Alexander Meiklejohn (; 3 February 1872 – 17 December 1964) was a philosopher, university administrator, educational reformer, and free-speech advocate, best known as president of Amherst College. Background Alexander Meiklejohn was born on February 3, 1872, in Newbold Street, Rochdale, Lancashire, England. He was of Scottish descent, and the youngest of eight sons. When he was eight, the family moved to the United States, settling in Rhode Island. Family members pooled their money to send him to school. He earned bachelor's and master's degrees at Brown University, graduating Phi Beta Kappa, and completed his doctorate in philosophy at Cornell in 1897. At Brown, he was a member of Theta Delta Chi. Career In 1897, Meiklejohn began teaching at Brown. In 1901, he became second dean of the university, a position he held for twelve years. The first-year advising program at Brown bears his name. From 1912 to 1923, Meiklejohn served as president of Amherst College. His presidency ended with his forced resignation for trying to apply his reforms, and thirteen students refused their diplomas that year in protest. Although he was offered the presidency of other colleges, Meiklejohn proposed to open a new, experimental liberal arts college. He was unable to develop adequate funding for creating an entirely new school, but he was invited by Glenn Frank, new president of the University of Wisconsin, to create the University of Wisconsin Experimental College there, which ran from 1927 to 1932. He retired from the University of Wisconsin in 1938, having already moved to Berkeley, California. He was a cofounder of the School of Social Studies in San Francisco, an adult education program focusing on "great books" and American democracy. In 1965, the school became the Meiklejohn Civil Liberties Institute (MCLI), a "non-governmental organization" run by Ann Fagan Ginger. In 1945, Meiklejohn was a US delegate to the founding meeting of UNESCO in London. Death Meiklejohn died at age 92 on December 17, 1964, in Berkeley, California. On free speech Meiklejohn was known as an advocate of First Amendment freedoms and was a member of the National Committee of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). He was a notable proponent of the link between freedom of speech and democracy. He argued that the concept of democracy is that of self-government by the people. For such a system to work an informed electorate is necessary. To be appropriately knowledgeable, there must be no