Combining academic work with the improvement of society is one of the most important roles for universities, said Scott Matheson, dean of the College of Law.
Matheson moderated a Nov. 7 panel titled “University as Citizen: Community and Student Perspectives.”
“The idea of academically based community service is taking root at a number of research universities around the country, including (the U),” Matheson said.
Chief Justice of the Utah State Supreme Court Christine Durham, a panelist member, cited a study that found that habits of civic engagement are ingrained by the age of 21. This increases the importance of engaging students and providing them with opportunities to give back to the community.
The panel also included Utah state Senator Karen Hale, D-Salt Lake County, and Kirsten Davies, student president of the Lowell Bennion Community Service Center.
Panelists pointed out that the U’s mission statement contains a section on public life that reads, “The university’s faculty, staff and students are encouraged to contribute time and expertise to community and professional service, to national and international affairs and governance, and to matters of civic dialogue.”
In spite of its relationship to education, civic involvement has been higher for past generations. It is important to make people aware of the relevance behind involvement, Hale said.
“We are at risk for losing our sense of connection to other human beings and communities,” Durham said.
The depersonalizing aspect of electronic communication is at fault and civic involvement can remedy this, she said.
“From my perspective, community involvement is where I have acquired some of the most valuable parts of my education,” Davies said. Community service helps draw connections between classroom work and the community, she said.
The discussion was part of a collection of panels, presentations, and workshops hosted by the Bennion Center to address service learning and other citizen responsibilities. The series is titled “2005-2006 Faculty Colloquia: Civically Engaged Scholarship.”
The colloquium was held for faculty to learn what civic engagement is and to provide tools and resources to allow people to do this kind of work, said Marshall Welch, director of the BCSC.