As you know, these lectures are designed to commemorate the high ideals highlighted in the charter that established the University of Georgia in 1785. In broad terms, the charter defines some of the fundamental objectives for this university, including working to foster an informed public and thereby promoting an effectively functioning democracy.
In addition, the charter describes the key instrument by which the university is to pursue these objectives - namely providing higher education to the public. The charter is also notable for what it does not describe. It does not, for example, lay out a rigid curriculum that all students must complete.