, a Division of the Department of Cultural Affairs, released—Fall 1998 (Note: use IAC logo, if possible, see attachment)
- Artist Mini Grant, Development of TEACHER'S GUIDE to NORWEGIAN TALES OF ENCHANTMENT, Iowa Arts Council, a Division of the Department of Cultural Affairs, 1999
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
- Artist in Residence in Norwegian folk culture: stories, songs, sculpting, K-12, schools in Iowa, North Dakota , Wisconsin, Minnesota, Kansas, Alaska, South Dakota, 1986-present
- Rostered AIR artist in Iowa (since 1984) and North Dakota (since 1994), South Dakota, and Missouri with Kansas City Young Audiences, Nebraska Humanities Speaker's Bureau
- Speech/Communications instructor, adjunct, Northeast Iowa Community College, Peosta, Iowa, 1992-present
- English teacher/administrator in high schools in New Orleans (LA), Union City (CA), Quincy (MA) for 13 years