Berkeley, CA. January 9, 2026 - CSHE is pleased to announce the upcoming 10th Clark Kerr Lecture Series on February 24th and February 26th, 2026. The Clark Kerr Lectures is a biennial series sponsored by the Center for Studies in Higher Education. The series honors Clark Kerr, President of the University of California from 1958 to 1967.
This year's Clark Kerr Lecturer is Christopher Eisgruber, President of Princeton University. He will deliver the 2026 lectures on "The American University in Crisis." The Goldman School of Public Policy and UC Berkeley Law co-sponsored this series.
Venue: Booth Auditorium, Berkeley Law. 2770 Bancroft Way, Berkeley, CA 94704
Tuesday, February 24, 2026 at 2pm PST
In the first lecture, President Eisgruber will focus on major trends that have affected the American model of the research university, including rising student debt, intense national competition, and battles over affirmative action, diversity, and merit.
Thursday, Februray 26, 2026 at 2pm PST
In the second lecture, President Eisgruber will examine the role of university presidents, the civic mission of American research universities, and how university communities should respond to the challenges they now face.
About the Lecturer:
Christopher Ludwig Eisgruberhas served as Princeton University’s 20th president since July 2013. President Eisgruber is a recipient of the United States Navy’s Distinguished Public Service Award, the Ellis Island Medal of Honor, and the National Institute of Social Sciences Gold Honor Medal. He serves on the Board of Directors of the Association of American Universities, as co-chair of the American Talent Initiative steering committee, and was a member of the United States Navy’s Education for Seapower Advisory Board from 2023 to 2025.
Eisgruber received his A.B. in physics from Princeton in 1983, graduating magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa. He then earned an M.Litt in politics at the University of Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar, and a J.D. cum laude at the University of Chicago Law School. After clerking for U.S. Court of Appeals Judge Patrick Higginbotham and U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens, he taught at New York University’s School of Law for 11 years.
Eisgruber’s books include Constitutional Self-Government (2001); Religious Freedom and the Constitution (with Lawrence Sager, 2007); The Next Justice: Repairing the Supreme Court Appointments Process (2007); and Terms of Respect: How Colleges Get Free Speech Right (2025).