Hillsdale College Breaks Ground on New Graduate School of Classical Education
HILLSDALE, Mich. — Hillsdale College celebrated the groundbreaking for the new Diana Davis Spencer Graduate School of Classical Education on May 12. The building will house the graduate program in classical education, which first held classes in August 2022. Hillsdale College President Larry P. Arnn and Dean of the Graduate School of Classical Education Daniel Coupland provided remarks.
“We are going to study and learn together here. That’s our job,” said Dr. Arnn. “And the fruit is that we are going to teach others to engage in that activity and then take that activity elsewhere…we are proud to be partners with the Spencers in this work.”
The graduate program in classical education provides a broad curricular, historical, literary, pedagogical, and philosophical perspective on classical education for full-time, post-baccalaureate students. Matriculating students often seek vocations as teachers, leaders, or administrators at classical schools.
“Hillsdale College does not just talk about quality K-12 education, it is heavily invested in it,” said Coupland. “The new Graduate School of Classical Education will be the epicenter of our effort to train up future leaders who will meet the challenge of forming an educated citizenry.”
The Diana Davis Spencer Foundation provided a leadership grant for the Diana Davis Spencer Graduate School of Classical Education, supporting endowed scholarships and the Graduate School’s new building. The Spencer Foundation has previously established the Diana Davis Spencer Foundation Endowed Scholarship at Hillsdale’s Washington D.C. Van Andel Graduate School of Government. Diana Davis Spencer is the foundation’s chair and president. A journalist and philanthropist, Spencer has written for numerous publications and sits on board for many organizations including the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship, the Northeast Harbor Library, and The Federalist Society.
For photos from the ceremony, click here.
For a high-resolution copy of the Hillsdale College clocktower logo, click here.