The Fund for American Studies (TFAS) is delighted to announce the addition of Jade West to the TFAS Board of Trustees.
Jade West has been a longtime supporter and follower of TFAS, going back to when it was called the Charles Edison Youth Fund. As a conservative student in the 1960’s and early 70’s, West witnessed the Vietnam War protests divide the country and challenge the fundamentals that she was brought up believing in. It was critical for her to spend her professional career dedicated to defending the values of Western civilization.
“Organizations like TFAS reinforce a core conservative philosophy and encourage young conservatives like me to stay the course,” said West. “I spent my professional career continuing the battle to defend free markets and entrepreneurialism, 20 years working in the U.S. Senate and 20 working for a business trade association.”
TFAS was proud to present West with the 2022 TFAS Business Leadership Award during the 32nd Annual TFAS Scholarship Dinner, recognizing her remarkable career. This award honors individuals who have consistently demonstrated their commitment to personal responsibility, service, civil dialogue and fostering opportunities for all through their exceptional leadership. During her acceptance remarks, West shared the importance of TFAS’s mission to teach the values of freedom to our nation’s young people.
“I still believe that the fundamentals of American exceptionalism will triumph over the naysayers, but as we learn more about the indoctrination that has taken place in our education system, particularly colleges and universities, attaining that outcome becomes an even more daunting task,” she said. “The attack on freedom of speech, the silencing and cancelling of those with opposing views, has grown exponentially in recent years.”
In regard to these recent events, West emphasized that it is now more crucial than ever to teach these values to the next generation as it will empower them to contribute to create a better tomorrow.
“All of this makes the mission of TFAS even more critical than it has been,” she said. “While I firmly believe that the overwhelming majority of Americans still adhere to our traditional principles and fundamentals of a free market, it’s clear we need to teach those fundamentals and principles to each new generation of Americans. Progressive indoctrinators succeed when students have never been taught about how capitalism and free markets work and why America is a beacon of freedom to the world.”
West officially joined the Board of Trustees in July 2023. With this appointment, she expressed her gratitude of formally becoming part of TFAS’s work to develop courageous leaders who are inspired and equipped to champion America’s First Principles.
“TFAS-trained students and teachers learn what public education fails to teach and become spokesmen and spokeswomen for American exceptionalism,” she said. “The success TFAS has had over the years in expanding programs and the number of people it reaches is more than encouraging and I am gratified to be a part of that mission.”
The Board of Trustees is the governing body of TFAS, comprised of individuals dedicated to promoting the mission of the organization through time, talents and financial support. To learn more about the board, visit TFAS.org/trustees.