"The American Project: On the Future of Conservatism" is a multi-year program based at Pepperdine's School of Public Policy to propel innovative ideas for re-imagining the future of the conservative movement. The first program of its kind at a major graduate policy school, the new Edwin Meese III Institute for Liberty and the American Project serves as the new academic home for scholarship, teachi
ng, and events focused on connecting America’s founding principles to today’s national policy challenges. Organizationally, the new Institute stands as the foundation of the school’s American Policy & Politics curriculum track, formed to prepare public leaders in domestic policy for careers in Washington, DC, and America’s top policy research institutions. The Institute builds upon the work of the school’s “American Project,” which launched in 2017 to explore the future of a more communitarian approach to national politics and policy. Through events and commissioned essays, and advised by a network of leading academics and policymakers, the project has made a compelling case for a flourishing American political culture based on economic opportunity, religious liberty, self-governance, and devolved governance. Endowed with a $10 million gift from Pepperdine alumni Chandra (’99, JD ’02) and Adam (’99) Melton, the Meese Institute will be led by a leading scholar in American history and politics who will assume the Melton Chair at the helm. A member of the School of Public Policy Board of Advisors, Chandra is dedicated to preparing students for leadership opportunities in government agencies at the local, state, and federal levels. The Melton Chair will teach the school's graduate public policy students, organize events, and engage through the media on current political and policy debates from the school’s unique perspective.
