Upcoming Events

November 7-10, 2024
Hillsdale Collegiate Scholars Seminar
Topic: “Lucretius, On the Nature of the Universe”
Discussion Leader: Professor Eric Hutchinson, Chairman of the Collegiate Scholars Program
Russell Kirk Center, Mecosta, Michigan

November 13, 2024
The University Bookman and friends will hold a memorial lecture in honor of Gerald Russello, longtime editor of the Bookman.
Topic: “The Conservative Paradox: Mourning and Gratitude”
Speaker: R. R. Reno, editor of First Things
Reception begins at 6 pm with lecture to follow.

Fordham University Law School
Lincoln Center, Tiered Lecture Hall 4-02
150 West 62nd Street, New York, New York 10023
Register at this link.

November 19, 2024
Join University Bookman editor Luke Sheahan at 7 pm as he discusses the history and basis of freedom of speech with Jonathan Turley, J.B. and Maurice C. Shapiro Professor of Public Interest Law at George Washington University Law School and author of The Indispensable Right: Free Speech in an Age of Rage.

Register at this link.

November 21, 2024
This series is a joint initiative of the Kirk Center and the Chesterton Academy.
Topic: “Christopher Dawson and Christian Culture”
Speaker: Dr. Joseph Stuart, professor of History at the University of Mary
St. Lucy’s Croatian Catholic Church Hall, Troy, MI

Register at this link.

December 5, 2024
Join us on Thursday, December 5, as the Russell Kirk Center awards its Inaugural Richard D. McLellan Prizes for Advancing Free Speech and Expression. Reception begins at 6:00 pm with the program to follow.
Amway Grand Plaza Hotel, Grand Rapids, MI
Register at this link. 

December 12-15, 2024
McConnell Center Scholars Seminar
Discussion Leader: Dr. Gary Gregg, Director of the McConnell Center at the University of Louisville
Russell Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

October 29, 2024, 7 pm (EST)
Luke Sheahan, editor of the University Bookman, with discuss Russell Kirk’s fiction with James Panero, executive editor of the New Criterion, and Adam Simon, Hollywood screenwriter. Kirk was an award-winning author of supernatural tales imbued with gothic imagination. What influenced Kirk’s interest and understanding of the ghostly tale? What might all this have to do with traditional conservatism? This discussion will range from masters of the genre of the ghostly tale to themes of morality and judgment in stories of the uncanny.

Register with this link. 

October 22, 2024, 7 pm (EST)
Neither an ideology nor a political program, conservatism is an adjective chiefly — a state of mind, a type of character, and a way of looking at the civil social order. This disposition has been re-expressed in new ways and new circumstances by some of the best men of letters and public figures of the past few centuries. This School of Conservative Studies webinar helps to clarify the meaning of the word “conservative” by unpacking the “ten conservative principles” outlined by Russell Kirk in The Politics of Prudence.

Speaker: Dr. Jason Jewell
Register with this link. 

October 17-20, 2024
TFAS Fellows Seminar
Discussion Leaders: Dr. David Corey (Baylor University) and Dr. Bradley Birzer (Hillsdale College)
Russell Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

October 6, 2024
The Front Porch Republic
Library Tour by Cecilia Kirk Nelson
Talk by Jeffrey O. Nelson
Russell Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

October 4, 2024
Kairos Homeschool Debate Group
Library Tour & Talk by Darrell Falconburg
Russell Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

September 23, 2024
Join the editor of The University Bookman, Luke Sheahan, on Monday, September 23, at 7 pm, as he discusses Hannah’s Children: The Women Quietly Defying the Birth Dearth with Catherine Pakaluk.

Register for this Book Gallery webinar using the following link.

August 1 – 4, 2024
This program brings together two themes central to the life and work of Russell Kirk: character and composition. Participants will be led by the Russell Kirk Center’s Distinguished Teaching Fellow, David Hein. To apply, send a personal statement and resume to ecorwin@kirkcenter.org.
Russell Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

July 16, 2024
Mackinac Center Interns
Russell Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

July 9, 2024
Acton Institute Interns
Russell Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

June 20-21, 2024
Michigan legislators
Russell Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

June 18, 7:00 – 8:00 pm
Join the editor of The University Bookman, Luke C. Sheahan, on Tuesday, June 18 at 7 pm, as he discusses Liberty Lost: The Rise and Demise of Voluntary Association in America Since Its Founding with Robert E. Wright. Register at this link.

April 19, 2:00 – 3:00 pm
Featured speaker: Dr. Hiro Aida, journalist and translator
Roundtable discussion with Jeff Nelson, Annette Kirk, and Luke Sheahan
Tampa, FL
Read Dr. Aida’s talk on “Russell Kirk’s Fascination with Japan” here.

April 21, 12:00 – 1:30 pm
Featured speaker: Dr. Hiro Aida, journalist and translator
Roundtable discussion with George Nash, Jeff Nelson, and Bill McClay
Tampa, FL
To attend, contact ecorwin@kirkcenter.org

May 19 – 20
This conference addresses the work of the philosopher Sir Roger Scruton from an American perspective. The event presents an array of perspectives on the various avenues of his writings, what they might mean for American culture, and their potential future influence on the nation. Speakers will discuss topics such as the arts, religion, popular culture, and ethics as they explore Sir Roger’s philosophies, persona, and legacy. The conference honors his memory and engages with his prominence as a cultural thinker.
Presented by The Center for American Culture and Ideas, co-sponsored by the Kirk Center.
Georgetown University and AEI, Washington, D.C.
The full schedule, speakers’ biographies, and registration information is available at this link. 

April 11 – 14, 2024
Hillsdale Collegiate Scholars seminar
Russell Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

April 10, 2024
Calvin University students seminar
Russell Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

April 6, 2024, 8:30 – 10:00 am 
Darrell Falconburg, Academic Program Officer of the Russell Kirk Center
Henry Institute Symposium on Religion and the Public Life
Prince Conference Center, Calvin University, Grand Rapids, MI
Register here. 

February 27, 7:00 p.m.
“Nations, Markets, Families, and the Challenge of China: A Conversation with Dr. Samuel Gregg”
The Oak Room in the Prince Conference Center, Calvin University
Open to the public.

February 26, 7:00 p.m.
“Nations, Markets, Families, and the Challenge of China: A Conversation with Dr. Samuel Gregg”
Winants Auditorium in Graves Hall, Hope College, Holland, MI
Open to the public.

February 22, 5:30 p.m.
“The Starry Pinnacle of the Commonplace: How to Restore the Normal to an Abnormal World”
Dale Ahlquist, President of the Society of G.K. Chesterton 
St. Lucy’s Croatian Catholic Church Hall, Troy, MI
This series is a joint initiative of the Kirk Center and the Chesterton Academy. Tickets may be reserved here. 

December 5, 6:00 p.m.
In celebration of the 70th anniversary of The Conservative Mind, the Kirk Center will hold a special evening event with a panel of rising conservative leaders who adapt the best of the conservative tradition to contemporary circumstances. In addition, the Kirk Center will announce the launch of two significant new programs.
The Mayflower Hotel’s Grand Ballroom, Washington, DC

November 20 – 21
Michigan legislators
The Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

November 15, 6:00 p.m.
The University Bookman and friends will hold a memorial lecture in honor of Gerald Russello, longtime editor of the University Bookman.  Dermot Quinn, Professor and Director of Graduate Studies at Seton Hall University, will speak on “Gerald Russello and the Art of Memory.” Dr. Quinn and Gerald served together on the board of the G. K. Chesterton Institute for Faith and Culture, sharing a love of all things Chestertonian. A reception with drinks and hors d’oeuvers will follow. 
Fordham University’s Lincoln Campus, New York City
All are invited. Sign up here.

November 18
The Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

November 9 – 12
Hillsdale College students
The Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

November 14, 7 p.m. EST
Luke Sheahan is joined by Alexandra Hudson to discuss her new book The Soul of Civility: Timeless Principles to Heal Society and Ourselves.
Register here for this webinar.

November 2 – 5
The Fund for American Studies Public Policy Fellows
The Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

October 25, 7:00 p.m. EST
Join James Panero, executive editor of The New Criterion, and Adam Simon, Hollywood screenwriter, for a conversation about Russell Kirk’s eerie novel Old House of Fear. Kirk was an award-winning writer of fiction and this gothic mystery set in 20th century Scotland outsold all his other books combined. Panero will explore Kirk’s literary influences, conservative sensibility, and other themes during this book-club style episode. Participants are encouraged to read the most recent edition (Criterion Books, 2019).
Register here for this webinar. 

September 19, 7 p.m. EDT
Join Luke Sheahan, editor of the University Bookman, for a discussion of The Classical and Christian Origins of American Politics with the authors, Justin Dyer and Kody Cooper. 
Register at this link to join this live webinar. 

August 18 – 22, 2023
Students from the John Adams Society of Harvard University
The Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

August 9, 1:00 p.m. EDT
The editors of the University Bookman will be joined by Eduard Habsburg, Ambassador of Hungary to the Holy See and the Sovereign Order of Malta, for a discussion of his new book The Habsburg Way. 
A video recording is available on the University Bookman homepage.

July 20 – 23, 2023
This new program brings together two themes central to the life and work of Russell Kirk: character and composition. Over the course of three days, participants will deepen their acquaintance with the chief habits of moral excellence, both the cardinal virtues and the theological virtues. They will explore these virtues in direct relation to American education and effective, ethical prose, guided by the Kirk Center’s Distinguished Teaching Fellow, David Hein.
The Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

July 18, 2023
Acton Institute Interns 
The Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

July 15, 2023
McConnell Center teachers
The Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

July 11, 2023
Mackinac Center Interns
The Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

June 15 – 18, 2023
Faulkner University Graduate Students
The Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

May 31, 6:30 – 8:30 p.m.
Frederik Meijer Gardens, Grand Rapids, MI

May 10, 2023
Sacred Heart Academy Seniors
The Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

April 27 – 30, 2023
ISI Graduate Students
The Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

April 19, 2023
The Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

April 13 – 15, 2023
Hillsdale Collegiate Scholars
The Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

March 23 – 26, 2023
Michigan Legislators
The Kirk Center, Mecosta, MI

January 16, 7:00 – 8:00 p.m. EST
Discussion and Q&A with John Wood Jr., national ambassador for Braver Angels.
This event is co-sponsored by the Acton Institute and will be held in the Mark Murray Auditorium of the Acton Institute, 98 Fulton Street East, Grand Rapids, MI. 
Watch the video here. 

January 10, 7:00 – 8:15 p.m. EST
The editors of the University Bookman will be joined by Joseph Stuart to discuss his new book, Christopher Dawson: A Cultural Mind in the Age of the Great War (Catholic University of America Press, 2022). Dr. Stuart was a Wilbur Fellow at the Russell Kirk Center while writing his doctoral dissertation that later formed the basis for this book on the English historian Christopher Dawson, one of the foremost Catholic intellectuals of modern times.
The video recording can be viewed on this page. 

December 6, 7:00 – 8:15 p.m. EST
Luke Sheahan, editor of the University Bookman, will be joined by Samuel Gregg to discuss The Next American Economy: Nation, State, and Markets in an Uncertain World (Encounter Books, 2022). 
Video recording available on this page. 

October 25, 7:00 – 8:00 p.m. EST
Luke Sheahan, editor of the University Bookman, will be joined by executive editor of The New Criterion James Panero and Hollywood screenwriter Adam Simon to explore Russell Kirk’s ghostly fiction.
Video recording available on this page.