Dear Friends,
We are delighted to share that Tikvah’s beloved teacher and distinguished senior fellow Dr. Ruth R. Wisse has been selected by the National Endowment for the Humanities to deliver the 52nd Jefferson Lecture, the most prestigious honor the federal government bestows for exceptional achievement in the humanities.
The Jefferson Lecture recognizes individuals whose scholarship and intellectual influence have shaped the public understanding of culture, history, and ideas. Previous honorees have included Leon Kass, Harvey Mansfield, Donald Kagan, David McCullough, James McPherson, Robert Conquest, Gertrude Himmelfarb, Bernard Lewis, Robert Nisbet, Edward Shils, and Saul Bellow.
Professor Wisse’s lecture will be titled „A Message from the ‘Blue and White’ in the ‘Red, White, and Blue,'” and will be presented on Wednesday, March 25, 2026, at the Trump Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. Her remarks will explore how Jewish culture and ideas have shaped—and been shaped by—the founding and flourishing of the United States. Professor Wisse will further examine the lessons that 2,500 years of Jewish experience offer for the next era of American history. You can learn more about her upcoming address here.
The Tikvah community is full of students of all ages who have been shaped by Professor Wisse’s wisdom and insights. I am one of them.
Her teaching illuminates the deep political and moral wisdom of the modern Jewish literary canon, and helps us see more clearly the unique challenges we face as Jews living in liberal societies—called to contribute to our own community’s protection, and also to the flourishing of the United States.
We invite you to join us in celebrating this extraordinary honor for Professor Wisse. And we thank you for the friendship and support that allows our scholars to shape the national conversation about American civic life.
With best wishes,
Jonathan Silver
Senior Vice President & Chief Programming Officer
Warren R. Stern Senior Fellow of Jewish Civilization
