Mercer University’s Thomas C. and Ramona E. McDonald Center for America’s Founding Principles will welcome Dr. Alexander Duff, assistant professor of political science at the University of North Texas, for a guest lecture at 6 p.m. Feb. 6 in the Presidents Dining Room on the Macon campus.
Dr. Duff’s lecture is titled “Abraham Lincoln and the Rule of Law.”
“We’re excited to kick off this semester’s speaker series with a terrific young scholar, Dr. Alexander Duff,” said Dr. Will Jordan, professor of political science and co-director of the McDonald Center. “The topic of the lecture is especially timely now, as the rule of law seems more imperiled today than at any time since perhaps Lincoln’s own day. This lecture should be a great way of showcasing the Center’s dedication to seeing what the wisdom of the past can contribute to the problems of today.”
While at Mercer, Dr. Duff will teach Associate Professor Dr. Kevin Honeycutt’s American Founding Principles class.
Dr. Duff is an accomplished scholar of contemporary political thought. He is the author of Heidegger and Politics: The Ontology of Radical Discontent, in which he explains the perplexing and varied political influence of philosopher Martin Heidegger. He also has published journal articles and book chapters on Heidegger as well as philosophers Alasdair MacIntyre, Leo Strauss and Niccolò Machiavelli.
Dr. Duff earned a master’s degree in political science from Carleton University in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, and Ph.D. in political science from the University of Notre Dame. He is a member of the American Political Science Association.
About the Thomas C. and Ramona E. McDonald Center for America’s Founding Principles
The Thomas C. and Ramona E. McDonald Center for America’s Founding Principles supplements Mercer University’s excellent liberal arts program with a redoubled commitment to the foundational texts and ideas that have shaped Western Civilization and the American political order. This focus on the core texts of the Western tradition helps to revitalize a cross-centuries dialogue about citizenship, human rights, and political, economic and religious freedom, thereby deepening the moral imagination and fostering civic and cultural literacy.
The McDonald Center’s programming includes the annual A.V. Elliott Conference on Great Books and Ideas, faculty-student reading groups, a general education course on America’s Founding Principles, summer Great Books programs for high school teachers and students, and undergraduate research fellowships. All programming is designed to enhance Mercer’s longstanding role as a distinctive home of liberal learning, a place where serious students come to live the life of the mind and emerge more thoughtful and engaged citizens. For more information, visit afp.mercer.edu.
About Mercer University
Founded in 1833, Mercer University is a dynamic and comprehensive center of undergraduate, graduate and professional education. With approximately 9,000 students enrolled in 12 schools and colleges, on major campuses in Macon and Atlanta; medical school sites in Macon, Savannah and Columbus; and at regional academic centers in Henry and Douglas counties, Mercer is ranked among the top tier of national research universities by U.S. News & World Report. The Mercer Health Sciences Center includes the University’s School of Medicine and Colleges of Nursing, Health Professions and Pharmacy. Mercer is affiliated with five teaching hospitals – Atrium Health Navicent The Medical Center and Piedmont Macon Medical Center in Macon; Memorial Health University Medical Center in Savannah; and Piedmont Columbus Regional Hospital and St. Francis-Emory Healthcare in Columbus. The University also has an educational partnership with Robins Air Force Base in Warner Robins. It operates an academic press and a performing arts center in Macon, an engineering research center in Warner Robins, and Mercer Medicine clinics in Sumter, Peach, Clay and Putnam counties. Mercer is one of only 293 institutions nationwide to shelter a chapter of The Phi Beta Kappa Society, the nation’s most prestigious academic honor society; one of eight institutions to hold membership in the Georgia Research Alliance; and the only private university in Georgia to field an NCAA Division I athletic program. For more information, visit mercer.edu.
