photo by: Courtesy: Dole Institute

The Dole Institute of Politics on the West Campus of the University of Kansas.

A presentation by a former keeper of America’s most precious historical documents, and a national exhibit exploring the year 1776 are among the special KU-based events on tap to commemorate America’s 250th birthday.

The Dole Institute of Politics on the University of Kansas’ West Campus has announced a series of events that will feature conversations reflecting on the founding of America.

“The semiquincentennial year, 2026, honoring the 250th anniversary of the signing of the U.S. Declaration of Independence, is a milestone opportunity not just to reflect on our nation’s founding principles, aspirations and lessons of history, but also to envision how these shape the future we create together,” Dole Institute director Audrey Coleman said in a press release.

Bringing a former archivist of the United States to Lawrence for an address will be one of the first events in the America at 250 series. Colleen Shogan — who served in the archivist role from 2023 to 2025 — will deliver the Elizabeth Dole Women in Leadership Lecture at 7 p.m. on Jan. 29 at the Dole Institute.

Shogan was the first woman to be confirmed by the U.S. Senate to serve as the U.S. archivist, which is a position responsible for safeguarding important government documents, including the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution. Shogan was in the news in 2025 as she was among a group of top government appointees who were dismissed by President Donald Trump as he began his term. The archivist position currently is being occupied in an acting capacity by Marco Rubio, who serves as U.S. Secretary of State and is also the acting national security advisor in addition to his acting role as archivist.

photo by: AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

Colleen Shogan, testifies before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee full committee hearing on her nomination to be archivist of the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2023.

Shogan — who has a long history of archival work with the U.S. Senate, the Library of Congress and other organizations — is currently leading a nationwide initiative called Pursuit, which seeks to identify “the most insightful and timeless lessons from the past 250 years of American history.”

The institute also is bringing in a national exhibit for an extended stay in Lawrence. The exhibit, “Declaration 1776: The Big Bang of Modern Democracy,” is put together by the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History and will use a variety of historical sources to how “Americans and people across the world have been inspired by the Declaration of Independence.”

The national exhibit, which will have a focus on the themes of equality and self-determination, will be supplemented by selections from archives of the Dole Institute that look back on America’s 1976 Bicentennial celebrations. Humanities Kansas also will be providing an exhibit that looks back on what was happening 250 years ago on the land that would become the state of Kansas.

The trio of exhibits will be available for public viewing Feb. 16 through Sept. 7 on Tuesday through Sundays during the hours of noon to 4 p.m..

Two new fellows to the Dole Institute also will be hosting a series of events that examine American freedom and principles related to the founding of the country. Former Kansas State Sen. Jeff King and journalist Mark McCormick have been named 2026 Dole Fellows and will host the following events:

• Feb. 4: “What Does It Mean to Be United?”

• March 25: “Liberty In a Pluralistic Society”

• April 8: “A Republic, If You Can Keep It”

• April 29: “The Pursuit of Happiness: Is America Still the Land of Opportunity?”

Each of the fellow’s programs will begin at 4 p.m. at the Dole Institute.

The spring season at the institute also will include the Dole Lecture, which usually brings in the highest profile speaker of the year to the institute. The date for the Dole Lecture has been set for 7 p.m. on April 13 at The Lied Center. The lecture will feature a Pulitzer Prize winning historian and author, but the institute has not yet released the name of the speaker.

The institute on Wednesday also announced several other upcoming events outside of the America at 250 series. They include:

— Jan. 22: A screening of the award-winning documentary “UnBroken” that follows the daughter of a Holocaust survivor who undertakes an international investigation to learn more about her mother and six siblings who escaped Nazi Germany. The screening begins at 6 p.m. at the institute, and is part of Lawrence’s annual Free State Film Festival. The screening will include a conversation with the documentary’s director, Beth Lane.

• April 4: The institute’s annual Easter Egg Roll with Dole will take place from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m..

• April 23: Dole Visiting Fellows Ed Duckers and Pedro Irigonegaray will host a new episode of “The Counselors” series, which feature debates or mock trials examining societal issues. This edition will debate the idea of implementing a universal basic income program. The session begins at 6:30 p.m. at the Dole Institute, 2350 Petefish Drive.