James Piereson Selected as Final 2025 Bradley Prize Recipient 

The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation announced Tuesday philanthropist, scholar and author James Piereson as the third and final 2025 Bradley Prize winner. 

Piereson, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research, will receive the award alongside conservative activist Christopher Rufo and historian Barry Strauss at the Bradley Prizes ceremony on Thursday, May 29 in Washington, D.C. The award carries a $300,000 stipend. 

The Bradley Prize has been awarded for 21 years to individuals whose work demonstrates a commitment “to restore, strengthen, and protect the principles and institutions of American exceptionalism,” according to the foundation’s press release. 

Winners are selected by a committee from a pool of over 60 distinguished candidates. 

Bradley Foundation President Rick Graber said Piereson’s “contributions to philanthropy, scholarship and discourse have further solidified the intellectual foundations of conservatism and have helped propel ideas into action.” 

Graber praised Piereson for dedicating his career to “preserving and promoting the principles of ordered liberty, free enterprise and a strong civil society.” 

Expressing his appreciation, Piereson said, “I am grateful to The Bradley Foundation, and to Richard Graber and the selection committee, for judging me worthy of this prize. The Bradley Prizes are the most distinguished of all awards given to conservatives here and around the world.” 

Piereson described the “rewarding enterprise” of working in the conservative moment, adding, “the award is especially meaningful because it suggests that I may have contributed back to our enterprise a fraction of what it has given to me.”  

Piereson furthers the conservative movement through his articles, books and reviews on higher education and political ideas. He’s a board member for several non-profit organizations, such as the Foundation for Cultural Review and The Pinkerton Foundation.  

He is a member of several committees, including the selection committee for the Hayek Book Prize awarded annually by the Manhattan Institute to the author of a notable book on limited government and liberty. 

From 1985 to 2005, Piereson served as executive director and trustee of the John M. Olin Foundation, an organization that supported conservative individuals and companies. He was president of the William E. Simon Foundation, a private organization invested in education and religion, from 2006 to 2022. 

Piereson has served on the political science faculties of Iowa State University, Indiana University, and the University of Pennsylvania. He holds a B.A. and a Ph.D. in political science from Michigan State University. 

The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation announced 2025 Bradley Prize winners Christopher Rufo and Barry Strauss on March 18 and March 20, respectively. 

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