Washington Post Columnist George Will to Speak at Wendt Conference
Oct 9, 2007 | University of Dubuque Theological Seminary
Washington Post columnist George F. Will will serve as the keynote speaker for the University of Dubuque Wendt Center for Character Education's third annual fall conference on Wednesday, October 24. The theme of the 2007-08 conference is "The Content of our National Character: Ethics in Public Policy Making."
George F. Will's newspaper column has been syndicated by The Washington Post since 1974. Today it appears twice weekly in just under 500 newspapers in the United States and in Europe. In 1976, Mr. Will became a regular contributing editor of Newsweek magazine, for which he provides a bimonthly back-page essay. In 1977 he won a Pulitzer Prize for commentary in his newspaper columns.
Altogether seven collections of Mr. Will's Newsweek and Washington Post columns have been published, the most recent being With A Happy Eye But&: America and the World, 1997-2002(2002). Mr. Will has also published three books on political theory, Statecraft as Soulcraft: What Government Does(1983), The New Season: A Spectator's Guide to the 1988 Election (1987) andRestoration: Congress, Term Limits and The Recovery ofDeliberative Democracy(1992). In 1990, Mr. Will published Men At Work: The Craft of Baseball, which topped The New York Timesbestseller list for two months. In 1998, Scribner published Bunts: Curt Flood, Camden Yards, Pete Rose and Other Reflections on Baseball, a best-selling collection of new and previously published writings by Mr. Will on baseball. In July 2000, Mr. Will was a member of Major League Baseball's Blue Ribbon Panel, examining baseball economics.
In 1981, Mr. Will became a founding panel member on ABC televisions This Week.
Mr. Will was born in Champaign, Illinois, educated at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, Oxford University and Princeton University, where he earned his Ph.D. He has taught political philosophy at Michigan State University, the University of Toronto and Harvard University. Mr. Will served as a staff member in the United States Senate from 1970 to 1972. From 1973 through 1976, he was the Washington editor of National Review magazine. Today, Mr. Will lives and works in the Washington, D.C. area.
"George Will'skeenly insightfulcommentary has been influential in American politics for three decades," said Paula Carlson, director of the Wendt Center. "His perspective oncurrent political issues willundoubtedly proveilluminating and thought-provoking as the Iowa caucuses draw near."
The Wendt Character Initiative was established in 2004 at the University of Dubuque by the endowed Lester G. Wendt and Michael Lester Wendt Character Initiative Fund. The Initiative operates under the care of the Wendt Center for Character Education. This Initiative promotes a campus culture that nurtures the formation of excellent moral character, and that encourages all members of the community to live lives of purpose. The work of the Wendt Character Initiative is centered in the University's Mission and values, a commitment to its Reformed Christian identity, and a sense of creative vocation in faithful response to the Creator. This Initiative is part of the total educational experience of all University of Dubuque students through curricular and co-curricular programs. Faculty and staff also participate in the Initiative through special programs during the school year.
