Education and American Ideals

America’s founding ideals, and the way we teach the history that undergirds them, are being scrutinized today more than ever before. Forming rising generations into responsible citizens who properly understand their rights and duties is an essential task for securing the future of our republic.  

EPPC’s Education and American Ideals Project brings together the work of several of our scholars to provide intellectually rigorous and practically effective conservative leadership on the pressing issues we face. These scholars advance our mission to build and sustain a society where families and faith communities flourish and where the traditional American way of life thrives.  

EPPC Senior Fellow Stanley Kurtz is at the front of the national pushback against indoctrination in K–12 schools and on college campuses. He has established himself as the nation’s foremost critic of politicized “action civics” and is among the most influential opponents of Critical Race Theory. Stanley’s work on education is followed widely by the general public, especially through his contributions to National Review Online, as well as by legislators and policymakers across the country who seek out his expert guidance on keeping public policy and public schools free of “woke” trends. Stanley has been consulted on his model legislation on CRT, action civics and other topics by legislators, governors, or state attorneys general in Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, as well as by policy experts and influencers in many other states, and he has testified on education issues before Congress and many state legislatures.

EPPC Senior Fellow Henry Olsen, author of the pathbreaking 2017 book The Working Class Republican: Ronald Reagan and the Return of Blue-Collar Conservatism, writes daily columns in the Washington Post advancing a sound vision for the conservative movement grounded in America’s working class. Henry’s insights are followed and respected by leading contenders for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination, and he is regularly consulted by congressional offices in DC. As a result, Henry’s ideas are helping to shape the debate within conservatism and the future of the Republican Party.  

EPPC Henry Grunwald Senior Fellow Lance Morrow, a frequent contributor to the Wall Street Journal and City Journal, draws on his rich career to write probing pieces on journalism, politics, and American culture. A longtime, award-winning essayist with TIME magazine, his work focuses on the moral and ethical dimensions of public events, including freedom of speech, freedom of thought, and political correctness on American campuses, with a view to the future consequences of such suppressions.

Program Publications

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Transformative Legislation for Higher Education

Stanley Kurtz

The General Education Act (GEA)’s method is not to forbid the teaching of certain ideas, it is, rather, to mandate mastery of essential knowledge.

National Review Online / November 16, 2023

General Education Act: Model Legislation

Stanley Kurtz

A properly supported School of General Education can remake our public universities into what they once were—the keystones of the American republic.

Uncategorized

PDF / November 12, 2023

What a DeSantis Rebound Looks Like

Henry Olsen

Why Iowa governor Reynolds’s endorsement could be the first step in a recovery for the struggling presidential candidate.

National Review Online / November 10, 2023

The GOP’s silver linings after Virginia election losses

Henry Olsen

Tuesday’s off-year elections were clearly disappointing for Republicans.

Washington Post / November 9, 2023

Haley and DeSantis battle in the race for second place

Henry Olsen

The two politicians are miles ahead of their competitors – but that’s not enough to take down Trump.

The Telegraph / November 9, 2023

What Ron DeSantis doesn’t seem to understand about Ronald Reagan

Henry Olsen

Ron DeSantis is telling Republican voters that “the 2024 election is a time for choosing.”

Washington Post / November 6, 2023

Donald Trump Wants to Be Held in Contempt

Henry Olsen

Trump seems to have concluded that provoking the judges in the cases against him helps his reelection chances more than it hurts him in court.

National Review Online / November 2, 2023

Program Appearances

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Stanley Kurtz on Recentering Our Universities

National Association of Scholars / November 16, 2023

Henry Olsen on the House Speaker

Washington Journal / October 24, 2023

Henry Olsen on Humanize Podcast

Humanize Podcast / October 22, 2023

Henry Olsen on Campaign 2024 and the Future of the Republican Party

C-SPAN / August 7, 2023

VIDEO: Stanley Kurtz on RI Education (The Current)

The Current / April 20, 2023

VIDEO: The Christian Revolution with Stanley Kurtz

The New Culture Forum / April 2, 2023

VIDEO: Liberty or Death? on THE WEST with Stanley Kurtz and George Weigel

The New Culture Forum / March 26, 2023