An Americanist dream come true: with its launch in the fall of 2005, Robert Welch University will begin to realize the dream of its namesake by offering an education that America's Founders would endorse.(Education)

While most of us are familiar with the distinguishing traits of the American Founding Fathers--the eloquence of Patrick Henry, the erudition and wisdom of Ben Franklin, and the character and leadership abilities of George Washington, for example--many of us do not fully appreciate the key role that a traditional liberal arts education played in molding those remarkable men. In the Founders' day, the "liberal" in "liberal arts" referred to the principles and ideas associated with human liberty. Liberty in the sense that the Founders understood it could only be comprehended in the greater context of Western Civilization, a context that only a liberal arts education could provide.

Robert Welch University is preparing to offer online the kind of liberal arts education that the Founders received. On February 15, the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, Wisconsin's largest newspaper, reported that "the Wisconsin Educational Approval Board has given the green light to a new online university promising an education based on 'Americanist principles.'" The article briefly described Robert Welch University's commitment to limited, constitutional government and its relationship to the John Birch Society, "the well-known conservative organization" based in Appleton, Wisconsin.

The approval of Robert Welch University by the state of Wisconsin to offer an online Associate Degree in liberal arts may seem a small step, but it is the culmination of years of planning and effort by RWU's staff. With the online launch now planned for September 2005, Robert Welch University is finally within striking distance of achieving the dream of its founder, Robert Welch.

Adventure of Becoming

Robert Welch--businessman, scholar, writer, and founder of the John Birch Society--once pointed out that the rewards of education lie chiefly "in the mental adventure of becoming." Had he lived to see the creation of his long-cherished dream of an Americanist university, Robert Welch might have added that the chief reward of setting up an educational institution is the adventure of becoming, of watching the organization progress through each carefully planned stage of development.

Robert Welch University was originally incorporated as John Birch University in 1974. Robert Welch wanted to create an educational institution that would teach the elements of a traditional liberal arts education --history, classical studies, literature, abstract science, philosophy, and the arts--and would emphasize the principles of limited government as espoused by America's Founding Fathers. He envisioned his university becoming "a place where responsible young men and young women go to receive ... a fundamental education in the accumulated knowledge of history and science and literature and languages which we 'heirs of all the ages' have inherited." But when Robert Welch died in 1985, his dream of founding a full-fledged university was still unfulfilled.

By the mid-1990s, the power and potential of the Internet was becoming apparent. In 1994, John Birch University was renamed Robert Welch University, and plans were laid for creating an online university that would provide a liberal arts education from an Americanist perspective. By 2001, the funds were in place to begin moving towards a launch date.