A New Field of Academic Inquiry…
Since the mid-twentieth century, the subject of Freemasonry has gained enhanced respectability as a field of serious historical inquiry, and part of a wider investigation into the emergence and evolution of civil society. Sixty Ph.D. dissertations produced in American universities during the past decade have focused on Freemasonry. There has been little communication, however, between the American Masonic community and professional academic institutions.

Our Mission…
The goal of the Roosevelt Center is to serve as a focal point for conversation, inquiry and action by students, faculty, Masons and others interested in the emerging scholarly fields of civil society and Freemasonry. The Center approaches Freemasonry as an association historically representative of civil society as it developed from the eighteenth-century onwards. It supports inquiry into the role Freemasonry assumed in private and public life. It also explores Masonic thought in a variety of historical and contemporary settings. The approach of the Center is multi-disciplinary, comparative and intended to support work at multiple institutions as well as with independent scholars.

Objectives…

• Improve understanding of civil society and Freemasonry.
  
• Inform universities in California, the Masonic community and the learning public about the emerging field of the academic study of Freemasonry, and the advantages and need for comparative and global studies.
  
• Facilitate funding for research and travel grants, scholarship programs, post-doctoral fellowships, communications, and exchange programs.
  
• Convene conferences and exhibitions at appropriate facilities.
  
• Publish studies, papers, and news of pertinent developments in this field in COSMPOLIS, the Center’s quarterly bulletin, and develop support for additional scholarly publications and supplemental materials.