The Encounter Books Gala

Charles Murray holds the F. A. Hayek Chair Emeritus in Cultural Studies at the American Enterprise Institute. Dr. Murray first came to national attention with the publication of Losing Ground: American Social Policy, 1950–1980 (Basic Books, 1984), which has been credited as the intellectual foundation for the Welfare Reform Act of 1996. In 1994, The Bell Curve (Free Press), a New York Times bestseller he coauthored with the late Richard J. Herrnstein, sparked heated controversy for its analysis of the role of IQ in shaping America’s class structure. In 2012, in another the New York Times bestseller, Coming Apart: The State of White America, 1960–2010 (Crown Forum), Dr. Murray described the nature and causes of the cultural polarization that, by 2016, would shape national politics. In his latest book, Human Diversity: The Biology of Gender, Race, and Class (Twelve Books, January 2020), he describes recent developments in genetics and neuroscience that are transforming the social sciences. His other books include By the People: Rebuilding Liberty Without Permission (Crown Forum, 2015); Human Accomplishment (HarperCollins, 2003); What It Means to Be a Libertarian (Broadway Books, 1997); In Pursuit: Of Happiness and Good Government (Simon & Schuster, 1988) and most recently Taking Religion Seriously (Encounter Books, 2025). Dr. Murray, who was born and raised in Newton, Iowa, has a PhD in political science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a BA in history from Harvard University.

Charles Kesler is a Senior Fellow of the Claremont Institute, Editor of the Claremont Review of Books, and the Dengler-Dykema Distinguished Professor of Government at Claremont McKenna College. Dr Kesler also teaches in the Claremont Institute’s Publius Fellows Program and Lincoln Fellows Program. He received his B.A. in Social Studies and his M.A. and Ph.D. in Government from Harvard University. From 1989 to 2008, Dr. Kesler was director of CMC’s Henry Salvatori Center for the Study of Individual Freedom in the Modern World. He is the recipient of the prestigious 2018 Bradley Prize, a high honor bestowed upon distinguished individuals who have influenced American scholarship and debate. He was awarded the Encounter Books prize for Advancing American Ideals in October 2025. From September 2000 to March 2001, he served as vice chairman of the Advisory Committee to the U.S. Congress’s James Madison Commemoration Commission. He was selected in June 2000 as a member of the Scholars Commission on the Jefferson-Hemings Issue sponsored by the Thomas Jefferson Heritage Society. Dr Kesler is the author of The Crisis of the Two Constitutions: The Rise, Decline, and Recovery of American Greatness, the paperback edition of which was issued by Encounter Books earlier this year (2026.) He also authored I Am the Change: Barack Obama and the Crisis of Liberalism; the editor of Saving the Revolution: The Federalist Papers and the American Founding; co-editor, with John B. Kienker, of Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness: Ten Years of the Claremont Review of Books; and co-editor, with William F. Buckley, Jr., of Keeping the Tablets: Modern American Conservative Thought. He has written extensively on American constitutionalism and political thought, and his edition of The Federalist Papers is the best-selling edition in the country. 

Christina Hoff Sommers is a senior fellow emeritus at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), where she studies the politics of gender and feminism, as well as free expression, due process, and the preservation of liberty in the academy. Before joining AEI, Dr. Sommers was a philosophy professor at Clark University. She is best known for her defense of classical liberal feminism and her critique of gender feminism. Her books include Freedom Feminism—Its Surprising History and Why It Matters Today (AEI, 2013); One Nation Under Therapy (St. Martin’s Press, 2005), coauthored with Sally Satel; The War Against Boys (Simon & Schuster, 2001 and 2013), which was named a New York Times Notable Book of the Year in 2001; and Who Stole Feminism? (Simon & Schuster, 1995). Her textbook, Vice and Virtue in Everyday Life, currently in its ninth edition, is a bestseller in college ethics. Her writings have appeared in publications such as The Atlantic, The New York Times, and The Washington Post. In addition to frequent radio and television appearances, Dr. Sommers is the host of the popular video blog, The Factual Feminist. Dr. Sommers has a PhD in philosophy from Brandeis University and a BA from New York University.

Roger Kimball is editor and publisher of The New Criterion and president and publisher of Encounter Books. He is the author of many books and a regular contributor to several publications, including American Greatness and The Spectator World.

Richard W. Graber was named President and Chief Executive Officer of The Lynde and harry Bradley Foundation in July 2016. He has served on the Foundation’s Board of Directors since 2014. Prior to joining the Foundation, Rick served as the Senior Vice President for Global Government Relations for Honeywell International from 2012 until 2016. In that role, he was responsible for leading Honeywell’s worldwide government relations initiatives. Rick joined Honeywell in 2010 as Vice President of Government Relations for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. He served as the United States Ambassador to the Czech Republic from 2006 to 2009, where he actively engaged the Czech government and private sector on a number of issues, including President Bush’s proposed missile defense system, transparency, corruption and judicial reform. Rick managed a 280-person embassy and was responsible for effectively. Maintaining and strengthening the historic relations between the two countries. Prior to his time in Prague, Rick practiced law in the international, corporate and government relations practices at the Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren law firm in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He was the President and Chief Executive Officer of the firm from 2004 to 2006 and Chief Operating Officer from 2002 to 2004. Rick served on the Board of Directors of The Philanthropy Roundtable, The Kern Family Foundation, and Curt Joa, Inc. He earned a J.D. from Boston University Law School and graduated magna cum laude with an A.B. from Duke University. Rick is married to Alexandria (Alex), and they have two sons, Scott and Erik.