UCA’s College of Liberal Arts offers students an EdGE
By Sara Greene
LITTLE ROCK — The University of Central Arkansas’ College of Liberal Arts is offering students an EdGE, if they choose to take it.
EdGE stands for Education for Global Engagement. The new program professionalizes liberal arts education through service learning, internships and study abroad, said Dr. Maurice Lee, dean of the college.
“Parents want to know what their student is going to do with a liberal arts degree when they graduate. This will give them a chance to see some of the ways a liberal arts degree can be used in the world,” Lee said.
Internships and studying abroad has always been available to students, however some internships are unpaid and some study abroad trips are too cost-prohibitive for students.
Fundraising for the program is under way, and Lee said he hopes alumni with liberal arts degrees will step up and help make the program a success.
“We have students who would like to take part in professional presentations out of state or intern, but they just can’t afford it. We’d like to provide stipends to help students travel to and from their internships and professional conferences,” Lee said.
He said there is no fundraising goal, rather it will be a continuous process, which means trips and stipends will be paid for as funds become available.
Dr. Peter Mehl, associate dean of UCA’s College of Liberal Arts, said the EdGE program differs from Hendrix College’s Odyssey program in a number of ways.
“The Odyssey program at Hendrix College is extensive, but it is also a requirement for graduation. This is voluntary. The only degree we have that requires an internship is political science,” Mehl said.
He is spearheading the EdGE program, which is being introduced to students during orientation and through a brochure handed out at events.
Mehl, who teaches religion and philosophy at UCA, gave an example of how the program will encourage students to engage themselves in their education.
“For example, say a student in my class was studying religion. They could go tour Subiaco Academy (in Logan County) to see how a monastery works today,” Mehl said.
Lee said he would like to see the program offer a variety of travel opportunities.
“So often a teacher will plan a trip,and unless enough people sign up to go, it gets canceled. We want to be able to offer a list of locations that will make, regardless of how many students sign up. Also, it will give students who do want to go on the trip a year’s notice to save their moneyand prepare, for instance, if they need to miss work,” Lee said.
Last year six faculty members in the college coordinated trips to Russia, India, China, the Netherlands and Spain, just to name a few.
“This program is an exciting opportunity for students to engage in self-learning and engage in their own education,” Lee said.
UCA’s College of Liberal Arts offers anthropology, African/African-American studies,Asian studies, Chinese, English, environmental science, French, geography, German, gender studies, history, international studies, Japanese, Latin American studies, philosophy, political science, public administration, religious studies, social studies education, sociology, Southern and Arkansas studies and Spanish. Advanced graduate study is also offered in English, literature, history, Spanish and geographic information systems.
This article was published Thursday, October 9, 2008.
River Valley Ozark, Pages 63, 64 on 10/09/2008
