J. William Fulbright
In 1945, J. William Fulbright began a career in the Senate that was to last 30 years and to influence the lives of people the world over. Before arriving in Washington, Fulbright had already served as president of the University of Arkansas, from 1939 to 1941. He was the youngest college president in the nation. Fulbright spent all his school years at the University until 1925, the year he left for Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar.
Internationalism
A Senate career that was to be marked by an unwavering dedication to global cooperation began during World War II, years during which U.S. foreign policy was transformed. Americans began moving from a cautious isolationism toward internationalism in world affairs. Acting on his belief that an international peacekeeping organization was crucial in formulating a humane foreign policy, Fulbright sponsored a resolution committing the U.S. to a leadership role in forming the United Nations.
Fulbright was a dominant intellectual force in Congress. He chaired the Senate Foreign Relations Committee longer than any other Senator in American history. He introduced legislation that led to the founding of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and was also the only senator to vote against funding the so-called "Un-American Activities" investigations of Senator Joseph R. McCarthy of Wisconsin.
An Exchange Program for People Across the Globe
He also created the famed Fulbright Scholarship Program, established in 1946 to promote international understanding through the worldwide exchange of university students, teachers, artists, and other professionals. Today 51 binational commissions join the U.S. in underwriting a program that has awarded more than 250,000 scholarships.
Noted Author and Statesman
He authored several notable books, including "The Arrogance of Power," "The Crippled Giant," and "The Price of Empire." In 1982, the University of Arkansas formally dedicated the Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences in recognition of the contributions of J. William Fulbright toward international understanding and education. To mark the 50th anniversary of the Fulbright Exchange Program, the U.S. Postal Service issued a special commemorative stamp during a ceremony held February 28, 1996, in Fayetteville.
The Free and Inquiring Mind
The College is committed to Fulbright's belief that knowledge promotes tolerance and understanding among peoples. The College mission is taken from his writings:
...the highest function of higher education is the teaching of things in perspective, toward the purposes of enriching the life of the individual, cultivating the free and inquiring mind, and advancing the effort to bring reason, justice, and humanity into the relations of men and nations.
A Rich Legacy
On October 24, 1999, the University of Arkansas dedicated the Fulbright Peace Fountain in his honor. The fountain, designed by Fay Jones, is dedicated to the possibility of peace through education. The Honorable William Jefferson Clinton joined former and current Fulbright Scholars on October 21, 2002, to dedicate the Fulbright sculpture, which faces the Peace Fountain.
President Clinton said that Fulbright believed "The best thing America could do was to be an intelligent example of the world through material helpfulness without moral presumption. He said that we should make our own society an example of human happiness, make ourselves the friend of social revolution, and go beyond simple reciprocity in the effort to reconcile hostile worlds. He would far prefer to see us be a sympathetic friend of humanity, rather than its stern and prideful schoolmaster."