Eyewitness to History

Although there has never been any formal connection between American University and the White House, several American presidents have visited campus. This number includes eight presidents, one vice president who became president, and two former presidents. All spoke on campus or at an AU sponsored event. The speeches varied in focus and in several cases were used as a forum to announce new policy initiatives.

Prior to the opening of American University, early founders laid claim to a legacy of American Presidential leadership, history, and ideals while establishing their university.

While developing the plans for American University, Bishop John Fletcher Hurst discovered that George Washington was an early supporter of a national university in the nation’s capital.

In a letter to the Governor of Virginia, Robert Brooke, dated March 16, 1795, Washington proposed designating his shares in the Potomack (Canal) Company for an early initiative to create a national university in the “federal city.” Washington’s support for this project stemmed from his concerns about the state of graduate education in the United States. 

It is with indescribable regret, that I have seen the youth of the United States migrating to foreign countries, in order to acquire the higher branches of erudition, and to obtain a knowledge of the Sciences. Although, it would be injustice to many, to pronounce the certainty of their imbibing maxims, not congenial with republicanism; it must nevertheless be admitted that a serious danger is encountered, by sending abroad among other political systems those, who have not well learned the value of their own. The time is therefore come, when a plan of universal education ought to be adopted in the United States. Not only do the exigencies of public & private life demand it; but if it should ever be apprehended that prejudices would be entertained in one part of the union against another; an efficacious remedy will be, to assemble the youth of every part under such circumstances, as will by the freedom of intercourse & collision of sentiment, give to their minds the direction of truth, philanthropy, and mutual conciliation. It has been represented, that an University, corresponding with these ideas, is contemplated to be built in the federal city; and that it will receive considerable endowments.

Hurst purchased this letter in the 1890s and carried it with him on his early fundraising trips. Hurst felt his plan for a graduate institution which would be open to “both young men and women alike” matched George Washington’s goals for a national university. Upon his death, Hurst’s Library was sold at auction but W.L. Davidson, Secretary of the University, purchased the letter with his own money.  Davidson was eventually reimbursed through donations. This letter and its connection to American University’s past are treasured by the campus community.

In addition to the University's George Washington tradition, early founders also publicized a connection to Abraham Lincoln. On the present-day site of the Katzen Arts Center and Ward Circle, Fort Gaines was constructed in 1861 as one of the Civil War Defenses of Washington. Purportedly, Abraham Lincoln visited the troops stationed there. Despite the Fort being abandoned after the war well before the creation of the University, American University has long been proud to share this connection, as well as to connect its location to a place of historical significance.

The site of American University was purchased in 1890, and early founders got to work on securing endorsements from church, government, and other national figures, fundraising, and planning for the school. President Benjamin Harrison endorsed the project in a letter to the University, as well as signed the Congressional Charter of the American University Act of Incorporation in 1892.

The last President with which American University had an early connection prior to a physical presence on campus was William McKinley. He served on the Board of Trustees from 1899 until his death in 1901, and was a big supporter of the University. According to the University Courier, President McKinley was meant to lay the cornerstone of the Ohio College of Government and attend the dedication of the College of History. The Ohio College of Government building was originally to be named for a number of donors from Ohio, but was renamed the McKinley Memorial Building after his assassination. The University was also trying to fundraise for an endowed William McKinley professorship. Two issues of the University Courier publication are dedicated to covering McKinley's death ( University Courier v IX, n 1 ) and the subsequent dedication of the McKinley Building ( University Courier v IX, n 2 ). In addition to McKinley's interest and involvement with the American University project, he was also a personal friend of American University founder Bishop John F. Hurst. It is said that Bishop Hurst's health declined rather rapidly after the death of President McKinley, with Hurst passing away in 1903.

For AU’s first thirty years, there was a sitting US president on the Board of Trustees. Longest serving members were Herbert Hoover (1945-1950) and Theodore Roosevelt (1900-1919).

Located in the Nation's Capital, American University is inextricably linked to the governing body of our Nation. As such, American Presidents from Woodrow Wilson to Barrack Obama consistently engaged with the University in a way that contributed to its history and ongoing evolution. American Presidents have attended opening ceremonies, building dedications, given commencement addresses and been awarded honorary degrees, stopped by on the campaign trail or for a jog, and have delivered other addresses important to their agendas. Many of the addresses given on campus reflect the platform and policy of the President. Others touch on the value of higher education and mission of American University.

President Theodore Roosevelt presided at the laying of the cornerstone for the McKinley Building on May 14, 1902. Roosevelt's appearance and speech at the cornerstone laying for the McKinley Building served as an official recognition of the University. In his speech, Roosevelt hailed American University as a "college that is to teach the science of government" and support the tenets of strong government so valued within the United States. 

Roosevelt also spoke at the Methodist General Conference on May 16, 1908 which was held at AU.

President Woodrow Wilson participated in the American University’s opening ceremony on May 27, 1914. Wilson's speech continued the tradition of presidential endorsement of the University. Personally interested in education, President Wilson applauded American University for its potential to "emancipat[e] the human mind."

There is no particular propriety in my being present to open a university merely because I am President of the United States. Nobody is president of any part of the human mind. The mind is free… The only thing that one can do in opening a university is to say we wish to add one more means of emancipating the human mind, emancipating it from fear, from misunderstanding—emancipating it from the dark and leading it into the light.

Wilson's presence at American University established a precedent for future presidents which continues in the present day.

Wilson, along with other Army officials, also attended a special presentation demonstrating camouflage techniques of artillery, roadways, streams, and troops at Camp Leach (American University) on October 31, 1917.

President Warren G. Harding gave the commencement address on June 8, 1921 in the present-day Woods-Brown Amphitheater. Harding had only been in office for three months at the time of this address, and his remarks echo his inaugural address with the call for a return to normalcy after World War I, strong educational values, and belief in the American idea as an example to others on the world stage.

Humanity is seeking as it never sought before for those who can see widely, clearly, fearlessly; who will be capable of determining what is sound and what is right, and courageous enough to stand for it, though they stand alone.

Vice President Calvin Coolidge gave the commencement address on June 7, 1922 in the present-day Woods-Brown Amphitheater. Coolidge's speech centered around themes of progress, creation, and the redemption of mankind through Christian ideals. Though he was Vice President at the time of his address, he would assume the presidency after President Warren Harding died in office in August 1923.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt announced the creation of School of Public Affairs as part of the inauguration of Chancellor Joseph M. M. Gray at Memorial Continental Hall on March 3, 1934. He was awarded an honorary degree. Franklin Delano Roosevelt maintained the intimate ties between national government and American University established by former U.S. presidents. Roosevelt acknowledged the future possibilities of American University for "initiative for constructive thinking, for practical idealism and for national service." 

That is why I am especially happy in the announcement of the establishment of this School of Public Affairs. I can assure you of the hearty cooperation of the Administration. In the conduct of this school the more widely you can draw on every part of the Nation for the membership of its student body, the greater will be its influence in the dissemination of knowledge of government throughout the country. Among our universities, you are young; you have a great future-a great opportunity for initiative, for constructive thinking, for practical idealism and for national service.

President Dwight D. Eisenhower presided over the groundbreaking of the original SIS building as part of Commencement on June 9, 1957. He was awarded an honorary degree.

Eisenhower was keenly aware that the United States and the world needed to prepare for a time when the US-Soviet rivalry no longer dominated foreign policy, and the world could focus on enhancing human dignity. With this in mind, he called together 13 university presidents, including AU's Hurst Anderson, to encourage them to incorporate human-focused international affairs into higher education.

Anderson and the Methodist Bishop of Washington, G. Bromley Oxnam, shared a similar vision and proposed that President Eisenhower support their idea: a school predicated on service to the global community. President Eisenhower embraced the idea and agreed to speak at the school's groundbreaking ceremony.

And so it seems to me, tonight, that American University and I at least agree on this: that the waging of peace demands the best we have, the best young men and women that we can find to put in this great effort which must go on around the world all the time.

During his 1957 address, he also referenced giving the February 1946 commencement address to the fifth American University class of disabled veterans to graduate as National Service Officers.

John F. Kennedy held a political rally at AU after the second Kennedy-Nixon debate on October 7, 1960. On June 10, 1963, President John F. Kennedy delivered his famous commencement address and was awarded an honorary degree. He spoke to an audience of students, parents and faculty in the midst of the Cold War. Titled, "A Strategy of Peace," this speech called on the Soviet Union to work with the United States towards solutions for peace and a nuclear test ban treaty specifically. He believed this type of treaty might prevail and help reduce tensions and the specter of nuclear war at that time. 

I am talking about genuine peace -- the kind of peace that makes life on earth worth living – the kind that enables men and nations to grow and to hope and to build a better life for their children – not merely peace for Americans but peace for all men and women – not merely peace in our time but peace for all time.

American University continues to celebrate Kennedy's words and the profound impact it had on American University and the wider world. "A Strategy of Peace" is remembered as one of the president's finest and one of the most inspiring commencement addresses ever delivered. Kennedy's words ring as true today as they did years ago as we continue building peace for all time.

Former President Gerald R. Ford gave two separate speeches at AU on December 13, 1978, one at the Washington College of Law (site present-day Kogod School of Business) and the other in the Kay Spiritual Life Center. Ford spoke about Congress exceeding constitutional limits to authority via the War Powers Act, the Camp David Summit, the future of the Republican Party, voter turn out, opinions on former President Richard Nixon, and opinions on President Jimmy Carter's foreign policy.

The Commission on Federal Election Reform functioned in part to examine the state of America's federal elections and recommend improvements. Former President Jimmy Carter and former Secretary of State James Baker co-chaired this commission in 2005 and participated in an open, town hall-style discussion at the Bender Arena of American University on April 18, 2005. September 19 of that same year, he participated in a town hall-style discussion with students, staff and faculty. Carter returned to campus on October 24, 2007 to speak about the Elders Mission to Sudan. 

George H.W. Bush used the track at Reeves Field to jog during his term as Vice President, 1981-1989.

President Bill Clinton spoke at the Special Convocation celebrating AU’s Centennial year on February 26, 1993, where he spoke about the importance of American leadership during times of global change. He was also awarded an honorary degree.

Thirty years ago, in the last year of his short but brilliant life, John Kennedy came to this university to address the paramount challenge of that time: the imperative of pursuing peace in the face of nuclear confrontation. Many Americans still believe it was the finest speech he ever delivered. Today, I come to this same place to deliver an address about what I consider to be the great challenge of this day: the imperative of American leadership in the face of global change.

Clinton returned to campus on September 9, 1997 to discuss his agenda for the upcoming year in his "Back to Work" speech, delivered in Bender Arena. He focused on issues of equal access to education, national education standards and government efficiency. 

This diversity of ours is a godsend. It is a huge gift in a global economy and a global society. If we can find a way not only to respect our differences but to actually celebrate them, and still say what binds us together is even more important…

The University remembers him fondly and recently honored his knowledge of policy, his passion and influence by naming him American University WONK of the year in 2012.

Barack Obama held a major campaign rally in Bender Arena on January 28, 2008.

President Obama delivered a speech at American University's School of International Service on July 1, 2010 regarding immigration reform, and was hailed as a landmark in immigration politics. His call for comprehensive reform of immigration came at the end of a series of meetings with some of the largest Hispanic organizations in the nation including National Council of La Raza and League of the United Latin American Citizens. In the new School of International Service building (SIS) at AU, this speech continued the tradition set by former President Dwight D. Eisenhower who participated in the 1957 groundbreaking for the original SIS building. 

These women, and men and women across this country like them, remind us that immigrants have always helped to build and defend this country – and that being an American is not a matter of blood or birth. It’s a matter of faith. It’s a matter of fidelity to the shared values that we all hold so dear. That’s what makes us unique. That’s what makes us strong. Anybody can help us write the next great chapter in our history.

On August 5, 2012 President Obama returned to American University to deliver an address about the Iran Nuclear Deal.

Fifty-two years ago, President Kennedy, at the height of the Cold War, addressed this same university on the subject of peace. … he promised strong, principled American leadership on behalf of what he called a “practical” and “attainable peace” -- a peace “based not on a sudden revolution in human nature but on a gradual evolution in human institutions -- on a series of concrete actions and effective agreements.” The agreement now reached between the international community and the Islamic Republic of Iran builds on this tradition of strong, principled diplomacy. 

Obama was also interviewed by MSNBC’s Chris Matthews as part of the Hardball College Tour on December 5, 2013.

President Joe Biden came to American University six times while he was serving as a United States Senator from Delaware, mostly as a Kennedy Political Union speaker, and he participated in the Washington Semester Program.

To learn more about American University history, please visit the  Archives & Special Collections  website.