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Ben Carson to Deliver Inaugural Lecture for Hill Institute at WT
Copy by Chip Chandler, 806-651-2124, cchandler@wtamu.edu
CANYON, Texas — Conservative author, medical doctor and former Cabinet secretary Ben Carson will give the inaugural lecture for The Hill Institute at West Texas A&M University.
Carson will speak and take questions at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 27 in the First United Bank Center on WT’s Canyon campus.
Tickets are $5 and available at wtamu.edu/HillLecture . Guests will receive a complimentary copy of Carson’s most recent book, “The Perilous Fight: Overcoming Our Culture’s War on the American Family,” co-written with wife Candy Carson.
“The mission of The Hill Institute is to examine and explore the importance and role of 10 values in individual and civic life. I call the 10 values ‘Panhandle values,’ but they are more accurately understood as Texas and American values,” WT President Walter V. Wendler said. “Dr. Carson, who is one of the original board members for The Hill Institute, will explore the role and importance of the family in our democracy in this inaugural lecture.”
The Institute, an interdisciplinary academy of researchers, teachers and students, was founded in October 2023 following a historic $20 million gift from Cheryl and Alex Fairly, currently the largest family gift for WT’s One West comprehensive fundraising campaign.
The Hill Institute embeds Hill Scholars—both faculty members and students—throughout campus to create an impact beyond the region. Part of the Institute’s mission is to spread its values through regular publications by its scholars and speaking engagements featuring prominent thinkers.
During his time at WT, Carson will enjoy breakfast and lunch with University and community leaders and will meet with the Student Government Association.
Carson is a world-renowned neurosurgeon and served as the 17th Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
He earned degrees from Yale University, the University of Michigan and Johns Hopkins University Medical School in Baltimore, Maryland.
In mid-2013 he retired as a surgeon, and the following year he joined the Fox News Channel as a commentator. In 2014 he wrote "One Nation: What We Can All Do to Save America’s Future," and the following year he entered the 2016 U.S. presidential election race. In the 2015 volume "A More Perfect Union: What We the People Can Do to Reclaim Our Constitutional Liberties," he issued his interpretations of the mandate established by the U.S. Constitution.
Carson has received numerous awards during his career, including the 2008 Presidential Medal of Freedom, given to him by U.S. President George W. Bush.
Named for Joseph A. Hill, the second president of WT and its longest-serving leader, the Hill Institute centers on 10 values: trust, family life, hard work, regard for others, personal responsibility, compatriotism and patriotism, virtue, faith, personal and civic loyalty, and rugged individualism.
Inaugural board members, in addition to Carson and Wendler, include Kriss Cloninger III, the former president of AFLAC Inc.; Lee Crisp, former president of Pepsi MidAmerica, one of the largest privately held Pepsi franchises in the nation; Alex Fairly, chairman of The OccuNet Company; Tim Lambert, president of the Texas Home School Coalition; and Dr. Kevin D. Roberts, president of The Heritage Foundation and Heritage Action for America.
Since the inaugural board was announced in May , Dr. Larry P. Arnn, president of Hillsdale College and board member for The Heritage Foundation, has joined.
The Hill Institute officially was approved by The Texas A&M University System Board of Regents in February 2022. Since that time, WT officials have worked to secure funding and continue refining the Institute’s mission.
The Institute is funded through philanthropic dollars rather than government funding.
Currently, five WT professors have been appointed to positions under the aegis of the Institute: Dr. Maxine De Butte, the Dyke Rogers Professor of Psychology; Dr. Janet Hindman, the Dyke Rogers Professor of Educational Leadership; Dr. Holly Jeffreys, the Ware University Distinguished Professor; Dr. Jenifer Kunz, the Dyke Rogers Professor of Sociology; and Dr. Judy Williams, the Dyke Rogers Professor of Education (Science of Teaching Reading).
The Hill Institute strongly reflects the University’s long-range plan, WT 125: From the Panhandle to the World .
That plan is fueled by the historic One West comprehensive fundraising campaign, which reached its initial $125 million goal 18 months after publicly launching in September 2021. The campaign’s new goal is to reach $175 million by 2025; currently, it has raised more than $170 million.
About West Texas A&M University
A Regional Research University, West Texas A&M University is redefining excellence in Canyon, Texas, on a 342-acre residential campus, as well as the Harrington Academic Hall WTAMU Amarillo Center in downtown Amarillo. Established in 1910, the University has been part of The Texas A&M University System since 1990. A Hispanic Serving Institution since 2016, WT boasts an enrollment of more than 9,000 and offers 66 undergraduate degree programs, including eight associate degrees; and 44 graduate degrees, including an integrated bachelor’s and master’s degree, a specialist degree and two doctoral degrees. WT recently earned a Carnegie Foundation classification as a Research College and University. The University also is home to the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum, the largest history museum in the state and the home of one of the Southwest’s finest art collections. The Buffaloes are a member of the NCAA Division II Lone Star Conference and offers 16 men’s and women’s athletics programs.
—WT—