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 he American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an international learned society. Founded in 1780, the Academy is composed of the world's leading scientists, scholars, artists, business people, and public leaders both past and present.
 The main headquarters for the American Academy of Arts and Sciences are in Cambridge, Massachusetts. With its geographically diverse membership, we have also established regional centers at the University of Chicago and at the University of California, Irvine, and conducts activities in this country and abroad.
The American Academy was founded during the American Revolution by John Adams, James Bowdoin, John Hancock, and other leaders who contributed prominently to the establishment of the new nation, its government, and its Constitution. Its purpose was to provide a forum for a select group of scholars, members of the learned professions, and government and business leaders to work together on behalf of the democratic interests of the republic.
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With a current membership of 4,000 American Fellows and 600 Foreign Honorary Members, the Academy has four major goals:
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Promoting service and study through analysis of critical social and intellectual issues and the development of practical policy alternatives; |
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Fostering public engagement and the exchange of ideas with meetings, conferences, and symposia bringing diverse perspectives to the examination of issues of common concern; |
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Mentoring a new generation of scholars and thinkers through the newly established Visiting Scholars Program; |
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Honoring excellence by electing to membership men and women in a broad range of disciplines and professions. Click here to learn about new members in the class of 2005. |
In the words of the Academy's charter, enacted in 1780, the "end and design of the institution is...to cultivate every art and science which may tend to advance the interest, honour, dignity, and happiness of a free, independent, and virtuous people." |
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