An Illinois America 250 Event

Chicago historian Dilla, as he is affectionately known, is an Emmy Award-winning modern historian, cultural worker, and brand ambassador. Dilla has become a Chicago influencer, activist, and social media sensation.  What began by going viral on TikTok has led into perspective shifting, publicly accessible history lessons for all. Dilla's history videos on everything Chicago have been viewed over 40 million times, and he has amassed a following of 300K followers across all social media platforms. Dilla has been featured on all manner of Chicago media and has also appeared nationally on both The Today Show and The Kelly Clarkson Show. Dilla is a proud lifelong resident of Chicago's South Side.

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(Photo by Manuel Martinez/WBEZ)

From the Wabash River region of southeastern Illinois, Dennis Stroughmatt was taught to play fiddle by a mixture of tradition-bearing stylists, including southeast Missouri French Creole fiddlers Roy Boyer and Charlie Pashia in the tradition of their fathers and the southern Illinois Western Swing fiddle legend Wade Ray. He became an adopted son of the French Midwest Creoles who settled near St. Louis and Cahokia by playing at weekly house parties or “bouillons,” and he later made journeys that have included studies in Louisiana, Quebec, and Tennessee.

Dennis finds himself in a unique position as one who can speak knowledgeably of and play in a variety of French Creole and Old-time Western musical styles. With an MA in history from SIU-Carbondale and a Certificate of French Quebecois Studies from the University of Quebec, Dennis is not only a musician but a passionate educator who entertains and teaches his audiences at the same time. Speaking engagements, residencies, and performances include The Smithsonian Folklife Festival, The Library of Congress, The Kennedy Center, The Missouri Folklore Society, and Festival Acadian in Lafayette, LA.

Dennis Stroughmatt is an Illinois Humanities Road Scholar.

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A professor of sculpture at the School of the Art Institute in Chicago, Preston Jackson is the head of the figurative area and has served as chair of the Sculpture Department.  He also teaches children´s art, painting, sculpture, and tai chi at the Contemporary Art Center of Peoria, on the RiverFront.  

Jackson's work deals with the subject of our history—both precise depictions of well-known historical figures as well as innovative portrayals of individuals whose lives, though unfamiliar to us, are part of our history he wants us to learn. His latest series, "Fresh from Julieanne´s Garden", reveals the lives and personalities of his ancestors and the stories of all of our forbears who lived in the Southern United States in the 19th and early 20th century.  This work reflects an admiration for the resolution and resiliency of each individual.

Preston is a 2006 HistoryMaker. Preston and his wife Melba maintain homes in Dunlap and Chicago, IL. They have two daughters, Natalie and Alice, and one grandson, Blake.

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(Photo by Matt Dayhoff)

Dr. Rose Miron is the Senior Director of Library, Archives, and Collections at the Minnesota Historical Society. A non-Native historian, her research explores Indigenous history across the Great Lakes, especially related to public history and memory. 

Dr. Miron award-winning book, Indigenous Archival Activism: Mohican Interventions in Public History and Memory (2024), takes readers into the heart of the debate over who has the right to represent Native history by tracing one tribe’s fifty-year fight to recover their historical materials from colonial museums and archives and rewrite their history in public spaces. She is also the co-director of Indigenous Chicago, a multi-faceted public humanities project at the Newberry Library in collaboration with Native community members and tribal nations with historic ties to the Chicago region. 

Dr. Miron holds a BA in History and a PhD in American Studies from the University of Minnesota.

(Photo by Charlie Vaughan)

Gabrielle H. Lyon received her BA and MA in history from the University of Chicago and her PhD in Education from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She is a nationally recognized nonprofit leader, educator, and public speaker with experience in launching and leading social impact organizations and initiatives focused on leveling the playing field of educational access and opportunity. She joined Illinois Humanities as the Executive Director in June 2019. Prior to that she served as Vice President of Education and Experience at the Chicago Architecture Center and as a senior researcher at the Great Cities Institute at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She is the founding executive director of Project Exploration, a nonprofit dedicated to changing the face of science for youth and girls of color, which was recognized locally and nationally, including with a Presidential Award for Excellence. 

Her honors include being named a 2023 Notable Leader in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion by Crain's Chicago Business, a National After School Champion by the After School Alliance, Chicagoan of the Year by Chicago Magazine, and a Leadership Fellow with the Chicago Community Trust. Lyon has served as a social impact coach at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and as an adjunct professor of entrepreneurship at Northwestern's Kellogg School of Management. Her current research and writing focus on the ways in which community-driven design and participatory humanities experiences bridge civic identities and strengthen social fabric. Lyon is the author of the graphic novels No Small Plans and Washington By and By and served as coeditor for A Simple Justice: The Challenge of Small Schools. 

Performer and pedagogue Dr. Mark De Zwaan has made his career as a veritable Swiss-army knife of the music world. As a concert pianist, De Zwaan has captivated listeners on stages across the globe with his depth of expression and explosive virtuosity. As a technologist, De Zwaan has spent decades in professional audio production and system design. Currently serving as an Assistant Professor at Bradley University, De Zwaan has instructed disparate subjects across the music curriculum, including applied and group piano, music technology, music theory, aural skills, and music history.

A native of Grand Rapids, MI, De Zwaan completed his piano studies at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music as a pupil of Karen Shaw, culminating in a Doctorate in Piano Performance and Literature. De Zwaan also holds a Bachelor of Science in Recording Arts from the Jacobs School and a Master of Science in Computer Science from the Georgia Institute of Technology.

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Korean pianist Dr. Ji Hyun Kim’s versatile qualities as a soloist, collaborative pianist, and chamber musician have distinguished her as a prominent performer. Prize winner at Dobrich Music Competition, Ibla International Competition and first prize winner of Korea Piano Competition, Kim’s engaging and passionate playing has made her a popular pianist across the United States, Korea, Italy, Germany, and Bulgaria. Her performance with Rumania Banatul Timisoara Orchestra in Korea was met with great acclaim.

Kim received her Doctorate of Music from Indiana University Jacobs School of Music where she studied with Karen Shaw. She is currently serving as a Staff Collaborative Pianist at Bradley University.

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