This is the second of five guest lectures for Trinity University's 2026 Lennox Seminar series in honor of the nation's semiquincentennial: "The United States at 250: Remembering and Forgetting."

Ms. Lorén Spears, Narragansett, and Executive Director of Tomaquag Museum, will share the history that leads to the Revolutionary War, Indigenous service in the American Revolution, Native contributions to the formation of this country, and unfinished revolutions. She will share stories of valor, sacrifice, inequities, self-determination and sovereignty in a lecture titled “Revolution: Impact, Diplomacy & Sovereignty," which will be followed by a Q&A.

Lorén M. Spears, enrolled Narragansett Tribal Nation citizen and Executive Director of Tomaquag Museum, holds a master’s in education and received a Doctor of Humane Letters, honoris causa in 2017, from the University of Rhode Island and Doctor of Education, Honoris Causa from Roger Williams University in 2021. She is an author, artist and shares her cultural knowledge with the public through museum programs. She has contributed to a variety of publications such as Dawnland Voices, An Anthology of Indigenous Writing of New England; Through Our Eyes: An Indigenous View of Mashapaug Pond; From Slaves to Soldiers: The 1st Rhode Island Regiment in the American Revolution; and Repair: Sustainable Design Futures. Spears co-edited a new edition of A Key into the Language of America by Roger Williams; and recently co-authored “As We Have Always Done: Decolonizing the Tomaquag Museum’s Collections Management Policy" published in the Collections: A Journal for Museum and Archive Professionals. Under her leadership Tomaquag Museum received the Institute of Museums and Library Service's National Medal in 2016 and she has been the recipient of numerous awards and honors.