Lincoln School Project chosen for Rock Picking Award
Tue, 09/22/2026 - 11:43am
admin
Nine people and organizations – out of more than 50 applicants – have been chosen as Ozarks Alive’s 2026 Rock Picking Awards winners. One of them is the Lincoln School Project, which the judges chose for a Rising Star award. This award is given based on a project's immediate success and expected long-term impact on sharing and understanding the region.
The 2026 honorees work across a wide span of disciplines to share and preserve local culture, similar to the literal “rock picking” out of fields with which many Ozarkers are familiar.
“Ozarks Alive’s Rock Picking Awards were designed to recognize the individuals and groups doing impactful work to help us better understand our region’s culture,” says Kaitlyn McConnell, founder of Ozarks Alive, a cultural preservation project dedicated to chronicling the region. “I am thrilled with these honorees, who are making an impact on the region today and into the future.”
The 2026 award winners, chosen by a panel of judges, will be recognized at Ozarks Alive’s Rock Picking Party on Sunday, Nov. 15 at the Library Center’s Hatch Auditorium in Springfield, Missouri. Tickets are available here.
“This event will recognize our 2026 honorees, but it’s also open to the public as a celebration of broader Ozarks culture,” McConnell says. “I hope people with an interest in the Ozarks will choose to attend, meet new friends, and come away inspired by the work being done right here in our region.”
Thanks go to sponsors Century Bank of the Ozarks, the Community Foundation of the Ozarks, the Shepherd of the Hills, and the Story House Bookstore for helping support this awards program.
Ozarks Alive is a cultural preservation project that documents regional culture and history today for the future. Founded by Kaitlyn McConnell, the project has produced hundreds of stories of people and places from across the region since its inception in 2015. In addition to the stories published on Ozarks Alive, the project has led to three books. Most recently, that includes "The Ozarks Pie Project Diary," a trip through local food culture and 48 vintage pie recipes.