John Malcolm McCardell Jr. (born June 17, 1949) is an American historian and academic administrator. On June 17, 2020, he stepped down as the

Vice-Chancellor A chancellor is a leader of a college or university, usually either the executive or ceremonial head of the university or of a university campus within a university system. In most Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth and former Commonwealth n ...

and

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

of Sewanee: The University of the South, where he will remain a history professor.

Early life

McCardell was born on June 17, 1949 in Maryland. He graduated from

Washington and Lee University , mottoeng = "Not Unmindful of the Future" , established = , type = Private liberal arts university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.092 billion (2021) , president = William C. Dudley , provost = Lena Hill , city = Lexingto ...

in 1971. He earned a PhD in History from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

in 1976. For his dissertation, ''The Idea of a Southern Nation'', he was awarded the 1977 Allan Nevins Prize by the Society of American Historians.

Academic career

McCardell joined the History department at

Middlebury College Middlebury College is a private liberal arts college in Middlebury, Vermont. Founded in 1800 by Congregationalists, Middlebury was the first operating college or university in Vermont. The college currently enrolls 2,858 undergraduates from all ...

in 1976. He served as the university president from 1992 to 2004. An anonymous donor of $50 million in the spring of 2004 asked that Middlebury's science center, Bicentennial Hall, be renamed John M. McCardell Jr. Bicentennial Hall. McCardell taught History at Middlebury College from 2004 to 2010. McCardell served as Vice-Chancellor of Sewanee: The University of the South from 2010 until June 17, 2020. He continues as a professor of history at the University.

Lowering the drinking age

McCardell is the founder and director of

Choose Responsibility Choose Responsibility is a non-profit organization in the United States, that promotes public awareness of the dangers of excessive and reckless alcohol consumption by young adults. The main goal is to lower the minimum legal drinking age by educati ...

, an organization dedicated to exploring and advocating the lowering of the legal drinking age to 18 and issuing drinking learner permits to adults age 18, 19, and 20 in an effort to promote responsible consumption. He authored an

op-ed An op-ed, short for "opposite the editorial page", is a written prose piece, typically published by a North-American newspaper or magazine, which expresses the opinion of an author usually not affiliated with the publication's editorial board. O ...

in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' in 2004 saying, "the 21-year-old

drinking age The legal drinking age is the minimum age at which a person can legally consume alcoholic beverages. The minimum age alcohol can be legally consumed can be different from the age when it can be purchased in some countries. These laws vary between ...

is bad social policy and terrible law". He later spearheaded the creation of the

Amethyst Initiative The Amethyst Initiative is an organization made up of U.S. college presidents and chancellors that, in July 2008, launched a movement calling for the reconsideration of U.S. legal drinking age, particularly the minimum age of 21. The National Mi ...

, a statement of over 120 college presidents across the United States calling for reconsideration of drinking age laws.

Personal life

McCardell has a wife, Bonnie Greenwald, and two sons.

Bibliography

* ''In the Cause of Liberty:How the Civil War Redefined American Ideals'' edited by William J. Cooper and John M. McCardell Jr. Baton Rouge,LA.:

Louisiana State University Press The Louisiana State University Press (LSU Press) is a university press at Louisiana State University. Founded in 1935, it publishes works of scholarship as well as general interest books. LSU Press is a member of the Association of American Univer ...

, 2009

References

External links

Middlebury College Website

Vermont youth push to drink earlier

Choose Responsibility
* {{DEFAULTSORT:McCardell, John Jr. Living people Presidents of Middlebury College Sewanee: The University of the South administrators Washington and Lee University alumni Johns Hopkins University alumni Harvard University alumni Middlebury College faculty People from Middlebury, Vermont 1949 births