Grants Pass, August 13, 2025— Josephine Community Library is launching Declaration 250, an eight-part public history series marking the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. The free program begins Thursday, September 4, 2025, and runs monthly through May 2026 at the Grants Pass branch, from 5:30–6:30 p.m.
Led by award-winning educator Lois MacMillan, the series explores how the ideas of 1776 sparked global movements for liberty, equality, and independence. Each session connects founding-era events with their lasting influence in the U.S. and around the world.
MacMillan is a nationally recognized history teacher and frequent speaker on civic education. A former Oregon History Teacher of the Year and Gilder Lehrman Master Teacher, she has trained educators nationwide and led programs on constitutional history and democratic ideals.
“I’m always in awe of the delegates who met in 1776 to write the Declaration — especially the Committee of Five — for their big thinking,” said MacMillan, referring to the group tasked with drafting the Declaration of Independence. “Thomas Jefferson has been rightly criticized for owning people, but he’s also the father of the grand ideas that gave us America — and inspired people around the world.”
Grants Pass Program Schedule:
- September 4, 2025 | 5:30–6:30 p.m. – The Big Bang of Modern Democracy
- October 2, 2025 | 5:30–6:30 p.m. – The Origins of the Civil Rights Movement
- November 6, 2025 | 5:30–6:30 p.m. – The Idea of Independence Spreads Internationally
- January 8, 2026 | 5:30–6:30 p.m. – A New Birth of Freedom
- February 5, 2026 | 5:30–6:30 p.m. – Women’s Rights
- March 4, 2026 | 5:30–6:30 p.m. – The Fall of Empires and Proliferation of Independent Countries
- April 2, 2026 | 5:30–6:30 p.m. – Twentieth-Century Legacies
- May 7, 2026 | 5:30–6:30 p.m. – Reflections of Independence
Illinois Valley Program Schedule:
- October 4, 2025 | 11:30 a.m.–12 p.m. – The Origins of the Civil Rights Movement
- April 4, 2025 | 11:30 a.m.–12 p.m. – Twentieth-Century Legacies
Exhibit on Display and Available for Loan
To accompany the program, the library will feature a traveling Declaration of Independence exhibit, curated by Dr. James Basker and Sandy Trenholm of the Gilder Lehrman Institute. The exhibit will be on display in Grants Pass in September and Illinois Valley in October, then available for three-week loans to schools and agencies. To request the exhibit, email info@josephinelibrary.org.
MacMillan teaches American and World History at Grants Pass High School. After earning her National Board Certification in Early Adolescence-Social Studies, MacMillan won Oregon’s 2006 History Teacher of the Year award and Southern Oregon’s 2022 Teacher of the Year award. She serves on the National Council of History Education and has participated in fellowships with Monticello, Ford’s Theatre, James Madison, and the Pulitzer Center. In 2018 she won Grammy Museum’s Jane Ortner Award for incorporating music in the non-music classroom.
For more information about library programs and services, visit josephinelibrary.org, email info@josephinelibrary.org, or call 541-476-0571.