Now in its 35th year, the Abram Kartch/Thomas Jefferson Lecture Series at William Paterson University is devoted to exploring the thought, accomplishments and influence of our third president. The late Mr. Abram Kartch, Jeffersonian scholar, endowed this annual program with an eye toward stimulating interest and appreciation of American History in the minds and hearts of youth. Each year high school students and their teachers from throughout northern New Jersey are invited to campus to participate in the program.This year's program is scheduled for Thursday, November 14, 2019, from 10:30 am to 12:30 pm in the University Commons Ballroom A. We are honored to welcome as our speakers Dr. Annette Gordon-Reed, the Charles Warren Professor of American Legal History at Harvard Law School and a Professor of History in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences at Harvard University, and Dr. Peter Onuf, Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation Professor (Emeritus) at the University of Virginia. Gordon-Reed and Onuf are co-authors of the recently published book "Most Blessed of the Patriarchs": Thomas Jefferson and the Empire of the Imagination. Their lecture is titled "Thomas Jefferson and American National Identity: A Diologue." As an integral part of this yearly program, Mr. Kartch established an essay contest, with prizes for students who submit the best essays on themes developed by Profs. Gordon-Reed and Onuf. We strongly encourage all students to participate in the contest by writing an essay and submitting it within three weeks of the lecture.Educators interested in bring their students to this year's program should complete this online reply form no later than Friday, November 1:For more information, please contact Richard Kearney at kearneyr@wpunj.edu or 973-720-2165.
