Hilton Hotel in Chicago as the Venue for the PAHA Conference
The academic sessions and discussion panels took place at the Hilton Hotel, located in the heart of Chicago. This location has for years favored the organization of international and academic events, gathering researchers of the history, culture, and life of American Polonia.
PAHA Awards Ceremony at the Polish Museum of America
The awards ceremony was chaired by PAHA First Vice President Iwona Flis, and welcoming remarks were delivered by association President Karen Majewski and Polish Museum of America President Richard Owsiany.
The Role of the Polish Museum of America in PAHA Events
For years, the Polish Museum of America has played a key role as a venue for meetings, debates, and celebrations for Polish-American communities. Organizing the PAHA banquet and awards gala within its walls underscored the institution’s importance in preserving the historical heritage of Polonia in the USA.
Staś Kmieć, Recipient of the PAHA Creative Arts Award
The culture editor of the Polish American Journal, Staś Kmieć, was awarded the Creative Arts Award, in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the development of creative arts and the promotion of awareness of the Polish experience in the Americas.
Staś Kmieć’s Artistic and Cultural Achievements
The acclaimed director and choreographer, folklore ethnographer from Manhattan (New York), as well as a dancer, actor, writer, journalist, and historian, Staś Kmieć has dedicated his entire life to the protection and popularization of Polish art and culture. His activities include international artistic productions, folkloric research, journalistic work, and the founding of the “Lubliniacy” Song and Dance Ensemble.
“This is the first award I have received from the Polish American community, and it means a great deal to me,” said Kmieć. “I grew up Polish. The traditions and pride in Poland were instilled in me by my parents and grandparents. My artistic life has always run parallel to my fascination with Poland—its culture, history, and resilience.”
PAHA 2026 Award Winners – Full List of Honorees
Other laureates included:
- Mieczysław Haiman Award – Maria Zakrzewska, for many years of work at the Chicago Public Library
- Oskar Halecki Award – Dr. John Micgiel, editor of the publication Poles, Polonia, and the Quest for Liberty
- Skalny Civic Achievement Award – Małgorzata Kot, Managing Director of the Polish Museum of America; Dr. Łucja Mirowska-Kopec, Chicago Public Schools educator; Irena Frączek and Dawid Rydzewski, activists of the Polish American Congress in Wisconsin
- Swastka Award – Dr. Anna D. Jaroszyńska-Kirchmann, for the article “Performing Pierogi”
- Amicus Poloniae Award – Beth Holmgren, author of numerous publications on Polish literature, theater, popular culture, and film
- James S. Pula Distinguished Service Award – Neal Pease, Professor Emeritus of History at the University of Wisconsin
PAHA Conference Program and Panel Discussion Topics
The conference opened with a presentation by Jan Lorys and Małgorzata Kot titled “The Polish Museum of America: Past, Present, and Future.”
Panels Dedicated to the History and Identity of American Polonia
The program included panels such as: “Contributing to American Polonia,” “Polish Marks on the Land,” “Gendered Journeys,” “World War I and the Shaping of Polish Diasporic Identity,” “Witness to War,” “Chicago Is a Polish Town,” “Dividing Lines, Common Ground,” and “Being Polish Across Space, Time, and Language.”
“Polish Triangle” in Chicago – PAHA Historical Walk
Daniel Pogorzelski led a walk through the Wicker Park neighborhood, known as the location of the so-called “Polish Triangle”—once the center of global Polonia and for over a hundred years the largest concentration of Poles outside of Poland. Special mention was made of Thaddeus Gromada.
PAHA 2026 Conference Speakers
Among the speakers were: Anna Sosnowska-Jordanovska, Benjamin Bax, Anne Gurnack, Frank Renkiewicz, Donald Pienkos, Aloysius Mazewski, Edward Moskal, Łucja Mirowska-Kopec, Angela Pienkos, Jan Plachta, Kathleen Callum, Mark Dillon, Mary Erdmans, Iwona Flis, Barbara Krupa, Robert Sloma, Pien Versteegh, Victoria Granacki, Yanek Mieczkowski, Sara Funk, Agata Zborowska, Neal Pease, Izabela Kimak, Daniel Kaliszyk, Paul Grajnert, and Francis Raška.
PAHA 2027 Conference in New Orleans – Announcement
Next year’s Polish American Historical Association conference will take place in New Orleans (Louisiana) from January 7–10, 2027.
More information is available on the website: www.polishamericanstudies.org
