ASC gives to the University…
Are our schools creating lifelong learners? Do our students see the value of education for its own sake, or is it simply a means to an end? Education, once a whole-person endeavor cultivating character and wisdom and preparing people to be citizens, has increasingly become a knowledge and skill fueling station, filling up students with what they need to get a good job, wherein good is measured in primarily economic terms.
Many call this specialization, but we see it as fragmentation, and the University community is worse off for it.
Students need to be exposed to a wide-range of ideas from a variety of disciplines and learn to listen to those who are different from them. As they do, they will learn humility, discernment, generosity, compassion, and wisdom.
because ASC is for the University
By supplementing the highly specialized nature of the University with discipline-crossing opportunities for conversation and dialogue, ASC fosters a love of learning that will serve our communities.
A STEM student, for instance, may know how to advance a particular technology, but it may take reading Flannery O’Connor or St. Augustine for her to ask if she ought to do so. The scientific method, after all, has no means of determining ethics.
A business student who has been exposed to multiple ways of seeing the world, perhaps through conversations over short films, is going to be far better at networking, building a business and caring for his employees than one that strictly stays in his lane.
ASC also provides BSU faculty and students opportunities to network with top academics and practitioners. Our Faith & Medicine programs, for instance, have introduced IU/BSU med students to several physicians at Mayo Clinic, Rush Medical, and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia—all of whom have offered their personal contact information and their time to help young students on their way.
Similarly, our Sundance Short Film Series has provided young film-makers a direct connection with award-winning writers and directors, and even an opportunity to attend Sundance Film Festival.
ASC loves the University and wants to see her flourish.
“Alcuin Study Center is a true gem of Muncie, Ball State, and the surrounding communities. Dan has a charisma for teaching and leading rich and fruitful discussions on the topic of restoring Christian culture. In the short time that ASC has been open, a dedicated group of Christians representing several denominations have met regularly to discuss the Good, the True, and the Beautiful. We frequently discuss how appealing to these transcendental features of God can be useful in bringing others and ourselves closer to Christ. I suspect that the work of the Spirit through the Alcuin Study Center has already and will continue to win souls for Christ in the Muncie and Ball State University communities. I look forward to increasing my involvement and support of Alcuin Study Center in the years to come.”
– Dr. Phil Smaldino, Associate Professor of Cell Biology