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Learning, discovery and engagement Renewed covenant will ensure the future of the public university
Dr. James H. Ryan Vice President for Outreach and Cooperative Extension “If the recommendations in our prior reports are heeded, the shape of today’s university will still be visible in a new century, but it will have been transformed in many ways, major and minor. It will truly be a new kind of public institution, one that is as much a first-rate student university as it is a first-rate research university, one that provides access to success to a much more diverse student population as easily as it reaches out to ‘engage’ the larger community. Perhaps most significantly, this new university will be the engine of lifelong learning in the United States, because it will have reinvented its organizational structures and reexamined it cultural norms in pursuit of a learning society.” — Renewing the Covenant: Learning, Discovery and Engagement in a New Age and Different World Kellogg Commission on the Future of State and Land-Grant Universities	It’s time to renew the covenant that gave birth to the public university in 1862. That is the goal of the sixth and final report of the Kellogg Commission on the Future of State and Land-Grant Universities.   In “Renewing the Covenant: Learning, Discovery and Engagement in a New Age and Different World,” commission members outline the actions public colleges and universities must take to survive and thrive in the 21st century. For three years, 24 presidents and chancellors of public colleges and universities have met to chart the course that will be needed to ensure the future of the public university. President Graham Spanier chairs the Kellogg Commission.   In its final report, the commission states:   “Our message is ... the public expression of our conviction that if this nation is to succeed in a new century, the covenant between our institutions and the public they serve must be renewed and again made binding.”   The commission’s blueprint for action is clear. It will take the combined efforts of public universities, federal and state governments, the public and public/private partnerships to ensure that public universities continue to live up to the covenant they made with the public more than 100 years ago. The passage of the Morrill Land Grant Act in 1862 was the first of several federal actions leading to the creation of the public university. This historic agreement provided access to education for the sons and daughters of the working class, mandated the transfer of research to benefit individuals, communities and states, and served the goal of advancing the common good.   These principles continue to guide the mission of public universities today. However, much has changed since the original legislation was passed. In its report, the Kellogg Commission identifies some of the challenges we face today, including international, economic, technological and geopolitical forces; an increasingly diverse student body that includes traditional-age and adult students; declining federal and state support for higher education; growing financial inequality in society; and constantly changing information technologies. All of these factors are leading to a blurring of the boundaries between the university and the public it serves.   The challenge now is to reform the public university’s mission with society to fit current conditions. The term that best describes the university’s mission today is “learning, discovery and engagement.” By “learning,” the Kellogg Commission means the active process in which students and faculty members take responsibility for their intellectual achievements. “Discovery” refers to research, scholarship and creative activity that reveal new knowledge, integrate it into existing disciplines and possibly create something new. “Engagement” describes a public institution’s productive involvement with its communities.   The Kellogg Commission’s previous reports laid the foundation for the creation of a learning society. In “Renewing the Covenant,” the commission predicts:   “If the recommendations in our prior reports are heeded, the shape of today’s university will still be visible in a new century, but it will have been transformed in many ways, major and minor. It will truly be a new kind of public institution, one that is as much a first-rate student university as it is a first-rate research university, one that provides access to success to a much more diverse student population as easily as it reaches out to ‘engage’ the larger community. Perhaps most significantly, this new university will be the engine of lifelong learning in the United States, because it will have reinvented its organizational structures and reexamined it cultural norms in pursuit of a learning society.”   This is the course Penn State is steering into the future. The University, along with other public institutions, will need to recommit its support to the basic elements identified by the Kellogg Commission to renew its covenant with the public. These elements are: Educational opportunity that is genuinely equal, because it provides access to success without regard to race, ethnicity, age, occupation or economic background. Excellence in undergraduate, graduate and professional curricula. Learning environments that meet the civic ends of public higher education by preparing students to lead and participate in a democratic society. Complex and broad-based agendas for discovery and graduate education that are informed by the latest scholarship and responsive to pressing public needs. Conscious efforts to bring the resources and expertise at our institutions to bear on community, state, national and international problems in a coherent way. Systems and data that will allow us periodically to make an open accounting of our progress toward achieving our commitment to the public good.   The public also has an important role to play in ensuring the future of the public university by providing the financial and moral support to continue to strengthen the university as a primary educational resource. Other important changes are needed, as well. More private-sector partnerships with universities would encourage research and educational activities in university-based research parks. Education savings accounts need to be expanded to cover not only full-time education, but also part-time study throughout an individual’s lifetime. And states must contribute more funding for higher education, especially to take advantage of emerging information technologies, to create a learning society.   As the Kellogg Commission states in “Renewing the Covenant”: “The dawning of a new century is the right time to renew the covenant between our institutions and the public, the proper time to reclaim the heritage and the ideal time to nourish the flame of the ‘public’s universities’ in American higher education.”   Under President Spanier’s guidance, Penn State has taken a leadership position in reexamining and refining its land-grant mission to meet the challenges of the new century. As a University, we are increasingly engaged with individuals, communities and organizations, sharing our research and knowledge to improve the quality of life for all. In this issue of Penn State Outreach, you will find many articles describing Penn State’s commitment to the principles of learning, discovery and engagement outlined in the Kellogg Commission report. They document the progress we are making in service to the public.
© 2002 Outreach Communications,   Outreach & Cooperative Extension,   The Pennsylvania State University phone: (814) 865-8108,   fax: (814) 863-2765,   e-mail: outreachnews@outreach.psu.edu