2026 Spring Meeting – The Declaration of Independence at 250: The American Revolution Then & Now
Program
Friday, April 17
7:00–9:00 PM
Dinner & Program: Does a Nation with Imperfect Origins, a Flawed History, and a Tempestuous Present Have the Right to Celebrate Its Revolutionary Founding?
Opening Remarks by Chair: Joseph A. Morris, President, The Philadelphia Society
Keynote: Geoffrey Slaughter, Indiana Supreme Court
Saturday, April 18
7:30–9:00 AM
Annual Breakfast Meeting of the Membership (Members only)
9:30–11:00 AM
Session 1: How Did the “American Nation” Come to Be?
Chair: Jason Jewell, State University System of Florida
Remy Debes, The University of Memphis
Wilfred McClay, Hillsdale College
C. Bradley Thompson, Clemson University
12:00–1:30
Barron Award & Luncheon - What Does It Mean to Be an American Revolutionary Today?
Chair: Robert Alt, The Buckeye Institute
Danny J. Boggs, U.S. Court of Appeals
2:00–3:30
Session 2: Can a Revolution be Lawful?
Chair: Jesús María Alvarado Andrade, Universidad Francisco Marroquín
Jane Calvert, The John Dickinson Writings Project
David Forte, Cleveland State University
Michael Lucchese, Pipe Creek Consulting; Law & Liberty
3:30–4:00
Coffee Break
4:00–5:30
Session 3: Did the Declaration Provide a Firm Ground for the Constitution of a Federal, and Liberty-Protecting Republic?
Chair: Steven Hayward, Pepperdine University
Amanda Bellows, Lang College – The New School
Roger Pilon, Cato Institute
Colleen Sheehan, Arizona State University
5:30–6:45
Reception & Book Signing
Sunday April 18
8:00–9:00
Breakfast Buffet
9:00–11:00
Roundtable Discussion: Can We Keep the Republic?
Chair: Joseph A. Morris, President, The Philadelphia Society
Robert Alt, Second Vice President, The Philadelphia Society
Samuel J. Gregg, Past President (2019-2021), The Philadelphia Society
Michael C. Munger, First Vice President, The Philadelphia Society
Bradley C. S. Watson, Past President (2024-2025), The Philadelphia Society
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