Heritage Foundation co-founder Edwin Feulner will speak on life and leadership on April 4 at 7 p.m. in Dow A & B.
Feulner, senior fellow at Hillsdale in D.C., was president of the Heritage Foundation from 1977 to 2013.
“Fuelner’s talk will be about his life and the lessons that he has learned throughout the organizations that he has founded, and the themes that he has seen throughout the various organizations as well,” Undergraduate Program Coordinator Mary Greco said.
Fuelner has visited Hillsdale College in the past, but has not recently given a speech on campus, according to Greco.
Fuelner has traveled extensively and met a wide variety of people throughout his career.
“Hillary Clinton’s first boss in D.C. was Dr. Fuelner,” former WHIP student and junior Elizabeth Dickinson said.
At the time, Fuelner had been involved in the Republican party, prior to his time at the Heritage Foundation.
The Heritage Foundation is in the process of launching Project 2025, which intends to prepare for the next conservative executive administration.
“There is a big story behind how the Heritage Foundation came to be,” Greco said. “He’ll talk about Heritage’s history, what it is today, and where it’s going. The Project 2025 is preparing public servants for a new administration, and the Heritage Foundation is sponsoring that.”
Fuelner maintains an integral role with the Heritage Foundation, even after the conclusion of his time as president, according to Greco.
“The Heritage Foundation is transitioning from a think tank to a more active role in politics through Project 2025,” Dickinson said. “Fuelner talked about that shift in D.C. as well.”
He visits the students on WHIP at least once every semester, and WHIP students are also able to get coffee with him while they’re in D.C.
“We had breakfast with Fuelner one morning, and it was really cool to get to talk to him,” Dickinson said. “We talked about the flow of American politics, particularly the flow from the Republican Caucus to the Freedom Caucus and what brought that about.”
Dickinson said a semester in D.C. away from Hillsdale leads to growth and opportunities.
“WHIP gave me a lot more confidence in who I was through the opportunities that I was given,” Dickinson said. “It was an opportunity of a lifetime, and there were so many ways to witness the professional world. It taught me a lot about myself, what I want to do with my life, and what I can do.”