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By: Amy Charles | September 11, 2026
Dr. Jeffery Tyler Syck’s “A Republic of Virtue: The Essays of John Quincy Adams” brings the sixth president’s unpublished political philosophy to modern readers for the first time in more than 150 years
The University of Pikeville (UPIKE) is pleased to announce the publication of “A Republic of Virtue: The Essays of John Quincy Adams,” a new collection authored and edited by Jeffery Tyler Syck, Ph.D., assistant professor of political science and founding director of UPIKE’s Center for Public Service. The volume will be released September 15 by Political Animal Press.
The book gathers the political and philosophical writings of John Quincy Adams, much of which have remained largely unpublished since the mid-19th century. The collection traces Adams’ reflections on the fundamental questions of political life.
“Though he is usually remembered for his time as President, John Quincy Adams is one of the most interesting and underrated thinkers in American history,” Syck said. “He personally witnessed many of the events that created the United States, but he also saw the rise of issues which continue to disrupt our politics to this day: partisan bickering, disagreements over race and questions of what it means to live in the modern world.”
Syck, a Pike County native, joined the UPIKE faculty as a specialist in American political thought and democratic institutions. He was named founding director of the university’s Center for Public Service in 2025, which houses a number of civic education and outreach initiatives. He holds both a doctorate and a master’s degree in government from the University of Virginia and a bachelor’s degree in government and history from Morehead State University.
“There’s a connection between John Quincy Adams and what he thought and what UPIKE does through the Center for Public Service,” Syck said. “He really believed that democracy only survives with an educated, selfless citizenry, with a people who are willing to sacrifice for one another and who understand their government and understand the costs of living in a free society and are prepared to pay those costs.”
“A Republic of Virtue: The Essays of John Quincy Adams” (ISBN 978-1-895131-75-8) is available in paperback from Political Animal Press and wherever books are sold beginning September 15.