Helms School of Government showcases scholarship, statesmanship at annual public policy conference

Liberty University’s Helms School of Government finished its sixth annual spring public policy conference March 31-April 2, in the Montview Student Union. The venture was the school’s largest conference to date, with over 50 student and faculty research presenters covering a wide range of topics concerning policy, law, and governance.

The sixth annual conference is sponsored by the university’s Journal of Statesmanship and Public Policy and provides students with opportunities to research, write, present, and receive feedback from faculty and peers. The conference theme was “We Hold These Truths: The Quest for Liberty,” and the event comes as departments across the university celebrate America’s 250th anniversary.

Six plenary sessions welcomed guest speakers from the private and public sectors, including elected officials, nonprofit leaders, a military chaplain, lawyers, and more. The speakers weighed in on the most challenging issues facing their respective arenas and shared how they examine and navigate these problems through a Christian lens. Following the plenary sessions, students dispersed into break-out sessions to present their research findings.

“The spirit of this is to encourage scholarship and to encourage students to develop their research, writing, and communications capabilities and grow in the understanding of the topics that are near and dear to them,” said Professor of Government and Department Chair for Graduate Programs Dr. Kahlib Fischer. Fischer, along with Associate Professor of Government Dr. Mary Prentice, has been instrumental in organizing each year’s conference since 2020.

The one-hour plenary sessions focused on topics like foreign policy and international relations, criminal justice, economics, national security, immigration, and more. Student presentations covered themes related to artificial intelligence, health care policy, human rights, national sovereignty, and international conflicts. Many of their research papers will be further developed, submitted to Liberty’s institutional repository, and published as conference proceedings.

The conference’s first plenary session featured U.S. Army Col. Karen Meeker, the first woman chaplain to serve in special operations and the first woman chaplain to become a qualified jumpmaster. Meeker shared how she used military service as a ministry.

“Our military is in almost every country around the world,” she said. “And so (the military) is a sending organization. For believers who are in the military and those who support them, it truly can be the (light) for the world — to bring the Gospel, to bring the lamp of liberty, to bring freedom, stability, and prosperity around the world.”

The subsequent Economic Policy Panel brought in Virginia Del. Wendell Walker, who outlined the state budget process and explained how he approaches voting to best serve his constituents. Liberty’s campus is located within the 52nd district, which he represents. Walker serves on the Virginia Health and Human Services and Finance committees.

“A budget impacts many lives out here, certainly in higher education,” he said, noting that Virginia has struggled to balance its budget in recent years. “When I’m looking at a bill, the first thing I ask myself is ‘How is this bill, if it were to be passed, going to impact me, my family, my neighbors, and my community?’ … I don’t like the way things sound. I want to know exactly the impact that they are going to have. Because the decisions we make are going to make impacts on individual lives out here.”

Law and policy freshman William McCain, whose research paper earned him the Helms School’s $1,000 Research Excellence Scholarship, spoke on the psychological effects of gambling on adolescents.

McCain showed how many seemingly innocent hobbies, like video games, may eventually cause children to develop unhealthy attachments to online gambling as their brains develop.

“Adolescents are particularly vulnerable to falling into gambling addiction,” McCain said in his presentation, noting that the average age a child first gambles is 12. “This is caused by a lack of development in their brains, higher sensitivity to dopamine, and overall, a lack of good decision-making.”

Following his presentation, McCain commended the Helms School of Government for organizing a conference that “helps students craft essential skills like research, writing, and public speaking.”

“Before coming here to Liberty, this was not the thing I imagined myself doing my first year of college,” he said. “I think it’s great that the school offers a plethora of opportunities to those who are still early in their education.”

Freshman politics & policy student Madeline Schlautman dedicated her research presentation to her personal passion project. The focus of her paper was on the manipulation behind the pro-choice movement and how its origins stemmed from Planned Parenthood founder Margaret Sanger’s systemic racist worldview.

The chance to present in front of peers, she said, was something she could not have done without choosing Liberty.

“The Helms School of Government is great because it’s one of the only conservative schools of government out there, which is the reason I chose Liberty,” she said. “I wanted to freely express my political opinions. Opportunities like this are just so incredible, and the teachers here have so much experience. I don’t think any other school does something like this, where, as a freshman in college, I’m able to have the opportunity to present something that I’ve researched as an 18-year-old and possibly have it published. That’s something incredible that I don’t think any other school offers.”

As part of Liberty University’s ongoing commemoration of America’s 250th anniversary, the Helms School of Government hosted a black-tie gala Tuesday evening in the Montview Student Union, Alumni Ballroom, bringing together students from across the university to reflect on the nation’s founding and its enduring ideals.

Sponsored by the LU ONE office and held in conjunction with the public policy conference, the event featured historical reenactments by renowned actors portraying Thomas Jefferson (Bill Barker) and Patrick Henry (Patrick Henry Jolly, a direct descendant of Patrick Henry). Jolly delivered his ancestor’s iconic “Give me Liberty, or Give me Death” speech, originally given on March 23, 1775, to rally the Second Virginia Convention toward armed resistance against Great Britain.

The gala also recognized Liberty’s national championship Moot Court team and honored two scholarship recipients. Liberty’s a cappella group “Shine” performed a patriotic medley, and the evening concluded with a ceremonial cake cutting by Helms School Dean Dr. Jason Q. Bohm.