Political Scientist Jeffrey Sikkenga to Lead Licata Lecture

Jeffrey Sikkenga, William E. Simon Distinguished Visiting Professor at Pepperdine School of Public Policy, will present “First Freedom: James Madison and the Future of Religious Liberty” as part of the Charles and Rosemary Licata Lecture Series on Tuesday, February 27, at 6 PM. The lecture will be held at Wilburn Auditorium at Drescher Graduate Campus in Malibu.

James Madison believed that religious freedom is the first freedom—the foundation of all others. He once declared to his fellow Americans that “above all, it is the particular glory of this country, to have secured the rights of conscience which in other nations are least understood or most strangely violated.” In this lecture, Sikkenga will explore Madison’s meaning behind the “rights of conscience” and how his thoughts on religious liberty help us understand an issue that has reemerged as a serious challenge for public policy at all levels of government in America and in many other countries around the world.

Sikkenga is currently serving as the spring 2018 William E. Simon Distinguished Visiting Professor at the Pepperdine School of Public Policy. He is also a political science professor and codirector of the Ashbrook Scholar Program at Ashland University, adjunct fellow of the John M. Ashbrook Center, and senior fellow in the Program on Constitutionalism and Democracy at the University of Virginia. He teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in political thought, the American founding, and American constitutional law.

The Charles and Rosemary Licata Lecture Series was established through an endowment for the School of Public Policy by benefactors Charles and Rosemary Licata. The goal of the series is to unite students, alumni, and community leaders with leading academics and practitioners who are actively involved in shaping policy matters in the new century.

For additional information about this event, and to register for tickets, visit the School of Public Policy website.