TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), Septe CAMPUS

V? 7°
lOOD Q0O\
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), Septe
CAMPUS LIFE;
IN SEARCH OF COMMUNITY
Remarks by
Ernest L. Boyer
President
The Carnegie Foundation for
the Advancement of Teaching
,
u
/ J J O
c&> 1
05
l i r
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl),
10, 1990
About 12 months ago
American Council on Education, asking if we at The Cajriegie
Foundation would
of campus life.
And propose way§ to strengthen the spirit of community
in higher education.
At first I was reluctant.
How can^e begin to talk about "community" in the modern
1.
with its sprawling campus,
with the endless academic fragmentation,
an<f most especially with the great diversity among
students who often seem moretdivideNd than united
IQoO oco I fig frf
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990 10
:er sqme soul searching, I conclude^ that
if the spirit of (Jommuni
ot be sustained within the
a<ad emylts elf,
<mr\o
Ijpw in the worW do
d communiiv in
society^atTarge?
And S9>we at The^Carnegie FoundaJior^did\launch a Study of
Campus Life
many surveys
visits
We identified ^principles for the building of community
•
that I'd like to comment
m briefly at this
-HFgant mm
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oSPi
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990 10
V
I. A PURPOSEFUL COMMUNITY
We ^ajTfii the Carnegie Report that a college or university is abov
( SLa)
purposeKi!) community,
where theMteUectuaJ-Iifte is central,
•
and whereCiacul^^d studentsjwork together" to
\
strengthen'teachiQ^and learning on^the campus.
looo 0001 CS%1
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990
10
When we began our study of campus lifi^, s^n^ argued that we
should look ogfify at the so-called extmcurricular activities^
•
and ignore th^ acaderhjc.
But I^kUbeegmie convinced that the (Academic an^ nonacademic
c^hnot be divict^l.
And if^students dc^g^become intellectually^engaged,
•/
if they do n£5J take seriously thejeducationaljmission of
the institution,
then§H talk about strengthening cofnmuhjty on campus will be
simply^ diversion.
1000 0001
o ^ T
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990 10
lankly, n I consider it a deep disgrace
•\
that
recruilmillions)of students ever year,
charge^ihem substantial fees,
and then gUggeM that
on is a low
(priority oi) the campus.
When, in the end, almost all Sfjos^re where we are today because
of the inspiration of great teacher^ who,
•
not only^aughj their subjec
IOOD OCO[ 0S&-1
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990
10
everal years ^go-y-I couldn't sleep^and instead of counting^Eiee^,
I counted^jj)the teachers I had had.
I remembered rather vividly(l5jDr more (nightmares, 2 truly
outstanding)
First, I thought about Mjs^ Rice, my first grade teacher, who, on the
first day of school, said tc^2Suft^htened, awestruck children, "Good
morning class, today we learn to~read.
It was Miss Rice who taught me language and learning
are iriextricably interlocked.
loco oooi
osgtj
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990 10
I then recanfed Mrv Wittlinger, a high school kisto^teacher, who
one day said quietly as I passed the desk, "Ernest, you're doing
good in b^tory^you keep this up and you just might be a student."
•
/That's the first time a teacher had said that to me
directly. Suddenly I thought, "Doing veiy well^ I just
v
might be a student.
(I remember Professbr-Smith—read Sha^espea^e, King Lear,
Mac Beth)
I suspect ^eiyohe in the room this n i o m i ^ has been inspired by a
teacher.
who cHanged j o u r life forever.
iMOocoi o £ f j
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990 10
»
_ not just with student pWsoftn^professionals,
;but
^so^vith faculty >
• / who not onlv^ove their s
L
but have £ love/or students, Jog.
active,
students who learn to
than compete.
1ory>:
3S$i
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990 10
In the Carnegie Report we conclud^tha
IO0O OOOI astf
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990
The simple tru£h is^tHg^ language is the key to learning
•
Our sophisticated use of symbols sets human beirlg^
I
apart from s^oSt^f forms of life—the^poipot^e and the
[
bunfcle~b^e, notwithstanding.
And it's through th^mir^ple of language that we are all
^ rustically connected to each other.
Consider thfe miracle of this veiy moment
ecule§)go "slatteriiigj)in your direction.
They'touch^our tympamc membrane
Signals^) scurrying up your 8th cranial nerve
And there is a resporise^deep in your cerebrum that
appr^5dmates) I trust, the imaggk of mine.
10
loco OOa; 6SrtH
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990 10
What an audacioii^ act—which we simply take for granted! I'm
encouraged that you're lo^Jdn^in my direction but I've been a
V.
/
teacher far too long to confuse
•
vi^aTcont^lct with
erebral interaction'
I'm suggesting that^
•
jtiage^
language
is the key to everything we do,
that it's through the "gutteral utterances^we call words
<T
•C^ that we "reach out"
and seek to understand each other
not only intellectually
but evocatively)as well.
IDOO (OOloSSI
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990 10
But thq^sad t r u t h s that
ui.ivn?:':»
•
where language is shocking!
V'fksy live in a
•
•
r
ntedv culture
where slogansji ave become substitutes for reason
and where words) are used
•
to tort
•
rather than tojieal.
iDoo 0D0( 0$tH
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990 10
When I was a^small hoy iri ^ayton, Ohio—the cultural center\of the
free worlc^—we used to say "sticks a^d stones may break our bones,
but names will never hurt me."
I'd usually ^ay this with t^arjKmning down my cheeks,
thinking all the time, "hithie with a stick, but for
goodness sake, stop thos& words4hat penetrate so deeply
and hurt so longV'
1000 oooi
OSfi
TURLOCKJSEC
T mi irit tr-11 ygn tint one of the most ^disturbing" findings of our
study was the breakdown of civility on campus.
In our presidential survey
more than 60 percent of those at docto
tutions
said sexual jiarassment is a problem.
About half listed raci
assment as a problem on their
campus
And when we-asked'presidents—an an-oj
would improv6)the quality of campus life
ercent said bettep communication on the
-what
looo aool eBftf
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990 10
We conclu
in the Carnegie Report that
by "iporal" authority
every ethnic
and eVeiy ^exual slur is vigorously condemned
by the pi^sidentN
by fl^icultyjijid
by ^rely\by students
And we say that to strengthen the quality of campus life a ^
students should Ieam
not just to "spe;
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*5t1
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990
viewing language^as a sacred^xstT^
and undersigning that hnriest^) is the obligation we
assume when we're errlpo^rejd with the us^of woi'ds.
10
iooa ooo\ ol]%<{
TURLOCK, (SPC.ELB/lb-rdiBGr]
ker 10, 1990
HI, A JUST COMMU
This brings me to principle? number three.
egjib Report we say that a college or university
is a just community.
A place where
^
the dignity of every Ipdividual is affirmed,
• (
and where equality of opportunity is vigorous!
pursued.
Frankly\)I know of^nojssue that's fnore^irgent than affirming
•
Since in"Amejd^a today there is a deeply disturbing
^ajb between the privileged) and the disadvantaged.
iw> ooo\ asfr
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990 10
^ And I consider it a^nati^nal disgrace^hat
• ^ ^ n . this—therfichest^iation in the worl
•
fJn^out of evei^Hfc^r children is officiary classified
as poor.
^
^
Equally disgraceful is the fact t^at \
•
the enrollme!
in higher
education has been goin^down
at the ^erainoment l^ei^propoSph in t h e j o ^ l
population is going up.
And ^quaU^)disturbing is the fact that
minority students
ce theyicomejo college
often feeljsol<ped anc^aloi^.
\Oo& o(X>\ dSif
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990 10
During our study ,)many presidents told us th
incfeasing^y divided along-raHa} and ethnic Ijnes.
And thaf Hispanic, Black> and "JVhite^students
ar<fliviri^ in separatqenclav^ on the campus.
And they're not even talMng^to each other.
And we foun
racial conflicb^eem^-to be increasing.
,t larae universitie;
•^
where~6.8 percent of the president^)surveyed said
race relationj is a problenl on the cam
looo
05 if
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990
I'm suggesting that
•
in the deeade 'of the 9Q's
iO'S
building a "just^ommunity
•
must becom£ a top-priority for higher education.
reativq ways
to challenge prejudice^
•\
and heal the
Clc
ethnic divisions in our
culture,
( I ' m convinced the ver^future^of the nation
impei
10
|DOC 0°0 o S f l
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990 10
[
This leads rtft to principle number
In the
•
eport we concluS
a col eg)or university is ^disciplinec^ community.
student conduct is well guided.
• r
And whei^i^dividuJls accept the<irobligatiQn s to
th^ou^.
5
3
>< "
^<&jJ
iz
I wo
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ostf
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990 10
Twenty years ago the notion of "in-loeo-paren^" was abandoned
ed almost overnight.
AndTf f might be a "bit'j confessional
this was the decadeAvhe:
blaclbto vfhjte.
hair turned from
\0b° 00C>\
astl
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990
10
I was Chancellor of the State University of New York. And in the
late
we had—in the<entir^SUNY system—93,000 dormitory
beds and I recall the heated debate^ over
whether teshman)should be allowed to live offcampus,
whethe!r^Msiting)hours" should be ^bolishe^,
_ 3
and whetl^r residence halls should go "coed."
In the(jmd^of course, the answer was affirmative to all three!
Lookin^Cbackr^'m convinced that dreatin^ a more ^operfyampus,
was absolutely right.
Students are 4jults^-not c^ldren.
v Most
iviuau know
iviiuw how
nuw to
lu ^^balanCes^i
ccui and
reedom
[responsibility!*^ their daily livjs.
1060
CO£>t0£f4
10
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990
The probleik; however, & that while in loco parentis was aholfe^ed
no new)theoiy of campus governance was created to
replacfe it.
Colleges^toow^they ar^nb) longer parents
! but they are ''jincle^r'' about just where their
uthorlfo begins and ends.
And there is Reeling on tfian^campuses that something isjnoT^I
right.
-vj
\ooo oooi r j - f i
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990
r study we found that
C.2/3"oJall college presidents rated .glcohol and drug
abuse a serious problem.
•[
We found thatkdate rape^js increasing.
noise in the residence halls was rated aSerious^oblem at liberal artslxistitutions.
And 2/3 of the presidents at research\miversities
said c6m(> 4jieg)and v^dallsti^—i&^growing
problems
cohol related.
10
looo oo0\ 0S%1
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990 10
No one taiagines^eturning to the days when
Qight^/were out a^ll:00^plock sharp.
\
WhenQ;irls' dorrfrs>were locked up tighter than a
drum.
And when deans df students were viewed as
parents on the prowl.
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990
C$till no community can thrive in a climate
where conduct is chaotic
And in the Carnegie Report we conclude th;
A#d*prertn*g^^»rxtll^olleges have a clear code of
conduct to guide the wvicjlimensions of campus life
just as they have academic rules.
if higher education is to exercise
in society,
ilCmust t^ke place in a moral^context.
yA
\
place where disciplined behavior both
intellectually and morally is nryiintnrf1 ^
Iooc> OOOI
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990 10
I
the well being of (eve
And ((vhere^
member is supported
[000 000 i
cstf
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990
10
For decades we've celebrated individualism in higher education,
•
©stUie simple truth is that while we're all alone we're
And I'm convinced that) the keyt^ommunit^ in higher education,
tlie glue^that holds/it^ll together,
•
is the degree of
on
the campus.
lODD 06O> OSZ^
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990
10
ffirstj)lush the teraC'c^n^" seem^soft^-almost sentimental^
And yet—as human beings we have an absolut^
need for social ponding.
From the vefyjftrst^o the last moment,,of our lives.
\
And yet, during our study of urklergraduate^everal years ago, we
found that
About <50 percent of today's students say they "feel
like a number in a book."
About 4Q_pe^cent do no£feei)a sense of community
of campus.
• \ And aboik^2/3 o£ today's students say they have ^jtT)
| professor who is interested in thei:
IlPO OX>l oSiH
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990 10
ToHavU> student^cheri^i their independence.
But like the rest of \ is
they still want guidanc
And-thcy want to belong to something larger tharr
tfremselves..
this "ambivalence" when she said
we don't want the university t)o be involvedjin|our
lives,
•
but we would like someone'to be concerned
o
ibout our lives,
and at least make freshmen feel that they belong.
\ooo
oSt
10
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990
In the Caifiege^eport we conclude that the sgjrit of community is
to be measured
•
not by the lengtl})of time students spend on
Campus,
•
but by the quality\)f ths^ncounter)
And we urge moreCcaring/and guidance,
anore recognition of support staff who often put a
humairfece-on-thc institertfon.
And wd^ls^ recommend more service projects^*
which students are ^ndourageq to reach out to
others.
,
rw
^
\oa> 666 \ OS 11
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990
10
Rheinhold Niebuhr
once wrote:
life
Man cannot behold except he be committed.
He cannot find himself without finding a center
beyond hjmself.
I
Martin Luther King
said:.
crvs> cx
Everyone can b
ecause everyone
^vferyon can serve.
And I'm co,
at young people of this e#*rrttry are ready to be
inspired by a larger vision.
education must be,
but-caring, too.
p-^ql nf
1000 00£>1 oS n
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990 10
A CELEBRATIVE COMMUNITY
In the Carnegie ReporTWe say that a college, or university
J
•
is q. celebrativa community
3
(Sony about the "4" syllable word.)
y A place whcJkheritag^ is remembere^.
—
^—
— "
'
And where rituals^and traditions are wi^elyshar^d.
I ooo ooo i
ssfri
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990 10
In the av^ard-winning)Broadway play, Fiddler on the Ro))f, the
peasant dairyman—who raised(£5^laughters,
— ' with considerable help from scriptural quotations^,
J>
many of which he himself invented,
says that the things that make life jjolerabljb to the hard working
Jewish family are
and the^easite that are handed dowh from one
generation to another.
Without yiese4-the daiiyman declares—lifejwould be as "shak ks a
Fiddler on tjie Rpof.^'
\C>00 060', 65
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990
So i t ^ w i t h college.
==
10
J1
]
^PP
While scholars)conduct research,
and while(studenfck study on their own,
•
a community of learning must beheld together by
something more than a common grievance over
parking
or aCfootball game Saturday afternoon.
And we urge(in cfur report tha/all^olleges
• ^feelqbrate,uniquely
f ^celel
their^ownj traditions.
m
^Of*"^
VJ^VO-O^T-
—
A
Ar
>
Itoo ooo\
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990
But we say aasour report that a eelebr;
•
not only recalls the past
•
it also anticipates the future.
c6g1
10
community
And we urge colleges to highlight the rich racial and ethnic diversity
on campus,
•
through Martin Luther King Day, for example.
We also urge that days be set aside to celebrate
•
Hispanic,
•
Asian, and
•
Native American cultures.
And foreign students should be celebrated, too.
loco M>0\ h$<jt1
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990
10
Lewis Thomas\wrote on one occasion
ifHhis^centuiy does not slip forever through our
lnge?s
•
it will be because leamingjtvill have directed us
away from our splintered dumbness,
and help us focus on our common j
lis.
And this—it seem&jto meV-is what a "celebrative^) community is all
^goutT^)
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990
CONCLUSION
Here, then, is my conclusion
To strengthen the quality' of campus life
we don't need/more pareiafral rules
ore inspired vision
We need tcrtBHrnTi) not only our diversity, but our
innections, too
looo ooo'
\
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990 10
What we need are colleges awrd universities
:that are disciplined
and that are eager^to celebrate their .great
traditions.
loco
1
6Sl1
TURLOCK, (SPC,ELB/lb,dmo,kl), September 10, 1990 10
And
it is not too much to hopetfc^
as
strengthen community
the-spirit will cirtond beyond LI it uaillpus.
Ap-d^bfing" ron swatl
terthg neighborhood,
•
""Sfid- to a world that is desperately
ways to put th^piepes^back together
Thanks very much for i
for