Nikole Hannah-Jones, the Pulitzer-prize winning journalist and creator of “The 1619 Project,” will visit Earlham as its second annual Presidential Lecture Series speaker at 7 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 19.
Her visit will be at Goddard Auditorium in Carpenter Hall and include a moderated 75-minute discussion entitled “In Conversation about Truth, History, and The1619 Project.” The discussion will be followed by an audience question and answer session and a book signing.
The event is free to the public and no tickets are required.
Hannah-Jones is the creator of “The 1619 Project,” an investigative initiative by the New York Times that reframes American history by centering the consequences of slavery and contributions of Black Americans. The project began as a podcast but has expanded to include books, such as the children’s edition of The1619 Project, titled “Born on the Water,” and the formal book edition’s podcast. More recently, “The 1619 Project” was reworked into a six-part docuseries on Hulu.
“Nikole Hannah-Jones is recognized as a powerful voice of social conscience urging America to confront and acknowledge its full, true history,” Earlham President Paul Sniegowski said. “We are thrilled to have her join us for our second annual Presidential Lecture Series event.”
Hannah-Jones’ reporting has earned her the MacArthur Fellowship (known as the Genius grant), a Peabody Award, two George Polk Awards and the National Magazine Award not once, not twice, but three times. She also serves as the Knight Chair of Race and Journalism at Howard University, where she founded the Center for Journalism & Democracy. Hannah-Jones is also the co-founder of the Ida B. Wells Society for Investigative Reporting, which seeks to increase the number of investigative reporters and editors of color. In 2022 she opened the 1619 Freedom School, a free, afterschool literacy program in her hometown of Waterloo, Iowa.
Hannah-Jones received her Master of Arts in Mass Communication from the
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and earned her Bachelor of Arts in History and African-American studies from the University of Notre Dame.
The Presidential Lecture Series is funded by the Hawkins Just Society Lecture Fund, the Artist and Lecture Series and the President’s Discretionary Fund. This annual event focuses on bringing speakers and change-makers to campus to address important topics and current events, especially those focused on diversity, innovation, social justice and overcoming adversity. These free lectures are designed to bring Earlham and its neighbors together for a shared experience.
For more information about current and future events at Earlham College, visit earlham.edu/events.
Written by Jay Kibble, writer/editor for Earlham’s Office of Marketing and Communications