Your Idaho Heritage Trust would like to introduce the newest member of our Technical Assistance Team: Historic Preservationist Katherine Wonson. As you will see from her profile below, Katherine’s expertise will be invaluable to our potential grantees, especially when it comes to the planning and project management aspects of your historic preservation endeavors.

For more information on our Technical Assistance and Heritage Grant process/programs, visit Request Technical Assistance and Fund Your Project respectively.

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Possessing a rare combination of academic excellence, practical experience, and talent for managing both people and projects, Ms. Wonson is uniquely equipped to help IHT grantees ‘make the best decisions to respect the history of their building, while opening it up to new uses.’ Ms. Wonson grew up in Mendham, NJ, where she was captivated by an 1850s schoolhouse, which instilled an appreciation for the aesthetics of old buildings and, even more importantly, an innate curiosity about the stories these buildings represent. This interest was bolstered by family vacations based on history, from trips to Revolutionary War sites to a particularly impactful trek through National Parks in the West, where she became enchanted by the little cabins and the experience of learning history through physical experience outside of a classroom setting.

Following her illustrious academic career (see below), Ms. Wonson began as an intern at the Western Center for Historic Preservation in Grand Teton, WY, which taught hands-on preservation skills to a host of trainees as they worked to rehabilitate a dilapidated Dude Ranch into an overnight training facility. In 2014, she became the second ever Director of Western Center, before assuming the position of Lead Historic Preservation Training Manager, where she championed the training of tradespeople in the best practices for historic preservation. Ms. Wonson stepped back from her work in Grand Teton in 2024 to start her own consulting business, Old School Heritage Solutions, and to spend more time sharing the things she loves – history, the great outdoors, skiing, and mountain biking – with her two children. And when you get a chance, we highly recommend asking Ms. Wonson about the advantages of Linseed Oil Paints.

Education: University of Pennsylvania Weitzman School of Design – Historic Preservation Certificate; Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Preservation, and Planning – Historic Preservation Master of Science; Colgate University -Bachelor of Arts in Art History