USC names McCausland Chair in Civic Engagement to direct civic leadership center
May 4, 2026
The University of South Carolina has named Christopher Tollefsen as the Peter McCausland Chair in Civic Engagement and the executive director of the Center for American Civic Leadership and Public Discourse.
Tollefsen, an accomplished professor of philosophy at USC, has led the center as interim executive director since its founding in July 2025. Over the past year, the center attracted hundreds of students, faculty, staff and community members to events focused on issues such as civil political discourse, religious freedom, the Constitution and education. His appointment to a full term as executive director comes after a competitive national search.
“Dr. Tollefsen has built more than an academic center. He established a platform for thoughtful civic engagement for South Carolina, bringing people from throughout the state together to discuss important issues and solutions to modern democratic challenges,” said Thomas E. Hodges, interim dean of the McCausland College of Arts and Sciences. “Our goal is to prepare students not only for their professions, but for their roles as citizens. Under Dr. Tollefsen’s leadership, the center is helping them think more deeply about both.”
The Peter McCausland Chair in Civic Engagement was created by a gift from Bonnie and Peter McCausland and the McCausland Foundation. Peter McCausland, a 1971 graduate of USC, has said his history education and student government experience helped prepare him for his career, which included founding Airgas, Inc., and leading the company to Fortune 500 status during his more than 30 years as CEO.
The endowed chair will provide Tollefsen with additional funding to support research and programs that help students develop the knowledge and skills necessary for active participation in the civic process — such as the ability to take part in civil, informed dialogue and an understanding of how public institutions function.
“This appointment reflects our commitment to fostering rigorous, open and civil discourse on issues that shape our democracy,” Mary Ann Fitzpatrick, provost of the University of South Carolina, said. “Dr. Tollefsen’s leadership positions the university to advance thoughtful engagement grounded in scholarship and dedicated to the public good. The university is eternally grateful for Peter and Bonnie McCausland’s visionary stewardship in establishing the Peter McCausland Chair in Civic Engagement.”
Tollefsen, who joined the USC faculty in 1997, has published more than 125 articles in journals and edited collections, as well as many essays in national popular publications. He is the author of several books, including “Killing and Christian Ethics” (Cambridge University Press, 2026). His public service has included a term on the State Department’s Commission on Unalienable Rights. He has twice been a visiting fellow in the James Madison Program at Princeton University.
In the 2026-2027 academic year, the Center for American Civic Leadership and Public Discourse will launch academic offerings including a new minor in civics and a class on constructive disagreement. Tollefsen plans to grow the center’s student-facing programming while collaborating with more partners across campus to support programs that research American civics and help students develop skills for participating in democracy.
He said his goal is to help students explore what it means to take an active role in civic life.
“We want to make it possible for them to do good work in a community context and pursue the common good in whatever communities they’re a part of,” Tollefsen said. “Not only voting, but voting in an informed way. Not just running for office, but running for office in an informed way that seeks the good of their community. They will have a more capacious, better-informed way of understanding what it means to be a good citizen.”
The Center for American Civic Leadership and Public Discourse brings together scholars, thought leaders and community members throughout South Carolina and beyond to address critical challenges facing our state and nation. Through events, publications and academic programs, the center helps South Carolina students and community members develop the skills required for active participation in civic life, helping students prepare for careers and civic engagement. Learn more at go.sc.edu/CivicLeadership.
