10/22/12 As part of the traveling Lincoln exhibit now at the Huffington Library, the Culver Academies’ Global Studies Institute will host a Lincoln-related seminar Thursday, Oct. 25, at 7 p.m. featuring Nicole Etcheson, Ph.D., of Ball State University.

The seminar, titled “Swift, Zealous, Radical or Tardy, Cold, Indifferent? Abraham Lincoln as Great Emancipator,” is free and will be held in the library’s Presentation Room. The GSI brings scholars, policymakers, and thinkers to campus to engage students, faculty, and staff in discussing the challenges facing our global community.

The national traveling exhibit “Lincoln: The Constitution and the Civil War” opened Oct. 14 at the Huffington Library for a five-week stay ending Nov. 16. The Lincoln exhibit is free and open to the public Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sundays from noon to 7 p.m.

Etcheson is the Alexander M. Bracken Professor of History at Ball State University and the author of two books. She received a National Endowment for the Humanities in 2004 to begin research on A Generation at War: The Civil War Era in a Northern Community, released in October 2011. She also authored Bleeding Kansas: Contested Liberty in the Civil War Era.

Etcheson is also the author of numerous articles in professional journals as well as a frequent presenter at historical conferences.

She came to Ball State University with 12 years of organizational experience for National History Day at the local and state level, as well as 14 years as a teacher. She earned her bachelor’s degree in history from Grinnell College, and her master’s and doctoral degrees from Indiana University in U.S.-Latin American history.

Lincoln Exhibit Explores Constitutional Struggles

Composed of informative panels featuring photographic reproductions of original documents, such as a draft of Lincoln’s first inaugural speech and the Emancipation Proclamation, the exhibit examines how President Lincoln struggled with issues of secession, slavery, and civil liberties — all questions the U.S. Constitution left unanswered. Each section features information about a different aspect of Lincoln’s presidency. For example, the slavery portion examines the various policy options Lincoln once embraced and how his thoughts about slavery evolved over time.

Two other special programs are scheduled during the exhibit’s five-week stay. These programs are also free and will be held in the library’s Presentation Room.

• Nov. 6 (Election Night) at 7 p.m. – The GSI will host a seminar addressing “Lincoln’s Constitution & Civil War: A pivotal point in becoming a world power.” Guest speaker will be Valparaiso University’s Samuel Graber, a Ph.D. in American Studies.

• Nov. 11 at 2 p.m. – The Academies championship Quiz Bowl team will take on a team of Academies’ faculty/staff in a friendly competition focused on Lincoln, his presidency, and the Civil War.

The National Constitution Center and the American Library Association Public Programs Office organized the traveling exhibition, which was made possible by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH): great ideas brought to life. The traveling exhibition is based on an exhibition of the same name developed by the National Constitution Center.