The Russell Kirk Center for Cultural Renewal is a nonpartisan, nonprofit educational organization that maintains a residential library and conference facility on the property of the late author and historian Russell Kirk. ¹ Located in Mecosta, Michigan, the Center aims to strengthen the cultural, economic, and religious foundations of Western civilization and conserve Kirk’s idea of the “permanent things.” ²  

Activities

The Russell Kirk Center for Cultural Renewal produces programs and publications that support and strengthen Kirk’s idea of the permanent things, specifically the traditional principles of family, church, and school as it relates to America’s tradition of order, justice, and freedom. ³

The Russell Kirk Center’s current on-site programs include the Piety Hills Seminars and the Wilbur Fellows residential research and study fellowship. The Center created the Society for Law and Culture, an organization for law professionals and academics that promotes law as a humane profession, and the Edmund Burke Society, which promotes the work of Edmund Burke to younger generations as a guide for action, reform, and renewal. ⁴

The Russell Kirk Center’s Kirk on Campus program seeks to continue Russell Kirk’s efforts on college campuses to promote the tradition of American conservatism. The Kirk on Campus program brings scholars to schools in Michigan and its surrounding areas that can contribute to a more varied and civilized discourse about the legacy of America and the West. ⁵

Funding

The Russell Kirk Center for Cultural Renewal is funded by donations from individuals, foundations, and corporations. While the Russell Kirk Center does not disclose its donors, tax filings confirm donations from the Earhart Foundation ($95,000 in 2013) ⁶ and the Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation ($35,000 in 2019). ⁷

People

Jeffrey Nelson is a co-founder and the executive director of the Russell Kirk Center for Cultural Renewal. Nelson formerly worked as chief academic officer at the Intercollegiate Studies Institute, president of the Thomas More College of Liberal Arts, and director of research at the Acton Institute. ⁸

Annette Kirk, Russell Kirk’s widow, is a co-founder and president emerita of the Russell Kirk Center. Kirk is an advisor to the Mackinac Center for Public Policy and formerly sat on the boards of the Education Freedom Fund and the Laura Bush Foundation for America’s Libraries. Kirk worked as the president of the Center from 1995 to 2022. ⁹

Board of Directors

Former Michigan State Senator Joanne Emmons (R-Big Rapids) is the chair of the board of the Russell Kirk Center. ¹⁰

Stephen Markman is a former Michigan Supreme Court Justice. ¹¹

1. “Stay Connected.” Russell Kirk Center. Accessed March 4, 2022. https://kirkcenter.org/stay-connected/.
2. “About Us.” Russell Kirk Center. Accessed February 24, 2022. https://kirkcenter.org/about-us/.
3.  “About Us.” Russell Kirk Center. Accessed February 24, 2022. https://kirkcenter.org/about-us/.
4. “Programs.” Russell Kirk Center. Accessed March 4, 2022. https://kirkcenter.org/programs/.
5. “About.” Kirk on Campus, 2022. Accessed March 4, 2022. https://kirkoncampus.org/about/.
6. Earhart Foundation, Return of Private Foundation (Form 990-PF), 2013, Part XV, Line 3a.
7. Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation, Return of Private Foundation (Form 990-PF), 2019, Part XV, Line 3a.
8. “About Us.” Russell Kirk Center. Accessed February 24, 2022. https://kirkcenter.org/about-us/.
9. “About Us.” Russell Kirk Center. Accessed February 24, 2022. https://kirkcenter.org/about-us/.
10.  “About Us.” Russell Kirk Center. Accessed February 24, 2022. https://kirkcenter.org/about-us/.
11. “About Us.” Russell Kirk Center. Accessed February 24, 2022. https://kirkcenter.org/about-us/.