President's Message
I
t has been said that the difference between an American and a Brit is that a Brit thinks 200 miles is a long distance and that the American thinks 200 years is a long time. Though Americans
may not comprehend the length of time it takes for something to be considered “historic,” we certainly appreciate and understand the importance of history. As Franklin Pierce University enters the year-long recognition of our 50 years as an academic institution, I invite you to think about our history — as an institution in New Hampshire and as a member of the social institution of American higher education. Our history and that of American higher education are inextricably entwined. Created more than 375 years ago with the founding of Harvard College, American higher education is distinct from most other forms of advanced learning. Grounded by the models of England’s emphasis on liberal arts and Germany’s focus on empirical science, the American emphasis on service integrates arts, science, and service in a way other models do not. That historic public purpose is something Franklin Pierce embraces, articulates, and honors. One need only read the University’s mission statement to witness our commitment to educate women and men to become Leaders of Conscience: thoughtful people who will make an impact on their communities whether they are in New Hampshire, China, or Costa Rica. One may also see the work of our students locally as they volunteer at nonprofit agencies, with local athletic programs, or in local government. The greatest measure of success, however,
Public service is in the DNA of American higher education and a Franklin Pierce education. Indeed, it is that commitment to educate students to be engaged members of a community that appealed to me as a candidate for the President’s position in 2009 because it resonated with what is important to me, personally. It is that personal sense of agency — or working on behalf of another — that was formed in me by my family, refined by my education, and sustained by my own action to serve and learn with others. At times, like most people, I can get lost in my own thinking about what it means to be a person for others. At those times I consult the texts that guide me back to a life of commitment — Alexis de Tocquevilles’s Democracy in America where he observes and explicates the American identity as a nation of joiners; John Dewey’s Experience and Education where he reminds me that it is in the tense dynamic between theory and practice where learning occurs; and Robert Bellah who quickly and succinctly draws me to the fundamental, penetrating question about life when he poses, “How ought we to live?” in Habits of the Heart. It is because of history, and because of my own commitment to community, and because of what Franklin Pierce is and can be that I ask you to join me in contributing 50 hours of public service to your community between September 2012 and September 2013. I can think of no better way for us all to be connected and to honor the robust history of American higher education and the important role that Franklin Pierce has played in your life – and in the lives of many more to come over our next 50 years. Ex Umbris Ad Lucem,
is to know that our Alumni, instilled with a habit of the mind and heart, contribute in meaningful ways to their communities and establish a model for others to emulate.
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Franklin Pierce University fall 2012
James F. Birge President