Retro Readings

Presidential Speeches

Franklin Delano Roosevelt once said, “The presidency is not merely an administrative office. That’s the least of it. It is more than an engineering job, efficient or inefficient. It is pre-eminently a place of moral leadership. All our great presidents were leaders of thought at times when certain historic ideas in the life of the nation had to be clarified.” Throughout history, presidents have used the power of the office to speak directly to the American public during critical moments. Some of the most memorable speeches came during times of war, such as Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address and Roosevelt’s call to Congress to declare war on Japan. Others, like George Washington and Dwight D. Eisenhower, used farewell addresses to warn of threats to domestic peace. More recently, presidents have used their platforms to announce bold initiatives, including John F. Kennedy’s commitment to the moon landing and Lyndon B. Johnson’s vision for the Great Society. Today, it is difficult to imagine a president making a major announcement without addressing the nation.

HNRS 301H1
Noah Pittman
Spring 2026
W 5:15-6:30 p.m.
GEAR 129

No application required.

This course, Presidential Speeches, invites all honors students—regardless of political views—to explore the significance of presidential rhetoric. Meetings will be held around a table in the Honors College wing of Gearhart Hall. Each week, students will study a different presidential speech regarded as historically important. The class will analyze not only the language but also the historical context surrounding each address.

Throughout the semester, students will consider questions such as: Why are some presidential speeches remembered while most are forgotten? Can a president’s words influence public policy or national mood? How have presidential speeches evolved, especially during the rise of the rhetorical presidency in the 20th century?

Noah PittmanNoah Pittman is the associate dean of enrollment for the University of Arkansas Honors College. He earned a bachelor’s degree in political science, summa cum laude, from Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee, where he was active in campus organizations and received several awards, including the Yerger Hunt Clifton Scholarship for British Studies at Oxford, the Seidman Award for Most Outstanding Senior Political Science Major, and the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award. During college, Pittman interned in the offices of Congressman Steve Cohen and on Harold Ford Jr.’s 2006 U.S. Senate campaign.

At the University of Arkansas, he completed a master’s degree in higher education leadership and a doctorate in public policy. His dissertation on the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery and its effects on college participation earned the William Miller Dissertation Award. Pittman serves as president of the Alpha of Arkansas Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa and recently completed a term on the College Board’s Southwestern Regional Council.

He has taught honors courses on campaigns and elections, the American presidency, political partisanship and higher education policy.

 

Bible

In many ways, the Bible is the ultimate “retro reading.” The Bible is a text of great antiquity and authority, lending its historical weight to contemporary world religions. Equally, the Bible is a book of great controversy, prompting endless academic debate over its origins and historical meaning.

The Bible seminar centers on this magisterial—yet frequently misunderstood—corpus of sacred scripture. In seminar, students will grapple with books of the Bible, selections from Genesis to Revelation. The goals of the Bible seminar are twofold: (1) to enhance critical reading skills and (2) to augment the understanding of scripture through a deep dive into its complex historical layers. All opinions and perspectives welcome in this Honors College seminar.

HNRS 301H1
Lynda Coon
Spring 2026
M 5:15-6:30 p.m.
GEAR 129

No application required.

What's in it for you:

  • Learn to analyze Biblical texts from a variety of perspectives and with a variety of goals in mind
  • Compare multiple versions and adaptations of the scriptures, and locate them within history and culture
  • What's expected of you:
  • Active engagement and participation in class discussion
  • An open-minded approach to the history of biblical texts

Lynda CoonLynda Coon has served as dean of the Honors College since 2015. Since then, she has added a highly successful seminar series, an international experience, Honors Passport, run by the Honors College, and the Futures Hub, a life-design team. Dean Coon has extended the reach of the University of Arkansas Honors College into the state, the Honors Arkansas alliance, and throughout the country, the Council on Honors Education. In the realm of scholarships, she has leveraged funding from foundations and individual donors to support the Path Program and the new Natural State Fellowship program.

By training, Coon is a historian of the later Roman Empire and early medieval West. Her recent publications have discussed Dark Age rainbows, theologies of color in the early Middle Ages, sirens in liturgical books, and the history of Jesus in the period, ca. 600-900. As a medievalist dean of honors, she will never forget taking 18 intrepid honors students along the storied Camino de Santiago, the old pilgrimage trail from Paris to Compostela, Spain.