Patrick J. Mogan inspires the Learning City Award

The Patrick J. Mogan Learning City Award is presented annually to an individual, group or organization who best represents, promotes, and embodies Patrick J. Mogan’s values and beliefs about education. 

Photo Copyright: James Higgins

Dr. Mogan was an educator and visionary who believed the city of Lowell could serve as an active agent for helping people reconnect to their cultural traditions and be a model for other communities around the nation. He was a leader in the successful effort to create Lowell National Historical Park. He believed deeply that human development could only be built on the experiences of living in a community – a classroom without walls. He wrote that an “educative city” could only evolve where “various elements of the city could serve as educational resources and experiences for preschoolers and elderly alike.” His ideas and work are embedded in the ideas and perspectives that drive Lowell City of Learning.

Tributes to Mogan

“Mogan Speaks” features a 1995 interview of the ‘father’ of the Lowell National Historic Park. Below you can find another tribute to Mogan in the Lowell Historical Society’s Winter 2013 Newsletter.

Patrick J. Mogan Award Winners

  • Alana Smith

    2025

  • Bridget Cooley

    2025

  • Sheila Kirschbaum

    2024

  • Jane Calvin

    2023

  • William Samaras

    2022

Nominate an Individual or Organization

  • To nominate an individual or organization, please consider the following criteria. The individual or group must:

    • Have presented or organized learning activities that serve the Lowell community

    • Have a long-standing commitment to learning and innovative education

    • Reflect a commitment to diversity and inclusion in their work

    • Have engaged in innovative activities congruent with the ideas propounded by Patrick J. Mogan

  • Nominations, with the information below, must be submitted by email to Lowell City of Learning at cityoflearning2019@gmail.com. You may submit more than one nomination.

    • Name of Nominee (Individual or organization)

    • Name of Nominator (and affiliation if any)

    • Brief description of why the nominator believes this nominee should be considered (no more than 250 words)

    Thank you!