Hillsdale College Online For-Credit History and Government 

Many American schoolchildren lack a basic understanding of American history and the Constitution. Consider this: if you were to ask the average young person what happened at Antietam, or why the Founders separated the powers of government in the Constitution, you would likely be met with a blank stare! 

And this is no fault of their own. Young people are not taught these important details from primary school through college. Instead, they are educated to believe that the Founders were racists and sexists, and that American history­—which is presented as one long story of oppression—is shameful.  

At Hillsdale College, we disagree. As we note in our mission statement, “the American experiment of self-government under law” is the “clearest expression . . . of our Western philosophical and theological inheritance.” Everyone should study these things to understand what makes America the greatest nation in history. 

But our own young citizens must learn both the good and bad of American history. They must understand how our government was intended to work and how it works today. They must know these things because they are the future of this country. We bear a duty, as the Founders understood, to “secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity.” 

That is why Hillsdale College has begun to offer for-credit online college courses in American History and American Government. We began offering these courses in January to a select group of homeschooled students to determine the best way to provide an alternative to the way these courses are taught at most schools. 

These courses required students to read primary source documents, discuss the big topics and controversies from America’s history, and write papers that address the main themes of the courses. In short, the courses challenged these students to understand what our predecessors actually said and did, draw their own conclusions about the meaning, and then defend these conclusions to their classmates and professor. 

We look forward to expanding our efforts this fall as we try to reach a wider audience of high school students. If you know of a high school student who might be interested in taking one of these courses in the fall, please can contact onlineadmissions@hillsdale.edu for more information.