Select undergraduates and top faculty from across the country convened in Philadelphia in early June to launch another year of ISI's Honors Program, which included canoeing, barbecuing, and conferring on a range of topics under the rubric of "Western Civilization and the End of History." The intense weeklong conference featured twenty-five lectures, seminars, and small-group discussions that explored theoretical and practical questions under the conference's theme. In the midst of a full week, time was found for a canoe trip on the scenic Brandywine River, volleyball and a barbecue at ISI's Kirby Campus, and sightseeing in Philadelphia. Each night was capped by relaxation in the hospitality suite.

Distinguished political theorist Peter Augustine Lawler introduced the conference theme, speaking on "Happily Ever After? The Case for the End of History Today." Presentations then ranged from discussions of classical and Christian theories of history by the University of Colorado's E. Christian Kopff and Dartmouth's James Murphy, through treatments of currently controverted questions such as Catholic University's Graham Walker on "Church and State at the End of Liberalism." The week climaxed with Assumption College's Daniel J. Mahoney speaking on "Totalitarianism and the Apocalypse of Modernity" and Colgate's Robert Kraynak, who asked the question: "Conservative Critics of Modernity: Can They Turn Back the Clock?"

Most of the faculty presenters at the conference also serve individual undergraduate Honors Fellows as Mentors throughout the coming academic year. Clark Vandeventer, student body president at Indiana Wesleyan University remarked that the conference "far surpassed all my expectations," and he noted the spirit of camaraderie, which quickly developed among the assembled Honors Fellows: "The intense atmosphere of the week really forces everyone to come together and form bonds." "It was the most intense intellectual experience I have ever had," said Gonzaga student Tom Harmon. "The conference addressed what it means to be conservative, who the important conservative thinkers are, and what we are trying to conserve. It addressed societal ills like moral relativism and academic politicization. The conference radically deepened my understanding in all of these areas." Harmon also scored the conference high for the bonding which took place and was looking forward to a follow-on career development seminar which will bring the group together again later in the academic year.

Each year the ISI Honors Program selects a small number of the nation's most promising undergraduates for a yearlong program of educational enrichment. Alumni of the program have gone on to graduate study at prominent American universities and at Oxford and Cambridge, as well as to such law schools as Harvard and Georgetown. Several have received prestigious awards, including the Marshall, Fulbright, and Luce Fellowships.