Arkansas Heritage Month

Arkansas’s past is filled with determined individuals. Hard work in pursuit of a dream is a lesson every Arkansan should learn.


This year’s Heritage Month theme, Dreams and Determination: Arkansans at Work, recognizes the achievements of all Arkansans, with a special focus on the Mosaic Templars Cultural Center, the DAH museum that highlights black achievements, particularly in business, politics and the arts.


The Department of Arkansas Heritage will officially usher in this year’s Heritage Month at 4 p.m. Tuesday, May 1, at the Mosaic Templars Cultural Center in Little Rock’s historic Ninth Street district. The collectible 2012 Heritage Month poster will be unveiled and available for free at the event.


“This month, we celebrate the movers and shakers of our state’s past,” said Cathie Matthews, Department of Arkansas Heritage director. “From Dr. G.W. Stanley Ish Sr., a renowned Arkansas physician who was the only African American in his class at Harvard Medical School in 1911, to state Rep. Darrin Williams who was recently elected the first African-American Speaker of the Arkansas House of Representatives, where we are today is because of the determination of these Arkansans and others like them to see dreams become reality.”


In May, Arkansans can explore and develop a greater appreciation for the state’s heritage by enjoying activities, festivals and events in their communities. Numerous communities have already scheduled local Heritage Month events; to find an event in your area, visit ArkansasHeritage.com.

Every year, the Department of Arkansas Heritage awards grants to help communities and organizations develop meaningful programs. This year, a total of $50,000 has been awarded to these organizations hosting Arkansas Heritage Month projects.

• Arkansas River Valley Arts Center in Russellville (Pope County)
• Benton County Farm Bureau Women’s Committee in Bentonville
• Booneville Historic Preservation Society (Logan County)
• Bradley County Chamber of Commerce in Warren
• Clark County Historical Association in Arkadelphia
• DeltaARTS in West Memphis (Crittenden County)
• Eureka Springs Downtown Network Inc. (Carroll County)
• Faulkner County Museum in Conway
• Friends of KLRE/KUAR in Little Rock (Pulaski County)
• Friends of the Rogers Historical Museum (Benton County)
• Jackson County Historical Society in Newport
• Leslie Arts and Heritage Committee (Searcy County)
• Quapaw Quarter Association in Little Rock (Pulaski County)
• Sacred Heart Catholic School in Morrilton (Conway County)
• Valley View Intermediate School in Jonesboro (Craighead County)
• Walton Arts Center in Fayetteville (Washington County)
• Winslow Museum (Washington County)


The Department of Arkansas Heritage sponsors Arkansas Heritage Month to celebrate the state’s history and culture. For more information, visit ArkansasHeritage.com or Facebook.com/ArkansasHeritage. To learn more about the history of African Americans in Arkansas and the Mosaic Templars Cultural Center, visit MosaicTemplarsCenter.com or connect at Facebook.com/pages/Mosaic-Templars-Cultural-Center/58775450739.


The collectible 2012 Heritage Month poster is available for free at ArkansasHeritage.com or by calling 501-324-9150.
The Department of Arkansas Heritage and its seven agencies seek to recognize the state’s heritage and to enhance Arkansas’s quality of life through the discovery, preservation and presentation of the state’s cultural, natural and historic resources. The agencies are the Arkansas Arts Council, Arkansas Historic Preservation Program, Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission, Delta Cultural Center, Historic Arkansas Museum, Mosaic Templars Cultural Center and Old State House Museum.