White Fund lecturer Robert Forrant.

A local history professor, well versed in Lawrence’s rich, immigrant past, will present a White Fund lecture, in collaboration with Northern Essex Community College, titled, ” Lawrence’s History as an Immigrant City,” on Thursday, February 25, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at El Taller, 275 Essex St., Lawrence. This event is free and open to the public.

Robert Forrant, a University of Massachusetts Lowell Professor of History and a board member of the Lawrence History Center will lead an examination of Lawrence as an immigrant city.

He is a member of the editorial board of “MassBenchmarks”, a joint publication of the UMass President’s Office and the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. In 2012 he worked extensively on a variety of community-based programs dedicated to the centennial anniversary of the Bread and Roses Strike. He is co-editor of the “Great Lawrence Textile Strike of 1912: New Scholarship on the Bread & Roses Strike” (2014) and “The Big Move: Immigrant Voices From a Mill City” with Christoph Strobel (2011); and a participant in numerous projects funded by the Massachusetts Foundation for the Humanities, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the Lowell National Historical Park, he also teaches courses on immigration history.

The White Fund’s purpose is to have a free series of interactive presentations for Lawrence area adults, youth, and children. The audience is encouraged to seek wisdom, cultural enrichment, and intellectual enhancement by attending and participating.

Funded by a generous financial gift from the Honorable Daniel Appleton White, the White Fund Lecture Series has provided cultural conversation featuring well-known lecturers in fields such as history, literature, travel, the arts, and politics.

For additional information or to be notified of upcoming events in the White Fund Enlightenment Series, contact Analuz Garcia at agarcia@necc.mass.edu or call 978-738-7423 or visit the White Fund website.