Friday, June 27
3:00pm - 3:45pm
How You Can Preserve Humanist History
The future of any movement depends on how well it remembers where it’s been. The American Humanist Association’s archives — now housed at Meadville Lombard in Chicago — are a living record of generations of humanist leaders. In this session, you'll learn how the AHA is preserving its history for future generations and how your story can be a part of it. See how this special archive is enhancing the training of Unitarian Universalist ministers and securing the place of humanism in UU institutional memory. And get a clear grasp of what this collection of foundational documents contains as well as how you can access much of it online. Humanism has a grand story to tell — one still being written by all of us. Come learn how you can help ensure that story is remembered, shared, and carried forward into the future.
Speakers
John Dechant
Dr. John Dechant, PhD, MLIS, joined Meadville Lombard in 2023. Having previously worked as a college reference librarian, a higher education instructor, a writing tutor, and an academic editor, John is experienced and enjoys working with graduate students, faculty, and staff on research, writing, and navigating copyright matters. With a BA in History, a PhD in Near Eastern Languages & Cultures—with minors in Religious Studies and Central Eurasian Studies—and a Master’s degree in Library & Information Science, he draws on a broad interdisciplinary skillset in developing our library and archival collections and in reference work. He is especially interested in the Library Science field of Scholarly Communication. He established Melodic (Meadville Lombard’s institutional repository) and maintains academic writing and citation guides along with other library resources.
John Hooper
John Hooper, Ph.D. (Carnegie Mellon University) is a retired scientist and industrial research director, having pursued a career in molecular imaging and spectroscopy. Hooper has held local and national leadership positions in organizations involving naturalism, Humanism, and Unitarian Universalist (UU) social action. He is treasurer of the American Humanist Association Board of Directors and chair of that board’s Finance and Strategic Planning Committees; a trustee of the Humanist Foundation; a board member of The Institute for Humanist Studies; chair of the Steering Committee of the Humanist Special Collection at Meadville Lombard Theological School; vice president of the Board of Trustees of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Chautauqua; and coordinator of the Humanism Initiative at the Chautauqua Institution.
He previously served as a member of the Unitarian Universalist Association Commission on Social Witness; Board Chair of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation in Westport, CT; president of the Unitarian Universalist Religious Naturalists; president of the Unitarian Universalist Humanist Association (HUUmanists.org); a vice president of the Westport (CT) Public Library Board; president of the Secular Coalition for America Education Fund, and a trustee and treasurer of the board of the UU Church of the Larger Fellowship. John is a founding member of both the Humanists and Freethinkers of Fairfield County (CT) and the Pittsburgh (PA) Freethought Community, where he served as a board member.
Hooper and his wife, Dr. Gail M. Pesyna, a retired foundation executive, live in Pittsburgh, PA.
Roy Speckhardt
Roy Speckhardt is the former executive director of the American Humanist Association where he actively promoted the humanist perspective on progressive political issues and was a frequent media commentator, having appeared on Good Morning America, CNN, Fox News, and NPR, among others. He previously served as deputy director of The Interfaith Alliance and worked for various other politically progressive nonprofits.
Now Development Director of VoteRiders, Speckhardt still gives talks to colleges and local groups on occasion and remains involved as a volunteer with the AHA Board. He also serves on the advisory board of the Religious Freedom Center of the Newseum Institute and the Forest Stewardship Council Investments & Partnerships Leadership Council.
Speckhardt holds an M.B.A. from George Mason University and B.A. in sociology from Mary Washington College. He currently lives in Washington, DC. He is the author of Creating Change Through Humanism and Justice-Centered Humanism.