Library Space Redesign (virtual)

This session will present a series of "think pieces" for both librarians and other campus constituencies to explore as we create new ways of working together to meet the needs of students, faculty and researchers of the 21st century.

Topics will include new scholarly communication techniques, digital repositories, new partnerships and ways of marketing our scholarly outreach activities, and examine the implications for our current and future workforce.

Making the Case for a Liberal Arts Education in a Global Economy

With recent economic times, rising costs of higher education, and an increased interest in accountability by outside constituents, the question arises: is there still a place for a liberal arts education in our current global economy? Researchers from education, private, and government sectors have stated over the last ten years that students will hold on average, 5-8 jobs in their lifetime. Recently, videos surfacing on YouTube are suggesting that number is now as high as 14! How can our students compete? Can a student attending a public, liberal arts institution translate their education when entering a highly technical world?

COPLAC makes the case that a liberal arts education is the best preparation for the uncertain times ahead, emphasizing enduring habits of mind, diverse knowledge base, critical thinking and effective communication skills. But career tracks are not always apparent to prospective students and parents, or to students and families about to graduate. Public liberal arts colleges need to make good in a resounding way on the promise of both a quality education with enduring value, and success in making the transition to the world of work or further professional education.

This session will review one institution's journey to consider these questions and what we learned. Identification of best practices, challenges, and future implications for marketing will be discussed in panel format with a Q&A to follow.

From Conversation to Commitment: Promoting the Role of Writing as a Core Value in a Public Liberal Arts Education

For the past seventeen years, an interdisciplinary group of Keene State College faculty has been consistently promoting the central role of writing in our academic curriculum. Beginning as a somewhat informal conversation that focused on complaints about students' abilities, the Task Force on Writing created faculty workshops, newsletters, and programs that helped instructors throughout the curriculum to become better teachers of writing. In a panel discussion, some members of this long-standing Task Force, as well as faculty participants in a weeklong Institute on the Teaching of Writing, will discuss the challenges and rewards of placing writing at the center of their curriculum. The session is designed to promote discussion and generate ideas about how to sustain this focus amidst competing concerns in the academy.