The Philadelphia Society is a right-of-center membership organization that intends to strengthen the intellectual foundations, principles and traditions of what it calls a “free and ordered society.” The Philadelphia Society allows for an exchange of ideas through writing and discussion on a range of issues that include economics, policy, religion, culture, and philosophy. ¹

Activities

The Philadelphia Society was founded in 1964 and holds regular meetings, offers fellowships, and generates analysis to continue the conversation about the future of freedom in the U.S and abroad. Though the Society is right-leaning, Philadelphia Society prides itself on intellectual diversity and makes an effort to include speakers and program participants who offer fresh, and sometimes conflicting, points of view. ²

The Philadelphia Society’s September 2022 meeting focused on whether or not American institutions could still be conserved and included speakers from the Buckeye Institute, the Heritage Foundation, the Ethics and Public Policy Center, and the Alliance Defending Freedom. ³

The Philadelphia Society makes the content of its meetings available to the public on its website, where there is a searchable database of audio recordings from its speakers and panels dating back to 1965, called “Voices of Conservatism.” Speeches are available from Nobel Prize-winning economists F. A. Hayek, Milton Friedman, and Ronald Coase along with prominent conservative scholars like Russell Kirk, Forrest McDonald, George Nash, and Steve Hayward, ⁴ all of whom have been members of the Philadelphia Society. ⁵

Funding

The Philadelphia Society is funded through its membership dues, which are currently $125 annually. ⁶

The Philadelphia Society is also funded by donations from other organizations. While the Philadelphia Society does not disclose other donors, tax filings confirm donations from the Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation ($50,000 in 2020), ⁷ the Sarah Scaife Foundation ($25,000 in 2020), ⁸ and the Pierre F. and Enid Goodrich Foundation ($20,000 in 2020). ⁹

Board of Trustees

Ronald Pestritto is the president of the board of the Philadelphia Society and a professor of politics at Hillsdale College. Pestritto is a former fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, the Earhart Foundation, and the Claremont Institute. Pestritto is a former visiting scholar at the Center for the Philosophy of Freedom and the Social Philosophy and Policy Center. ¹⁰

Bridgett Wagner is the first vice president of the board and the executive director of the Edwin J. Feulner Institute at the Heritage Foundation. Wagner is a trustee at the Intercollegiate Studies Institute and sits on the boards of the State Policy Network, the Fund for American Studies, the Foundation for Government Accountability, and the Steamboat Institute. ¹¹

Bradley Watson is the second vice president of the board and an associate professor of government at Hillsdale College. Watson is a senior scholar at the Intercollegiate Studies Institute, a senior fellow at the Claremont Institute, and the former co-director of the Center for Political and Economic Thought. ¹² Watson also sits on the board of the National Association of Scholars. ¹³

Lenore Ealy is the secretary of the board and the founder and president of the Philanthropic Enterprise. ¹⁴

Gleaves Whitney is the executive director of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation. ¹⁵

David Bobb is the president of the Bill of Rights Institute. ¹⁶

Phillip Magness is the director of research and education at the American Institute for Economic Research and a research fellow at the Independent Institute. ¹⁷

Richard Reinsch is the director of the B. Kenneth Simon Center for American Studies at the Heritage Foundation. ¹⁸

Claire Aguda is the director of alumni and faculty relations at the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. ¹⁹

Andrew Graham works as senior counsel at Alliance Defending Freedom. Graham is senior fellow at the Religious Freedom Institute and sits on the board of governors at the John Jay Institute. ²⁰

Adam Kissel is a senior fellow at the Cardinal Institute for West Virginia Policy. ²¹

Ryan Williams is the president of the Claremont Institute. ²²

Other trustees include Daniel B. Hales, assistant secretary, David P. Stuhr, treasurer; Hal Hayward, assistant treasurer; Timothy Caspar; Francisco Gonzalez; Carroll Rios de Rodriguez; Ann Fitzgerald; and Michael Munger. ²³

1. “About.” The Philadelphia Society, 2022. Accessed October 17, 2022. https://phillysoc.org/about/.
2. “About.” The Philadelphia Society, 2022. Accessed October 17, 2022. https://phillysoc.org/about/.
3. “Can American Institutions Still Be Conserved?” The Philadelphia Society, 2022. Accessed October 17, 2022. https://phillysoc.org/tps_meetings/fall-2022/.
4. ^[1] “Voices of Conservatism.” The Philadelphia Society, 2022. Accessed October 17, 2022. https://phillysoc.org/voices-of-conservatism/.
5.  “About.” The Philadelphia Society, 2022. Accessed October 17, 2022. https://phillysoc.org/about/.
6. “Membership.” The Philadelphia Society, 2022. Accessed October 17, 2022. https://phillysoc.org/about/membership/.
7. Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation, Return of Private Foundation (Form 990-PF), 2020, Part XV, Line 3.
8. Sarah Scaife Foundation, Return of Private Foundation (Form 990-PF), 2020, Part XV, Line 3.
9.  Pierre F. and Enid Goodrich Foundation, Return of Private Foundation (Form 990-PF), 2020, Part XV, Line 3.
10. “Ronald J. Pestritto.” Hillsdale College. Accessed October 13, 2022. https://www.hillsdale.edu/faculty/ronald-pestritto/.
11. “Bridgett Wagner.” The Heritage Foundation, 2022. Accessed October 13, 2022. https://www.heritage.org/staff/bridgett-wagner.
12. “Bradley Watson.” Hillsdale College. Accessed October 13, 2022. https://dc.hillsdale.edu/Profiles/Bradley-Watson/.
13. “Staff and Boards.” National Association of Scholars, 2022. Accessed October 13, 2022. https://www.nas.org/about-us/staff-boards.
14. “Lenore T. Ealy.” Universidad Francisco Marroquin, 2017. Accessed October 13, 2022. https://doctorado.ufm.edu/en/tutor/lenore-t-ealy/.
15. ^[1] “Gleaves Whitney to lead Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation.” Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation, June 24, 2020. Accessed October 13, 2022. https://geraldrfordfoundation.org/gleaves-whitney-to-lead-gerald-r-ford-presidential-foundation/.
16. “David Bobb.” Bill of Rights Institute, 2022. Accessed October 13, 2022. https://billofrightsinstitute.org/people/david-bobb.
17. ^[1] “Phillip W. Magness.” American Institute for Economic Research, 2021. Accessed October 13, 2022. https://www.aier.org/staffs/phillip-w-magness/.
18. “Richard Reinsch.” The Heritage Foundation, 2022. Accessed October 13, 2022. https://www.heritage.org/staff/richard-m-reinsch-ii
19. “Claire Aguda.” Intercollegiate Studies Institute. Accessed October 13, 2022. https://isi.org/team/claire-aguda/.
20. “Andrew D. Graham.” Alliance Defending Freedom, 2022. Accessed October 13, 2022. https://adflegal.org/biography/andrew-d-graham.
21. “Adam Kissel.” American Institute for Economic Research, 2021. Accessed October 13, 2022. https://www.aier.org/staffs/adam-kissel/.
22. “Ryan P. Williams.” The Claremont Institute, 2022. Accessed October 13, 2022. https://www.claremont.org/leadership-bio/ryan-p-williams/.
23. ^[1] “Leadership.” The Philadelphia Society, 2022. Accessed October 13, 2022. https://phillysoc.org/about/leadership/.