Happenings

In a collaborative event between Wheatley Institute and BYU's McKay School of Education, leading scholars and educators from across the country discussed the potential for religious faith to help bridge America's widening student learning opportunity gaps.

In honor of America's 250th anniversary, BYU history professor Tyson Reeder, with support from the Wheatley Institute, taught a semester-long history course on the Declaration of Independence. As a culminating learning experience, the entire class, which included several Wheatley Scholars, traveled to key historical sites associated with the Declaration in Virginia, Washington D.C., and Philadelphia.

Today, 80% of Americans say religion is losing influence in American life. Sociologist Christian Smith’s book-length study Why Religion Went Obsolete: The Decline of Traditional Religion (2025) provides data that support this perception. One international study in the last decade that examined national levels of religiosity found that the United States ranked 14% lower in religiosity than formerly communist Russia. Many Americans have replaced religious commitments and identity with devotion to aspects of politics, popular culture, science, or all three.

"The marital horizon functions as a behavioral organizer. It shapes what young men pay attention to, how they invest their time and energy, and how they weigh short-term pleasures against long-term flourishing."

Wheatley Institute collaborated with the BYU Marriott School of Business to host the third annual Faith and Belief at Work Case Competition, connecting executives from major global corporations and students from around the world.

What do you ask an expert on technology, culture, and generational psychology when you have the chance?

Are faith communities the key to closing opportunity gaps in public schools?

Building on its long-standing partnership with the National Marriage Project, Wheatley Institute helped co-sponsor the organization's 2026 Spring Conference held at the University of Virginia on March 17th.

There was standing room only as Tyson Reeder, Wheatley Affiliated Scholar and assistant professor of history at Brigham Young University, delivered a lecture at the Wheatley office earlier this month.

Distinguished Fellow Shima Baradaran Baughman Delivers Ensign College Devotional

After nearly two centuries, the promise of U.S. public schools to foster effective and meaningful learning opportunities for all children across race and social class remains unfulfilled. In this report, we examine the potential for religious faith to help bridge student learning opportunity gaps—given that seven in ten Americans identify with a faith tradition and that religious faith plays a significant role in various dimensions of human flourishing. We define religious faith as including both (a) personal spiritual beliefs and practices and (b) participation in religious organizations that structure shared beliefs, values, and rituals that guide personal and community conduct.

The Religion and the American Founding conference, held in March, brought together representatives from over a dozen different religions and faith organizations to share the impact of faith on the American founding.