In 1946 Nat King Cole sang, “If you ever plan to motor west. Travel my way. Take the highway that is best.  Get your kicks on 66.” Sixty-two years later, Andrew Benton, Pepperdine University’s president, has embarked on historic Route 66 for more than kicks.

During a nine-day trip from Chicago to Santa Monica, he will talk with educators, parents, business people and church and civic leaders about their nation, institutions, communities, families, values, hopes and dreams.

He led Pepperdine for nearly 25 years, and Benton is also halfway through a term as chairman of the American Council on Education. He ties these roles into his journey, saying, “I can use that vantage point to find out what a significant portion of America would like to say to those of us privileged to help shape the education of the world’s future leaders.  That will be a productive journey.”

Benton departed on July 14 and will stop in Joliet, Funks Grove, and Springfield, IL; Rolla and Joplin, MO; Riverton, KS; Miami, Weatherford, and Oklahoma City, OK; Shamrock and Amarillo, TX; Santa Fe and Grants, NM; and Flagstaff and Williams, AZ.   He finishes in California on July 22. 

“Route 66 has always intrigued me,” says Benton, who drove the entire “Mother Road” last year. “Its creation was such a bold and ambitious undertaking, and the route played an important role in our nation’s history.”