There is an expression in French that says, “Autumn is the hush before winter.” It is a lovely way to describe the tranquility of the fall, and there is no better place to experience it than the East Coast of the United States. I had the opportunity to experience the Fall colors on a trip to Wilmington, Delaware, to speak at the Intercollegiate Studies Institute (ISI). It was a truly rejuvenating experience.

The ISI was founded in 1953 by Frank Chodorov, who was an influential writer on classical liberal values. The first president was conservative icon William F. Buckley Jr. It has been a force for decades on college campuses, fighting to preserve diversity of viewpoints despite the purging of academic departments of conservatives and libertarians.

I met with some ISI students, and it was truly restorative. These are passionate young people who deeply believe in the core values of free speech and our constitutional system. ISI has also played a critical role in supporting independent student newspapers like The Chicago Thinker, which just broke the story on Sen. Elissa Slotkin. Notably, that speech must have had other reporters present, but it was this student publication that posted her admission that she wanted to intimidate young conservatives to deter them from supporting the Administration out of fear of investigation under the Democrats.

ISI has never been more important to higher education and the country in fighting for greater intellectual diversity and viewpoints.

The ISI campus in Wilmington is perfectly stunning with buildings once owned by the DuPont family overlooking a lake.