Written by Ben Lane // Graphic courtesy of Harding ASI
From presidents to prime ministers, editors to authors and surgeons to athletes, the American Studies Institute (ASI) has brought in various leaders from across the world and nation to Harding’s campus.
Seventy years ago, the School of American Studies, which over the years morphed into what is now ASI, began at Harding. Though no longer a school, ASI still brings speakers, hosts events and takes students on school trips.
“We’d like to help inspire leadership by exposing students to people and places and ideas that have helped shape the United States,” Dr. John “J.R.” Duke, executive director of ASI, said.
ASI exposes students to this, Duke said, by creating discourse about American history, capitalism, economics or engaging in politics and government, which is intended to inspire engagement with civic life.
In 1952, then-president George Benson told The Bison that the new school, which offered a four-year degree with a blend of courses in history, science and economics, aimed to give “a solid grounding in American and Christian principles.” Similar to today’s ASI, the school gave students the opportunity to hear speakers, participate in discussions and attend school trips.
Harding still offers an American studies major, though the school no longer exists. It was located in the American Studies Building, where the English Department now resides, and was the first all air-conditioned classroom building in Arkansas.
Duke said that during the 1950s, schools of American studies began appearing across foreign and domestic universities in an academic movement. Harding’s school was funded by philanthropist W.R. Coe, who promoted American studies across the nation.
“The American Studies Institute continues this long tradition by promoting a better understanding of the constitution, of capitalism and free enterprise and of the intersections of faith and civil life,” ASI’s webpage states.
Retired vice president Dr. Jim Carr said ASI developed into one of the most “outstanding speaker series in higher education in the country” during his involvement and that it was impressive for a school the size of Harding to bring speakers such as Benazir Bhutto, Margaret Thatcher and Mikhail Gorbachev.
Senior Grant Countess said ASI “has been a huge part of [his] Harding experience.”
“ASI has given me the opportunity to listen to people’s stories,” Countess said. “It begins with the speakers who come to share their experiences and offer their perspective on the world.”
ASI most recently brought Joe Kennedy, a high school football coach embroiled in a religious liberty Supreme Court case, and his lawyers Stephanie Taub and Michael Berry. The next ASI speaker event will occur on Nov. 2 and feature former South Carolina Governor David Beasley, executive director of the United Nations World Food Program. Further information can be found at https://www.harding.edu/american-studies-institute.
