The Heritage Foundation announced today that four of the nation’s leading academics will join its ranks as visiting scholars in an effort to reaffirm American exceptionalism and reinvigorate civic culture.

Those joining the Heritage Foundation include:

• Dr. Jim Ceaser, a leading scholar on American politics and political thought from the University of Virginia;
• Dr. Allen Guelzo, a Princeton University professor and acclaimed scholar of American history whose writings have been recognized as among the most important contributions to scholarly and public understanding of 19th century America;
• Dr. Melissa Moschella, a preeminent voice on natural law, biomedical ethics, and the moral and political status of the family from Catholic University; and
• Dr. James Otteson, a highly regarded American philosopher and political economist from Wake Forest University.

“From its inception, The Heritage Foundation has always worked to bring together the best minds in the country to develop solutions to the pressing issues that America faces. These new scholars in the Feulner Institute’s Simon Center are no exception. We are truly excited about the work they will undertake and we hope it will provide the foundation to inspire and unify the American people under a common purpose and a common set of principles,” said Kay C. James, president of The Heritage Foundation.

The four visiting fellows will be part of the Simon Center for American Studies in the newly launched Edwin J. Feulner Institute. Created in October 2019, the Feulner Institute is dedicated to safeguarding the truth of the American idea and demonstrating its validity and relevance to Americans all across the county

“Our new visiting fellows will strengthen our capacity to highlight the importance of individual sovereignty, equal opportunity, limited constitutional government, and economic freedom,” said Angela Sailor, vice president of the Feulner Institute. “We are excited to expand our efforts to rally all Americans regardless of race, creed or class around a common vision of America as a place of hope, opportunity and community and to reveal the truth of the national motto, E Pluribus Unum.”

In addition to announcing the four visiting fellows, Heritage is relocating the Simon Center for American Studies within the Feulner Institute. Heritage is in the process of hiring a director of the Simon Center.

Learn more about Heritage’s new visiting fellows.

Dr. Jim Ceaser

James W. Ceaser is professor of politics at the University of Virginia, where he has taught since 1976. Ceaser has written several books on American politics and political thought, including “Presidential Selection,” “Liberal Democracy and Political Science,” “Reconstructing America,” and “Nature and History in American Political Development.” Ceaser has held visiting professorships at the University of Florence, the University of Basel, Oxford University, the University of Bordeaux, and the University of Rennes. Ceaser is also a frequent media contributor. Ceaser holds a Ph.D. from Harvard University.

Dr. Allen Guelzo

Allen C. Guelzo is the senior research scholar in the Council of the Humanities at Princeton University and director of the James Madison Program’s Initiative in Politics and Statesmanship. Guelzo is an acclaimed scholar of American history whose writings have been recognized as among the most important contributions to scholarly and public understanding of 19th century America. His book “Abraham Lincoln: Redeemer President” received the 2000 Lincoln Prize, as well as the 2000 Book Prize of the Abraham Institute of the Mid-Atlantic. His “Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation: The End of Slavery in America Emancipation” and his “Gettysburg: The Last Invasion” also received the Lincoln Prize in 2005 and 2013, respectively. Guelzo is also a leading authority on the life and thought of Jonathan Edwards. A winner of the 2018 Bradley Prize, Guelzo earned his Ph.D. in History from the University of Pennsylvania. He also holds an honorary Doctorate of History from Lincoln College.

Dr. Melissa Moschella

Melissa Moschella is an assistant professor of philosophy at The Catholic University of America, where her teaching and research focus on natural law, biomedical ethics, and the moral and political status of the family. Her book, “To Whom Do Children Belong? Parental Rights, Civic Education and Children’s Autonomy” was published in 2016 by Cambridge University Press. Moschella speaks and writes on a variety of contemporary moral issues, including brain death, end-of-life ethics, parental rights, reproductive technologies, and conscience rights. Her articles have been published in scholarly journals as well as popular media outlets, including Bioethics, The Journal of Medical Ethics, The Journal of Medicine and Philosophy, Christian Bioethics, Theoretical Medicine and Bioethics, The American Journal of Jurisprudence, The New York Times, USA Today, The Washington Post, The New York Daily News, and The Public Discourse. She graduated magna cum laude from Harvard College, received a Licentiate in Philosophy summa cum laude from the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome, and received her Ph.D. in Political Philosophy from Princeton University.”

Dr. James Otteson

James R. Otteson is the Thomas W. Smith presidential chair in business ethics, professor of economics, and executive director of the Eudaimonia Institute at Wake Forest University. In 2010-12, Otteson appeared several times on Fox Business' “Freedom Watch with Andrew Napolitano” and has appeared in several short videos for Learn Liberty. He was one of the principal bloggers at Pileus and he is a member of the Mont Pelerin Society. In November 2013, Otteson gave the inaugural Liggio Lecture, an annual lecture series in honor of Leonard Liggio. In 2014-’15, he was a bimonthly columnist for the Triad Business Journal. Otteson serves as an associate editor for The Independent Review and as a senior editor of Political Economy of the Carolinas. He is also a senior fellow at the BB&T Center for the Study of Capitalism, a senior scholar at The Fund for American Studies in Washington, D.C., a research professor in the Freedom Center and Department of Philosophy at the University of Arizona, a visitor of Ralston College, a research fellow for the Independent Institute in California, president and board member of the Classical Liberals of the Carolinas, vice president and member of the Executive Committee of the Association of Private Enterprise Education, and director at Ethics and Economics Education of New England.

Three of Heritage's new visiting fellows spoke at The Heritage Foundation’s 2019 President’s Club Meeting in October. The video below features a discussion, moderated by Sailor, about the assault on America’s history and founding principles.

Learn more about the Feulner Institute.