Wilfred M. McClay
Encyclopedia
Wilfred M. McClay is an American historian
, a noted conservative public intellectual, and SunTrust Bank Chair of Excellence in Humanities at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
.
He is a Senior Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C., and serves on the editorial board of the Center's journal The Wilson Quarterly; a Senior Fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center
in Washington, D.C.; and a member of the Society of Scholars at the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions
of Princeton University
. He was appointed in 2002 to the National Council on the Humanities, the advisory board for the National Endowment for the Humanities
. He is also a member of the editorial and advisory board of the journal First Things
, Society (formerly Transaction), Historically Speaking, The University Bookman, and The New Atlantis
.
, where he received a Ph.D. in history in 1987.
He has taught at Georgetown University
, Tulane University
, Johns Hopkins University
, and the University of Dallas
, before moving to the University of Tennessee in 1999.
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
, a noted conservative public intellectual, and SunTrust Bank Chair of Excellence in Humanities at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga is a public university located in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The University, often referred to as UTC or simply "Chattanooga" , is one of three universities and two other affiliated institutions in the University of Tennessee System; the others being in...
.
He is a Senior Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C., and serves on the editorial board of the Center's journal The Wilson Quarterly; a Senior Fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center
Ethics and Public Policy Center
The Ethics and Public Policy Center is a Washington, D.C.-based conservative advocacy group. Formed in 1976 by Ernest W. Lefever, who was its president until 1989, the group describes itself as "dedicated to applying the Judeo-Christian moral tradition to critical issues of public policy."Since...
in Washington, D.C.; and a member of the Society of Scholars at the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions
James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions
The James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions is a scholarly institute within the Department of Politics at Princeton University that is "dedicated to exploring enduring questions of American constitutional law and Western political thought."...
of Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
. He was appointed in 2002 to the National Council on the Humanities, the advisory board for the National Endowment for the Humanities
National Endowment for the Humanities
The National Endowment for the Humanities is an independent federal agency of the United States established by the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965 dedicated to supporting research, education, preservation, and public programs in the humanities. The NEH is located at...
. He is also a member of the editorial and advisory board of the journal First Things
First Things
First Things is an ecumenical journal focused on creating a "religiously informed public philosophy for the ordering of society". The journal is inter-denominational and inter-religious, representing a broad intellectual tradition of Christian and Jewish critique of contemporary society...
, Society (formerly Transaction), Historically Speaking, The University Bookman, and The New Atlantis
The New Atlantis
New Atlantis is a utopian novel by Sir Francis Bacon, published in Latin in 1624 and in English in 1627. In this work, Bacon portrayed a vision of the future of human discovery and knowledge, expressing his aspirations and ideals for humankind...
.
Education and Teaching
Professor McClay was graduated from St. John’s College and the Johns Hopkins UniversityJohns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
, where he received a Ph.D. in history in 1987.
He has taught at Georgetown University
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
, Tulane University
Tulane University
Tulane University is a private, nonsectarian research university located in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States...
, Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
, and the University of Dallas
University of Dallas
The University of Dallas is a private, independent Catholic regional university located in Irving, Texas, established in 1956, which is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. According to U.S...
, before moving to the University of Tennessee in 1999.
Awards
- 1995 Merle Curti AwardMerle Curti AwardThe Merle Curti Award is awarded annually by the Organization of American Historians for the best book in American social and/or American intellectual history. A committee of 5 members of the Organization of American Historians chooses the winners from published monographs submitted by the author...
- 1997-98 Templeton Honor Rolls
- Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
- National Endowment for the HumanitiesNational Endowment for the HumanitiesThe National Endowment for the Humanities is an independent federal agency of the United States established by the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965 dedicated to supporting research, education, preservation, and public programs in the humanities. The NEH is located at...
Fellowship - National Academy of Education Fellowship
- Howard Foundation Fellowship
- Earhart Foundation Fellowship
- Danforth Foundation Fellowship
Works
- "Keeping Time" First Things June/July 2009.
- The Soul and the City The City Summer 2009.
- "Mediating Institutions" First Things April 2009.
- "Uncomfortable Belief" First Things May 2008.
- "Beyond the Right to Life" The New Atlantis, Number 14, Fall 2006.
- "The Continuing Irony of American History" First Things February 2002.
- "The Christian Historian and the Idea of Progress" in
- Figures in the Carpet: Finding the Human Person in the American Past, editor, Eerdmans, 2007.