Eighth Annual Dr. Richard Gruetzemacher Constitution Day Lecture focuses on George Washington

In honor of the U.S. Constitution’s birthday guest speaker Gary L. Gregg, will be on campus this month with a lecture titled “Patriot Sage: Why We Need George Washington Today.”

Gregg’s lecture is part of the annual Dr. Richard Gruetzemacher Constitution Day Lecture Series, sponsored by UTC’s Center for Reflective Citizenship and the College of Health, Education and Professional Studies. The lecture series takes place every year, on or around Sept. 17, the day the U.S. Constitution was signed in 1787.

“My hope is that the audience will better understand that without George Washington’s leadership, neither the United States of America nor our present Constitution might ever have been created in the first place,” explains Lucien Ellington, director of UTC’s Center for Reflective Citizenship.

The lecture explores Washington’s accomplishments, how he defeated the British Empire, presided over the Constitutional Convention, led an infant nation and what we can learn from him today. There also will be plenty of time for questions from the audience.

“We deliberately select good scholars for our Constitution Day lectures who are also talented speakers and can reach audiences of varying ages, interests and occupations. Professor Gary Gregg certainly possesses both these attributes,” adds Ellington.

This year, UTC’s annual Constitution Day Lecture Series has a new name to honor the late Richard Gruetzemacher, a UTC staff and faculty member with a lifelong love of history and civic education.