History & Ethics Forum to explore history, place, and civic engagement
September 1, 2026
MADISON, S.D. – Dakota State University will welcome historian Dr. Jon K. Lauck for the sixth annual History & Ethics Forum on Monday, Sept. 14. Lauck will present “Findings and Foundings: The Search for Roots in a Placeless Age” at 6:30 p.m. in The Beacom Institute of Technology. A hors d’oeuvres reception will be held from 6 to 6:30 p.m. in the building’s atrium. The event is free and open to the public.
As the United States commemorates the 250th anniversary of its founding, Lauck will invite attendees to consider another kind of founding – the communities, regions, institutions, and shared histories that give people a sense of place and belonging.
His presentation will explore how recovering the history of the Midwest, and South Dakota in particular, can strengthen people’s understanding of who they are and encourage greater engagement in their communities' civic life.
Lauck will also discuss initiatives such as the Dakota Territorial Papers Project, which uses emerging technologies, including digitization and artificial intelligence, to rediscover South Dakota’s territorial-era history and make historical sources more accessible to new generations.
The forum offers an opportunity to consider how understanding local and regional history can inform civic life today. Lauck’s presentation will encourage attendees to consider the stories and places that have shaped their communities and how those connections can strengthen civic engagement.
Lauck is executive director of the Center for Western Studies at Augustana University. He earned a Ph.D. in history from the University of Iowa and a law degree from the University of Minnesota. He is a past president of the Midwestern History Association and the Society for the Study of Midwestern Literature. He serves as editor-in-chief of the journal Middle West Review.
An accomplished scholar of Midwestern history, Lauck has authored or edited more than 30 books. His works include “The Good Country: A History of the American Midwest,” “The Lost Region: Toward a Revival of Midwestern History,” and “Prairie Republic: The Political Culture of Dakota Territory.” He is also an editor of “The Oxford History of the American Midwest.” In 2023, Lauck received the Frederick Jackson Turner Award for Lifetime Achievement in Midwestern History.