Institute for Humane Studies

Last updated

Institute for Humane Studies
Founded1961 (1961) [1]
Founder F. A. Harper [1]
Type 501(c)(3) public charity
941623852 [2]
Focus Classical liberalism
Location
Coordinates 38°53′04″N77°06′03″W / 38.8844°N 77.1009°W / 38.8844; -77.1009
Area served
United States
MethodEducation [1]
Key people
President and CEO Emily Chamlee-Wright
Revenue
$21.1 million (2020) [3]
Website theihs.org

The Institute for Humane Studies (IHS) is a non-profit organization that promotes the teaching and research of classical liberalism in higher education in the United States. [4] IHS offers funding opportunities, programs, and events for faculty and graduate students seeking careers in academia as well as various fellowships. [5] [6] [7] [8]

Contents

Founded by F. A. "Baldy" Harper in 1961, [1] the organization later began an association with George Mason University [9] and in 1985 [5] [10] moved to Fairfax, Virginia. The institute is currently located at 3434 Washington Blvd. on the Arlington campus of George Mason University. [9] It is partially funded by the Charles Koch Foundation. [11]

History

The Institute for Humane Studies was founded in 1961 in Menlo Park, California, by F. A. Harper in order to promote peace, prosperity, and social harmony by fostering a greater understanding of human affairs and freedom. [6] [12] [13] Initially serving as the secretary and treasurer, Harper became the institute's president in 1966, a position he held until his death in 1973. [14] Murray Rothbard played a key role as speaker at IHS conferences in the 1970s, promoting Austrian economics. [15] On May 18, the 100th anniversary of the birth of Nobel Prize-winning economist Friedrich A. Hayek, who had been "instrumental in helping F.A. "Baldy" Harper found the Institute in 1961", IHS staff and friends gathered to honor Hayek. [16] Following Harper in the role of president were Louis M. Spadaro and Leonard Liggio, who served as president from 1980 to 1989. [17] From 1998 to 2000 Stanford graduate David C. Nott, now with the Reason Foundation, led the organization as president. [18] The current president and CEO, Emily Chamlee-Wright, served as provost and dean at Washington College from 2012 to 2016 and was previously the Elbert H. Neese Professor of Economics and associate dean at Beloit College. [19] Her predecessor, Marty Zupan, served as president and CEO from 2001 to 2016 after serving as editor of Reason magazine. [20]

After beginning an association with George Mason University, Liggio, Walter Grinder, and John Blundell moved the institute to Fairfax, Virginia in 1985. [5] The organization is currently located on the George Mason University Arlington campus, along with sister organization the Mercatus Center. [5]

Organization and funding

The institute's board of directors includes Scott Beaulier, Christopher Coyne, Tyler Cowen, David Humphreys, Charles G. Koch (Chairman Emeritus), Brian Hooks, Art Pope (Chairman), Chris Rufer, Virgil Storr, Ryan Stowers, and Todd Zywicki. [21]

IHS has received funding from a number of foundations, including the Sarah Scaife Foundation, the John Templeton Foundation, the F.M. Kirby Foundation, the Marcus Foundation, the John William Pope Foundation, the Ed Uihlein Family Foundation, the Ralph Smeed Private Memorial Foundation, the Koch Family Foundations, the Searle Freedom Trust, the E.L. Craig Foundation, and the Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation. [22] [5] [23] [24] [25] [26] [27] [28] [29]

In March 2012, in the midst of a legal dispute between Charles Koch and the Cato Institute that caused renewed scrutiny of Koch's political philanthropy, IHS's chief financial officer told the New York Times that Koch is "a longtime and generous supporter of ours, but we're not involved as a political organization." [30] Charles Koch donated a total of $12.4 million to the organization from 2008 to 2012. [11] The John William Pope Foundation has donated $2.1 million to the Institute since 1986. [25]

IHS fundraising appeals have been targeted to specific projects in the past. In 2011, Rand Paul signed a 10-page fundraising letter seeking gifts for the institute's Learn Liberty project, which IHS describes as a "resource for exploring the ideas of a free society." [31] [32] Learn Liberty was acquired by Students for Liberty in 2019. [33]

Programs

Seminars

John Hasnas lecturing at Towson University Aristotle's Error.jpg
John Hasnas lecturing at Towson University

Each summer, IHS runs several free, weekend-long summer seminars for university students from around the world. Seminars are interdisciplinary and include lectures on history, economics, philosophy, law, and political science. [5] [34] [35] Seminar themes include the value of property rights, limited government, peace, natural rights, free trade, individual autonomy, and free markets. There are introductory and advanced seminars. [5] IHS also runs weekend on-campus seminars during the academic year. [5] IHS and Liberty Fund co-sponsor the Advanced Topics in Liberty program, which is an invitation-only, discussion-based weekend conference series. [36]

For graduate students pursuing academic careers, IHS sponsors an annual research colloquium, policy research seminars and invitation-only Career Development Seminars designed to help students "land a job in academia, gain tenure, and contribute to the academic and intellectual conversation." [5] [37]

Scholarships and grants

Each year IHS awards over $1 million in scholarships to students from universities around the world. [38] Through its Humane Studies Fellowship program, IHS awards up to $15,000 in scholarships to graduate students embarking on "liberty-advancing careers in ideas." [13] [39] Each summer, through the Summer Graduate Research Fellowship, IHS gives $5,000 stipends to young academics "to refine and complete a publishable scholarly article or thesis chapter that engages ideas within the classical liberal tradition." The IHS PhD Scholarship awards $1,500 to "students dedicated to developing, teaching, and applying the principles of a free society." [40] Other various grants are awarded to graduate students and junior faculty to aid in their ability to present research or interview at academic or professional conferences. [41] [42]

Online projects

In 2010, IHS launched LearnLiberty.org, a website producing educational videos on libertarian ideas. [43] [44] The site's stated goals are "to provide a starting point for conversations on important questions: What is the nature of man and society? What are the best ways to organize human society? What is the proper role for government?" Notable guest lecturers featured on Learn Liberty include David Schmidtz of the University of Arizona and Jeffrey Miron of Harvard University. [45]

Internships

Each summer, for more than 20 years, IHS hosted the Charles G. Koch Summer Fellow Program. The program is now hosted by the Charles Koch Institute. [46] The program ran for 10 weeks, and included a paid public policy internship with two career and policy seminars. Fellows were placed at one partner think tanks and policy organizations across the United States. [5] IHS also ran a year-round journalism internship program that placed aspiring journalists at media companies and non-profit newsrooms, but both the journalism and policy internship programs have been discontinued. [47] [48] [49]

In 2019, it was reported that John Elliott, who had directed IHS's journalism internship program from 2008 to 2013, had ties to the alt-right movement. [50] [51] IHS issued a statement which said "After careful review, we have uncovered no incident during his tenure at IHS in which Elliott exhibited anti-Semitic or bigoted views." [52]

Awards

Each year, IHS awards an alumnus of its programs with the Charles G. Koch Outstanding IHS Alum Award. The award is given in recognition of "significant contributions to advancing liberty."[ citation needed ] Past award winners include libertarian legal theorist and law professor Randy Barnett; Kris Mauren, co-founder of the Acton Institute; law professor Todd Zywicki; Kristina Kendall, executive producer for John Stossel; political science professor John Tomasi; Scott Bullock, senior attorney at the Institute for Justice; economist Peter Boettke; John Hood, president of the John Locke Foundation; and David Schmidtz, a professor of philosophy and economics. [53] [54]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Murray Rothbard</span> American economist (1926–1995)

Murray Newton Rothbard was an American economist of the Austrian School, economic historian, political theorist, and activist. Rothbard was a central figure in the 20th-century American libertarian movement, particularly its right-wing strands, and was a founder and leading theoretician of anarcho-capitalism. He wrote over twenty books on political theory, history, economics, and other subjects.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cato Institute</span> American libertarian think tank

The Cato Institute is an American libertarian think tank headquartered in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1977 by Ed Crane, Murray Rothbard, and Charles Koch, chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Koch Industries. Cato was established to focus on public advocacy, media exposure and societal influence.

The Ludwig von Mises Institute for Austrian Economics, or Mises Institute, is a nonprofit think tank headquartered in Auburn, Alabama, that is a center for Austrian economics, radical right-wing libertarian thought and the paleolibertarian and anarcho-capitalist movements in the United States. It is named after the economist Ludwig von Mises (1881–1973) and promotes his version of heterodox Misesian Austrian economics.

Leonard P. Liggio was a classical liberal author, research professor of law at George Mason University and executive vice president of the Atlas Network in Fairfax, Virginia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom G. Palmer</span> American writer (born 1956)

Thomas Gordon Palmer is an American libertarian author and theorist, a Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute and Vice President for International Programs at the Atlas Network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Foundation for Economic Education</span> Libertarian education organization

The Foundation for Economic Education (FEE) is an American conservative, libertarian economic think tank. Founded in 1946 in New York City, FEE is now headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. It is a member of the State Policy Network.

George Hamilton Smith was an American author, editor, educator, and speaker, known for his writings on atheism and libertarianism.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Donald J. Boudreaux</span> Libertarian economist

Donald Joseph Boudreaux is a libertarian American economist, author, professor, and co-director of the Program on the American Economy and Globalization at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia.

Ralph Raico was an American libertarian historian of European liberalism and a professor of history at Buffalo State College.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Libertarianism in the United States</span> Origin, history and development of libertarianism in the United States

In the United States, libertarianism is a political philosophy promoting individual liberty. According to common meanings of conservatism and liberalism in the United States, libertarianism has been described as conservative on economic issues and liberal on personal freedom, often associated with a foreign policy of non-interventionism. Broadly, there are four principal traditions within libertarianism, namely the libertarianism that developed in the mid-20th century out of the revival tradition of classical liberalism in the United States after liberalism associated with the New Deal; the libertarianism developed in the 1950s by anarcho-capitalist author Murray Rothbard, who based it on the anti-New Deal Old Right and 19th-century libertarianism and American individualist anarchists such as Benjamin Tucker and Lysander Spooner while rejecting the labor theory of value in favor of Austrian School economics and the subjective theory of value; the libertarianism developed in the 1970s by Robert Nozick and founded in American and European classical liberal traditions; and the libertarianism associated with the Libertarian Party, which was founded in 1971, including politicians such as David Nolan and Ron Paul.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ludwig von Mises</span> Austrian–American economist (1881–1973)

Ludwig Heinrich Edler von Mises was an Austrian–American Austrian School economist, historian, logician, and sociologist. Mises wrote and lectured extensively on the societal contributions of classical liberalism and the power of consumers. He is best known for his work on praxeology studies comparing communism and capitalism.

The Center for Libertarian Studies (CLS) was a libertarian and anarcho-capitalist oriented educational organization founded in 1976 by Murray Rothbard and Burton Blumert, which grew out of the Libertarian Scholars Conferences. That year, the conference was sponsored by industrialist and libertarian Charles Koch. It published the Journal of Libertarian Studies from 1977 to 2000, a newsletter, several monographs, and sponsors conferences, seminars, and symposia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steven Horwitz</span> American economist (1964–2021)

Steven G. Horwitz was an American economist of the Austrian School. Horwitz was the Distinguished Professor of Free Enterprise in the department of economics in the Miller College of Business at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. In 2017, he retired as the Dana Professor of Economics Emeritus at St. Lawrence University.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Students for Liberty</span> Libertarian students organization

Students For Liberty (SFL) is an international libertarian non-profit organization with origins in the United States. Formed in 2008, SFL grew to a network of 1,000 student organizations worldwide by 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">F. A. Harper</span> American economist (1905–1973)

Floyd Arthur "Baldy" Harper was an American academic, economist and writer who was best known for founding the Institute for Humane Studies in 1961.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Koch network</span> Charles G. and David H. Koch and their activities in US politics

Charles G. and David H. Koch (1940–2019), sometimes referred to as the Koch brothers, have become famous for their financial and political influence in United States politics with a libertarian, more specifically, right-libertarian or American-style libertarian political stance. From around 2004 to 2019, with "foresight and perseverance", the brothers organized like-minded wealthy libertarian-oriented conservatives, spent hundreds of millions of dollars of their own money to build an "integrated" and "stealth" network of think tanks, foundations, "grassroots" movements, academic programs, advocacy and legal groups to "destroy the prevalent statist paradigm" reshape public opinion to favor minimal government. As of mid 2018, the media has been encouraged to refer to the "Koch network" rather than the "Koch brothers".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Koch</span> American billionaire and businessman

Charles de Ganahl Koch is an American billionaire businessman. As of February 2024, he was ranked as the 23rd richest man in the world on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, with an estimated net worth of $64.9 billion. Koch has been co-owner, chairman, and chief executive officer of Koch Industries since 1967, while his late brother David Koch served as executive vice president. Charles and David each owned 42% of the conglomerate. The brothers inherited the business from their father, Fred C. Koch, then expanded the business. Koch Industries is the largest privately held company by revenue in the United States, according to Forbes.

Ronald Hamowy was a Canadian academic, known primarily for his contributions to political and social academic fields. At the time of his death, he was professor emeritus of intellectual history at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada. Hamowy was closely associated with the political ideology of libertarianism and his writings and scholarship place particular emphasis on individual liberty and the limits of state action in a free society. He is associated with a number of prominent American libertarian organizations.

<i>Free Market Fairness</i>

Free Market Fairness is a 2012 book of political philosophy written by John Tomasi, president of the Heterodox Academy and former Professor of Political Philosophy at Brown University. Tomasi presents the concept of "free market fairness" or "market democracy," a middle ground between Friedrich Hayek and John Rawls's ideas. The book was widely reviewed.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Rothbard, Murray N (17 August 2007). "Floyd Arthur 'Baldy' Harper, RIP". Mises Daily Index. Auburn, Alabama. Retrieved 29 December 2011. Quote: "and he moved to transfer the bulk of the Volker funds to a new Institute for Humane Studies, which would expand the Volker concept and would provide a permanent home for libertarian fellowships, scholarship, conferences, and publications."
  2. ↑ "Institute for Humane Studies". Charity Navigator. Charity Navigator. Retrieved 29 December 2011.
  3. ↑ Roberts, Ken Schwencke, Mike Tigas, Sisi Wei, Alec Glassford, Andrea Suozzo, Brandon (9 May 2013). "Institute For Humane Studies - Nonprofit Explorer". ProPublica. Retrieved 18 June 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  4. ↑ Vyse, Graham (4 February 2021). "Bernie Sanders is often called a liberal. He'd beg to differ. Who is actually a liberal?". Washington Post. Retrieved 18 June 2022.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Huebert, Jacob H (2010). Libertarianism Today. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO. p. 18. ISBN   978-0313377549. The Institute for Humane Studies (IHS), founded by F.A. Harper in 1961 to promote libertarian scholarship....
  6. 1 2 Wilkinson, Will (2008). "Harper, Floyd Arthur 'Baldy' (1905–1973)". In Hamowy, Ronald (ed.). The Encyclopedia of Libertarianism. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage; Cato Institute. pp. 217–218. doi:10.4135/9781412965811.n130. ISBN   978-1412965804. LCCN   2008009151. OCLC   750831024.
  7. ↑ Block, Walter (2010). I Chose Liberty: Autobiographies of Contemporary Libertarians. Auburn, AL: Ludwig von Mises Institute. p. 429. ISBN   978-1610160025.
  8. ↑ Kaplan, Benjamin R (2003). The Scholarship Scouting Report: An Insider's Guide to America's Best Scholarships. New York: HarperResource. p.  357. ISBN   978-0060936549.
  9. 1 2 Bogardus, Kevin (15 July 2004). "Koch's low profile belies political power". Center for Public Integrity's iwatch news. Washington, DC.
  10. ↑ Blundell, John (2003). Waging the War of Ideas. Institute of Economic Affairs. ISBN   978-0255365475.
  11. 1 2 Young, Chris (26 August 2014). "Koch-funded think tank offers schools course in libertarianism". Center for Public Integrity. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  12. ↑ Poirot, Paul L (August 1979). "The Writings of F. A. Harper". The Freeman. 29 (8). Archived from the original on 12 September 2011.
  13. 1 2 Gladstein, Mimi Reisel; John Meadowcroft (19 November 2009). Ayn Rand. Continuum International Publishing Group. ISBN   978-0826445131.
  14. ↑ The Writings of F. A. Harper, Volume 1: The Major Works The Writings of F. A. Harper, Volume 1: The Major Works, 1978
  15. ↑ Doherty, Brian (2008). "Rothbard, Murray (1926–1995)". In Ronald Hamowy, Cato Institute (ed.). Encyclopedia of Libertarianism. Sage. pp. 441–443. ISBN   978-1412965804.
  16. ↑ "IHS Remembers Hayek's Contributions to Liberty". The IHS Account: Institute for Humane Studies at George Mason University (Spring 1999): 1.
  17. ↑ Rothbard, Murray Newton; Hans-Hermann Hoppe (February 2003). The Ethics of Liberty. NYU Press. ISBN   978-0814775592.
  18. ↑ Levine, Rob. "Person Profile". Media Transparency. Retrieved 5 February 2012.[ permanent dead link ]
  19. ↑ "Emily Chamlee-Wright – Institute for Humane Studies". Institute for Humane Studies. Retrieved 14 November 2016.
  20. ↑ Miller, Fred (1 August 1983). Out of the Mouths of Babes: The Infant Formula Controversy. Piscataway, NJ: Transaction Publishers. p. 98. ISBN   978-0912051017.
  21. ↑ "About IHS". The IHS. Retrieved 18 June 2022.
  22. ↑ "Sarah Scaife Foundation Annual Report" (PDF). 2011. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
  23. ↑ "IRS Form 990-PF (2013)" (PDF). 8 May 2014. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
  24. ↑ "IRS Form 990-PF (2012)" (PDF). 9 November 2013. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
  25. 1 2 "Institute for Humane Studies – John William Pope Foundation" . Retrieved 25 July 2016.
  26. ↑ "Mega donor Richard Uihlein ramps up donations to conservative causes" . Retrieved 25 July 2016.
  27. ↑ Lee, Timothy B. "Thanks to IHS and the Searle Foundation | Bottom-up" . Retrieved 25 July 2016.
  28. ↑ "Smeed Foundation awards grants to Treasure Valley organizations" . Retrieved 25 July 2016.
  29. ↑ "IRS Form 990-PF (2014)" (PDF). 7 May 2015. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
  30. ↑ "Cato Institute Is Caught in a Rift Over Its Direction". New York Times. 6 March 2012. Retrieved 6 March 2012.
  31. ↑ "Rand Paul raising funds for arm of George Mason". WTOP. 23 September 2011. Archived from the original on 9 February 2013. Retrieved 27 November 2012.
  32. ↑ "About Us". Learn Liberty. Retrieved 25 July 2016.
  33. ↑ "Students For Liberty Acquires Learn Liberty from the Institute for Humane Studies". ftn.media. 5 March 2019. Retrieved 18 June 2022.
  34. ↑ Frohnen, Bruce; Jeremy Beer, Jeffrey O. Nelson (2006). American Conservatism: An Encyclopedia. ISI Books. ISBN   978-1932236439.
  35. ↑ Guard, David (27 February 2007). "Call to SSDPers: Institute for Humane Studies (IHS) Summer Seminars". Stop the Drug War.org; In the Trenches. Washington, DC. Retrieved 12 December 2011.
  36. ↑ "Institute for Humane Studies". Campbell University. College Central Network Services. Retrieved 29 December 2011.
  37. ↑ "2016 Summer Research Colloquium: A Call For Papers, Please!". Institute for Humane Studies. Archived from the original on 30 June 2016. Retrieved 21 June 2016.
  38. ↑ "Institute for Humane Studies – GuideStar Profile". www.guidestar.org.
  39. ↑ "Humane Studies Fellowship | Institute for Humane Studies". Institute for Humane Studies. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
  40. ↑ "Ph.D. Scholarship | Institute for Humane Studies". Institute for Humane Studies. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
  41. ↑ "Hayek Fund | Institute for Humane Studies". Institute for Humane Studies. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
  42. ↑ "Conference & Research Grant". Institute for Humane Studies. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
  43. ↑ Carden, Art (25 August 2011). "The Earthquake Wasn't Good for the Economy. Hurricane Irene Won't Be, Either". Forbes. New York. Retrieved 5 January 2012.
  44. ↑ Kerr, Orin (29 June 2011). "LearnLiberty.org Launches!". The Volokh Conspiracy. Los Angeles. Retrieved 29 December 2011.
  45. ↑ Graves, Zachary (23 August 2011). "Top 3 Common Myths of Capitalism". Cato @ Liberty. Washington, DC. Retrieved 29 December 2011.
  46. ↑ "Semester-Long Opportunities – Charles Koch Institute" . Retrieved 4 December 2016.
  47. ↑ Wemple, Erik (28 January 2014). "MSNBC's Rachel Maddow recommits to her slam on Koch brothers" . Retrieved 4 December 2016– via washingtonpost.com.
  48. ↑ "Institute for Humane Studies". Archived from the original on 3 February 2014. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
  49. ↑ "Institute for Humane Studies". Archived from the original on 13 January 2014. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
  50. ↑ Gray, Rosie. "A Former Alt-Right Member's Message: Get Out While You Still Can". Buzzfeed News. Retrieved 31 August 2019.
  51. ↑ DeLong, Matt. "Bloomington think tank parts ways with academic over racist e-mails". Minneapolis Star-Tribune . Retrieved 31 August 2019.
  52. ↑ Gais, Hannah (29 August 2019). "Leaked Emails Show How White Nationalists Have Infiltrated Conservative Media". Splinter Media. Retrieved 31 August 2019.
  53. ↑ "IJ Attorney Scott Bullock Wins Koch Award". Liberty & Law. 15 (4). August 2006.
  54. ↑ DeMuth, Christopher (July 2010). "The Surprising Return of Price Controls". In Schulz, Nick (ed.). The Impact on Economic Recovery. U.S. Regulatory Policy and Free Enterprise. U.S. Chamber of Commerce: American Enterprise Institute and the National Chamber Foundation. Archived from the original on 29 July 2012. Retrieved 29 December 2011.

Further reading

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.