Education and Celebration: Lincoln University Honors George Washington Carver

Lincoln University of Missouri (LU) honored the legacy of one of Missouri's favorite sons in February with George Washington Carver Heritage Days. The three-day event on LU's campus celebrated the life and achievements of Carver and featured educational sessions on agricultural topics.

Roughly 100 growers and community members from across Missouri came to Jefferson City for the event, where they heard Carver's story, learned from specialists and connected with each other.

On the first day, attendees met at McClung Park's indoor pavilion to enjoy a catered dinner and hear from featured speakers, including LU President John Moseley, Ed.D., Innovative Small Farmers Outreach Program (ISFOP) specialist Izula Maximillen and Johnnie Westbrook, dean of LU's College of Agriculture, Environmental and Human Sciences.

The evening's keynote speaker was Antoine Alston, associate dean of academics at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University. He said Lincoln's Heritage Days celebration was important not only for honoring Carver, but for showcasing why his work still matters today.

"Your presence tonight underscores the enduring importance of agriculture, education and public service to the future of this state and this nation," Alston said.

Antoine Alston, associate dean of academics at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, speaks during the opening night of George Washington Carver Heritage Days.

Before discussing Carver's childhood, education and the challenges he overcame throughout his life, Alston asked attendees to understand that Carver's life must be measured by a different and higher standard of greatness.

"Greatness is often measured by titles, wealth or public recognition, but history tells us that true greatness is revealed not by what a person accumulates, but by what they fundamentally change," Alston said. "By that measure, George Washington Carver does not merely occupy a chapter of American history - he fundamentally reshaped its story."

Alston said Carver's discipline, quiet resolve and unshakable commitment enabled him to transform depleted soil into fertile ground, turn exclusion into access and build systems that continue to feed, teach and sustain the world today.

"To speak of George Washington Carver is not to recall a legend of the past; it is to trace the roots of modern agriculture, educational opportunity and human possibility that continue to shape our lives," Alston said.

Alston left attendees with five enduring principles to be taken away from Carver's story:

• Science must serve people
• Persistence outlasts prejudice
• Innovation thrives in humility
• Education is a generational investment
• Greatness is the measure of who you uplift

The second day brought attendees to LU's Inman E. Page Library, where they spent the day in breakout sessions learning about mental health and gardening, food waste and AgrAbility.

ISFOP specialist Susan Jaster demonstrates long-handled tools during a session on AgrAbility at George Washington Carver Heritage Days, Feb. 24, 2026.

AgrAbility is a United States Department of Agriculture-funded initiative focused on helping farmers identify assistive and adaptive tools. ISFOP specialists Mary Keeter and Susan Jaster led the sessions and discussed the importance of finding tools and equipment that make farming and gardening easier for growers.

They taught participants about tool size, hand positioning, task-specific gloves, long-handled tools and ways to protect crops with different fencing options and low tunnels.

During the sessions on food waste, Sujan Acharya, assistant professor of food safety at LU, discussed the impacts of food waste and the dangers of food spoilage.

Acharya told attendees that wasting food also means wasting the labor, water and energy that went into its production, as well as the money spent purchasing it.

Fortunately, he said, food waste is often preventable.

Acharya taught attendees the warning signs of spoilage, including appearance, smell and texture. He also shared which temperatures are optimal for bacteria growth.

To combat food spoilage, Acharya recommended keeping food out of the "danger zone" of 40-140 degrees Fahrenheit.

Beyond safe storage, he explained the best way to prevent food waste is freezing.

"The refrigerator buys you days. Freezing buys you months," Acharya said.

To help attendees better understand the process, Acharya passed around a guidebook he wrote on freezing fruits and vegetables, which included detailed instructions on how to prepare and pack foods for freezing.

Nutritionist Tiarra Adams talks to George Washington Carver Heritage Days attendees about Mental Health and Gardening.

Tiarra Adams, a nutritionist from Wellston Loop Community Development Corporation in St. Louis, used her sessions on mental health and gardening to discuss alternative diets and how food affects our mental well-being.

Adams shared her own struggles with nutrition, telling attendees she used to experience "brain fog," anxiety, depression and other symptoms. After switching to a plant-based diet, however, Adams said her symptoms lessened or disappeared, leading her to dive deeper into the world of nutrition education.

She encouraged attendees to get blood and gut tests to find out what kind of diet makes sense for their bodies, noting that genetics play a significant role in which foods may harm or help our health. She also pointed out foods to avoid, such as certain sugars, oils and processed foods.

After the breakout sessions, attendees watched a PBS documentary about Carver before wrapping up for the day. They met again later in the evening for a networking dinner featuring catered food and remarks from featured speakers.

On the final day of the event, participants gathered at The Linc, a fitness center jointly owned and operated by Lincoln and Jefferson City Parks.

There, attendees again heard from Maximillen, this time joined by fellow ISFOP specialist Ryan Tenney over Zoom. They shared about Carver's work to elevate farmers and their communities through invention, outreach and education.

ISFOP specialist Izula Maximillen leads attendees in a brief meditation exercise during George Washington Carver Heritage Days at Lincoln University on Feb. 25, 2026.

The event concluded with a raffle and remarks from Dean Westbrook about the history and importance of land-grant universities.

Shontay Billingsley, who travelled from St. Louis for the event, said she's been attending Lincoln events for years and heard about George Washington Carver Heritage Days through a recent train-the-trainer event.

She said her favorite part was learning new things about Carver.

"This was so nice. I knew Carver as the peanut man, and now I know him as more," Billingsley said. "I learned he was an orphan, that he invented makeup products and so many other things."

Throughout his life, Carver overcame adversity and stayed curious, using his intellect to make critical agricultural breakthroughs and spread agricultural education to farmers.

Johnnie Westbrook, dean of LU's College of Agriculture, Environmental and Human Sciences, speaks to attendees during George Washington Carver Heritage Days.

Lincoln University honors Carver not only through events like George Washington Carver Heritage Days, but through its ongoing commitment to serving small, limited-resource agricultural producers and the communities they feed.