JSU features personal items of famed Mississippi author Margaret Walker Alexander in new Smithsonian exhibit

January 16, 2026
On Monday, January 12, Jackson State University faculty, staff, students and administrators were invited to attend a special preview of “At the Vanguard: Making and Saving History at Historically Black Colleges and Universities.” (Photo Courtesy of the Smithsonian)

By William H. Kelly III

(JACKSON, Miss.) — Jackson State University (JSU) is expanding its cultural reach as a partnering institution with “At the Vanguard: Making and Saving History at Historically Black Colleges and Universities.” This special exhibit highlights rare collections from five HBCUs, including JSU’s Margaret Walker Center (MWC). It will feature Margaret Walker Alexander’s, Ph.D., personal journals, the Elizabeth Catlett sculpture of Phillis Wheatley, and the typewriter Alexander used to produce notable works such as the revised ‘Jubilee’ manuscript.

“At the Vanguard affirms what Historically Black Colleges and Universities have long known and practiced—preserving history is central to our mission. Jackson State University is honored to contribute to this exhibition through the Margaret Walker Center, where lived experience, scholarship and cultural memory are preserved with care,” said JSU Interim President Denise Jones Gregory, Ph.D. “This moment recognizes the role HBCUs play in safeguarding the past and preparing future generations to study, interpret and carry that history forward.”

This bronze bust of Phillis Wheatley, a mid-18th-century poet, is one of many historical items that can be found at the National Museum of African American History & Culture. The bust was sculpted by Elizabeth Catlett. (William H. Kelly III/Jackson State University)

The project is the culmination of a five-year pilot initiative, known as the HBCU History and Culture Access Consortium (HCAC), in which JSU serves as an inaugural member. Launched by the National Museum of African American History & Culture (NMAAHC) in 2021, partners of the consortium engage in activities and programming that seek to strengthen the role of HBCU museums and archives in America.   

“At the Vanguard” will display over 100 objects telling a story of resilience, preservation, scholarship and more through the lens of the partnering HBCUs. Additionally, JSU’s MWC contributes nearly 30 publications, photographs from the 1973 Phillis Wheatley Poetry Festival, historical markers and political buttons. 

“At the Vanguard,” will feature the IBM typewriter formerly owned by famed author and scholar Margaret Walker Alexander, Ph.D. Alexander used the typewriter to produce notable works such as the revised ‘Jubilee’ manuscript. (William H. Kelly III/Jackson State University)

Director of the Margaret Walker Center Robert Luckett, Ph.D., says the contribution continues JSU’s commitment to the arts through education. 

“The support for the Margaret Walker Center and Jackson State University to preserve and promote our historic collections through digitization and this exhibition is crucial to our long-term sustainability and visibility, and the opportunity to introduce our students at Jackson State to this field of public history has been a game changer,” adds Luckett.

“The HCAC initiative has been a transformative partnership with our sister institutions at these other four HBCUs and the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture,” adds Luckett. 

Robert Luckett, Ph.D., serves as the director of the Margaret Walker Center at Jackson State University. Luckett is an inaugural member of the HBCU History and Culture Access Consortium, whose role is to strengthen HBCU museums and archives in America. (Photo Courtesy of the Smithsonian)

Other HCAC partnering institutions include Clark Atlanta University, Florida A&M University, Texas Southern University and Tuskegee University. 

“At the Vanguard” debuts at the National Museum of African American History & Culture in Washington, D.C., on Friday, Jan. 16. The exhibit will remain at the NMAAHC throughout July 19, 2026, and travel to the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson in April 2027. 

To donate, book a tour or learn more about the Margaret Walker Center, visit their website here. 

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Media Contact: William H. Kelly III, william.h.kelly@jsums.edu