Symposium | October 15, 2026 | Iowa State University
"The U.S. Constitution: Where Separation and Unity Meet"
Keynote Remarks
Keynote videos will be uploaded as each becomes available
Judge Ralph R. Erickson
Judge Erickson was appointed to the United States Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit by President Donald J. Trump in 2017. He became a senior judge in 2026. Prior to this appointment, he served as the chief justice for the US District Court for North Dakota, having been appointed by President George W. Bush in 2003. He was born in Thief River Falls, MN, in 1959, earned his JD at the University of South Dakota School of Law in 1984, and worked in private practice until becoming a judge in 1994.
Alexander Dushku
Elder (an ecclesiastical title) Dushku serves as a General Authority and as General Counsel for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He received a BA in economics from Brigham Young University in 1990 and a juris doctor degree from BYU Law School in 1993. He worked as an attorney for the Salt Lake City law firm Kirton McConkie from 1996 to 2023, where for many years he was head of the firm’s constitutional and appellate law section. He has authored numerous briefs in important religious liberty cases before appellate courts across the United States, including the United States Supreme Court, and has consulted with legislators and advocates across the country on religious liberty issues.
Dr. Thomas C. Berg
Dr. Berg is Associate Dean for Innovation and Strategic Initiatives and James L. Oberstar Professor of Law and Public Policy at St. Thomas University School of Law. He teaches constitutional law, religious liberty, intellectual property courses, and the religious liberty appellate clinic. There, he supervises students in writing and filing briefs in major religious liberty cases, drawing on his experience drafting more than 80 briefs on issues of religious liberty and free speech in the Supreme Court and lower courts. Berg received a B.S. in journalism from Northwestern University, an M.A. in philosophy and politics from Oxford University, and both an M.A. in religious studies and a J.D. from the University of Chicago. He has made dozens of presentations to academic, professional, religious, and community groups and has testified before Congress and state legislatures multiple times. He is the author of Religious Liberty in a Polarized Age.
Thomas B. Griffith
Judge Griffith was appointed to the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit by President George W. Bush in 2005. He retired from the D.C. Circuit in 2020 and is currently Special Counsel at the law firm of Hunton Andrews Kurth; a Lecturer on Law at Harvard Law School; and a Fellow at the Wheatley Institute at Brigham Young University. In 2021, President Joe Biden appointed him to the Presidential Commission on the Supreme Court. A graduate of BYU and the University of Virginia School of Law, Judge Griffith was a litigation partner at Wiley, Rein and Fielding in Washington, D. C., prior to being named Senate Legal Counsel of the United States. He has long been active in rule of law projects in Eastern Europe and Eurasia, and he speaks widely on the topic of pluralism, constitutional law, and religious liberty.
Breakout Sessions
Breakout session videos will be uploaded as each becomes available; not all will be available
Jordan Ault
Jordan is an office managing partner in the Jefferson City, MO, office of Husch Blackwell Law Firm. He works with churches, synagogues, mosques, denominational entities, faith-based schools and heathcare providers, neighborhood and community groups, and other nonprofits. He also serves as Chancellor of the Missouri Conference of the United Methodist Church, a legal advisor to both the episcopacy and over 500 churches across Missouri. He specializes in complex First Amendment matters involving religious freedom, property ownership, and the intersection of civil and ecclesiastical law, including litigating and resolving several lawsuits involving disaffiliation from a denomination. He earned a JD from the University of Illinois College of Law, where he received numerous awards and was Notes Editor for the University of Illinois Law Review.
Lance Kinzer
Lance is Director of Policy and Government Relations at 1st Amendment Partnership (1AP), where he works with legislators, representatives of diverse faith communities, nonprofits, and public policy groups to advance religious liberty legislation at the state-level. He testifies frequently before state legislatures in furtherance of religious freedom. He has on-the-ground experience in more than 20 legislatures, and he’s played an important role in the passage of over 35 pieces of state religious liberty legislation. Prior to joining 1AP, Lance served for 10 years in the Kansas House of Representatives and was Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee from 2009-2014. Lance practiced law for 20 years. He litigated at every level in Kansas state courts and served as Special Assistant Attorney General for the State of Kansas in 2005-2006. Prior to entering private practice Lance served on active duty in U.S. Army JAG Corps. He currently serves on the KS Commission on Judicial Conduct.
Jason Benell
Jason is a father, a combat veteran, a humanist, a community volunteer, political candidate, and an atheist living in Des Moines, Iowa. He has been a community volunteer in central Iowa for more than a decade, serving as a member of Iowa Atheists and Freethinkers as well as sitting on the board of multiple non-profits that provide cultural, economic, and educational enrichment for community members of all ages.
Jason lives with his wife and two children and enjoys trail cycling, video games, community volunteering, and discussing politics over a drink or two.