Launching April 13: The Consent of the Governed: Celebrating America’s 250th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence

This year’s study focuses on the “consent of the governed” as a founding principle of American republican government. The consent of the governed is one of the main principles of the Declaration of Independence, which we are celebrating throughout 2026. Our online study on the “consent of the governed” focuses on monumental events in American history inspired by the principle of “consent of the governed,” their thesis, and the leaders that championed the cause. 

Topic 1. The Declaration Of Independence And The Lockean Idea

Essay 1a – The Declaration Of Independence, The Lockean Idea And The People
Guest Essayist: The Honorable Bob Pence – Former U.S. Ambassador To Finland

Essay 1b The Declaration Of Independence, The Lockean Idea And Reverend Thomas Hooker
Guest Essayist: Eric Wise

Essay 1c – The Declaration Of Independence, The Lockean Idea, and Founding Documents
Guest Essayist: Will Morrisey – Will Morrisey Is Professor Emeritus Of Politics At Hillsdale College.

Topic 2. The Stamp Act

Essay 2a – The Stamp Act and The People
Guest Essayist: Scot Faulkner – Author, Former Chief Administrative Officer Of The U.S. House Of Representatives

Essay 2b – Patrick Henry and The Stamp Act
Guest Essayist: Jason Stevens – Assistant Professor Of Political Science At Ashland University And Co-Director Of The Ashbrook Scholar Program.

Essay 2c – The Stamp Act and Founding Documents
Guest Essayist: Joseph Knippenberg – Professor Of Politics And Politics Program Coordinator At Oglethorpe University

Topic 3. The Boston Tea Party: The Tea Act And The Coercive Act

Essay 3a – The Boston Tea Party and the People
Guest Essayist: Jonathan Den Hartog – Professor Of History And Chair Of The History Department At Samford University In Birmingham, Alabama.

Essay 3b – Samuel Adams and the Boston Tea Party
Guest Essayist: James Best – Retired, The Abraham Lincoln Association, Historical Novel Society

Essay 3c – The Boston Tea Party and Founding Documents
Guest Essayist: Elizabeth Amato – Associate Professor Of Political Science And International Affairs At Gardner-Webb University.

Topic 4. The Battles Of Lexington & Concord And Bunker Hill

Essay 4a – The Battles Of Lexington & Concord and Bunker Hill and the Minutemen
Guest Essayist: Jay Mcconville – Veteran, Doctoral Candidate Virginia Commonwealth University Doug Wilder School Of Public Policy, Constituting America Board Membe

Essay 4b – Captain John Parker and the Battles of Lexington & Concord and Bunker Hill
Guest Essayist: Kirk Higgins – Vice President Of Content, Bill Of Rights Institute

Essay 4c – The Battles Of Lexington & Concord And Bunker Hill And Founding Documents
Guest Essayist: Elizabeth Kaufer Busch

Topic 5. The Freedom Suits And Freedom Petitions In New England

Essay 5a – Enslaved People and the Freedom Suits And Freedom Petitions
Guest Essayist: C.C. Borzilleri – Historian And A Content Specialist At The Bill Of Rights Institute.

Essay 5b – Elizabeth Freeman (Mumbet) and the Freedom Suits And Freedom Petitions
Guest Essayist: Lucas Morel – John K. Boardman, Jr. Professor Of Politics At Washington And Lee University

Essay 5c – The Freedom Suits And Freedom Petitions and Founding Documents
Guest Essayist Tony Williams – Senior Teaching Fellow, Bill Of Rights Institute

Topic 6. The Ratification Debate Over The Constitution

Essay 6a – The People and the Ratification Debate Over The Constitution
Guest Essayist: Randolph May – Founder And President Of The Free State Foundation, An Independent, Non-Profit Free-Market-Oriented Think Tank Founded In 2006

Essay 6b – James Madison, George Mason, and the Ratification Debate Over the Constitution
Guest Essayist: Tom Hand – Founder, Americana Corner

Essay 6c – The Ratification Debate Over The Constitution and Founding Documents
Guest Essayist: Christopher Burkett – Associate Professor, Ashland University And Ashbrook Center

Topic 7. The Northwest Ordinance And Settlement Of The West

Essay 7a – The Northwest Ordinance And Settlers in The West
Guest Essayist: Scot Faulkner – Author, Former Chief Administrative Officer Of The U.S. House Of Representatives

Essay 7b -Manasseh Cutler and the Northwest Ordinance
Guest Essayist: Dan Cotter – Member At Aronberg Goldgehn

Essay 7c – The Northwest Ordinance and Founding Documents
Guest Essayist: Will Morrisey – Professor Emeritus Of Politics At Hillsdale College.

Topic 8. The Spread Of Universal Male Suffrage In The Early 1800s

Essay 8a – The Spread Of Universal Male Suffrage In The Early 1800s
Guest Essayist: Joerg Knipprath – Professor At Southwestern Law School

Essay 8b – Andrew Jackson and Universal Male Suffrage In The Early 1800s
Guest Essayist: Edward Lee – Professor Of History, Winthrop University

Essay 8c – Universal Male Suffrage and Founding Documents
Guest Essayist: Jon Schaff – Professor Of Political Science Northern State University

Topic 9. The Seneca Falls Convention

Essay 9a – Women’s Consent and the Seneca Falls Convention
Guest Essayist: Heather E Yates – Political Researcher At Ballotpedia, The Digital Encyclopedia Of American Politics.

Essay 9b -Belva Lockwood and the Seneca Falls Convention
Guest Essayist: Janine Turner

Essay 9c – The Seneca Falls Convention And Founding Documents
Guest Essayist: Troy Kickler – Professor And Founder of the North Carolina History Project

Topic 10. The Fight Against The Gag Rule

Essay 10a – The People’s Right to Petition and Fight Against The Gag Rule
Guest Essayist: Stephen Tootle – Professor Of History At The College Of Sequoias

Essay 10b – John Quincy Adams and the Fight Against the Gag Rule
Guest Essayist: Scot Faulkner – Author, Former Chief Administrative Officer Of The U.S. House Of Representatives

Essay 10c –  The Fight Against The Gag Rule And The Founding Documents
Guest Essayist: William Allen – Emeritus Dean And Professor, Michigan State University

Topic 11. The Rise Of Mechanical Farming

Essay 11a – The Rise of Mechanical Farming and The People
Guest Essayist: Brita Horn – Ranch wife and Volunteer Fire Chief, McCoy, Colorado

Essay 11b – Cyrus McCormick and the Rise of Mechanical Farming
Guest Essayist: Jim Pinkerton – Senior Fellow, America First Policy Institute; White House Domestic Policy Staff For Presidents Ronald Reagan And George H.W. Bush; Senior Advisor To The 2008 Mike Huckabee Presidential Campaign

Essay 11c – The Rise Of Mechanical Farming And The Founding Documents
Guest Essayist:

Topic 12. The Introduction Of The Telegraph And The Railroad To Communication

Essay 12a – The Telegraph and the Railroad Connecting the American People
Guest Essayist: James C. Clinger – Professor Of Political Science At Murray State University

Essay 12b –  Samuel Morse, the Telegraph, and Connecting the People
Guest Essayist: Andrew Langer – President Of The Institute For Liberty

Essay 12c –  The Telegraph, the Railroad, and Founding Documents
Guest Essayist: Gary Porter – Executive Director Of The Constitution Leadership Initiative

Topic 13. The Homestead Act

Essay 13a – The Homestead Act And The People
Guest Essayist: Alex Tokarev – Associate Professor, Economics, Northwood University

Essay 13b –  The Homestead Act And Woman Settlers
Guest Essayist: Libby McNamee – Author, Speaker, Lawyer, And Veteran

Essay 13c –  The Homestead Act And The Founding Documents
Guest Essayist: Adam Carrington – Assistant Professor Of Politics At Hillsdale College

Topic 14. The Morrill Act is Passed in 1862

Essay 14a – The Morrill Act is Passed in 1862 and The People
Guest Essayist: John Kitch – Assistant Professor of Instruction, The School of Civic Leadership at The University of Texas

Essay 14b – The Morrill Act is Passed in 1862 and Justin S. Morrill
Guest Essayist: Matt Van Hook – Associate Professor At Biola University’s Torrey Honors College

Essay 14c – The Morrill Act is Passed in 1862 and The Founding Documents
Guest Essayist: Joerg Knipprath – Professor At Southwestern Law School

Topic 15. Black Male Suffrage In The Fifteenth Amendment

Essay 15a – The Fifteenth Amendment, Black Male Suffrage, and Consent
Guest Essayist: Mark Shubert – Founder Of Amending America, A Civic Education Initiative Dedicated To Primary Sources And The Heritage & History Of American Political Thought & Practice.

Essay 15b – Frederick Douglass, the Fifteenth Amendment, and Black Male Suffrage
Guest Essayist: Eric Sands – Associate Professor Of Political Science At Berry College

Essay 15c – The Fifteenth Amendment, Black Male Suffrage, and Founding Documents
Guest Essayist: Dorothea Wolfson – Program Director, Sr. Lecturer, MA in Government Program, Johns Hopkins University

Topic 16. The Newspaper’s Impact On The Informed Citizen

Essay 16a –  The Newspapers, an Informed Citizenry, and Popular Consent
Guest Essayist: Michael Johnson

Essay 16b – Ben Franklin, Newspapers, and an Informed Citizenry
Guest Essayist: Gary Porter – Executive Director Of The Constitution Leadership Initiative

Essay 16c – Newspapers, an Informed Citizenry, and The Founding Documents
Guest Essayist: C.C. Borzilleri – Historian And A Content Specialist At The Bill Of Rights Institute.

Topic 17. Interstate Commerce And Sherman Antitrust Acts Passed

Essay 17a – Interstate Commerce, the Sherman Antitrust Act, and Popular Consent
Guest Essayist: Alex Tokarev – Associate Professor, Economics Northwood University

Essay 17b –  Theodore Roosevelt and the Sherman Antitrust Act

Guest Essayist: Colin Hanna

Essay 17c –  Interstate Commerce, the Sherman Antitrust Act, and Founding Documents
Guest Essayist: Joerg Knipprath – Professor At Southwestern Law School

Topic 18. Meat Inspection Act

Essay 18a – Meat Inspection Act, Public Health, and the People
Guest Essayist: Reeve Bull

Essay 18b – Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle and the Meat Inspection Act
Guest Essayist: Andrew Langer – President Of The Institute For Liberty

Essay 18c – The Meat Inspection Act and Founding Documents
Guest Essayist: Peter Roff

Topic 19. The Application Of Electricity In Public Life

Essay 19a – Nikola Tesla, Electricity, and the People
Guest Essayist: Caleb Franz

Essay 19b – Nikola Tesla and the Application of Electricity
Guest Essayist: Jim Pinkerton – Senior Fellow, America First Policy Institute; White House Domestic Policy Staff For Presidents Ronald Reagan And George H.W. Bush; Senior Advisor To The 2008 Mike Huckabee Presidential Campaign

Essay 19c – The Application Of Electricity In Public Life And Founding Documents
Guest Essayist: Amanda Hughes

Topic 20. The Invention 0f the Telephone

Essay 20a – The Invention of the Telephone and Popular Consent
Guest Essayist: Ken Cuccinelli – Ken Is A Practicing Lawyer And Issue Leader On Elections And Immigration.

Essay 20b –  Alexander Graham Bell, the Invention of the Telephone, and the People
Guest Essayist: Stephen Puleo

Essay 20c –  The Invention of the Telephone and Founding Documents
Guest Essayist: James Clinger – Professor Of Political Science At Murray State University

Topic 21. World War I Soldiers’ Experience In Wartime Poetry

Essay 21a – World War I Soldiers’ Poetry and The People
Guest Essayist: James Robbins – Columnist For USA Today And Senior Fellow In National Security Affairs At The American Foreign Policy Council

Essay 21b – Alan Seeger and World War I Soldiers’ Poetry
Guest Essayist: Caleb Franz

Essay 21c –  World War I Soldiers’ Poetry and Founding Documents
Guest Essayist: Dominic Aquila

Topic 22. The Battle Over The Versailles Treaty

Essay 22a – The Battle Over the Versailles Treaty and Popular Consent
Guest Essayist: Benjamin Peterson – Professor At Abilene Christian University

Essay 22b – The Battle Over the Versailles Treaty and Senator Henry Cabot Lodge
Guest Essayist: John Bicknell – Author

Essay 22c – The Battle Over the Versailles Treaty And The Founding Documents
Guest Essayist: Eric Schmidt – Associate Professor Of Political Science At Kentucky Wesleyan College

Topic 23. The Invention of The Mass-Produced Motor Vehicle

Essay 23a – The Invention of the Mass-Produced Motor Vehicle and The People
Guest Essayist:

Essay 23b – The Invention of the Mass-Produced Motor Vehicle and Henry Ford
Guest Essayist: Veronique de Rugy

Essay 23c – The Invention of the Mass-Produced Motor Vehicle and the Founding Documents
Guest Essayist:

Topic 24. D-Day: The American Soldiers

Essay 24a – D-Day: The American Soldiers and The People
Guest Essayist: Stephen Puleo

Essay 24b – D-Day: The American Soldiers and John Trippon 

Guest Essayist: Ron Meier

Essay 24c – D-Day: The American Soldiers And The Founding Documents
Guest Essayist: Tom Bruscino

Topic 25. The Manhattan Project To Develop Nuclear Weapons

Essay 25a – The Manhattan Project To Develop Nuclear Weapons And The People
Guest Essayist:

Essay 25b – The Manhattan Project to Develop Nuclear Weapons and Leslie Groves
Guest Essayist:

Essay 25c – The Manhattan Project To Develop Nuclear Weapons And The Founding Documents
Guest Essayist: Benjamin Slomski

Topic 26. The GI Bill

Essay 26a – The GI Bill And The People
Guest Essayist: Phillip Bunn – Assistant Professor Of Political Science At Covenant College In Lookout Mountain, Georgia

Essay 26b – The GI Bill and Harry W. Colmery & John Henry Stelle
Guest Essayist:

Essay 26c – The GI Bill And The Founding Documents
Guest Essayist:

Topic 27. The National Highway Act That Linked The American Nation

Essay 27a – The National Highway Act That Linked The American Nation And The People
Guest Essayist: Jeff L. Scott – Executive Director Of Academic Operations At Troy University And Founder Of Dr. Scott’s Classroom, LLC

Essay 27b – The National Highway Act That Linked The American Nation And
Guest Essayist:

Essay 27c – Founding Documents
Guest Essayist:

Topic 28. The Apollo Project And Moon Landing By Nasa

Essay 28a – The Apollo Project And Moon Landing By Nasa And The People
Guest Essayist: Andrew Langer – President Of The Institute For Liberty

Essay 28b – The Apollo Project and Moon Landing By Nasa And Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan, and Mary Jackson 

Guest Essayist:

Essay 28c – The Apollo Project And Moon Landing By Nasa And The Founding Documents
Guest Essayist:

Topic 29. The Civil Rights Movement Leading To The Civil Rights Act And Voting Rights Act.

Essay 29a – The Civil Rights Movement Leading To The Civil Rights Act And Voting Rights Act And The People
Guest Essayist:

Essay 29b – The Civil Rights Movement Leading To The Civil Rights Act and Voting Rights Act, and Martin Luther King
Guest Essayist: David Forte

Essay 29c – The Civil Rights Movement Leading To The Civil Rights Act And Voting Rights Act and The Founding Documents
Guest Essayist: Tim Schantz

Topic 30. The Twenty-Sixth Amendment

Essay 30a – The Twenty-Sixth Amendment and The People
Guest Essayist: Nolan Hargrave

Essay 30b – The Twenty-Sixth Amendment and Jennings Randolph
Guest Essayist: George Landrith – President Of The Frontiers Of Freedom Institute

Essay 30c – The Twenty-Sixth Amendment and The Founding Documents
Guest Essayist: