|  Ernest
J. Walters, Jr. Lecture Series in Political Thought
 |
Dr.
Ernest Walters |
Each year the
Walters’ endowment brings a distinguished scholar onto campus
to give a public lecture in the area of political thought. The aim
of the series is to provide students with an opportunity to reflect
in an explicit way on the moral foundations of politics. Lecturers
also teach a class and are available to meet with students during
their visit to the Furman campus. Inaugurated in 2001, the memorial
lectureship was established by the students Jay Walters inspired
and the friends and family he cherished. The series is sponsored
by the Department of Political Science under the auspices of the
Riley Institute.
Ernest J. Walters, Jr. joined the political science department at
Furman in 1962 after completing graduate work at the University
of Chicago. He chaired the department from 1979 to 1984 and retired
in 1989 as professor of political science emeritus. He continued
to teach in Furman’s Learning in Retirement program until
his death on January 31, 1997.
Jay’s
greatest commitment and enduring contribution were to the students
that he attracted to the discipline he loved, political philosophy.
His long hours of class preparation (often extending into the early
hours of the morning) and dedication to his students were characteristic
of the twenty-seven years he gave to teaching at Furman. His excellence
in the classroom was recognized in 1971 when he was honored as the
third recipient of the Alester G. Furman and Janie Earle Furman
Award for Meritorious Teaching. In the words of one of his students:
“What I remember most about Dr. Walters is that he expected
a lot from his students, but he was willing to take whatever time
it took to make you understand the idea or the argument. Above all,
he made it clear that he really loved what he taught, and therefore
invited his students to love it too. In my mind that is what real
teaching is about.”
Past
Walters’ Lectures:
2008: “Modern Problems, Ancient Solutions?”
Professor Susan Collins, University of Houston
2006: “Where
Have all the Evils Gone?” Professor Michael A. Gillespie,
Duke University
2005:“Rights'
Rhetoric Ancient and Modern: The Difference and Why We Should Care,”
Professor Arlene Saxonhouse, University of Michigan
2004: "De(a)dication: Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg
and 9/11," Professor Michael Zuckert,
University of Notre Dam
2002: “Pluralism and the Limits of Politics,” Professor
William A. Galston, University of Maryland
2001: “Politics
in the Age of Technology: Are the Classics Still Relevant Today?”
Professor Eugene F. Miller, University of Georgia
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