The Virginia Museum of History & Culture will ring in July 4 this year with a merger with the John Marshall Center for Constitutional History & Civics into the VMHC and the launch of a three-year civics initiative.

The merger, announced Monday, is the prelude to the creation of a new civic education center by JMC that will be housed inside the museum. The center will seek to educate and inform about American civics and history, improving public knowledge for all of Virginia.

“We must embrace this historic moment — extraordinary in our lifetimes — and act upon it by together renewing our commitment to the unfinished pursuit of a more perfect union,” said VMHC President and CEO Jamie Bosket in a statement.

“We need to reflect deeply on our past and invest with great purpose in our future, which is why your state history museum is preparing a major multi-year investment to mark this special anniversary.”

More efforts will be part of this initiative, including two major exhibitions in 2025 and in 2026, complete with mobile versions featured throughout Virginia, alongside multiple programs and lectures, and scholarly works focused on the formative years of the United States.

More information can be found at virginiahistory.org/civics.