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Philosopher Martha Nussbaum offered a spirited defense of liberal arts educations provided by schools such as �Ա���Ƶ and warned against the danger of succumbing to pressure to adopt narrow profit-focused educational models.

“Thirsty for economic gain, nations, and their systems of education, are heedlessly discarding forms of learning that are crucial to the health of democracy,” Nussbaum said Sunday in at �Ա���Ƶ’s 189th commencement.

Nussbaum, the Ernst Freund Distinguished Service Professor of Law and Ethics at the University of Chicago, said that �Ա���Ƶ’s Core, which has been at the heart of the curriculum since 1928, is among the most ambitious general education programs in the country, focused on independent interdisciplinary thinking.

It is this kind of liberal arts focus that is critical for producing citizens who can keep democracy alive and realize its promise, she told members of the Class of 2010.

It was a busy weekend at �Ա���Ƶ with baccalaureate services Saturday and commencement exercises on Sunday.  (Photo by Andy Daddio)

 

Nussbaum cited three “capacities” — all of which are built into the structure of education at �Ա���Ƶ and other similar liberal arts colleges — that are essential to the survival and progress of democracy in today’s complicated world.

— The capacity for critical examination of oneself and one’s traditions.

“Critical thinking is woven throughout the Core at �Ա���Ƶ, which focuses on rigorous thinking and writing in all the required areas. It can also be further nourished by elective courses, in areas such as philosophy and political theory.

— The ability to see ourselves as not simply citizens of some local region or group but also, and above all, as human beings bound to all other human beings by ties of recognition and concern.

“We need to understand how issues such as agriculture, human rights, climate change, business and industry, and, of course, violence and terrorism, are generating discussions that bring people together from many different nations. This must happen more and more, if effective solutions to pressing human problems are to be found.”

— The narrative imagination, or the ability to see the world from another person’s point of view.

“This capacity is a part of our biological heritage but one which needs development, particularly in areas in which our society has created sharp separations between groups.”

Nussbaum urged graduates to promote and defend the concept of a liberal arts education.

“What you can do is to keep institutions like �Ա���Ƶ strong; lobby
with your state and national representatives for more attention to the
humanities and the arts, which even President Obama seems bent on
neglecting.

“Above all, just talk a lot about what matters to you.
Spread the word that what happens on this campus is not useless, but
crucially relevant to the future of democracy in the nation and the
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Interim President Lyle Roelofs, in his , said Class of 2010 members have “well-educated voices that have the potential to reach far and wide.”

He thanked the seniors for their contributions to campus, how they spoke out against bigotry and in appreciation of diversity, and how they also contributed to Hamilton and Madison County through the Center for Outreach, Volunteerism and Education and Upstate Institute.

“You’ve also taken a strong stand in support of sustainability. Your generous class gift to the university’s sustainability fund will help us reduce our carbon footprint. And you worked to establish a community garden that will be realized this summer,” he told the graduates.

Nussbaum was awarded an honorary degree during the ceremony, as was the Rev. Roger Ferlo ’73, this year’s baccalaureate speaker. Ferlo is associate dean and director of the Institute for Christian Formation and Leadership as well as professor of religion at Virginia Theological Seminary.

Other 2010 honorary degree recipients were trustee Daniel Benton ’80, chairman and CEO of Andor Capital Management, and Ronald Crutcher, president of Wheaton College in Massachusetts.

The commencement exercises were held inside Sanford Field House.

Crowds gather outside a huge tent near Sanford Field House. . (Photo by Andy Daddio)