Meet the Team
The Prairie Ronde Artist Residency is part of the larger redevelopment project of The Mill at Vicksburg. Prairie Ronde is a small team that is fortunate to work in collaboration with the entire Mill project. Here are a few of the friendly faces you may be in contact with during your residency.
John Kern
(He/Him)
Residency Director/Director of Creative Programming & Innovation for The Mill at Vicksburg
John Kern returned to the Midwest to work on the rehabilitation of the former Lee paper mill. He is majorly involved in building upon Vicksburg’s heritage of creative innovation, which led to him and Frances Li brainstorming the nugget that has grown into Prairie Ronde. Relying on his nearly 30 years in education, John uses the lessons learned in the classroom about support, service and creativity to guide the residency toward the playground for independent spirits that it is today—a space devoted to people who create, where ideas and notions are made real and where discovery and growth is celebrated.
Frances Li
(She/Her)
Remote Residency Coordinator
Frances Li is Prairie Ronde Artist Residency’s Coordinator and one of our earliest artists in residence. She has consulted on the development of the residency program since its beginning and is passionate about the need for artists to have time, space and resources to deepen their practice. Alongside being a proud member of the Prairie Ronde team, Frances is also an actor, artist and filmmaker based in Brooklyn, NY.
Alysse Thomas
(She/Her)
Hospitality and Events Coordinator
Taylor Kallio
(He/Him)
Content Creator for The Mill at Vicksburg