The Gordon Parks Museum will host the 23rd Annual Gordon Parks Celebration October 1-3, 2026, at the Gordon Parks Museum and Ellis Family Fine Arts Center on the Fort Scott Community College campus, 2108 S. Horton St. The four-day event features films, presentations, music, history, poetry, tours and special guests celebrating the life and legacy of Fort Scott native Gordon Parks. Many activities are free; some events require advance reservations or ticket purchases.

Thursday, October 1

• 8 a.m. — Chamber Coffee. Kicks off the celebration at the Gordon Parks Museum; photo and poetry contest winners announced. Free.
• 9 to 10:50 a.m. — The Learning Tree. Screening of Gordon Parks’ film at the FSCC Ellis Family Fine Arts Center Theater. Free.
• 11 a.m. to noon — Lunch and Learn: Clemmie Parks. Explores the life of Gordon Parks’ older brother, a decorated World War I officer. Free to attend; optional wrap lunches $12, order by September 30.
• 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. — Moments Without Proper Names. Screening of the film directed by Gordon Parks. Free.
• 1:45 to 2:45 p.m. — Gordon Parks Trolley Tour. Visits Fort Scott locations connected to Parks and The Learning Tree. Meet at the Ellis Family Fine Arts Center entrance. $10, reservation required.
• 3 to 4 p.m. — The Sounds of Leadbelly. Blues guitarist Lem Sheppard shares the music and story of Leadbelly. Free.

Friday, October 2

• 10 to 10:50 a.m. — David Parks: GI Diary Vietnam. Documentary screening followed by a brief conversation with David Parks. Free.
• 11 to 11:50 a.m. — A Conversation with Victor Goines and Maryemma Graham. Meet the 2026 Choice of Weapons honorees. Free.
• Noon to 12:45 p.m. — Lunch and Learn: Leadbelly and Irene. Explores Leadbelly’s influence on American music. Free to attend; optional wrap lunches $12, order by October 1.
• 1 to 1:45 p.m. — Reflections on Filming Leadbelly. Conversation with cast and crew celebrating more than 50 years of the film. Free.
• 1:45 to 3:55 p.m. — Leadbelly. Screening of Gordon Parks’ film. Free.
• 8 p.m. — Celebration Dance Party. Dancing to R&B and soul with Power Unlimited featuring Keith Marlo at the River Room, 3 W. Oak St. Doors open at 7 p.m. Reserved seats $25 advance, $30 at the door.

Saturday, October 3

• 10 to 11:15 a.m. — Open Mic Poetry. Poets, rappers, musicians and artists of all ages welcome; no sign-up needed. Free.
• 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. — Lunch and Learn: The 1927 Plaza School Yearbook. Learn about the Fort Scott yearbook featuring Gordon Parks as an eighth-grade graduate. Free to attend; optional BBQ lunches $8, order by October 2.
• 1 to 2:45 p.m. — Fort Scott Stories. Encore screening of Michael Cheers’ documentary inspired by Parks’ unpublished 1950 LIFE magazine assignment. Free, but registration required; doors open 12:30 p.m., seating limited.
• 3:15 to 4:15 p.m. — Gordon Parks Trolley Tour. Same route as Thursday’s tour. $10, reservation required.
• 7 p.m. — Celebration Tribute Dinner. Dinner, music, a photo auction and presentation of this year’s Choice of Weapons and Learning Tree awards. Social hour begins 6 p.m. at the Liberty Theater, 113 S. Main St. Reserved seats $35; reserve by September 30.

Sunday, October 4

• 9 a.m. — Breakfast at Crooner’s Lounge, 117 S. Main St. No event ticket needed; guests pay for their own meals.

Throughout the celebration

Photo exhibits and the “Giving a Voice to the Voiceless” photo and poetry displays will be on view at the Gordon Parks Museum and Ellis Family Fine Arts Center. Visitors can also see the Gordon Parks sign at Lowell Milken Center Unsung Heroes Park, the mural at Riverfront Park, and Wayman Chapel AME Church Commemorative Park. Most daytime programs are held at the Gordon Parks Museum or Ellis Family Fine Arts Center, 2108 S. Horton St. Registration is open outside the museum Thursday through Saturday.

For questions, contact the Gordon Parks Museum at 620-223-2700, ext. 5850, or gordonparkscenter@fortscott.edu.

The Gordon Parks Museum
Wins 2026 AASLH Award of Excellence
NASHVILLE, TN.– June 12, 2026 – The AASLH awards The American Association for State
and Local History (AASLH) proudly announces that the Gordon Parks Museum is the recipient
of an Award of Excellence for the Wayman Chapel A.M.E. Church Commemorative Park
Project. The AASLH Leadership in History Awards are the most prestigious recognition for
achievement in the preservation and interpretation of state and local history.

The Wayman A.M.E. Church Commemorative Park was developed on the original site of the
historic Wayman Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church, which stood at 301 S. Lowman
Street in Fort Scott, Kansas, for 116 years. After the property was donated to the Gordon Parks
Museum, it was transformed into a tribute park honoring the oldest Black church in Fort Scott

and celebrating its enduring legacy. The Park features four 72″ x 27″ interpretive display panels
and a 4′ x 3′ welcome sign, all installed on a 12′ x 20′ concrete slab beneath a 12′ x 20′ pergola.
The displays highlight key aspects of the church’s history, including a timeline of significant
events, recognition of its pastors, and the congregation’s lasting impact on the community.

The
interpretive panels also explore Wayman Chapel’s connections to influential figures and events
such as Gordon Parks, The Learning Tree, Frederick Douglass, Booker T. Washington, Carrie
Hughes, and Professor E.J. Hawkins. Together, the exhibits honor the church’s role in shaping
community life, fostering faith, education, and leadership, while QR codes on each sign provide
visitors with access to expanded digital content for deeper engagement and learning.
This year, AASLH confers 42 national awards honoring people, projects, exhibits, and
publications. The winners represent the best in the field and provide leadership for the future of
state and local history.

The AASLH awards program was initiated in 1945 to establish and encourage standards of
excellence in the collection, preservation, and interpretation of state and local history throughout
the United States. The AASLH Leadership in History Awards not only honor
significant achievement in the field of state and local history, but also bring public recognition of
the opportunities for small and large organizations, institutions, and programs to make
contributions in this arena. For more information about the Leadership in History Awards,
contact AASLH at 615-320-3203 or go to www.aaslh.org.

Established in 2004, the Gordon Parks Museum, located at Fort Scott Community
College in his hometown of Fort Scott, Kansas, is dedicated to preserving and celebrating the
remarkable life and work of Gordon Parks, the internationally renowned photographer,
filmmaker, writer, and musician. The museum also uses his inspiring life story to teach about
artistic creativity, cultural awareness, and the role of diversity in our lives. Gordon Parks
attended the first Annual Gordon Parks Celebration, which was created in his honor. The
museum’s valuable collection includes many of his iconic photographs, personal artifacts,
awards, medals, honorary degrees, and replica furnishings from his New York apartment,
highlighting his extraordinary achievements and lasting impact on American culture. More than
a museum, it inspires visitors through exhibitions, educational programs, special events, and the
annual Gordon Parks Celebration. The museum encourages visitors to learn from Parks’
creativity, perseverance, and commitment to making a positive difference through the arts.
The American Association for State and Local History (AASLH), a national nonprofit association, provides
leadership and resources to help the history community thrive and make the past more meaningful for all
people. AASLH serves the tens of thousands of history organizations, professionals, and volunteers
around the country who help people of all ages develop critical thinking skills and understand how
learning history helps society make progress toward justice. Through research, advocacy, and our field-
leading professional development program, AASLH advances public history practice and connects history
practitioners to critical issues in the field and to one another. For more information about AASLH visit
www.aaslh.org.
###

Victor Goines and Maryemma Graham will be the recipients of the “Gordon Parks Choice of Weapons Award” at the
annual celebration October 1st – 3rd, 2026 in Fort Scott, Kansas. The celebration is in honor of Fort Scott native Gordon
Parks, noted photographer, writer, musician, and filmmaker. The Choice of Weapons Award was established in Parks’
honor to be given annually at the celebration. More detailed information about the annual celebration events will be
coming at a later date with a full press release.

Victor Goines is an internationally acclaimed saxophonist, clarinetist, composer, and educator
with a career that spans over four decades at the highest levels of jazz performance and
education. A native of New Orleans, Goines began his musical journey at a young age and has
become one of the most respected figures in jazz. During his lengthy tenure as a member of both
the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra and the Wynton Marsalis Septet, he has performed on major
stages around the world and contributed to numerous recordings, including Wynton Marsalis’s
Pulitzer Prize-winning “Blood on the Fields” and Ted Nash’s Grammy-winning “Presidential Suite.”
Goines is also a prolific composer, having created more than 400 original works. Many of
these compositions have been commissioned by prestigious institutions such as Jazz at Lincoln
Center, The Juilliard School, the Woodlawn Cemetery and Conservancy, the Music Institute of Chicago, and the ASCAP
Foundation. His extensive discography includes performances as both a leader and a sideman, collaborating with legends
like Eric Clapton, Dianne Reeves, Ellis Marsalis, Branford Marsalis, Marcus Roberts, Wycliffe Gordon, and Ruth Brown,
among others.
In addition to his performance career, Goines has made a significant impact in the field of music education. He served
as the Director of Jazz Studies at Northwestern University’s Bienen School of Music for 14 years, during which time he
elevated the program to national recognition. Prior to that, he was the founding Director of Jazz Studies at The Juilliard
School, where he shaped the curriculum that established Juilliard as a premier institution for jazz education. Goines
has mentored notable artists including Jon Batiste, Aaron Diehl, Brian Blade, and Yasushi Nakamura. He has also held
teaching positions at Florida A&M University, the University of New Orleans, Loyola University New Orleans, and Xavier
University.
Goines earned a Bachelor of Music Education degree from Loyola University New Orleans and a Master of Music degree
from Virginia Commonwealth University. He is currently pursuing a Doctor of Music Arts in music education at Boston
University.
His last appointment was as the President and CEO of Jazz St. Louis from 2022 until his departure in 2026.
Victor L. Goines is a Yamaha artist and a Vandoren artist.

Maryemma Graham is University Distinguished Professor Emerita at the Department of English,
University of Kansas, and a 2021 recipient of an American Book Award lifetime achievement
recognition for “outstanding literary excellence,” highlighting the broad and lasting impact of her
research, publishing, teaching, and public engagement through humanities-driven initiatives.
The Augusta, Georgia, native is founder and for 38 of its 43 years, the director of The History of
Black Writing (HBW), a digital archive established in 1983, at the University of Mississippi. Focusing
on the preservation and study of Black Literature. HBW is best known for its wide array of initiatives
in the humanities that have redefined the field of literary studies. Graham’s extensive record of
funding includes over $3.5 million from the National Endowment for the Humanities, Ford, and
Mellon Foundations. HBW’s signature work links literary recovery, archival preservation, and digital
scholarship with intergenerational and international networks.
Spearheaded by HBW, Graham created a bridge for the Langston Hughes National Poetry Project, the Language Matters
Teaching Initiative in partnership with the Toni Morrison Society, and the Black Book Interactive Project, a joint effort with
AFRO-PWW at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
AFRO-PWW is now an active digital publishing network led by Marilyn Thomas Houston and Ronald W. Bailey just as HBW
began a new era at Indiana University under the leadership of Ayesha Hardison.
Graham’s research and publications – 15 books and hundreds of articles and essays – point to her national and international
focus as a scholar-activist-collaborater invested in expanding the public’s knowledge. Her notable published works include
The Cambridge History of African American Literature, with Jerry W. Ward, Jr. and the multi-lingual volume Toni Morrison:
Au delà du visible ordinaire / Beyond the Visible and Ordinary (2015) with Andrée-Anne Kekeh and Janis A. Mayes. On
her groundbreaking, late career publication, The House Where My Soul Lives: The Life of Margaret Walker (Oxford, 2022),
Alice Walker comments that Graham “invites us to understand more fully the richness and variety of Southern life . . . the
unstoppable spirit of black creative people. . . and the Universe of Margaret Walker . . . who never stopped honing her skills
of inquiry, observation, and debate.” Largely responsible for the resurgence of interest in Margaret Walker, prior to the
biography, Graham published 4 related books: How I Wrote Jubilee and Other Essays on Life and Literature (1990), On Being
Female, Black, and Free: Essays by Margaret Walker, 1932-92 (1997), Conversations with Margaret Walker (2002), and Fields
Watered with Blood: Critical Essays on Margaret Walker, originally published in 2001 & reprinted due to popular demand in
2014. While Graham’s investment in Walker has defined much of her career, her reputation is extended with articles, book
chapters, introductions, interviews, commemorative editions, book reviews, study guides, and especially interviews. Graham
landed the first major interview with the late novelist Frank Yerby, one of the most widely published American novelists of
his time, whom most did not know was black. Her mentorship of legions of students and initiating collaborative projects are
widely known, and Graham remains highly invested in advocacy efforts, just as she redefined what we mean by “professional
development” with her 20 popular NEH-funded programs, including national summer institutes at Northeastern University
in Boston and the University of Kansas. KU hosted 16 of these events that reached educators throughout the US and abroad.
The kick off for these events was the 2002 Langston Hughes Centennial that brought more than a 1000 people to Lawrence.
In her so-called retirement, Graham is working on three books: “The Cambridge History of the African American Novel,”
with Keith Gilyard (Cambridge), “Margaret Walker’s South” (University Press of Mississippi), and “The Gary Girls” with the
members of her maternal family. Somewhere in there will be her own memoir, “School Teacher’s Daughter.” Born and raised
in Augusta, GA, Graham calls Lawrence, KS her home after nearly 30 years as a resident. Driven by a concern that reading has
gone out of style, she is working with the St. Luke A.M.E. church community and its Pastor Rachel Williams-Glenn in building
a children’s library, commemorating the church and the city, where famous author Langston Hughes spent his childhood.

Schedule and ticket information will be posted at a later date on the website gordonparkscenter.org.