Sennholz was the first student in the United States to write a dissertation and receive a PhD under the guidance of Ludwig von Mises. Mises had only recently completed Human Action. Imagine how having such an outstanding student, and a native German speaker no less, must have affected Mises’s life, how it must have encouraged him to know that his work could continue through outstanding thinkers such as this. [Full Article]
Hans Sennholz is the 2004 Schlarbaum Laureate. He delivered this speech at the award ceremony, October 16, 2004, San Mateo, California. It is posted here October 19, 2004.
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I appreciate Lew Rockwell’s written tribute to Dr. Sennholz, because I studied economics under him at Grove City College long ago (1967-1971).
In fact, a small cadre of Austrian School libertarians was encamped at Grove City College from across the country: California, New York, Kansas, Pennsylvania, Montana, New Jersy and other places I’ve now forgotten. All of us were drawn to Grove City College for the same reason: Dr. Sennholz’s articles in the Freeman Magazine, that explained and defended the virtues of free markets against the establishment monolith of command and control cheerleaders. All of us read and debated Mises, Hayek, Rand, Rothbard, and Friedman. Sometimes these discussions would briefly spill over into the classroom, interrupting for two or three minutes the day’s subject matter. Then, it was back to studying basic economic principles.
Dr. Sennholz used his energy and independence to make Grove City College a rare and unique center of learning, during a time when the opportunities to obtain insightful and rational instruction in economics were nearly non-existent.
I will always appreciate his very important contribution to my struggle to make sense of the world.
What a great tribute to Hans Sennholz! He was my teacher and there isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t thank God for that fact and also for the education I received at Grove City College.
Hans Sennholz’s career is remarkable in what he did and what he didn’t do. Apparently, he did not engage in meaningless diatribes against his attackers, as is appropriate for an academic and a gentleman.
What he did do was focus his life on educating our youth and introducing them to the Austrian school of ecomomics. Why do I feel 9 guessing)the Ivy’s never invited him to lecture.
We need more discussion on free market economics in stead of sound bytes.
Congrads Prof. Sennholz.
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