The
Role of the University in American Life 2003
Dr. Rachel A. Willis, December 8, 2003
Leading
learner and course developer, Rachel
Willis, went over the core Plenary materials, sources, and resources
for the Fall 2003 offering of the American
Studies 94.
Six
major themes emerged this semester from the principle texts (Snider's
Light on the Hill, Link's William Friday biography,
and Powell's Pictorial History of the University), fourteen
plenary sessions and required University and community events (State
of the University, University Day, and Dr. Frank required plus the
optional events related to the introduction of the Public Scholars
Program, the North Carolina State Fair, and the public meetings
on plans for Carolina North).
1-
What is the role of higher education in a democracy?
2 -
Who has access to higher education and what determines access over
time?
3 -
When did the mission of the University change to include more than
teaching and why?
4 -
Why are sports, politics, and sponsored research so important in
modern Universities?
5 -
Where are the boundaries of the University? How can they change
over time?
6 -
How are the responsibilities of graduates of a public University
distinct from graduates of private institutions and why?
PREVIOUS
PLENARY| ¤ 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 |
| Professor
Rachel Willis (many years ago!) pursuing the teaching, research,
and public service missions of the University: children of factory
workers in Western North Carolina; Willis after the dedication
ceremony for the Carolina Center for Public Service September
24, 1999; Willis (completely grey-haired by the fall of 2002)
when she visited the grave of Hinton James with her First Year
Seminar SoHoJourners. |
 |
| "He
trusted the students, and they gave him their best,"
is
Professor Rachel Willis' favorite quote and is engraved on
Frank and Marian Graham's tombstone in the University Cemetery. |
|
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