America's Future Lecture Series
The William W. Siebens American Heritage Lecture Series explores the meaning of freedom and its role in American life. Bringing influential leaders to BVU, the annual series encourages thoughtful discussion about the liberties, responsibilities, and evolving ideas that shape our society.
America's Future Lecture Series
Daron Acemoglu is an Institute Professor at MIT and Faculty Co-Director of MIT’s Shaping the Future of Work Initiative. A leading economist and Nobel Laureate in 2024, he is a fellow of the National Academy of Sciences, the British Academy, the American Philosophical Society, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
He is the author of the New York Times bestseller Why Nations Fail (with James A. Robinson), The Narrow Corridor (with James A. Robinson), and Power and Progress: Our Thousand-Year Struggle over Technology and Prosperity (with Simon Johnson).
He holds honorary doctorates from Utrecht University, Bosporus University, the University of Athens, Bilkent University, the University of Bath, École Normale Supérieure, Paris-Saclay University, and London Business School.
Exploring America’s Future
Beginning in Fall 2026, the University’s long-established William W. Siebens American Heritage Lecture Series will enter a new chapter as the America’s Future Lecture Series. This reimagined program will bring nationally recognized thought leaders to campus to engage the BVU community in forward-looking conversations about technology and its impact on all aspects of American life. The spirit of the American Heritage Lecture Series will continue through this refreshed focus, ensuring our students learn from those shaping the future and are equipped to contribute to it themselves.
As part of this evolution, BVU is launching the Siebens Fellowship, a new initiative that will pair two faculty members from different disciplines to design and teach an interdisciplinary course debuting in Fall 2026. The course will guide students in examining the economic, social, and ethical dimensions of technological change through the work of Dr. Acemoglu and will culminate in the student-driven panel that continues to anchor the lecture series.
Honoring the American Heritage Lecture Series
The William W. Siebens American Heritage Lecture Series explores freedom as a living idea shaped by business, academics, law, government, religion, the press, and other aspects of American life. The series brings nationally and internationally recognized leaders to Buena Vista University to share contemporary perspectives and encourage thoughtful conversations about the liberties and responsibilities of being global Americans.
The lecture series is an important part of BVU’s commitment to meaningful dialogue and learning, inspiring students, faculty, trustees, and community members to consider the evolving nature of freedom in America. Established and endowed by Iowa-born entrepreneur and philanthropist Dr. Harold Walter Siebens in honor of his son, William W. Siebens, the series continues to create opportunities for the BVU community to learn from influential voices and engage with ideas that shape our world.