Speaker at Luther convocation asks "What is the value of a liberal arts education?"

What is the value of a liberal arts education?  That was the question posed Friday by Carol Schneider, the president of the Association of American Colleges and Universities.  She was the speaker at Luther College's spring convocation.

Schneider noted that there has been "a narrowing of the American mind" about liberal arts education.  She says it's ironic that the tradition is under siege at the same time the qualities created by a liberal arts education are more important than ever.

Specifically, she says liberal arts colleges like Luther install broad knowledge; develop the powers of the mind; teach eithical and social responsibility; and teach students how to apply their knowledge to real problems and issues.

Schneider told the audience that employers want to hire people who have had practice tackling problems using a wide variety of approaches and that a breadth of education can teach those skills.  "You are way ahead in the kind of education America needs," she told the Luther students.