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E XPLORING THE P RESIDENCY THROUGH S TUDENT O PPORTUNITY F UNDS

C ONNOR G RANT -K NIGHT , ‘15 (Continued from page 12)

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Speaker Walter Russell Mead, Professor of Humanities at Bard, elaborated on Tulis’ presentation of the president as being a representative of the people. In the spirit of Arendt, Mead drew from the ancients, comparing their “lighthouse” conception of the state with the modern “mirror” conception, another name for what Tulis had expounded. In the ancient model, those in power are understood to see further than the people themselves and so rightly to attempt to anticipate prob-lems. The model of the “mirror” state, by contrast, advocated by the Founders as the more stable solution, prescribes a more

reactive role for government, defining the general interest as the sum of the constituency’s particular interests at that time. To make more concrete the problem of defining the president’s role, Mead compared our current political era with that of 1865-1900, notable for its lack of “great” presidents.

Like our era, Mead contended, the late 19 th century was a time of economic change (agriculture to manufacturing), character-ized by the public’s view of industry and government as cor-rupt. Today, our economy is changing from manufacturing to services and information technology, and there is a similar dis-trust in corporations and public officials. The problems posed by such transitions, Mead argued, lie not in the structure of the constitution, but rather in the newness of the collective way of life.

Whether the key to successful transition lies in an as-cent of the president to the lighthouse or in the people’s as-sumption of more responsibility is a matter for further reflec-tion, and as I continue in my education at Skidmore, I will look back at this conference as having equipped me with the means to think about questions of such importance.

S KIDMORE IN P ARIS : A B RIEF A BROAD P HOTOJOURNAL

E LLIE N ICHOLS ‘13

Above:Attending a Gallery opening at Edward Brachfeld's (Skidmore alumni) Gallery in Paris with friends and co-workers from summer

Above: Traveling in Paris for the Spring fashion week 2012 Left: In Rome outside the Colosseum with fellow Skidmore Student Julia Paino