The American Academy of Arts and
Sciences’ new report, Heart of the
Matter, provides a welcome signal of the importance of the humanities and
social sciences to the future of the United States. The goals and
recommendations offered in the report will certainly spark a much-needed
national conversation about the imperative to foster the critical thinking,
complex problem-solving, and written and oral communication skills of all
Americans. The Council of Independent Colleges (CIC), representing more than 600
colleges and universities, congratulates the Academy for its cogent
report.
CIC is doing its part by working cooperatively with the Academy and other
national organizations that have similar concerns. A recently announced CIC
campaign for the liberal arts and liberal arts colleges, Securing America’s
Future, also is promoting the view that the liberal arts—the humanities,
social sciences, and natural and physical sciences—are essential ingredients of
a college education for all Americans regardless of their ultimate career goals.
These fields are studied most effectively in institutions that emphasize
teaching, hold true to their educational values, and make a clear link between
the formal curriculum and aspects of education that take place beyond the
classroom and that have been proven beyond doubt to contribute to the education
of the whole student. It is this kind of college experience that has been
demonstrably linked to greater rates of success after graduation.
The liberal arts campaign will disseminate research and data that dispel
persistent and false stereotypes about independent colleges, feature prominent
graduates of independent colleges and universities in all walks of life, and
develop new language to describe the advantages of a liberal arts education,
especially at independent institutions.
CIC is the only national presidential higher education association to
conduct programs for faculty members to strengthen teaching and learning in the
humanities—in U.S. history, foreign languages, classics, art history, Middle
Eastern studies, religion and interfaith understanding, and libraries and
technology—and to enlist leading scholars and major cultural institutions as
partners. These include the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History,
Harvard University’s Center for Hellenic Studies, Council of American Overseas
Research Centers, Aspen Institute, and major universities and museums throughout
the country. The seminars have enjoyed the support of the Gladys Krieble Delmas
Foundation, Henry Luce Foundation, Lilly Endowment, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation,
Samuel H. Kress Foundation, U.S. Department of State, American Academic
Leadership Institute, and Carl and Lily Pforzheimer Foundation.