2026 Annual Conference

We Hold These Truths

Liberty, Equality, and Core Texts

Association for Core Texts and Courses 31st Annual Conference

March 19 – 22, 2026

Omni Tempe Hotel at Arizona State University

2026 Plenary Speakers

Susan Collins and J. Walter Sterling

Susan Collins is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Notre Dame. Her teaching and research interests range the history of political thought. Her main expertise is in classical political philosophy. She is the translator with Robert Bartlett of Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics (University of Chicago, 2011), author of Aristotle and the Rediscovery of Citizenship (Cambridge 2006), co-author and translator of Empire and the Ends of Politics: Plato’s “Menexenus” and Pericles’ Funeral Oration (Focus 1999), and co-editor of Action and Contemplation: Studies in the Moral and Political Thought of Aristotle (SUNY 1999). Most recently, she has completed a book-length study of the Spartan regime in classical political philosophy and its relevance for debates about political order today, a project that was awarded fellowships by the Earhart Foundation, National Endowment for the Humanities, and the Carl Friedrich von Siemens Foundation in Munich.

Walter Sterling is currently President of St. John’s College, with campuses in Santa Fe and Annapolis. He became the eighth President of the Santa Fe campus in July 2024 and interim College President in June 2025. A graduate of St. John’s, he previously served as dean and tutor at the college over a twenty-year tenure on the faculty, teaching across the college’s undergraduate and graduate programs. Sterling recently chaired the effort to launch a new master’s degree in Middle Eastern Classics. He holds a special interest in growing and supporting the international student population at St. John’s. Prior to joining St. John’s, Sterling taught at Loyola University Maryland, Temple University, and Gwynedd Mercy University. He has also worked outside academia, supporting mission-driven nonprofits such as Philadelphia’s Project HOME. He holds an M.A. in Philosophy from Emory University and an MBA from Notre Dame. His writing and public speaking focus on liberal education, democracy, technology, and the formation of judgment, with recent essays appearing in outlets such as the Los Angeles Times, Newsweek, and The Hill. Sterling is a member of the board and visiting teaching faculty of the Rome Institute of Liberal Arts and serves on the Academic Advisory Council of the Jack Miller Center. His passion for languages and travel led him to study Italian in Florence and Hebrew in Jerusalem, in addition to teaching summer courses in Rome. In his free time, Sterling enjoys participating in triathlons and marathons and has completed six Pike’s Peak Marathons, four Ironman Triathlons, and the Boston Marathon.

Book your Discounted Hotel Room by Feb.15

Conference Theme

“We Hold These Truths: Liberty, Equality, and Core Texts”

Rooted in the American experience—echoing through the Declaration of Independence, Lincoln’s addresses, and Hurston’s prose—these principles transcend borders, resonating in texts from Rousseau’s Social Contract to Gandhi’s writings on justice. We invite educators, scholars, and students to examine how core texts grapple with freedom’s scope, equality’s demands, and their interplay across time and place. As these ideas, central to America’s founding, travel beyond its shores, they spark dialogue in classrooms worldwide, addressing local struggles and global aspirations. Through keynotes, panels, and workshops, we’ll share innovative ways to teach these themes, linking the U.S. narrative to a broader human story. In a fractured world, these texts unite us, fostering critical thought and civic purpose. Join us to celebrate their power, drawing from America’s legacy to inspire universal reflection. Together, let’s carry these truths—tested in one nation—to illuminate and uplift all corners of the globe.

ACTC’s 2026 Conference is Sponsored by:

The School for Civic and Economic Thought and Leadership at Arizona State University (SCETL) and Co-sponsored by: St. John’s College Santa Fe, The American Council of Trustees and Alumni (ACTA), The Hertog Foundation, The Institute for Humane Studies (IHS), The Jack Miller Center, Liberty Fund, and the Teagle Foundation.

Practical Information

ACTC papers must engage a core text substantially and take no more than 15 minutes to present. We encourage papers and panels on the conference theme, and only those that speak to the theme will be eligible for revision and submission to our peer-reviewed Selected Essays volume, published by Mercer University Press. Presentations that do not speak to the conference theme are also welcome.

ACTC panels may have 3-5 presenters, only two of whom may be from the same home institution. During the proposal process you will be prompted to say whether or not you will allow other presentations to be added to your panel. Please have panelists’ contact information and presentation information in hand when you propose your panel.

Registration for this year’s conference includes a reception and dinner on Thursday night, breakfast and lunch on Friday, breakfast, lunch, and a reception on Saturday, and a continental breakfast on Sunday morning for those attending the business meeting. There is also a reception on Friday evening for graduate students.

Advanced registration will be open until March 10th and can be paid immediately by credit card through paypal or can be invoiced for later payment. In order to secure the discount for advanced registration, registration invoices must be paid by the March 10th deadline.

The cost of advanced registration is $425 for faculty and administrators at ACTC member schools, $475 for faculty and administrators at non-member institutions, and $300 for Emeritus Professors and graduate students.

After March 10, the cost of registration is $475 for faculty and administrators at ACTC member schools, $525 for faculty and administrators and non-member institutions, and $350 for Emeritus Professors and graduate students.

Our block of rooms at the Omni Tempe Hotel at ASU in Tempe, Arizona is available at the discounted rate of $229/n until February 15th or when our block is full. Please make your reservations as soon as you register in order to secure your spot.

For more information contact us at info@coretexts.org