Mr. James McCrery II
Renewing the Classical Tradition: Architecture as Cultural Recovery
Tuesday, January 27, 2026 in the Summit Park Gymnasium
Renewing the Classical Tradition: Architecture as Cultural Recovery
- What does is mean to “build classically” in the modern world?
- How does architecture embody and transmit culture?
- In what sense can architecture contribute to cultural renewal?
- How does a classical building support the moral and intellectual formation of students?
- What responsibilities come with building in the classical tradition today?
About the Speaker
James McCrery is the founding principal of McCrery Architects, PLLC, a Washington, DC based firm committed to the design of churches, civic and university buildings, and unique commissions for clients desiring rich, legible meaning incorporated into their buildings.
His built works and contributions throughout the United States have received many awards and have been favorably reviewed in The New York Times, City Journal, The Washington Business Journal, The Wall Street Journal, The Weekly Standard, Period Homes, The New York Post, Country Life (U.K.), The Washington Post, Traditional Building, The Washington Times, New York Daily News, The Classicist, and the National Review.
He is an internationally recognized leader in classical architectural design and construction. McCrery is the design architect of the recently completed Cathedral of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus in Knoxville, Tennessee, The Saint Mary Help of Christians Church in Aiken South Carolina, and the St.Thomas Aquinas Chapel at the St. John Newman Center – University of Nebraska at Lincoln. He is the architect of the Book and Gift Store in the United States Supreme Court Building. He designed the pedestal for the statue of President and Governor Ronald Wilson Reagan that stands in the Rotunda of the United States Capitol as well as the pedestal for the recently completed statue of The Reverend Billy Graham that stands in the Capitol Rotunda’s Crypt.
His current work includes a new master plan and Revolutionary War Memorial for the North Carolina State Capital Grounds, a new mountaintop Benedictine Monastery in rural Tasmania, and several commissions for new buildings at Hillsdale College.
James is a tenured member of the faculty of the School of Architecture and the Allied Arts at the Catholic University of America in Washington, DC where he is the founding Director of the Concentration in Classical Architecture and Urban Design. He is a founding member of the National Civic Art Society; a National Design Peer of the U.S. General Services Administration, and in December 2019 was appointed by President Donald J. Trump to the United States Commission of Fine Arts.
About the Veritatis Splendor Speakers Series
Through the Veritatis Splendor Speakers Series (Latin for “Splendor of Truth”), CLASSICAL will be inviting nationally recognized speakers to address thought-provoking topics related to our mission of promoting moral character and civic virtue through a content-rich education in the classical liberal arts and sciences. The aim of the speaker series is not merely to deepen the knowledge and involvement of CLASSICAL’s immediate school community, but also to educate and engage the community at large.
Previous Veritatis Splendor Speakers
Dr. Stephen Smith – An Education for All Seasons: Thomas More’s Vision for Today
Christopher Rufo – Restoring Integrity to Public Education
Dr. Wilfred McClay – Recovering the Great American Story
Dr. Jordan Wales – Artificial Intelligence, the Human Person, and Education
Dr. Dwight Lindley – A Christmas Carol to Re-Enchant the World
Dr. David Whalen – Character and Virtue: Learning to Love What’s Right
Dr. Stephen Smith – Love and Fire: Education of Soul in Dante’s Divine Comedy
Dr. Leonard Sax – Tik Tok Ate My Daughter, and My Son Won’t Stop Playing Video Games
Dr. Larry Arnn – The Renaissance of American Classical Education
Dr. Jeffrey Lehman – Quadrivial Pursuits: Why Classical Education Needs the Quadrivium
Dr. Stephen Smith – Why Everyone Should Study Shakespeare
Mr. Andrew Zwerneman – The Confidence of Culture: Seeing What the West Frees us to See
Mr. Patrick Whalen – The Role of the Body in Education
Dr. Daniel Coupland – Education and the Cultivation of the Moral Imagination
Mr. Antonin Scalia – What My Grandfather Taught Me About the Constitution
Location: Summit Park Symposium Room –10200 Reed Hartman Hwy, Cincinnati, OH 45242