Supreme Court Justice to speak on campus

The University of Southern Mississippi’s Honors College will hold an event featuring Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia tomorrow in Bennett Auditorium at 6:30 p.m. titled “The Methodology of Originalism.”

Scalia assumed the position as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States in September 1986 after being appointed by President Ronald Reagan. Prior to serving on the Supreme Court, Scalia was Chairman of the American Bar Association’s Section of Administrative Law, Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Counsel and U.S. Court of Appeals Judge for the District of Columbia Circuit. He is the longest-serving justice on the Court.

Scalia is considered to be a conservative, right-wing judge. He is one of the most well-known Justices on the court for his judicial philosophy of “originalism,” which is the idea that the Constitution should be interpreted in terms of what it meant to its original authors.

He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in history from Georgetown University in 1957 and was valedictorian of his graduating class. After graduating from Georgetown, he went on to earn his law degree from Harvard Law School. He is currently married to his wife Maureen, and they have nine children and 28 grandchildren.

Dave Davies, dean of the Honors College, expressed his excitement for the forum.

“The purpose of Honors is to expose students to speakers who they might not get to hear otherwise,” Davies said. “The opportunity for students to hear from a sitting Supreme Court Justice is just terrific, so I’m delighted they have a chance to hear one up close.”

Although the event is a part of the University Honors Forum, it’s open for all students. Approximately 180 seats will be reserved for various Honors students and dignitaries, and the remaining seats will be open for the general public on a first-come, first-served basis.

Davis said he is expecting a nice turnout from all students. When asked why students should attend the forum, Davis begged the question, “How many times do you get to hear a sitting Supreme Court Justice?”

“This is a wonderful chance to expose yourself to one of the most important jurists in the land,” Davies said.