Congress honors Julius Rosenwald's legacy of Black education and civil rights.

What it does

This bill establishes a new national historical park dedicated to Julius Rosenwald, a Sears executive and philanthropist who funded the construction of approximately 5,000 schools for African American children in the segregated South between 1912 and 1932, educating over 600,000 students including future civil rights leaders. The park will include three restored Rosenwald Schools (in Maryland, South Carolina, and Virginia), a headquarters and visitor center at the former Sears complex in Chicago, and a network connecting remaining Rosenwald Schools nationwide to tell their story.

Why we flagged it

The bill's core function is to establish a new unit of the National Park System dedicated to preserving and interpreting the history of Julius Rosenwald and the Rosenwald Schools. It is a straightforward commemorative and educational measure with no hidden mechanisms or private carve-outs.

What the text implies

• The bill requires NPS to include interpretation of Rosenwald's story at two existing historic sites (Lincoln Home and Tuskegee Institute), expanding the interpretive footprint beyond the new park itself.
• Cooperative agreements allow NPS to fund preservation and interpretation of non-federal properties outside the park boundary, potentially creating ongoing federal support obligations for private or state-owned sites.
• The Rosenwald Schools National Network may eventually encompass dozens of sites nationwide, creating a distributed park-like system that could require sustained federal funding and coordination across multiple jurisdictions.

Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.

Who it affects

Citizens gain public access to preserved historical sites documenting African American education and civil rights history, enhanced educational programming through the national network, and transparent commemoration of a significant but underrecognized chapter of American social progress. No restrictions on citizen rights or access are imposed.

Named in the bill

National Park Service, Secretary of the Interior, Julius Rosenwald, Sears, Roebuck and Co., Booker T. Washington, State of Illinois, City of Chicago, State of Maryland, State of South Carolina, State of Virginia, Lincoln Home National Historic Site, Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site

Where it stands

8 cosponsors: 8 Democrats.

• Feb 25, 2026 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in Senate”
• Feb 25, 2026 — Referred to Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources · Congress.gov: “Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources”
• Jul 21, 2026 — Hearing held · Congress.gov: “Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on National Parks. Hearings held”

Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.

Money around this bill

1 lobbying clients named this bill on 1 disclosure filings across 1 quarter, Jun 2026 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $150,724 in lobbying spend. A filing names 29 bills on average, so that figure is what each filing reported, not a share belonging to this bill.

More lobbying clients named this bill than 0% of bills with at least one filing.

Richard Durbin, the sponsor, reported $-29,800 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.

• National Parks Conservation Association — $150,724 on 1 filing

Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 20, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.