Greater World 2024
BUILDING A GREATER WORLD
Alexander Lucero, B.A. ‘24, and Associate Professor Samuel Goldman, Executive Director of the Ambassador John L. Loeb, Jr. Institute for Religious Freedom and Democracy
Loeb Institute Honors Our Namesake’s Vision
Religious freedom for all faiths is a defining American ideal. First advocated by President George Washington in 1790, a national promise to ensure the safety of religious minorities and that, in Washington’s words, “gives to bigotry no sanction” was remarkably innovative.
Today, as religious liberty dominates headlines across the globe, GW’s Ambassador John L. Loeb, Jr. Institute for Religious Freedom and Democracy is at the forefront of critical work to advance scholarship and ensure a new generation understands the centrality of these values to a healthy democracy.
Alexander Lucero, B.A. ’24, came to GW from a diverse family – his father is a Filipino immigrant and a U.S. Navy veteran and his mother is a third-generation Jewish American. Like many GW students, Lucero built an education in and out of classrooms, mixing courses in law and trade with work at a law firm, a Hebrew school, and the Undergraduate Law Review.
A grant from the Loeb Institute and mentorship from its faculty helped Lucero synthesize his understanding of constitutional law and policy in a research project.
“It was my time at the Loeb Institute that really helped me to take what I learned in the classroom about religious liberty and politics, and produce original research on the intersection between those topics,” Lucero said. He also received a Sigelman Undergraduate Research Enhancement (SURE) Award created by GW professors Carol and Lee Sigelman.
In addition to grants to undergraduate and graduate students, the Loeb Institute supports the research of noted scholars from a range of disciplines, sponsors lectures and events, partners with international organizations to advance collaborative data, and holds workshops for high school teachers.
“In a democratic society, persons of all faiths are equal in the eyes of their government.”
— John L. Loeb, Jr.
Ambassador John L. Loeb, an accomplished businessman, public servant, and philanthropist, provided the founding gift for the institute in 2016, and his continued investment will exceed $20 million. The former U.S. ambassador to Denmark, Loeb’s experience with anti-semitism during World War II sparked a lifelong passion for promoting religious freedom.
The Planet Forward Frontline Climate Fellowship, supported by a grant from the Helen Gurley Brown Foundation, engages students who report environmental stories from, by, and about underserved communities on the front lines of climate change and environmental inequity.
The “GDub Election Hub” draws together expertise from across the university to help students, scholars, and policymakers make sense of the 2024 U.S. Presidential election cycle.
The GW Center for Excellence in Public Leadership and the Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation awarded the 21st Annual Calvin Cafritz Awards. The annual awards have recognized more than 120 D.C. government employees for their dedication and service.
In 2023-24, nearly 3,000 members of the GW community recorded 640,669 service hours through the Honey Nashman Center for Civic Engagement and Public Service.
