Higher education is facing a number of structural challenges, from a change in demographics to the rising costs of retaining full-time faculty. These challenges are particularly acute in small colleges and universities that offer a mentor-intensive liberal arts education but face strong competition and financial challenges. I sat down with Randy Bass, Vice Provost of Education at Georgetown University, to talk about his new book (co-authored with Bret Eynon) “Open and Integrative: Designing Liberal Education for the New Digital Ecosystem” (AACU, 2016) which addresses many of the challenges facing higher education. Randy is part of Georgetown’s “Designing the Future(s)” initiative and has become a thought leader in the realm of the future of higher education, thinking critically about what a liberal arts education will look like in the years ahead. While Randy works at Georgetown, he has helped many small colleges and universities strategize about how to build innovative and sustainable futures. Continue reading
Author: Younus Y. Mirza
What’s in a name?
At the most basic level, we use names to identify ourselves, and distinguish ourselves from one another. However, names are much more than that; they are intimate part of the cultures that we live in and the way we associate with one another and the past. Names may connect us to a relative who we may have known or passed away before we were born. Names may connect us to a song, piece of literature or to scripture. Eventually, we have to come to terms with our own name and whether we want to continue to be referred by it. Some people even change their names signaling a desire to break with the past and that they are a different person. Moreover, giving a name is a remarkable responsibility. The name that we give will be the one that a child will be called, write and referred to countless of times. The child will have to eventually decide if they should make the name their own, and could influence what names they will potentially give in the future. Continue reading
Mentoring for Vocation: A Form of Friendship
At NetVUE’s Faculty Development Workshop on Teaching Vocational Exploration in June, Paul Wadell presented a paper entitled “Mentoring for Vocation – Befriending Those Entrusted to Us.” The paper was well-received because it spoke to mentorship as an essential part of vocation. The article is published in the Journal of Catholic Higher Education, yet is relevant to those who may not be Catholic. As Wadell explains, the language of “friendship” may be more “inviting, understandable, and relatable” to those who may not have explicit religious commitments and are increasingly part of a diverse academy. “Friendship” can help us better understand “mentorship” even though the concepts are distinct and have unique traits. Wadell then proceeds to list three specific ways in which the metaphor of “friendship” can give us insights into who a mentor can potentially be.
5 Ways Faculty Can Connect Vocation to Career Services
Faculty play an instrumental role in speaking about the theoretical aspects of vocation, whether it be leading class discussions on the topic, introducing students to relevant literature, or mentoring them on a specific career path. However, liberal arts colleges are frequently criticized for leaving these discussions philosophical and not urging students to think about the nuts and bolts about getting a job. This is why there has been a larger move across the country for colleges and universities to integrate career services more fully with the academic mission of their institutions. Here are five practical ways that faculty can connect vocation to career services: Continue reading
Connecting the Dots: What we can learn from Steve Jobs, college drop-out
In his 2005 Stanford commencement address, Steve Jobs reflected upon his life: his birth and adoption, his early firing from Apple and marriage and then his scare with death after being diagnosed with cancer. The first part of the speech was dedicated to “connecting the dots” and to his early life and college experience. Like Jobs, our most successful students are able to “connect the dots” and take important risks. Continue reading
The invisible challenges of international students
College and Universities frequently espouse educating the “whole person” or the physical, spiritual and intellectual aspects of their students. However, educating the “whole person” for international students may look very different than for domestic students since they face various obstacles and structural challenges that may be invisible to us. These challenges may include their visa status, speaking American English or understanding the cultural norms of their peers. Continue reading