Center launches 'Debating America' fall lecture series
(Aug. 1, 2014) LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The University of Louisville's McConnell Center will offer a series of public talks this fall. All events are free and open to the public, unless otherwise noted.
The University of Louisville’s McConnell Center will offer four, free public talks this fall in a series called “Debating America.”
Each talk begins at 6 p.m. in Ekstrom Library's Chao Auditorium. Topics, speakers and dates are:
- "Hamilton v. Jefferson: Who's the MVP of the American Founding?," Michael Federici, political science professor and chair at Mercyhurst University, and Michael Schwarz, assistant director of the Ashland Scholar Program and assistant history professor at Ashland University, Sept. 12.
- "Scale: Is America Too Big?," Donald Livingston, professor emeritus of philosophy from Emory University, Oct. 14. Livingston is an expert on Scottish philosopher David Hume.
- "What the War on Poverty Was Supposed to Be: A Look Back at LBJ and the Politics of the Sixties," Kent Germany, associate professor of history and African American studies at the University of South Carolina, Oct. 28. Germany has co-edited two books about Lyndon Johnson and the 1960s.
- "Thomas Jefferson's Qur'an: Islam and the Founders," Denise Spellberg, professor of history, University of Texas at Austin, Nov. 11. Spellberg wrote Thomas Jefferson's Qur'an: Islam and the Founders, which explores Jefferson's lifelong interest in Islam.
"Our goal is to offer people a fresh look at often overlooked debates throughout American history," said Gary Gregg, McConnell Center director.
The McConnell Center will also host a series of conferences and panel discussions, including:
- "Three Founders Who Helped Make America: Hamilton, Jefferson and Madison" a McConnell Center civic education conference featuring Nathan Coleman, associate professor of higher education and history at the University of the Cumberlands, Michael Federici, political science professor and chair at Mercyhurst University, and Michael Schwarz, assistant director of the Ashland Scholar Program and assistant history professor at Ashland University, Sept. 13. Open to Kentucky educators and participants in the McConnell Center's Teacher Scholars Program.
- "WWI: Dangerous Miscalculations, Massive Consequences," a McConnell Center and Wilson Center panel discussion commemorating the anniversary of the start of WWI, Sept. 18, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Open to the public.
- "Making a Home Fit for Humans: Localism Beyond Food," a McConnell Center and Front Porch Republic conference featuring Wendell Berry as the keynote speaker, Sept. 27, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Open to the public (ticket fee; registration required).
The non-partisan McConnell Center, created at UofL in 1991, prepares Kentucky's top college undergraduate students to become future leaders and offers civic education programs for teachers, students and the public.