The 14th annual Spencer Cave lecture event, which is held annually during Black History Month, will focus on the 100th anniversary of the World War 1.

This year’s speaker will be Jennifer Keene, who is a professor of history and the chair of department at Chapman University, Calif., with the Organization of American Historians.

It is the second year the Black Archives and Mid-America co-hosted and co-sponsored the event.

The event will be held at 7 p.m. Monday, Feb. 23, at the National World War Museum at Liberty Memorial.

The speaker will focus on the struggles African-Americans during World War I.

According the Park University website, the speaker will discuss symbols of black manhood and veterans.

According to Tim Westcott, associate professor of history, the event is free but reservations are necessary in order to attend.

The namesake for the Park University event, Spencer Cave, was a Park University student. He was born from slave parents in 1862, his family moved to Parkville in 1870 and lived here until his death. He helped with the construction of Park University, according to Carolyn Elwess, in a report retrieved from Wescott.

For more information about this event or to register, visit  www.park.edu/black-history and contact Westcott at [email protected].