The Forum on Liberty and the American Founding

The Forum on Liberty and the American Founding is a reading group sponsored by the Cincinnatus Center. The Forum features a semester-long study of a particular theme in American political thought. Recent topics have included:

•   The Forms and Norms of Alexis de Tocqueville
•   African American Political Thought
•   Lincoln / John Quincy Adams / John Calhoun
•   The Scottish Enlightenment
•   Pamphlets of the American Revolution
•   Montesquieu
•   The Ratification Debates

The Forum meets monthly for formal dinners and rigorous discussion of primary texts from the American founding. Each dinner discussion is attended by the 15-20 students selected for the program, the instructors, and the visiting speaker (if applicable). Visiting speakers attend Forum dinners after giving a public lecture to the university community concerning a timely topic in American founding principles. Two such public lectures occur every academic year—one in the early fall, and the second at the end of the spring semester. The primary goal of The Forum is to build a community of intellectual exchange and friendship. In past years, this program has attracted top students from our University and facilitated life-changing conversations. Several “graduates” of The Forum have since gone on to enroll in further graduate and legal studies.

Applications are taken on a rolling basis, with the following deadlines:

Fall

• Topic Announced: August 1
• Application Deadline: August 25
• Participant Notification: September 1

Spring

• Topic Announced: December 1
• Application Deadline: December 15
• Participant Notification: First week of January