Spring 2013

36 Pages·2013·6.74 MB·English

SPRING 2013 THE MAGAZINE OF THE
INTERCOLLEGIATE STUDIES INSTITUTE
ISI Leaps Ahead
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IISSII’’SS IINNFFLLUUEENNCCEE
ISI’s Inaugural
William F. Buckley Jr. Society
Leadership Retreat
at Point-to-Point Steeplechase
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Educating for Liberty
Inspiring college students to discover,
embrace, and advance the principles
and virtues that make America
free and prosperous.
www.isi.org
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The Canon
SPRING 2013
2 Letter from the President
6 the secret to LeadershiP
deveLoPment
Expanding ISI’s In-Depth Summer
Programs
10 emPowering Liberty-Loving
students
ISI Groups Make Their Mark on Campus
17 transforming the news media
ISI’s Collegiate Network Trains the Next
Generation of Principled Journalists
22 fighting for free markets
A Powerful New ISI Book Teaches the
Keys to Prosperity
24 the Path to LeadershiP
The Heritage Foundation’s Edwin J.
Feulner Reflects on ISI’s Influence
26 introducing the wiLLiam f.
buckLey Jr. society
For Our Children’s Children
31 Leaving a Legacy
The Henry and Anne Paolucci Fund
32 the Last word
Matthew Gerken
Graphic Designer: Daniel Trost
Photos: (cover) Chip Riegel; (p. 12) California Patriot
Intercollegiate Studies Institute • 3901 Centerville Road • Wilmington, DE 19807 • [phone]
Please direct comments, questions, or suggestions to [email protected]. Founded in 1953, ISI is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, 501(c)(3) tax-exempt educational institu-
tion. The Institute receives no funding or other form of aid from any level of government. Gifts to ISI are tax deductible to the full extent of the law.
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Hope for
L
America’s
Future
etter from the P resident
J
oel Boersma was uncharacteristi- organize debates and conferences. And
cally flustered when I ran into him more and more of them are moving up
in the hall at ISI’s headquarters. to the Honors Program, ISI’s top under-
One of ISI’s dynamic young program graduate offering. This program kicks
officers, Joel graduated summa cum off with a rigorous summer school led
laude from Michigan’s Hope College by twenty of ISI’s leading professors;
last May and is always composed and Honors Fellows then embark on a year-
well organized. So I knew something long course of independent study with
big must be happening. one of these faculty mentors.
“What’s the matter, Joel?” I asked. I am delighted to report that ISI
He walked me to his work area, which has been able to expand the number of
was piled high with applications for the Honors Fellows from fifty students to
Honors Program, ISI’s premier leader- fifty-five thanks to the generosity of ISI
ship development program for under- supporters. In fact, a number of donors
graduates. Not only was it a record num- directed their contributions for just this
ber of applicants, but also the quality of purpose and allowed ISI to name the fel-
applicants was better than ever. lowships in their honor. ISI’s students
And that was Joel’s concern: ISI had and other donors are encouraged by
so many extraordinary students apply the quality of the business and philan-
that dozens of promising young people thropic leaders who are underwriting
would not make the cut. Ever consci- the effort.
entious, Joel had been up tossing and This is an exciting way to expand a
turning the night before, seeking the successful leadership program. Honors
best way to narrow down a field that Program alumni are making an impact
included so many campus leaders— throughout American society. They are
students with excellent grades, glowing running businesses, serving as elected
recommendations, and a deep love of officials, teaching at elite colleges and
America’s history and principles. universities, clerking for Supreme Court
I empathized with Joel’s plight, but I justices, writing books, and becoming
was also excited. ISI’s stepped-up cam- leaders in media, law, public policy, and
pus activities have attracted a larger other fields.
pool of top students. And the Honors Program is just one
Visiting college campuses across the aspect of ISI’s efforts to develop future
country, ISI’s program officers focus on leaders. On page 6 you can read about
identifying and cultivating young lead- some of the Institute’s other intensive
ers. Bright, engaged students become summer programs.
involved in ISI’s Collegiate Network In addition, there are ISI’s graduate
of student newspapers, start reading fellowships, which support exceptional
groups, host campus speakers, and graduate students who want to teach the
2  www.isi.org
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L
etter from the P resident
next generation about the principles and journalists, placing the most talented with the simple mission to teach the
virtues that make America exceptional. writers in fellowships and internships next generation about free enterprise,
On page 24 you will find a wonderful with prestigious publications. Success America’s founding principles, and the
case study of one of the 544 people who stories include Pulitzer Prize winner Western tradition. I believe that ISI’s
have earned ISI graduate fellowships Joseph Rago of the Wall Street Jour­ first president, William F. Buckley Jr.,
since 1964—Ed Feulner, who recently nal, New York Times columnist Ross would be pleased with what the organi-
retired after thirty-six years leading Douthat, author and former Wall Street zation is accomplishing today. Having
The Heritage Foundation. Ed describes Journal editor Naomi Schaefer Riley, spent time with Bill when I was a col-
the power of ideas as critical to every Weekly Standard contributing edi- lege student, I know that he would
tor Matthew Conti- delight in meeting ISI’s current crop
netti, and Katherine of student leaders—and that such an
Mangu-Ward, Reason encounter would fill him with hope for
ISI has been able to expand
maga zine’s managing America’s future.
editor. In Bill’s honor, ISI is excited to
the number of Honors
Sterling Beard, be hosting the inaugural William F.
Fellows from fifty students a current ISI Colle- Buckley Jr. Society Leadership Retreat,
giate Network Fel- which will bring together the Institute’s
to fifty-five thanks to the low, reflected on ISI’s most generous supporters and best
impact at the Dinner students over the weekend of May 3–5
generosity of ISI supporters. for Western Civili- (see page 26).
zation last October. Whether or not you can attend the
In high school, Ster- Leadership Retreat, please know how
ling discovered two honored I am to work with you on
ISI books: Choosing behalf of America’s future principled
great policy achievement since Heritage the Right College and The “Dartmouth leaders. I am grateful for your support
came on the scene. “None of it,” he says, Review” Pleads Innocent, a history of and encouragement, and I hope you
“would have happened without ISI.” the Ivy League college’s well-known enjoy the updates on ISI’s continued
Other alumni of ISI’s graduate fel- Collegiate Network newspaper. Those progress in this issue of The Canon.
lowship program include Hillsdale Col- books drew him to Dartmouth, where
lege president Larry Arnn, Weekly Stan­ he became editor in chief of the Review SSiinncceerreellyy,,
dard editor William Kristol, National (following in the footsteps of Joe Rago).
Center for Policy Analysis president Upon graduation, he earned the 2012–13

John C. Goodman, economist and New Collegiate Network fellowship at The
York Times columnist Tyler Cowen, and Hill, where he is thriving (see page 18).
businessman and former secretary of As Sterling put it, “ISI influenced not CChhrriissttoopphheerr LLoonngg
the navy John F. Lehman Jr., to name only where I went to college but also IISSII PPrreessiiddeenntt
just a few. what I did when I got there and what I
Through its Collegiate Network, would do when I graduated.”
ISI also supports and trains student ISI was established sixty years ago
the canon  Spring 2013  3
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F A S
The UND for MERICAN TUDIES
“The principal quarterly of the intellectual Right”
Teaching Freedom Since 1967
—GEORGE H. NASH, author of The Conservative
ATTENTION STUDENTS:
Intellectual Movement in America since 1945
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“The principal quarterly of the intellectual Right”
—GEORGE H. NASH, author of The Conservative
Intellectual Movement in America since 1945
Modern Age has been America’s leading conservative
quarterly for more than a half century . . . and it’s
never been better.
Founded in 1957 by the great conservative thinker
Russell Kirk, Modern Age serves up a feast of essays,
reviews, and poetry each season.
Now take advantage of this special limited-
time subscription offer:
Subscribe for two years and receive a complimentary
copy of the brand-new book by historian John Lukacs,
History and the Human Condition—a $27.95 value.
This fascinating work is perhaps the final word from
“a master historian” (Historically Speaking), “one of the
outstanding historians of the generation and, indeed,
of our time” (Jacques Barzun).
To take advantage of this special offer, call [phone].
Be sure to mention this Canon ad!
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SECRET
The to
Leadership Development
Expanding ISI’s In-Depth Summer Programs
Top students gather for ISI’s Leadership Retreat at the Russell Kirk Center
Summer retreats have long been integral to ISI’s work developing principled
leaders. In fact, since ISI held its first summer school in 1960—with William F.
Buckley Jr. and Russell Kirk among the mentors participating—countless students
have used the same simple phrase to sum up their experience: “It changed my life.”
Take longtime Heritage Foundation president Edwin J. Fellowship, teach at ISI summer schools, and become a
Feulner (who is profiled on pages 24 and 25). As an under- trustee of the Institute. At that 1962 summer school he also
graduate in 1962, Feulner attended ISI’s summer school at met a young professor named Phil Crane. Several years later,
Lake Forest College in Illinois. It marked the beginning of Feulner became the top aide to Crane, by then a United States
a lifelong relationship with ISI: he went on to earn a Weaver congressman and a rising conservative leader.
6  www.isi.org
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ISI is at its best when bringing become leaders in business, law, media, on the Constitution. They were also
students and professors together for and many other fields. regaled by conservative leaders includ-
extended periods of time, providing The Honors Program is going strong, ing Stephen Moore of the Wall Street
the kind of in-depth instruction and with an outstanding program planned Journal and Alabama attorney general
mentorship that is so lacking at today’s for August in Richmond, Virginia. And Luther Strange, who has led the reli-
colleges. In the summer, freed from now ISI has buttressed this conference gious liberty suit against Obamacare.
their class schedules, students (and their with three other summer programs for Word about the success of last sum-
faculty mentors) can immerse them- talented students. mer’s Samford program has spread. ISI
selves in the ISI experience expects double the number of
and devote their full attention participants this July.
to the bedrock principles that “This conference was the best Also last summer, ISI hosted
have made America prosper- its first annual Leadership
experience of my life so far.”
ous, moral, and free. Retreat. This weeklong pro-
So it was only natural that gram takes the training for ISI
ISI made summer leader- —Alexander Falconer, Regent University campus leaders and regional
ship development a central ambassadors to a new level.
component of the three-year Last July twenty top ISI student
Leadership for America’s leaders gathered in Mecosta,
Future campaign. More capable young The First Principles of Freedom Michigan, at the ancestral home of
people than ever are benefiting from Conference is an intensive week devoted Russell Kirk. Attendees studied Kirk’s
the in-depth ISI experience that has to constitutional government, free mar- Roots of American Order and learned
produced so many American leaders. kets, individual liberty, the rule of law, from stalwart ISI scholars includ-
and traditional values. Partnering with ing George H. Nash, author of The
The Four Corners of the the Alabama Policy Institute, ISI held Conservative Intellectual Movement in
ISI Summer Program the inaugural conference in July 2012 America since 1945; Harry C. Veryser,
Since 1995, the Honors Program Sum- at Samford University. Thirty-five top author of the free-market text It Didn’t
mer Conference has been the apex of undergraduates from around the coun- Have to Be This Way; and Bradley Birzer,
ISI’s programming for undergraduates. try attended lectures on seminal works author of American Cicero: The Life of
This rigorous weeklong intellectual like Alexis de Tocqueville’s Democracy Charles Carroll. Meanwhile, ISI pro-
retreat is limited to fifty-five exceptional in America, F. A. Hayek’s Road to gram officers ran useful practicums
college students, who are chosen in a Serfdom, Russell Kirk’s Conservative on recruiting, fund-raising, student
highly selective national competition. Mind, and Robert Nisbet’s Quest for journalism, and how to host a campus
Alumni of the Honors Program have Community; discussed these and other speaker. The students left inspired and
gone on to teach at Ivy League univer- classic texts in smaller breakout ses- energized to take the ISI message back
sities, work in the White House and on sions; and debated the merits of the to campus.
Capitol Hill, write acclaimed books, and Federalist and Anti-Federalist positions ISI has already identified a number
Ludwig von Mises with ISI students William F. Buckley Jr. signs his book for William Kristol speaks to
at a 1966 summer school students at the first ISI summer school, 1960 students in 1988
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of promising campus leaders to attend the next Leadership
The Retreat in August.
Finally, ISI is adding Arguing Conservatism to its summer
First Principles of repertoire. Focused on honing public-speaking skills, this
weeklong conference will provide advanced students with an
Freedom Conference intense intellectual experience and eminently practical leader-
ship training. Each morning, students will hear presentations
from two experts on either side of a particular issue; they will
spend the afternoon in teams preparing to debate opposing
positions that evening. The Oxford-style debates will cover
such topics as the Federalist position versus the Anti-Federalist,
isolationism versus interventionism, and crony capitalism
versus free markets. The inaugural event will be held in July
at the University of Louisville, cosponsored by the university’s
McConnell Center. The McConnell Center’s director, Gary
Gregg, is an ISI author and former Weaver Fellow.
Developing Leaders
ISI’s summer offerings are richer than ever. Talented young
The Wall Street Journal’s Stephen Moore addresses ISI students
leaders are not only gaining a deeper understanding of the
principles of liberty; they are also developing practical skills
Adam Smith, James Madison, Alexis de Tocqueville,
that will set them up for success no matter what path they
F. A. Hayek, Russell Kirk: these were just some of the
pursue in life.
foundational thinkers ISI students considered at the
inaugural First Principles of Freedom Conference.
In July 2012 thirty-five top student leaders from
across the country descended on Samford University
in Alabama for the weeklong conference. The stu-
dents benefited from intensive seminars led by
distinguished ISI professors and lively, in-depth
discussions in smaller group settings.
What’s more, students connected with influen-
tial political and opinion leaders. Alabama attorney
general Luther Strange, a key figure in the lawsuit
against the Obamacare contraception mandate, and
Stephen Moore of the Wall Street Journal editorial
board met with and delivered remarks to students
at private evening receptions.
Students praised the conference for providing an
experience they could not get from their own colleges.
One student from the University of South Carolina
said that he especially “enjoyed the open debate
about American principles without any threat of
being excommunicated like at big state universities.”
Similarly, a student from the University of Alabama
observed that the ISI summer school “has renewed
my enthusiasm and deepened my love for learning.”
She added, “I look forward to putting the principles
of freedom studied this week into practice.”
AN EARLY ISI SUMMER SCHOOL, 1961: Among the future
leaders attending were Phil Crane, U.S. congressman (top row, sixth
from right); Daniel Harden, chair of the Kansas Governmental Ethics
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