VALDOSTA — Work has begun on the Valdosta State University Copeland African American Museum’s long-planned and highly anticipated Children’s emPOWERment Zone.
Designed to encourage engagement and inspire a love of learning through hands-on activities and fun, the Copeland African American Museum’s Children’s emPOWERment Zone recently moved from concept to reality thanks to a $50,000 gift from Georgia Power.
“This generous donation will allow us to create an interactive space for kids to explore the excellence, resilience, bravery, and determination of some very important people and their contributions,” said Dr. Amy Watson, museum marketing coordinator. “The displays will be designed to educate while also being fun, colorful, and engaging. The space will highlight a specifically curated mix of important Black Americans who changed our culture through science, art, music, business, and sport. While the space will not exclusively highlight Georgians, we are placing extra emphasis on noteworthy Georgians so that future generations will increase both their knowledge and sense of pride.”
The Copeland African American Museum’s Children’s emPOWERment Zone is scheduled to open by Black History Month, February 2025.
“As we create spaces and programs to become the preeminent field trip destination in South Georgia, this is such an important component,” Watson explained. “When children come to the Copeland African American Museum, we want to engage all of their senses. We want them to be able to touch, see, move, and hear as they’re learning about these important people and their contributions.”
In 2016 Roy and Cheryl Copeland gifted their entire African American memorabilia collection to VSU’s Harley Langdale Jr. College of Business Administration. A few years later that gift inspired the creation of the Copeland African American Museum.
The Copeland African American Museum first opened its doors in January 2020. Today it continues to welcome visitors from diverse backgrounds and perspectives who are excited to see the African American memorabilia on display, to share ideas and experiences, and to be inspired to learn more about why African American history matters to everyone, VSU said.
“It is a dream come true for the Copelands, who have spent the past 30-plus years building a legacy of encouraging people of all ages and all ethnicities to examine, explore, and analyze the innovative, creative, and intelligent contributions of African Americans throughout history — and to remember, recognize, and celebrate those contributions all year along,” the university said in a press release about Georgia Power’s donation.
The Copeland African American Museum collection spans more than 150 years of history and features more than 100 pieces, which the Copelands began collecting in 1989 when Cheryl Copeland surprised Roy Copeland with a set of autographed Muhammad Ali boxing gloves for Christmas. She continued to select a unique piece of history for him every year, and soon the couple began collecting even more African American memorabilia at live auctions, online auctions, garage sales, antique houses, and more.
“Preserving and displaying these many items of historical and cultural significance at an academic institution such as Valdosta State University is vital for children and youth,” said Joe Brownlee, Georgia Power’s southwest regional director and a VSU alumnus. “It not only honors the rich legacy and contributions of African Americans but also provides young minds with a tangible connection to their heritage, fostering pride, understanding, and a deeper appreciation for diversity in our collective history.”
Georgia Power previously donated $25,000 to support the Copeland African American Museum and its efforts to preserve and uplift the stories of African American history.
“The museum has steadily been growing and our non-local visitor traffic continues to increase,” Watson added. “Our numbers are now in the thousands instead of hundreds. We became members of the National Parks Civil Rights Network and that has helped increase our visibility. Visitors have started coming from a wider range of states. Last semester, a visitor told us they heard about the Copeland African American Museum from someone in their church in Kansas City, Missouri. Donations like this are critical to ensuring we provide a great experience for visitors, one that exceeds their expectations and is on par with other nationally recognized museums.”
VSU’s Copeland African American Museum underwent an expansion and renovation in 2022, increasing its square footage nearly fourfold. This included the addition of new exhibits and the creation of a room where visitors can reflect upon the story of the Black experience from enslavement through the passage of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America, which abolished slavery and involuntary servitude. This transformative experience provides visitors with the opportunity to learn about and reckon with some challenging aspects of America’s past, the university press release said.