3 minute read
From the Dean's Desk
Why are we here?
In June 2022, The Chronicle of Higher Education published an article by Professors Howard Gardner and Wendy Fischman of the Harvard Graduate School of Education titled “Colleges Are Missing the Point of College.”
In attempting to ascertain the reason that so many college students were insufficiently engaged in academic activities, they observed that many students surveyed did not “see value in what they are learning, nor did they understand why they take classes in different fields or read books that do not seem directly related to their major.”
The professors concluded that many students are “more concerned with the pursuit of earning than the process of learning” and “don’t appreciate the expertise of their faculty [or] value what these scholars do.” Many have a more transactional approach to higher education than a transformational approach.
In their efforts to explain this phenomenon, the authors noted that many high schools and family members “did little . . . to educate them about the purpose of college.” Moreover, a lot of college promotional materials devote far more attention to “dining halls, recreation centers, comfortable dormitories,” and off-campus internships than to the "intellectual mission of college.”
At the MTSU Honors College, we attempt to keep our intellectual mission paramount. We are certainly proud of our state-of-the-art facilities and our hands-on approach to advising, but we just as firmly identify ourselves with rigorous academic programs that are enhanced through smaller, more interactive classes and cocurricular and extracurricular activities. We want to prepare our students not only for future graduate and professional study but also for satisfying careers. We believe that a liberal arts education is the best way to prepare graduates for whatever their educational and career goals may be.
We pride ourselves on the knowledge and commitment of our faculty and staff members and do our best to integrate the knowledge that students gain in General Education courses with those in their majors and minors. We are especially interested in assisting students with gaining skills in foreign languages and cultures that will help them.
We believe that an Honors degree is valuable not simply as a passport to future careers, but as a validation that students have an appreciation for the wider world of knowledge. As a Political Science professor, I am especially concerned that our students must be prepared for responsible citizenship and public service.
We continue to value readers and contributors who share in our transformational mission.
