Eighteen years ago, the founders of AFS set out to enrich lives and reconnect people to music, art, and each other by providing opportunities to work creatively with their hands, minds, and spirits. This formal mission statement guides and inspires our work daily. It rings resoundingly true and yet leaves me wishing for more ways to share the magic of the folk school experience with you.
In the following pages, you’ll see an array of workshops that celebrate the cultural heritage of Alabama with crafts like basket-weaving, blacksmithing, and quilting. You’ll find opportunities to learn with award-winning folk musicians from around the country. We’re delighted with the list of workshops for 2025 and think you will be, too. We’re lucky to have many of the same great minds who founded AFS supporting us in planning, teaching,
and even taking classes themselves this year. With the January arrival of Camp McDowell’s next Executive Director, The Rev. Derrick Hill, we continue confidently with an immersive experience that allows students to engage fully with their instructors and subject matter while setting aside the noise and responsibilities of daily life.
I hope you find something new you’ve been wanting to try or a chance to advance your current creative practice, but our passion for cultural preservation extends beyond the craft and musical practices to the sense of connection and community formed when we gather to make things together. We invite you to join us for a workshop, but also to slow down, to listen closely to those around you, to connect deeply with nature, and to experience the deep satisfaction of your own innate creativity. We hope to see you soon!
Caitlin Lollar Alabama Folk School Director
Spring-blooming mountain laurel at Camp McDowell
ALABAMA FOLK SCHOOL: A HISTORY
While the Alabama Folk School began in 2007, our founding is part of a long history of gathering at Camp McDowell for creative learning, rest, and spiritual growth dating back to the 1940s. Our campus sits on the traditional hunting lands of the Choctaw, Chickasaw, and Cherokee people. Bordering Clear Creek and the Bankhead Forest with the Sipsey Wilderness just north, we are surrounded by breathtakingly beautiful hardwood forests, sandstone canyons, and waterfalls. This land was purchased from several local families and landowners in the 1940s by the Ep-
isocpal Diocese of Alabama for the purpose of a permanent summer camp facility. The first summer sessions were held in 1948 using repurposed army barracks purchased and moved from Anniston, AL. Since then, Camp McDowell on Clear Creek has continued as a beloved summer camp community while expanding to include conference center facilities (1978) and multiple year-round educational departments. The McDowell Environmental Center (1994) and Farm School (2012) use exploration and hands-on learning to
teach the importance of sustainable land stewardship to students and teachers from around the state. Inspired by the written collections of Foxfire in North Georgia, Camp McDowell’s former director Mark Johnston set out to create a space for adults to work creatively with their hands, minds, and spirits, a mission that still drives us today. He enlisted the help of then Alabama Folklife Association Director, Joyce Cauthen and her husband Jim, as well as Alabama Bluegrass Hall of Fame member Herb Trotman and his wife Kathy. Together with then AFS Director, Danielle Dunbar, they recruited expert makers and musicians from around the state to teach the first Alabama Folk School workshops in 2007. These early workshops were rich in Alabama history, including Gee’s Bend Quilting with Mary Ann Pettway and China Pettway, Native Pottery with Cherokee descendent Ruth Manasco, and Sacred Harp Singing, which has deep roots in Winston County. Clare’s Cottage, a solo retreat space tucked away off Tiller’s Road, was even begun with the help of folk school students in 2009. As the folk school offerings continued to grow, plans took shape for an extensive expansion of Camp McDowell. In 2015, Bethany Village was completed, which brought the size of McDowell’s property up to 1,140 acres, almost doubling the size of our campus. The space is universally accessible with seven lodges, ten bunk cabins, a large dining hall, lake, zero-entry pool, and several other buildings utilized by the folk school, including the Epiphany Art Studio, Roger’s Teaching Kitchen, Pop’s Blacksmith Shop, and Hall Hall, where we host concerts and dances. Eighteen years after our founding, we’re looking forward to another full program year with students old and new. We’re lucky to have many of the same great minds who founded AFS (plus several more) supporting us in planning, teaching, and even taking classes themselves. We’re continuing confidently with an immersive experience that allows students to engage fully with their instructors and subject matter while setting aside the noise and responsibilities of daily life.
Clear Creek, September 1946 | One of Camp’s Founders, Bishop Carpenter, 1946
Camp McDowell serves through five programs: Summer Camp, the McDowell Conference Center, the Alabama Folk School, the McDowell Environmental Center, and the McDowell Farm School. The latter two programs are geared towards the educational and academic communities and are in line with the Educational Curriculum of Alabama and surrounding states. McDowell also has several retreats and events throughout the year that are planned and staffed by our team members. Scheduled in between our programs and events, we host hundreds of groups of all sizes throughout the year from across the country who choose the serene surroundings and service found at McDowell as their venue. McDowell is open all year and employs approximately 75 - 100 employees made up of year-round and sea-
sonal staff. Around 30-55 staff members reside on campus, depending on the time of year and the number of seasonal team members. Our seasonal staff typically come from all over the United States and receive extensive training before working with youth in our various programs.
Our community retains a wonderful culture of welcoming acceptance and has established a reputation for being an outstanding destination built upon simple elegance and attention to service and enjoyment. McDowell is a warm and welcoming host for retreats, conference groups, weddings, family gatherings, and other special events. Events at Camp McDowell are memorable, uncomplicated, and as genuine as the historic property itself.
Since 2014, McDowell Farm School has aimed to inspire curiosity, teach problem-solving, and empower community connections through sustainable agriculture. On the farm, students are encouraged to explore, ask questions, and arrive at their own conclusions through experience. Our programs allow students to carry over concepts from class to class, creating a cohesive understanding of the science of sustainable farming.
Scotty Feltman, Director | Kelly Baker, Program Coordinator| Tristan Hendrix, Farm Manager
Since 1994, the mission of the McDowell Environmental Center has been to connect people to their environment, teach respect for the Earth and its beings, and to promote a commitment to lifelong learning. Schools come for 3 days and 2 nights to learn knowledge and skills that are hard to find in a classroom from excellent instructors.
Meredith Donaldson, Director | Kim Corson, Assistant Director
Since 2007, the mission of the Alabama Folk School has been to provide the opportunity for people to work creatively with their hands, minds, and spirits and to help preserve Alabama’s cultural heritage. We do this by offering classes in traditional folk arts such as dancing, storytelling, banjo, and fiddle as well as the homesteading practices of cooking, canning, and quilting.
Caitlin Lollar, Director | Jordan Jarvis Hughes, Registrar
Since 1923, the mission of Summer Camp has been to spread the gospel by lifting up intentional camp community, the care of creation, the gift of inclusion, and the joy of creativity and play. Each summer camp session features a unique program theme designed by a priest from the Episcopal Churches in Alabama and program staff that facilitates daily, age-appropriate programs and activities that incorporate skits, songs, art, and a healthy dose of humor.
Catherine Poellnitz, Director | Jeneva Salter, Abilities Coordinator| Ashely Grace (AG) Passey, Clear Creek Coordinator
Since 1978, the McDowell Conference and Retreat Center has been facilitating gatherings ranging from large-scale conferences to small, cozy groups. Guests become part of a friendly and inclusive community that strives to live the way the world could be with servant-minded and easy-going staff.
Jordan Smith, Director
PLANNING your VISIT
Located at the McDowell Camp and Conference Center, Alabama Folk School sessions take place amidst 1,140 acres of lush forest and fields, breathtaking scenery, waterfalls, and canyons. We offer six workshops of varying lengths, from one to four days, throughout the year. Students sign up for one class per event. Instruction times range from 12 hours for a weekend workshop, to 15 hours for a three day workshop, and 21 hours for a four day workshop. Our small class sizes allow students to fully engage with their instructors in a meaningful way. Classes are offered throughout the year and vary year to year.
plore the beautiful surroundings and enjoy the community that develops during each workshop. Attendees will occassionally have the opportunity to enjoy concerts at night by our excellent instructors, as well as square dances. During your visit, you may choose to stay in our comfortable, air-conditioned, hotel-style lodges in Parsley Commons or our dorm-style Bethany Cabins. You will enjoy three delicious meals a day during your stay. Example meals include: Breakfast: biscuits, scrambled eggs, bacon & grits (OJ, coffee, tea, jelly, fruit bowl, cereal bar); Lunch: barbeque sandwiches,
2025 Alabama Folk School
cole slaw, & baked beans with a green salad bar always available; Dinner: oven roasted chicken, mashed potatoes, green beans, rolls, & dessert with a green salad bar always available. Our kitchen staff is also happy to make dietary accommodations, just let us know at registration! During your stay, you will be kept busy with the class of your choice, but will have plenty of time to ex-
To register, please visit https://campmcdowell.org/ alabama-folk-school
SAMPLE SCHEDULE
THURSDAY
4:00-5:30 PM: Student Check-in, Camp Store
5:00-6:00 PM: Wine & Cheese Social, Phifer Hall
6:00 PM: Supper, Doug Carpenter Hall
7:00-8:30 PM: Class 1
FRIDAY
8:00-8:45 AM: Breakfast, Doug Carpenter Hall
9:30-11:45 AM: Class 2
12:00 PM: Lunch, Doug Carpenter Hall
1:00-2:00 PM: Free Time
2:00-3:30 PM: Class 3
3:45-5:00 PM: Mini Classes
5:00-6:00 PM: Free Time
6:00 PM: Supper, Doug Carpenter Hall
7:00-9:00 PM: Instructor Concert, Hall Hall
9:00 PM: Various Jams, Hall Hall
SATURDAY
8:00 AM: Breakfast, Doug Carpenter Hall
9:30-11:45 AM: Class 4
12:00 PM: Lunch, Doug Carpenter Hall
1:00-2:00 PM: Free Time
2:00-3:30 PM: Class 5
3:45-5:00 PM: Mini Classes
5:00-6:00 PM: Free Time
6:00 PM: Supper, Doug Carpenter Hall
7:00-9:00 PM: Instructor Concert & Square Dance to follow, Hall Hall
Register on our website by clicking the “Registration Open Now” button on our “Dates & Rates” page. You will have your choice of one class for the weekend as well as your choice of lodging. You will receive an email confirmation of your registration that day. Three to four weeks prior to the workshop, you will receive detailed information about your upcoming stay including a schedule and packing list. If you require assistance or wish to register over the phone, email us at afsregistrar@campmcdowell.org or by phone at 205-387-1806, ext. 111.
SCHOLARSHIPS
Thanks to the generous donations of others, we have need-based scholarship opportunites available for all ages. If you are interested in applying for a scholarship, please email us at afsregistrar@campmcdowell.org.
CANCELLATION
To reserve a spot in a class, registrants must pay tuition and lodging in full. Cancellations received prior to 60 days before the event will receive a full refund on lodging, meals, and tuition. Cancellations received less than 60 days prior to the start of the event will receive refunded lodging, meals, and tuition but a $100 cancellation fee will be retained. Cancellations received less than 30 days prior to the start of the event will receive refunded lodging and meals, but no tuition will be refunded and a $100 cancellation fee will be retained. No tuition, lodging, or meals will be refunded after the event
POLICY
begins. Cancellation fees apply regardless of the reason for canceling. The Alabama Folk School at Camp McDowell is committed to supporting artists and musicians by offering them paid opportunities to share their craft with you. Our cancellation policy ensures that our instructors will be compensated for their time and talent. We understand the potential for unforeseen life circumstances, but our cancellation policy exists not to benefit the Alabama Folk School, but to ensure that our instructors will be able to afford their time with us.
the Camp Store to purchase
newest frog shirts and sweatshirts with artwork by Ernest Arrant.
CAMP STORE
Photos by Michelle Consuegra, Jenna Mobley, Jordan Hughes, & Blakeney Cox
CLASSROOM LOCATIONS PARSLEY COMMONS LODGES
Camp McDowell provides many beautiful spaces for our AFS classes to take place. The music classes are held in Phifer Hall, Hall Hall, and on the porches and inside the common rooms of Parsley Commons lodges. Craft classes are held in the Art Studio, Pottery Studio, Pop’s Blacksmith Shop, the Teaching Kitchen, Doug Carpenter Hall, and sometimes out in the beautiful surrounding forest.
ROGER’S TEACHING KITCHEN
DOUG CARPENTER HALL
POP’S BLACKSMITH SHOP
PHIFER HALL HALL HALL
EPIPHANY ART STUDIO
POTTERY STUDIO
FROM SCRATCH
February 28-March 2, 2025
Photos by Jenna Mobley, Michelle Consuegra, & courtesy of Cameron Strouss
Alabama Folk School
2
From Scratch is a weekend workshop designed for true beginners. If you’re interested in learning a new instrument or craft, this is the weekend for you! This year’s offerings include classes with expert musicians, artists, and the return of beginner wheel throwing. These classes are designed to give you take-home skills to practice and prepare for our advanced classes. Students will attend four class sessions over Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, with a student showcase on Sunday before departure. Students and guests are invited be attend a concert on Saturday night in Hall Hall by our talented instructors. There’s also plenty of exploring to do during your free time. Take a hike, go canoeing, or pick a porch and rocking chair to relax.
Lodging for this event will be in Parsley Commons. Participants will have the option to stay in a Parsley Commons lodge room or a dorm-style cabin. All lodging options include refreshments on opening night and six meals throughout the weekend starting with Friday supper and ending with Sunday lunch. To register, please visit https://campmcdowell.org/ alabama-folk-school
L ODGING & M EALS
Lodge Room & Meals for One Person for Two Nights: $310
Lodge Room & Meals for Two People for Two Nights: $375
Cabin Bed & Meals for One Person for Two Nights: $155
Commuter Fee & Meals for One Person: $65
C LASS O FFERINGS
MUSIC
Fiddle - Gretchen Priest Tuition: $220
Mandolin - Ben Ayers
Banjo - Bailey Hill
Guitar - Jason Bailey
Bass - Ashleigh Caudill
Flatfoot DancingRebecca Stout
CRAFT
Foraged Salve MakingCameron Strouss
Hand-Stitched Sampler
QuiltsAaron Sanders Head Tuition: $255
Intro to CeramicsKelly Towe
Intro to BlacksmithingQuinn McKay
*an additional $25 supplies fee for Blacksmithing due upon arrival
BLUEGRASS & GEE’S BEND
April 10-13, 2025
Photos by Michelle Consuegra & Jenna Mobley
Bluegrass & Gee’s Bend, one of our most popular workshops, is back with music classes for intermediate musicians wanting to grow in the bluegrass style of playing, as well as craft classes and Gee’s Bend quilting. This four-day workshop provides a truly immersive experience with a fun and enthusiastic community of musicians and artists. This year, we’re excited to have some of our favorite craft instructors return, as we also welcome many new faces to our music lineup. Lodging for this event will be in Bethany Village. Participants will have the option to stay in a Parsley Commons lodge room or a dorm-style cabin. All lodging options include refreshments on opening night and nine meals throughout the weekend starting with Thursday supper and ending with Sunday lunch. To register, please visit https://campmcdowell.org/ alabama-folk-school
L ODGING & M EALS
Lodge Room & Meals for One Person for Three Nights: $450
Lodge Room & Meals for Two People for Three Nights: $600
Cabin Bunk Bed & Meals for One Person for Three Nights: $170
Commuter Fee & Meals for One Person: $80
C LASS O FFERINGS
MUSIC
Tuition: $255
Guitar I - Allen Tolbert
Guitar II - Jim Hurst
Banjo I - George Guthrie
Banjo II - Alan O’Bryant
Fiddle I - Robbie Podrug
Fiddle II - Fred Carpenter
Mandolin I - Jason Bailey
Mandolin II - Isaac Eicher
Bass - Morgan Blaney
Dobro - Roman Locklear
CRAFT
Tuition: $280
Gee’s Bend QuiltingMary Ann Pettway & China Pettway
Bark Basket WeavingSarah Bell
Natural DyesAaron Sanders Head
Foraged First AidCameron Strouss
Blacksmithing
Hand-Forged HeadsQuinn McKay
*an additional $25 supplies fee for Blacksmithing due upon arrival
Join us for Youth Folk Camp, our only Alabama Folk School workshop series designed for rising 5th-12th graders. Youth Folk Camp is a unique combination of overnight camp with Summer Camp on Clear Creek and folk school instruction in music, farming, craft skills, and more! Campers choose one major and one minor class for the workshop, all taught by experienced farmers, musicians, and artists. Some experience with violin, guitar, mandolin, or banjo is recommended for music majors. Campers who choose farming for their major should select a different subject for their minor. Campers will stay in Bethany Village cabins and enjoy three delicious meals a day. To register, please visit https://campmcdowell.org/ alabama-folk-school
C OST
Lodging, Meals, & Tuition Per Camper for Three Nights: $425
M AJOR & M INOR O FFERINGS
Banjo, Mandolin, Guitar, or Fiddle
Music students will spend time working with their instructors as well as making music with fellow campers. Our instructors are professional musicians and educators from around the Southeast. Music students will have fun listening to and learning old tunes and styles from before recorded music. This class will give students the tools to go home and continue
their musical adventures after the workshop is over.
Music Instructors:
Jenna Mobley, Aerin deRussy, Bailey Hill, & Ben Ayers
CRAFT & FARMING
Mixed Media Art
Campers will be working with various mediums including collage, clay, sewing textiles, printmaking, painting, and more. Our approach to creativity is low pressure and lots of fun! We hope that you’ll leave with some lovely works of art, some new tools in your creative toolbox, and the confidence and inspiration to keep creating art on your own.
Art Instructors: Jamie Alvey & Jill Marlar
Farming
Campers who participate in farming will learn about the food we eat and how it gets to our plates. Students will participate in sustainable agriculture, team-work, and hands-on caring for our gardens and farm animals.
Farming Instructors: McDowell Farm School Staff: Scotty Feltman, Kelly Baker, & Tristan Hendrix
Alabama Folk School
SEPTEMBER SAMPLER
September 6, 2025
Photos by Michelle Consuegra, Jenna Mobley, & Jess Lingle
September Sampler offers a sample of all the Alabama Folk School has to offer. During this one-day event, crafters and true beginners alike can find something to love. Students sign up for one of several class options and will enjoy an included lunch with live music. Tuition also includes the majority of supplies needed We’re excited to welcome back Sarah Ward with Heirloom Pie Making as well as Cameron Strouss teaching her popular tea blending class. To register, please visit https://campmcdowell.org/ alabama-folk-school
S AMPLER
S CHEDULE
8:00-9:00 AM: Student Check-In
9:00-11:45 AM: Class Session One
12:00 PM: Lunch
1:00-3:30 PM: Class Session Two 3:45 PM: Head Home
C OST
Class & Lunch Per Person:
$100-$150
C LASS O FFERINGS
Visible MendingAaron Sanders Head
Heirloom PiesSarah Ward
Intro to CeramicsKelly Towe
Tea BlendingCameron Strouss
Blacksmithing Forged Spoons - Quinn McKay
*an additional $15 supplies fee for Blacksmithing due upon arrival
OLD TIME & GEE’S BEND
October 9-12, 2025
Photos by Al Blanton, Michelle Consuegra, & Jordan Hughes
At Old Time & Gee’s Bend, quilters, painters, and blacksmiths pursue their work in an encouraging atmosphere while music students fully immerse themselves in Old-Time classes, their days and nights filled with instruction from master musicians and jam sessions. This year, we’re excited to have Sami Braman returning to teach a new Fiddle III class, as well as Kay Justice returning for Guitar and Harmony Singing. We are also excited for the return of painting workshops with Howard Rains. Afternoon mini classes give all participants a chance to take part in learning something totally new. Guests are also welcome to spend their free time exploring the beautiful nature that surrounds Camp McDowell. At night, all attendees are invited to a concert led by our talented instructors, with an occasional square dance, too! Lodging for this event will be in Bethany Village. Participants will have the option to stay in a Parsley Commons lodge room or a dorm-style cabin. All lodging options include refreshments on opening night and nine meals throughout the weekend starting with Thursday supper and ending with Sunday lunch. To register, please visit https://campmcdowell.org/ alabama-folk-school
L ODGING & M EALS
Lodge Room & Meals for One Person for Three Nights: $450
Lodge Room & Meals for Two People for Three Nights: $600
Cabin Bunk Bed & Meals for One Person for Three Nights: $170
Commuter Fee & Meals for One Person: $80
C LASS O FFERINGS
MUSIC
Tuition: $255
Banjo ICharlie Hunter-Cook
Banjo II - Allison DeGroot
Fiddle I - Alice Gerrard
Fiddle II - Tricia Spencer
Fiddle III - Sami Braman
RepertoireDavid Bragger & Susan Platz
Guitar & Harmony
Singing - Kay Justice & Kathy Hinkle
CRAFT
Tuition: $280
Gee’s Bend QuiltingMary Ann Pettway & China Pettway
Ceramics - Laura & Brian Cooley
Painting - Howard Rains
Goat Milk Soap MakingLaura Spencer
BlacksmithingQuinn McKay
*an additional $25 supplies fee for Blacksmithing due upon arrival
CREATIVE RETREAT
November 6-9, 2025
Photos by Jenna Mobley, Jordan Hughes Natalie Peeples, & Natalie Holland
Alabama Folk School
Our Creative Retreat offers a restful weekend with the beautiful backdrop of Camp McDowell in the fall. Bring your personal projects and join us for a long weekend of focused time to rest and create. In the past, participants have brought sewing, woodworking, and writing projects or have simply spent their time reading, hiking, and resting. The time is your own! We’ll provide all your meals, access to wifi, nature trails, quiet spaces to work and rest, and evening refreshments. Lodging for this event will be in Bethany Village. Participants will have the option to stay in a Parsley Commons lodge room or a dorm style cabin. All lodging options include refreshments on opening night and nine meals throughout the weekend starting with Thursday supper and ending with Sunday lunch. To register, please visit https://campmcdowell.org/ alabama-folk-school
L ODGING & M EALS
Lodge Room & Meals for One Person for Three Nights: $450
Lodge Room & Meals for Two People for Three Nights: $600
Cabin Bunk Bed & Meals for One Person for Three Nights: $170
HERB TROTMAN
AN ALABAMA FOLK MUSIC LEGEND
Photos by Jordan Hughes, Michelle Consuegra, & courtesy of Herb Trotman
You can’t be around the Alabama Folk School long before you hear Herb Trotman’s name. That’s probably true of any traditional music gathering around Alabama as well! Herb, a lifelong musician, respected for his exceptional banjo and guitar playing, has performed with The Front Porch Stringband, Herb Trotman & The Spaulding Brothers, and the Herb Trotman Band through the years. He is a member of the Alabama Bluegrass Hall of Fame and the recipient of the 2015 Alabama Folk Heritage Award. For 50 years, Herb owned and operated Fretted Instruments, an acoustic instrument store in downtown Homewood, Alabama. Over the years, countless people went to Fretted Instruments to be paired with the perfect instrument, but what Herb loved most about running his store was teaching. The Alabama Folk School has also benefited greatly from Herb’s patient and passionate teaching. Back in 2020, Herb taught beginner banjo, as he’d done many times before. In this particular class was a student named Gary who came from Florida with a very special instrument in tow. Gary told us that in 1977, he and his wife, Anne, were living in Birmingham. Anne wanted to learn to play banjo so she asked around and was directed to a locally owned music shop. She bought a banjo and signed up for lessons with the owner. A few more years passed, and Gary and Anne moved to Georgia. The banjo started gathering dust. It followed them again to Florida where it sat for years. When Gary retired, he decided he would pick it up and learn to play. For Christmas, his wife asked if he would like some lessons as a gift. She did a little searching, but couldn’t find lessons in their area. She searched a little further and found the Alabama Folk School. She couldn’t believe her old instructor, Herb Trotman, was slated to teach! So 43 years later, Gary sat and learned and started something new with the same banjo and the same Herb.
That story sums up our relationship with Herb pretty well. Along with his wife Kathy Hinkle, Herb has offered immeasurable support to AFS through the years. From teaching, fundraising, designing workshops, and offering wisdom and kindness, they’ve done it all since the very beginning. For just shy of 20 years, Herb has formed stellar lineups for our Bluegrass & Gee’s Bend workshop series, bringing in such talents as Claire Lynch, Alan Munde, and Tony Trischka. His dedication and planning established Bluegrass as a foundation of AFS’s annual programming. Just as Herb did at his own store, he puts the focus of the Alabama Folk School on the students and their time with us. He always reminds us that what truly matters is welcoming people and creating space for them to have a meaningful, creative experience. Just like Gary and his banjo, we see the returning fruits of Herb’s labor for the folk school over and over again throughout the years. We are forever grateful!
Herb with some of the AFS founders and long-time supporters, 2024. L to R: Chip & Laura Spencer, Maggie Johnston, Jason Bailey, Herb Trotman, Mark Johnston, Joyce & Jim Cauthen.
Above: Herb and Gary at the Alabama Folk School, 2020. | Herb in Fretted Instruments, 2007. Right: A young Herb Trotman playing banjo. | Herb teaching a guitar class at AFS.
