How did the Founders try to translate the ideals of the Revolution into a form and system of government that would empower, yet restrain the Executive? How have the interpretations of those powers changed over time, especially in the face of crisis? Explore the constitutional powers, legal authority and evolution of the 'soft power' of […]
From a young age Abraham Lincoln was a voracious reader, especially of the writings of William Shakespeare. He was known to carry a worn-out pocket-sized copy of Macbeth while law circuit riding and later campaigning. Why was Lincoln so interested in Macbeth, a play about tyranny? Join us as we consider Shakespeare passages, writings of […]
This workshop will examine primary documents to consider how American participation in World War I transformed American society. We will analyze debates over entering the war and expanding the postwar […]
With the death of Franklin Roosevelt, Harry S. Truman inherited one of the most challenging national security environments to ever greet an incoming president, as he was forced to both complete the great work of securing a lasting victory in World War II and navigate the complex dynamics of the emerging Cold War. By the […]
This seminar will focus on America's westward expansion and its "Manifest Destiny" to expand from sea to shining sea. We will consider the purposes for westward expansion, Jackson's Indian Removal Policy, and westward expansion's impact on slavery. This program will be conducted as a discussion, utilizing primary source documents as the only readings, and with […]
In 1961, President John F. Kennedy vowed to land an American on the moon by the decade’s end, the biggest challenge yet in the Space Race between the United States and the Soviet Union. After the United States’s enthralling moon landing in 1969, space exploration took on new forms, bringing exciting opportunities (the Strategic Defense […]
The era of Andrew Jackson was a time of great change, both socially and politically. Jackson’s life was turbulent and violent in which he seemed to go from one crisis […]
Women’s political, social, and economic status has undergone several transformations in American history. This seminar will explore readings and documents in those stages: Women of Reform and Revolution, Women in […]
Women’s political, social, and economic status has undergone several transformations in American history. This seminar will explore readings and documents in those stages: Women of Reform and Revolution, Women in […]
This seminar offers an overview of the principles of the American Founding and the documents that embody them, especially the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution. These principles will be […]
