“Telling America’s Story” and “Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War” - … · 2016-08-22 ·...

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“Telling America’s Story” and “Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War”

Report on Ashbrook Academy - Ashland, Ohio – June 19-25, 2016

The Ashbrook Center at Ashland University welcomed 38 high school students from across the country for the week-long summer Ashbrook Academy. Students studied the American experiment in self-government through examination and discussion through two different academic tracks, "Telling America's Story" and "Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War." Those participating in "Telling America's Story" studied the Declaration of Independence, the Gettysburg Address, King's "I Have a Dream" speech, and many other supporting documents. “Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War,” an advanced session, focused entirely on the fundamental questions about America that near tore it apart during the 1860s.

The Ashbrook Academy was held June 19-25 in Ashland, Ohio and was led by Ashland University Department of History and Political Science faculty Dr. Chris Burkett, Dr. Emily Hess, Dr. Jeff Sikkenga, and Dr. Jason Stevens.

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ACADEMY DESCRIPTION -- “TELLING AMERICA’S STORY” Serious education is about pursuing great questions, and the goal of this Academy

is to pursue the most important question for us as citizens: namely, “What does it mean to be an American?” To do that, the academy immersed participants in the study of the ideas and institutions that make Americans who we are. It is a sound principle of learning that one must begin with what is familiar. We know that there are three documents in American history that most Americans are familiar with: the Declaration of Independence, the Gettysburg Address, and Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech. Our academy is built around these three documents, which illuminate three great epochs in the American story: the birth and definition of American freedom in the 18th century; the great crisis of the American experiment and the "new birth of freedom" in the 19th century; and the fulfillment of the American promise of freedom a century later in the 20th century. While these documents are historically and rhetorically linked with each other by the themes of equality, liberty, and self-government and are the alpha and the omega of the Ashbrook Academy, we consider many other documents, deeds, and significant issues in American history. While we are concerned with understanding the history of our country and with applying its principles to contemporary issues, we keep our focus on the central question of what it means to be an American.

ACADEMY DESCRIPTION -- “ABRAHAM LINCOLN AND THE CIVIL WAR”

This academy, intended for more advanced students, takes students on an in-depth exploration of perhaps the most difficult era in American History, the Civil War.

Through a thorough analysis of the writings and actions of Abraham Lincoln and others, participants in this academy encounter and discuss the fundamental questions about America that nearly tore it apart during the 1860s. Did the Declaration of Independence promise equality for all? Was the Constitution written as a pro-slavery or anti-slavery document? Why did Lincoln call the idea that "all men are created equal" a "proposition" rather than a self-evident truth? What was proven by the outcome of the Civil War?

Though many of the conflicts that caused the Civil War, most notably the institution of slavery, are now resolved in American political discourse, some persist and continue to shape American politics to this day.

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Participating Students Received…

Each student attending our academy received the following:

ü Increased Knowledge – The Ashbrook Academy was led

by full-time faculty members from Ashland University’s

renowned Department of History and Political Science.

ü Classroom Materials – Each participant received a copy

of our 50 Core American Documents book. In addition, the

participants received a hard copy of all the primary

documents referenced during the discussion, including a

copy of The Federalist Papers for participants in "Telling

America's Story" and The Portable Abraham Lincoln for those in "Abraham Lincoln

and the Civil War."

ü Academic Credit – Participants of the program earned two elective credits in

Political Science from Ashland University. This credit may be used toward an

undergraduate degree at Ashland or transferred to another institution.

ü Accommodations – Students stayed in air-conditioned double-occupancy

dormitories on the campus of Ashland University during the Academy. Male and

female participants were housed on separate floors. Ashland University’s award-

winning student dining facilities provided all the meals.

ü On-going Support – Students were informed about the undergraduate Ashbrook

Scholar program at Ashland University and additional Ashbrook programs that may

be helpful to them and were encouraged to stay in touch with our faculty.

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Participating School Districts

Students attending the June 19-25 program were from the following locations:

Ashland, OH

Aurora, OH

Brighton, MI

Cannon Falls, MN

Canton, OH

Carmel, IN

Cuyahoga Falls, OH

Denver, PA

Elk Rapids, MI

Falls City, NE

Greeley, CO

Holgate, OH

Irmo, SC

Jackson, TN

Kirkwood, MO

Lexington, KY

Livonia, MI

Loudonville, OH

Mason, OH

McAllen, TX

Memphis, TN

Miami, FL

Monroe, GA

Murphy, TX

Owatonna, MN

Palm Harbor, FL

Pasadena, TX

Perrysville, OH

Plant City, FL

Rochester, MN

Rock Hill, SC

Rootstown, OH

Savannah, OH

Tampa, FL

Westland, MI

Winston-Salem, NC

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Students Love the Ashbrook Academy Ashbrook Academy participants had this to say about the program:

Q. What are you enjoying most about the academy? • The open discussion. We have good conversations…the professors link us through

conversation - we talk through the professors to each other. • The academic atmosphere. Everyone loves what we are doing. • Here, we are treated as equals by the professors and we can ask any question. • The professors make us want to learn. They mentor you. • It is so much easier to contribute to the conversation here. It’s more academic. You are

surrounded by people who share your interests and you choose to be here - it is so much more authentic.

Q. What do you feel are the benefits of studying with core documents? • It takes away the political bias of authors, administrators, teachers, etc. It allows you to see

what the original author intended. • You can see for yourself what matters and what doesn’t matter. • Textbooks just give a summary. When you read the core document, it links it all back

together and how it ties into the republic. It showed the mind of Lincoln to me and how smart he was.

Q. What would you tell another student thinking about coming to the Academy? • The work is worth it - the enlightenment you get and how it connects to everything you learn.

• You don’t know what education is until you know Ashbrook.

• I learned from Lincoln and Washington and Jefferson. We are all Americans, united in the American effort.

• I will come away from this different. I have learned so much. I will keep all of these principles and morals forever.

• We learned how to be better statesmen, better American citizens, we are learning how to have an open mind, to argue, have discourse.

Q. What is the one thing you will take away from this experience? • This place taught me the value of a liberal education. It taught me the reasoning behind the

beauty of the American mind.

• I am in student government and last year after I took the academy, it made me conscious of the rights of my fellow students.

• We learned to be better people and a better America, to bring it back and have a new birth of freedom.

• This was social, political and American nirvana for me!

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“Telling America’s Story” Schedule The Declaration of Independence: The Birth of American Self-government

Sunday, June 19

“An expression of the American mind”: The Declaration and Its Foundations

3:00 – 6:00 pm: Arrive at Ashbrook Academy

6:15 – 6:45 pm: Welcome and Academy Overview

6:45 – 7:30 pm: Dinner

7:30 – 9:00 pm: Evening Common Session #1

Topic: “The American Mind”

Seminar questions: In what way is the American regime unique, according to The Federalist? According to Jefferson, what is the relation between the Declaration of Independence and our regime?

Readings:

• Jefferson, “Letter to Henry Lee” (May 8, 1825) • Jefferson, “Letter to Roger Weightman” (June 24, 1826) • The Federalist #1 (first paragraph)

Monday, June 20

“We hold these truths”: The American Ideas

8:00 – 9:00 am: Breakfast

9:00 – 9:30 am: Morning Common Session #1

Topic: “One people”

Seminar question: The Declaration of Independence describes America as “one people”. What makes Americans “one people”?

Reading:

• The Declaration of Independence (first sentence)

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9:30 – 10:45 am: Class Session #1

Topic: “To secure these rights…”: The Source of the Declaration’s Principles

Seminar questions: According to Samuel Cooper, what is the relationship between Biblical revelation and American political principles? What is the relationship between British tradition and American principles?

Readings:

• Samuel Cooper, “Sermon on the Commencement of the Massachusetts Constitution” (1780)

• Declaration of Independence (1776) • Jefferson, Summary View of the Rights of British America (1774)

11:00 am – 12:00 pm: Class Session #2

Topic: “To secure these rights…”: The Laws of Nature

Seminar questions: What are the fundamental natural laws of politics according to Locke and Hamilton? Why is civil society preferable to the state of nature? What is the primary purpose of government, in his view?

Readings:

• Locke, Second Treatise of Government [CP p. 14] o Sections 4-8 o Section 54 o Section 89 o Sections 123-124

• Hamilton, “The Farmer Refuted” (February 23, 1775) [CP p. 19]

12:00 – 1:00 pm: Lunch

1:00 – 2:30 pm: Campus Tour

3:30 – 5:00 pm: Class Session #3

Topic: “To secure these rights…”: A Constitutional Republic

Seminar questions: Why did the Founders reject “petty republics of Greece and Italy” yet embrace a “republican” form of government for America? Why is a written constitution central to the American idea of a republic?

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Readings:

• The Federalist #9 • The Federalist #39 (paragraph 1) • The Federalist #53 (paragraphs 1-3)

5:00 – 6:00 pm: Dinner

6:30 – 7:30 pm: “Reacting to the Past” Game Set-up

7:30 – 9:00 pm: Evening Common Session #2: “The Art and Architecture of Liberty”

Tuesday, June 21

“Consent of the Governed”: Forming a Constitutional Government



Topic: “All men are created equal”

Seminar questions: In what way, according to the Declaration’s principles, are all human beings equal? What is an “unalienable” natural right? How is it different, for example, from a privilege or an entitlement?

Reading:

• Declaration of Independence (second paragraph)


Topic: Defending the Constitution: The Federalist/Anti-Federalist Debate over Virtue, Liberty, and the Size of a Good Republic

Seminar questions: Why must a free republic be small, according to the Anti-Federalists? Why must it be large, in Madison's view? Who makes the better argument?

Readings:

• Centinel, “The Small Republic Argument” • The Federalist #10

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Topic: Defending the Constitution: The Federalist/Anti-Federalist Debate over a Bill of Rights

Seminar questions: How does the structure of the federal government address the need for a bill of rights? According to Hamilton, why are bills of rights both unnecessary and dangerous? In endorsing the Bill of Rights, how does Madison respond to those charges?

Readings:

• The Federalist #51 • The Federalist #84 (paragraphs 8-12) • Madison, “Letter to Thomas Jefferson” (October 17, 1788)

12:00 – 1:00 pm: Lunch


Topic: The Founders' Hopes for Slavery

Seminar questions: According to Lincoln, what were the Founders’ hopes for slavery? According to Calhoun and Stephens, how did they break with the principles of Jefferson and the other Founders on the issue of slavery?

Readings:

• Jefferson, “Rough Draft” of the Declaration of Independence (June 1776) [CP p. 36]

• Lincoln, “Speech on the Dred Scott Decision” (June 26, 1857) [CP p. 40] • Calhoun, “Speech on the Oregon Bill” (1848) [CP p. 43] • Stephens, “Corner Stone Speech” (March 21, 1861) [CP p. 46]

5:00 – 6:00 pm: Dinner

7:00 – 8:30 pm: Common Evening Session #3: Academic Jeopardy

Wednesday, June 22

“Conceived in Liberty”: Slavery, Constitutional Government, and the Civil War



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Topic: Statesmanship

Seminar questions: What is statesmanship? How is it different from ordinary leadership?

Reading:

• Douglass, “Oration in Memory of Abraham Lincoln” (April 14, 1876)


Topic: Politicians, Leaders, or Statesmen?

Seminar questions: Frederick Douglass describes Lincoln as a “statesman.” What is a statesman? What makes a statesman distinct from a politician or even a leader? How was Lincoln a statesman according to Douglass?

Reading:

• Douglass, “Oration in Memory of Abraham Lincoln” (April 14, 1876)


Topic: The Emancipation Proclamation

Seminar question: How was the Emancipation Proclamation an act of statesmanship?

Readings:

• U.S. Constitution, Article I & II • Lincoln, “Emancipation Proclamation” (January 1, 1863) • Lincoln, “Letter to Albert Hodges” (April 4, 1864)

12:00 – 1:00pm: Lunch

3:30 – 5:00 pm: Class session #9

Topic: Lincoln's Understanding of the Civil War

Seminar questions: What is Lincoln's view of the ultimate meaning of the Civil War? How does he communicate his view in the “Gettysburg Address”?

Reading:

• Lincoln, “Gettysburg Address” (November 19, 1863)

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5:00 – 6:00 pm: Dinner

7:00 – 9:00 pm: Common Evening Session #4: Thinking About College

Thursday, June 23

“Dedicated to the Proposition”: The Challenge of Equality After the Civil War



Topic: Lincoln’s Democratic Faith

Seminar question: What is significant about the election of 1864 according to Lincoln?

Reading:

• Lincoln, “Response to a Serenade” (November 10, 1864)


Topic: Lincoln's Vision for America

Seminar question: How does the Second Inaugural reveal Lincoln's political principles and his statesmanship?

Readings:

• Lincoln, “Second Inaugural Address” (March 4, 1865)


Topic: Moral Reconstruction after the Civil War

Seminar questions: How does America need to be reformed because of slavery, according to Douglass? What are the possible paths for freed slaves? Which should America choose, according to Douglass?

Readings:

• Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass (chapters 1, 6, 8, & 10) • Douglass, “What the Black Man Wants” (1865)

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12:00 – 1:00 pm: Lunch


Topic: The Debate over Attaining Equality after Douglass: Booker T. Washington and WEB DuBois

Seminar questions: What is Booker T. Washington's strategy for achieving racial equality? What is DuBois's criticism of Washington's approach?

Readings:

• Washington, “Atlanta Exposition Address” (September 18, 1895) • Washington, “Letter to the Louisiana Constitutional Convention” (February 19,

1898) • DuBois, The Souls of Black Folk (selections)

5:00 – 6:00 pm: Dinner

7:00 – 9:30 pm: Common Evening Session #5: Movie: “Lincoln”

Friday, June 24

“The content of their character”: The Debate Over Equality and Civil Rights in the 20th Century



Topic: MLK on the Goals and Methods of the Civil Rights Movement

Seminar questions: According to King, what are the goals of the civil rights movement? Why do they justify non-violent civil disobedience?

Readings:

• King, “The Ethical Demands for Integration” (December 27, 1962) • King, Letter from a Birmingham City Jail (April 16, 1963)


Topic: MLK's Vision for America

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Seminar questions: What is King's vision of America? How does the speech illustrate King’s statesmanship?

Reading:

• King, “I Have a Dream Speech” (August 28, 1963)

12:00 – 1:00 pm: Lunch

2:30 – 5:00 pm: Final Exam

5:00 – 6:00 pm: Dinner

7:00 – 10:00 pm: Common Evening Session #6: “Reacting to the Past” Game

Saturday, June 25

“Free at Last”? Liberty, Equality, and Education Today



Topic: Citizenship and the Need for Liberal Education

Seminar questions: What kind of education must a republic have? What is liberal education? Why are students not encountering it as they should in university?

Readings:

• Jefferson, “Rockfish Gap Report” (1818) • Bloom, “Our Listless Universities” Parts I-II • Foster, “On Liberal Education”

10:45 – 11:00 am: Evaluations

11:00 – 11:45 am: Lunch

11:45 am – 12:00 pm: Common Session

Topic: "A republic, if you can keep it"

12:00 pm: Depart Ashbrook Academy

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“Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War” Schedule

The Declaration of Independence: The Birth of American Self-government

Sunday, June 19

“An expression of the American mind”: The Declaration and Its Foundations

3:00 – 6:00 pm: Arrive at Ashbrook Academy

6:15 – 6:45 pm: Welcome and Academy Overview

6:45 – 7:30 pm: Dinner

7:30 – 9:00 pm: Evening Common Session #1

Topic: “The American Mind”

Seminar questions: In what way is the American regime unique, according to The Federalist? According to Jefferson, what is the relation between the Declaration of Independence and our regime?

Readings:

• Jefferson, “Letter to Henry Lee” (May 8, 1825) • Jefferson, “Letter to Roger Weightman” (June 24, 1826) • The Federalist #1 (first paragraph)

Monday, June 20

“Conceived in Liberty”: Slavery and the Union



Topic: “One people”

Seminar question: The Declaration of Independence describes America as “one people”. What makes Americans “one people”?

Readings:

• The Declaration of Independence (first sentence)

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Topic: Lincoln, Union, and Liberty

Seminar questions: Why is Union so important for liberty, according to Lincoln? What are the “apple of gold” and the “frame of silver”? What is the effect of the principle of “equal liberty for all” according to Lincoln? What advice does Lincoln give for the preservation of the Union and its principles?

Readings:

• Lincoln: o “Address to the Young Men’s Lyceum of Springfield, Illinois” (January

27, 1838) o “Speech at Chicago, Illinois” (July 10, 1858) o “Fragment on the Constitution and Union” (c. January 1861) o “Speech at Independence Hall” (February 22, 1861) o “First Annual Message to Congress” (excerpt) (December 3, 1861)


Topic: Slavery and the Founding

Seminar questions: Is Jefferson optimistic or pessimistic about the possibility of ending slavery? Does Calhoun believe Jefferson was right or wrong in his views on slavery? What did the Founders do with regard to slavery, according to Lincoln?

Readings:

• Jefferson: o “Letter to John Holmes” (April 22, 1820) o Notes on the State of Virginia, Query XVIII (1781)

• Calhoun, “Speech on the Oregon Bill” (June 27, 1848) • Lincoln, “Address at Cooper Institute” (February 27, 1860)

12:00 – 1:00 pm: Lunch

1:00 – 2:30 pm: Campus Tour


Topic: Slavery and Sectionalism

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Seminar questions: Does Garrison believe the Union is worth preserving? What arguments do Calhoun, Fitzhugh, and Stephens make to support the existence of slavery, and what arguments does Lincoln make against slavery?

Readings:

• Garrison, “On the Constitution and Union” (December 29, 1832) • Calhoun, “Slavery as a Positive Good” (February 6, 1837) • Fitzhugh:

o “Sociology for the South” (1854) o Cannibals All! (1856)

• Lincoln: o “Fragment on Slavery” (October 1, 1858) o “Fragment on Free Labor” (September 17, 1859)

• Stephens, “Corner Stone Speech” (March 21, 1861)

5:00 – 6:00 pm: Dinner

6:30 – 7:30 pm: “Reacting to the Past” Game Set-up

7:30 – 9:00 pm: Evening Common Session #2: “The Art and Architecture of Liberty”

Tuesday, June 21

“Whither we are tending”: The Deepening Sectional Divide


9:00 – 9:30am: Morning Common Session #2

Topic: “All men are created equal”

Seminar questions: In what way, according to the Declaration’s principles, are all human beings equal? What is an “unalienable” natural right? How is it different, for example, from a privilege or an entitlement?

Readings:

• Declaration of Independence (second paragraph)


Topic: Kansas-Nebraska and Popular Sovereignty

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Seminar questions: Why did Douglas believe that “popular sovereignty” would resolve sectional tensions over slavery? Why did Lincoln call for the restoration of the Missouri Compromise?

Readings:

• Lincoln, “Speech on the Kansas Nebraska Act at Peoria, Illinois” (October 16, 1854)

• Stephen Douglas, “Homecoming Speech at Chicago” (July 9, 1858) 11:00 am – 12:00 pm: Class Session #5

Topic: The Supreme Court Speaks

Seminar question: What is the question that the Supreme Court must decide in the Dred Scott case, and why does Lincoln reject the decision of the Supreme Court?

Readings:

• Taney, Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857) • Lincoln, “Speech on the Dred Scott Decision” (June 26, 1857)

12:00 – 1:00 pm: Lunch


Topic: A House Divided: The Lincoln-Douglas Debates

Seminar question: What does Lincoln mean when he writes, “A house divided against itself cannot stand”?

Readings:

• Lincoln, “House Divided Speech” (June 16, 1858) • First Lincoln-Douglas Debate, Ottawa, Illinois (August 21, 1858)

5:00 – 6:00 pm: Dinner

7:00 – 8:30 pm: Common Evening Session #3: Academic Jeopardy

Wednesday, June 22

“And the war came”: The Union Split Asunder

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Topic: Statesmanship

Seminar question: What is statesmanship? How is it different from ordinary leadership?

Readings:

• Frederick Douglass, “Oration in Memory of Abraham Lincoln” (April 14, 1876)


Topic: Secession and the Constitution

Seminar question: Is there a constitutional right for a state to secede from the Union?

Readings:

• Calhoun, “Fort Hill Address” (July 26, 1831) • Lincoln:

o “First Inaugural Address” (March 4, 1861) o “Message to Congress in Special Session” (July 4, 1861)


Topic: Lincoln and the War Power

Seminar question: What executive actions did Lincoln take at the beginning of the Civil War, and how does he defend his actions against those who claim he acted unconstitutionally?

Readings:

• Lincoln: o “Message to Congress in Special Session” (July 4, 1861) o “Letter to O.H. Browning” (September 22, 1861) o “Letter to Erastus Corning and Others” (June 12, 1863) o “Letter to Matthew Birchard and Others” (June 29, 1863)

12:00 – 1:00pm: Lunch

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Topic: Lincoln as Commander-in-Chief

Seminar questions: How does Lincoln deal with the military demands of waging war? What military orders does he give to prosecute the war successfully? What advice does Lincoln give to his generals in the field?

Readings:

• Lincoln: o “Stay of Execution for Nathaniel Gordon” (February 4, 1862) o “Letter to George McClellan” (April 9, 1862) o “Letter to William H. Seward” (June 28, 1862) o “Letter to Hannibal Hamlin” (September 28, 1862) o “Letter to George McClellan” (October 13, 1862) o “Letter to George McClellan” (October 24, 1862) o “Letter to Joseph Hooker” (January 26, 1863) o “Letter to Governor Andrew Johnson” (March 26, 1863) o “Letter to Ulysses Grant” (July 13, 1863) o “Letter to George Meade” (July 14, 1863) o “Letter to George Meade” (October 12, 1863)

5:00 – 6:00 pm: Dinner

7:00 – 9:00 pm: Common Evening Session #4: Thinking About College

Thursday, June 23

“The last full measure of devotion”: The Meaning of the Civil War



Topic: Lincoln’s Democratic Faith

Seminar question: What is significant about the election of 1864 according to Lincoln?

Reading:

• Lincoln, “Response to a Serenade” (November 10, 1864)

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Topic: The Challenge of Emancipation

Seminar questions: What steps does Lincoln take toward emancipation, and how does he reply to critiques who say acted either too quickly or slowly? How does the accomplishment of emancipation reveal Lincoln’s statesmanship?

Readings:

• Lincoln: o “Appeal to Border States to Favor Compensated Emancipation” (July 12,

1862) o “Letter to Horace Greeley” (August 22, 1862) o “Final Emancipation Proclamation” (January 1, 1863) o “Letter to James C. Conkling” (August 26, 1863) o “Letter to Albert Hodges” (April 4, 1864) o Resolution Submitting the Thirteenth Amendment to the States (February

1, 1865)


Topic: “We are met on a great battlefield…”

Seminar question: What is the ultimate cause or purpose of the Civil War according to Lincoln? How does Lincoln describe the sacrifice of those who gave “the last full measure of devotion”?

Readings:

• Lincoln: o “Gettysburg Address” (November 19, 1863) o “Speech to the 166th Ohio Regiment” (August 22, 1864) o “Letter to Mrs. Lydia Bixby” (November 21, 1864)

12:00 – 1:00 pm: Lunch


Topic: Lincoln Reflects on the War

Seminar question: Why did the war come, according to Lincoln, and when does he think it will end?

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Readings:

• Lincoln: o “Meditation on the Divine Will” (c. September 1862) o “Reply to Ms. Eliza P. Gurney” (October 6, 1862) o “Second Inaugural Address” (March 4, 1865) o “Letter to Thurlow Weed” (March 15, 1865)

5:00 – 6:00 pm: Dinner

7:00 – 9:30 pm: Common Evening Session #5: Movie: “Lincoln”

Friday, June 24

“A new birth of freedom”: The Promise of the Civil War



Topic: Binding the Nation’s Wounds

Seminar question: What is Lincoln’s vision for the Union at the close of the Civil War?

Readings:

• Lincoln: o “Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction” (December 8, 1863) o “Speech on Reconstruction” (April 11, 1865)


Topic: Lincoln’s Legacy

Seminar questions: How did Lincoln display his statesmanship in the course of the war and in the cause of emancipation, according to Douglass? How should Lincoln be remembered by future Americans?

Readings:

• Frederick Douglass, “Oration in Memory of Abraham Lincoln” (April 14, 1876)

12:00 – 1:00 pm: Lunch

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2:30 – 5:00 pm: Final Exam

5:00 – 6:00 pm: Dinner

7:00 – 9:30 pm: Common Evening Session #6: “Reacting to the Past” Game

Saturday, June 25

“Free at Last”? Liberty, Equality, and Education Today



Topic: Citizenship and the Need for Liberal Education

Seminar questions: What kind of education must a republic have? What is liberal education? Why are students not encountering it as they should in university?

Readings:

• Jefferson, “Rockfish Gap Report” (August 4, 1818) • Bloom, “Our Listless Universities” Parts I-II • Foster, “On Liberal Education”

10:45 – 11:00 am: Evaluations

11:00 – 11:45 am: Lunch

11:45 am – 12:00 pm: Common Session

Topic: "A republic, if you can keep it"

12:00 pm: Depart Ashbrook Academy

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Academy Leaders

Christopher Burkett is Associate Professor of Political Science at

Ashland University and Co-Director of the Ashbrook Scholar Program.

He teaches undergraduate courses on American political thought, the

American Founding, and American foreign policy. He also serves as

an Associate Director and instructor in the Master of American History

and Government program at Ashland University, in which he teaches

courses on the American Revolution, the American Founding, Western

films and novels, and Franklin Roosevelt. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Ashland

University, and received his M.A. in Politics from the University of Dallas and his Ph.D. from

the Institute of Philosophic Studies, also at the University of Dallas. He joined the Department of

History and Political Science at Ashland University in 2005. He has been selected by students as

Outstanding Male Faculty Member of the Year, and won the Edward and Louaine Taylor

Excellence in Teaching Award in 2011.

Jeffrey Sikkenga is Professor of Political Science at Ashland

University, Co-Director of the Ashbrook Scholar Program, and

Senior Fellow in the Program on Constitutionalism and Democracy

at the University of Virginia. He teaches courses in political thought,

the American Founding, and constitutional law. He has published

articles and reviews in journals such as the American Journal of

Political Science, Political Theory, History of Political Thought,

Journal of Politics, Political Science Quarterly, and the Journal of

Markets and Morality. He co-edited History of American Political

Thought (Lexington Press, 2003), edited Transforming American Welfare (1999), and co-

wrote The Free Person and the Free Economy (2002). He is currently working on a book

on John Locke’s Letter Concerning Toleration.

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Emily Hess (Associate Professor) joined Ashland

University in 2007. She teaches American history with

fields of expertise in 19th and 20th century African-

American history, specifically the Reconstruction era

and the Civil Rights movement. She was selected as

Ashland’s Outstanding Female Faculty Member of the

Year for 2014 and received Ashland University’s

Mentor Award in January 2012 and 2015. She received

her B.A. in American History at Malone University and

an M.A. and Ph.D. in American History at Case Western Reserve University, where she received

The Jayne and Cecil Lyman Prize for Best Dissertation for 2013-2014.

Jason Stevens, Visiting Assistant Professor, joined Ashland

University in 2011. He also serves as an academic advisor for the

Master of Arts in American History and Government program at

Ashland University. Previously he served as an adjunct instructor

at the University of Akron – Wayne College, North Central State

College, and the University of Dallas. He teaches political thought

and history courses with fields of expertise in the American

Founding, Abraham Lincoln, and political philosophy. He received

his B.A. from Ashland University and his M.A. and Ph.D. in

politics from the University of Dallas, Institute of Philosophic

Studies.

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