HUBBARD TO RECEIVE PRESTIGIOUS AWARD DURING LINCOLN BICENTENNIAL

January 8, 2009 - Springfield, Illinois—Charles M. Hubbard of Lincoln Memorial University (LMU) in Harrogate, Tennessee is among 30 people from the United States and abroad who will receive a special Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial edition of The Order of Lincoln, the highest honor bestowed by the State of Illinois.

“The Order of Lincoln will be conferred upon 30 distinguished citizens of the world who have, in lasting and significant ways, preserved and enhanced the memory of Abraham Lincoln, thereby contributing to Lincoln’s lasting influence on the American spirit,” said John B. Simon, Chancellor of The Lincoln Academy of Illinois. “By honoring those who have venerated Lincoln, the Academy seeks to encourage new generations of Americans to carry on this important work.”

The Lincoln Academy of Illinois will present The Bicentennial Order of Lincoln to the 30 individuals during a formal ceremony on Saturday, February 7, at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum in Springfield, Illinois. The event precedes the weeklong celebration of Abraham Lincoln’s 200th birthday. Visit www.lincoln200.net for a full schedule of the state’s Bicentennial activities.

Some of the Bicentennial honorees will be recognized for a single accomplishment, such as a powerful work of art, a particularly significant publication or artistic production, and others will be recognized for a lifetime of work to perpetuate Lincoln’s legacy. Hubbard is being recognized for his lifetime of work which includes five books: The Many Faces of Lincoln in 1997, The Burden of Confederate Diplomacy in 1998, Lincoln and His Contemporaries in 1999, Historic Reflection on U.S. Governance and Civil Society in 2001, and Corregidor in War in Peace in 2006 and his most recent work, Lincoln and the Struggle for Command, which released in 2008.

Hubbard currently serves as Professor of History and Lincoln Historian at LMU. He also served as Director of the Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum on the campus of LMU for 12 years, where on behalf of the Museum and the University, he developed some impressive relationships with Lincoln scholars from all over the world. From 1998 to 2002, Hubbard also served as vice president for Lincoln studies at LMU.

Hubbard received his Bachelor of Arts Degree in History from Mercer University, his Master of Arts in History from Middle Tennessee State University and his Ph.D. from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. During his doctoral work, his specialty area was the diplomatic history of the Civil War era.

Hubbard has taught at Middle Tennessee State University, Cleveland State Community College and UT Knoxville. Under the auspices of the Fulbright Foundation, Hubbard taught American History at the University of Mahasarakham in Thailand and De La Salle University in the Philippines.

Hubbard is a Senior Fulbright Specialist and has received several grants for research and study abroad, including the Philippines and Malaysia. Research grants have included the Bernadotte Schmitt Research Grant and the New Jersey Historical Commission. He received the prestigious Mellon Foundation research grant from the Appalachian College Association. He is a John Nicholas Brown Fellow at Brown University. He received the Lincoln Award for Outstanding Professional Achievement in 1998, the Lincoln Diploma of Honor in 2006, and was inducted into LMU’s Literary Hall of Fame in 2007.

The Lincoln Academy, unique among the 50 states, was established in 1964 to honor Illinois’ most distinguished citizens, either by birth or residence, who have brought honor to the state by their achievements. The special Lincoln Bicentennial awards are a departure from the usual practice in that the award winners were selected from among worldwide nominees.

Prior recipients of the Order of Lincoln include President Ronald Reagan, the Chicago Bears’ Walter Payton, Poet Laureate Gwendolyn Brooks, author David Herbert Donald, business leader Lester Crown, Nobel scientist Leon Lederman and educator Richard H. Moy. For more information, visit www.thelincolnacademyofillinois.org.

Lincoln Memorial University is a values-based learning community dedicated to providing educational experiences in the liberal arts and professional studies. The main campus is located in Harrogate, Tennessee. For more information about the undergraduate and graduate programs available at LMU, contact the Office of Admissions at 423-869-6280 or e-mail at admissions@lmunet.edu.

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