Founding Forward

The fourth group of students to attend our 2025 Spirit of America Youth Leadership Program are arriving at our Valley Forge Campus today! They’ll join thousands of high school students from across the country who have gained a deeper understanding of our country’s founding principles while experiencing its history through our Spirit of America program. Additional sessions are scheduled through July.?Register to attend today: https://lnkd.in/gwKDs_dq #SpiritOfAmerica #YouthLeadership #CivicEducation

After nine months in a classroom, teachers deserve to attend professional development opportunities in a setting where they are made to feel celebrated. Our acclaimed and accredited summer weekend summits, week-long seminars, and traveling workshops are hosted at Union League Liberty Hill or on the road at multiple historic locations. Topics covered in First Amendment freedoms, the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, immigration, the Revolution, and the War on Terror. Learn more and apply today – space is limited. https://lnkd.in/gJxBBFqY #TeacherProfessionalDevelopment #TeacherAppreciation

It’s hard to imagine American history without Abraham Lincoln. But if you were alive in 1860 and predicting the outcome of the Republican National Convention, a Lincoln nomination would have seemed unlikely – until the dealmaking, torchlight marches by paramilitary groups, and backroom dealing began. In tonight’s Civil War Round Table speaker program, Pulitzer Prize finalist and Lincoln political biographer Edward Achorn will take us behind the scenes of?the most consequential and contentious political convention in American history. Don’t miss “The Lincoln Miracle: The 1860 Convention that Changed History.” Watch online at 6:30pm at?https://lnkd.in/ecAmVSkf. #AmericanHistory #AbrahamLincoln #AmericanPolitics

Our collections of art, artifacts, documents, and photographs are another important component of our education mission. We are busy cataloging one of our most recent acquisitions, a purchased collection of items related to artist Jakob Otto Schweizer (1863-1955). The Union of League of Philadelphia commissioned Schweizer, known for his battlefield memorial sculptures across the country, for the artwork in its Lincoln Memorial Room - a highlight for anyone visiting the League House in Philadelphia. Schweizer has seven bronze statues at Gettysburg, more than any other artist, as well as 8 pieces already in our collections. The new acquisition includes 40 plaster models of his sculptures, along with documents and photographs. We're busy cataloging this new collection, with plans coming together for an exhibit featuring these items in the Lincoln Memorial Room next year. In the meantime, we invite you to learn more about how we work to preserve, share, and exhibit our collections. Learn more here: https://lnkd.in/gDUy_W8t #AmericanSculptors #AmericanArt #Lincoln

Our 2025 Spirit of America Youth Leadership sessions are rolling along as we welcome students attending our third class of the year! Through a four-day residency surrounded by history at our Valley Forge campus, these high school students will be immersed in the principles of freedom while developing life-long leadership skills. Additional sessions are scheduled through July.?Register to attend?to experience what one of our attendees described as “a new foundation … and strength to go meet new people and build a community for everyone.”??Thanks to the generosity of our sponsors, most students accepted into the program attend at no cost. Registration: https://lnkd.in/gwKDs_dq

We’re fanning out across the country to meet with educators! We are headed south to Gatlinburg for the Tennessee Council for the Social Studies Conference March 6-7. We will also travel north to attend the New York State Council for the Social Studies Convention in Albany March 6-8. It’s an opportunity to bring learnings, meet with educators, and share information about Founding Forward’s role as a leading voice in civic education, and as a professional development resource for teachers. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gsRccvRk #TCSS #NYSCC #SocialStudies #CivicEducation

In tonight’s live streaming of Founding Forward’s Speaker program on?More People, More Innovation, More Liberty,?Dr. Marian Tupy, Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute’s Center for Global Liberty and Prosperity,?uses historical evidence to argue that a free and innovative society grows its resources faster than its consumption. Watch online at 6:30pm at https://lnkd.in/ecAmVSkf. #AmericanInnovation #FreeMarket #Superabundance

Today at our Valley Forge campus, we’re catching a glimpse of the future of our great American experiment: students from across America are arriving for the second 2025 session of Spirit of America! Surrounded?by history, they’ll gain a deeper understanding of their responsibilities as citizens?while strengthening critical thinking and leadership skills. They come back with lessons and friendships to last a lifetime. Additional sessions are scheduled through July. Thanks to the generosity of our sponsors, most students accepted into the program attend at no cost.?Register to attend today. #SpiritOfAmerica #YouthLeadership #CivicEducation

Next year is our country’s 250th birthday, and we’ve added an exciting new dimension to our teacher program offerings to help educators prepare. We’re holding several weekend summits on the Declaration of Independence in collaboration with The Jack Miller Center's Founding Civics Initiative. Participants will experience historical interpreters, lectures, discussions, and visits to Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell, and the American Philosophical Society. Our next session is June 27-29. Don’t hesitate, apply today: https://lnkd.in/e7ws2K4T

The days are getting a bit longer, so take advantage of it by live-streaming our free and thought-provoking speaker programs on our?YouTube channel. Tomorrow: Liberty Series,?Patriotism, Higher Education, & Tocqueville,?with Paul Carrese, Founding Director of the School of Civic & Economic Thought and Leadership at Arizona State University. March 3:?Liberty Series,?More People, More Innovation, More Liberty,?with Dr. Marian Tupy, Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute’s Center for Global Liberty and Prosperity. March 10:?Civil War Round Table,?The Lincoln Miracle: The 1860 Convention that Changed History,?with Pulitzer Prize finalist and Lincoln political biographer Edward Achorn. Join us for the?live stream?of the programs?at 6:30pm on the day of the presentation.?More information about our speaker programs can be found here: https://lnkd.in/eQzbyp9i