What Liberal Arts Education Does and Why It Still Matters

Liberal arts education is doomed to an AI-fueled obsolescence. Or is it? With its focus on fostering deeply human skills such as empathy, creativity, and ethical reasoning, this might just be a moment in which a liberal arts education is more relevant than ever. Starting the new academic year in this transformational AI moment, many of us are asking ourselves what kind of education is needed now and into the future, and what value does a liberal arts education offer. 

Birmingham Museum of Art, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

A high-quality liberal arts education does many things, but two are especially critical today:

A liberal arts education helps you develop skills for a great career AND develop skills for a meaningful life.

 

This is so because an education grounded in the liberal arts:

 

• Energizes analytical thinking,
• Boosts creativity,
• Nurtures self-awareness,
• Elevates empathy, and
• Unlocks an appreciation for life.

Interestingly enough, these abilities align directly to five of the top eight core skills that employers say they are looking for in their employees. “Soft skills,” as they are sometimes called, are in high demand, and increasingly so in our AI world. (See the World Economic Forum's "The Future of Jobs Report 2025" for the details.)

A liberal arts education is invaluable because it:

Energizes analytical thinking. "Analytical thinking" is the top skill employers say they need. And rightly so. In any work environment, learning to formulate meaningful questions; synthesize information from multiple sources; create coherent arguments; question assumptions; apply moral and ethical reasoning to complex situations, are invaluable skills. As one AI-engineer shared with me, “AI can do Excel but you need to be able to think critically, think deeply across different problems, in order to make use of it and not be replaced by it.”

Boosts creativity. "Creative thinking" is fourth on employers’ lists of core skills they seek in their employees. While AI-generated content is all the rage right now, many people are voicing concerns, dissatisfaction, or outright disgust with some of the types of output they are encountering. It is even possible that we may see a swing back to interest in human-produced content: writing, music, poetry, art, books. See Jessica Stillman's interesting take that "The Rise of AI Will Make Liberal Arts Degrees Popular Again: Here's Why."

Nurtures self-awareness and Elevates empathy. Encountering the experiences of other people through music, movies, literature, poetry and art, we learn to visualize the stories of others. Opening our minds this way invites understanding and compassion, engaging other people and ourselves as whole persons. Martha C. Nussbaum explains:

We do not automatically see another human being as spacious and deep, having thoughts, spiritual longings, and emotions. It is all too easy to see another person as just a body—which we might then think we can use for our ends, bad or good. It is an achievement to see a soul in that body, and this achievement is supported by poetry and the arts, which ask us to wonder about the inner world of that shape we see—and, too, to wonder about ourselves and our own depths. (Not for Profit: Why Democracy Needs the Humanities, 102)

And note also that the number five core skill on employers’ lists is "motivation and self-awareness" while the number seven core skill is "empathy and active listening."

Unlocks an appreciation for life. Employers seek people who posses the core skills of "curiosity and lifelong learning" (number eight on their lists). Philosophy, theology, and related disciplines remind us that there is a gentle radiance, a quiet but luminous presence, a spiritual dimension, in all aspects of being: humans, living creatures, plants, inanimate objects, the earth itself. Depending on your view you might call this transcendence or the sacredness of creation; or you might say this world is enchanted, charmed with magic. Regardless, whether we perceive this mysterious aspect of the world depends largely on our ability to slow down, quiet our minds, and, with awareness, offer reverent attention to the world around us and the world within us. “But the magic of life is not about definitions and labels; it’s about love. About finding the beauty in the everyday motions of life” (Courtney Peppernell, Watering the Soul, p. 30). A liberal arts education invites us to appreciate the beauty and wonder of this world in which we live.

 

More than just practical in their own right, development of these skills and qualities prepares a person for "leadership and social influence," which is the number three skill sought by employers. Add “technological literacy” (#6) and “resilience, flexibility and agility” (#2) to your capabilities and you possess the top eight skills employers seek.

 

What can you do with these skills? Use them in all areas of your life to support meaningful relationships and meaningful work. A deeper sense of understanding who you are, appreciating the complexity of others, and an ability to engage each new circumstance with openness and creativity are qualities that will serve you well your whole life.

 

 

Racism, Violence, and Discrimination versus the Sacredness of Creation

While the first week of the new term is always filled with stress and uncertainty of new classes mixed with the anticipation of new things ahead, this past week held something else: challenging thoughts for the new year. Three different events were held on campus this week that showcase what we mean at Carlow University when we talk about respecting the dignity of every human being--a concept that is closely related to the core value of focus for Carlow’s 2019-20 academic year, “Sacredness of Creation.” As I have noted in another post, this value is not just about respecting the world around us, but also about recognizing that every person we encounter is a unique creation of God. Thus we honor the “Sacredness of Creation” when we recognize the presence of God in every person, and when we treat all people with the dignity they deserve. Three events this week brought this idea into sharp focus as they addressed issues of racism, violence, and discrimination.

The first was a student panel in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr day, co-hosted by the Social Justice Institutes and the College of Leadership and Social Change. The event was entitled “Disruptive Empathy” and began with psychology faculty member, Dr. Pat Jameson, sharing from her research in relational cultural theory—a framework in psychology which promotes the benefits of empowering relationships in contrast to the destructive dynamics of power/over relationships. Notably, she began with mention of the concepts of justice and mercy that we focus on in our Contemplation and Action courses. Specifically, the idea that justice is "finding out what belongs to whom, and giving it back" (citing Walter Bruggeman). In this case: the respect and human dignity that every person deserves. Her comments set the stage for students' talking about their experiences of marginalization based on their multiple identities whether related to gender, race, sexual orientation, religion, or even place of origin. They also spoke about where they sought strength and encouragement, and gave some really thoughtful insights into ways the Carlow community might move forward to become even more of a place where “all are valued and all may thrive.” A key takeaway for all attendees was the advice to listen, really listen, to what our students of color, as well as other individuals with identities which are prone to be marginalized by the majority culture, have to say. And in that listening, not assume that "we" (ie the majority culture) know what those individuals are going through or what they need.

The second event was a faculty and staff training opportunity led by our Student Affairs leaders and chief of police around the university’s new Green Dot training. Green Dot is a bystander awareness and intervention program aimed at producing a culture change related to interpersonal violence whether sexual violence, intimate partner violence, or stalking. The purpose of the faculty and staff session was to share the details of the program with the community prior to its being rolled out with students. Part of the key to this program is having a campus culture that reinforces the message that violence is not ok and that everyone does their part to promote a safe campus. Rather than just a one-time training or seminar, Green Dot looks to be a very comprehensive and multi-pronged approach aimed at culture change. From the statistics that were shared, the program produces measurable and meaningful results where it has been used. A key insight was the idea that there are many ways to intervene in situations where someone may be in danger, and these range from simple distraction to delegation (finding someone in a suitable position or relationship to address the problem) to direct involvement. With awareness of the scope of the problem and with a range of tools in hand, members of our community can be better prepared to respond to a questionable situations where an individual’s safety may be in jeopardy.

The third event was a faculty lecture by Dr. Clara Cheng related to her research on implicit bias. Her talk was part of the President’s Lecture Series celebrating Carlow’s 90^th anniversary and showcasing Carlow’s faculty expertise for the university and the broader community. Dr. Cheng did some myth-busting based on her extensive research and explained that implicit bias is something everyone has and that it is absorbed from the culture around us. Further, the problem with implicit bias is that it leads (even if unintentionally or unconsciously) to real impact in peoples’ lives. Dr. Cheng referred to research studies related to school achievement, college admission, job applications, career success, health care, criminal justice, and engagement with police officers, as areas where implicit bias impacts outcomes in very disparate ways for different groups. One recommendation from her talk was to recognize that implicit bias is a habit—and like any habit, if we work at it we can break it. When we catch our minds moving down a well-worn path of judgment of someone who is different from us, we can take the small step to replace biased thoughts about a person we encounter with a neutral thought.

Most encouraging to me about these events was the attendance—by faculty, students, and staff. During a very busy week, all three had better turnout than I have seen at many other open events addressing needs in the campus community. With this level of interest, and the rich content of challenging ideas shared, we all have a lot to think about as we seek to live in ways that recognize and honor the value of each person we encounter. And what a worthy goal to work toward in the new semester, new year, and new decade.

The Value of a Liberal Arts Education

Two national organizations dedicated to the meaningful delivery of university education issued a joint statement this week about the value of the liberal arts. The statement by these two organizations, the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) and the Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U), is in response to a widespread trend which shows a devaluing of the liberal arts in American society today. The now common caricature and criticism of the liberal arts, particularly the idea of majoring in a liberal arts discipline in the humanities such as philosophy, history, theology, art, or English, is that they are not directly tied to training for a specific career outcome. And as students are steered toward other more clearly career-oriented majors that they can be sure will lead to a specific job, liberal arts enrollments have declined. This has often led to difficult decisions by university administrators to eliminate some liberal arts majors. It has also led to decisions by state legislatures who fund higher education about how to prioritize their limited funding. The result is a cycle that in the end reflects a societal devaluation of liberal arts education.

But, as the AAC&U and AAUP statement points out, it has long been known by employers that liberal arts are great preparation for many careers since, rather than focusing on one narrow set of technical skills (which may become irrelevant) the liberal arts prepare graduates with skills they will use in any career. These skills include the ability to learn quickly and learn on the job, a capacity for lifelong learning. They also include the ability to think deeply and critically, to understand complex problems, to draw on knowledge from a range of disciplines to solve problems, and to be creative in approaching challenges. In addition the liberal arts foster the ability to understand differing perspectives and, more importantly, people who have differing perspectives. The liberal arts promote empathy along with an understanding of culture and how it impacts individuals and groups.

All of those skills are more important in today’s society than they ever have been. Thus, the promotion of the liberal arts can readily be seen as needed for the sake of the public good. This shifts the focus from only the single issue of an individual having the option to choose liberal education to a broader issue: how to promote and foster what is needed for our society to thrive and to overcome its current challenges. Career education and technical training, as inherently valuable as those are, are not sufficient in themselves. A liberal arts education has a strong claim to being equally important for our world today, if not more so.

This week, in addition to being glad to see this joint statement about the liberal arts, I also came across a now classic essay entitled “Only Connect” by William Cronon. This essay, from twenty years ago, described the ten things that liberal arts enables people to do. The last was the phrase “only connect” which suggests the ability to take the many parts of a liberal education and make connections—between ideas, between events, as well as between people. I was surprised to see at the end of Cronon’s essay that he linked the liberal arts to one primary goal: love. A liberal arts education is not something one undertakes only for oneself, although the value to an individual can be great (see the salary surveys of liberal arts majors by mid-and late-career compared to other majors). Instead, the thinking, skills, and values of a liberal arts education provide one the perspective and motivation for service. Cronon wrote: “Liberal education nurtures human freedom in the service of human community, which is to say that in the end it celebrates love.” For Cronon, this is agape love, “the most powerful and generous form of human connection.” One need not look too far to find this notion rooted in the biblical ideals of love of God, the creator of the human community, and love of neighbor.

For those of us committed to lifelong learning, our own as well as that of our students, it is important to remember the value of what we do, both its roots and its outcomes, for individuals and for society. And in the current climate, to be aware of what may ultimately be at stake if liberal arts education continues to be devalued.

Imagine Better

“We do not need magic to change the world. We carry all the power we need inside ourselves already: we have the power to imagine better.”

-J.K. Rowling’s 2008 commencement speech at Harvard University

As an educator in a college that includes the liberal arts and sciences as well as education, this quote really resonates with me. And, in my most optimistic moments, I like to think that this is one of the best things that an education grounded in the liberal arts provides for students: a capacity for imagination. An ability to see problems and challenges from multiple perspectives, and to draw on a wide range of knowledge and experiences to imagine solutions and ways forward that can lead to a better world. I don’t have to look very far to find examples of graduates who are doing just that.

 At the same time, I have to acknowledge that few students see it this way as they begin their educational journey in college. Education for all but a few is instrumental—a means to an end. Get a degree to get a job. I don’t say that to lament this reality; just to acknowledge it.

Where and when does the capacity to imagine better enter in?

From the vantage point of my academic discipline—biblical studies—I see the shaping of the human imagination as a major part of what the biblical writers were about. Through narratives, through psalms, even through letters, the biblical writers invited their readers to envision a world in which God was at work. As much as Christians have prioritized doctrine and right-beliefs over the centuries, it seems to me that the biblical writers were interested in inviting readers to see themselves in a world in which the God who created the world was also actively at work. And from there, to imagine their part as participants in God’s ongoing work of creation and new creation and to enjoy the realities of what it means to be a child of God. And if that is one way that “imagining better” is reflected in the discipline of biblical studies, there are many, many other ways it is reflected in other subjects, all of which contribute to a well-rounded liberal arts education. Ideally.

A recent essay in the Chronicle of Higher Education laments the piling up of BS in higher education. The author, sociologist and professor Christian Smith, lists many things that he considers BS. It is an extensive list of things that, for the most part, are ingrained features and aspects of contemporary higher education that distract from or distort the best of what higher education could be. One could argue with any of his individual laments about the nuances and complexity of each one, but the collective force of the list is jarring. It suggests that, taken together, there are some very serious systemic problems in higher education. But three points of analysis stand out to me.

First, ideas have consequences. The kinds of ideas and thinking that develop in universities make their way into society over time. Accordingly, the currents of BS flowing through universities today will become visible in our public and political life and, Smith claims, actually already are visible in our current highly polarized and divisive political rhetoric. Our institutions of higher learning are supposed to be producing educated citizens and leaders who can participate in the political process and find new solutions to problems, but apparently they have not done so.

Second, Smith notes that many of the people perpetuating the BS within institutions of higher education are well-intentioned people who are doing so unwittingly; with the best of intentions they are participating in a system that is flawed and by participating in it and contributing to it, they contribute to the problems.

Third, what is needed are those who can creatively break out of the current paradigm and foster new forms of higher education that reflect the ideal of what liberal education is all about. Some combination of “visionary traditionalism” (I really like that phrase) and “organizational radicalism” is what is called for. The author suggests we need “people with the capacity to retrieve and revitalize the best of higher education’s past and restructure it in ways that are most effective in the future” (Smith, “Higher Ed is Drowning in BS”).

The solution for higher education is not going to be found in a wholesale return to the past, but it can likely be found in the heart of what higher education, particularly in the liberal arts tradition, is: critical reflection and creative thinking. About the past; about the present; about the future. About problems; about possibilities. Imagining better.

Those of us in higher education need to imagine better for the sake of higher education so that our students can imagine greater for their lives, their communities, and the world as a whole. And I think further that those of us in Christian higher education and at faith-based institutions can look to the examples of prophets and poets in ages past who, through their writings now preserved as scripture, invite all of us to imagine better. And perhaps we all can find this current in different ways in whatever subject area we are passionate about.

The Undivided Life: Part Two

Last week I posted some of the insights of Parker Palmer from his influential book The Courage to Teach that have helped me to think in a more holistic way about the art of teaching and the outcomes of a liberal arts education (see "The Undivided Life: Part One"). In this post I discuss a few concepts from some of his other writings. As with his other writings, Palmer's insights derive from a rich understanding of what it means to be fully human based largely on the wisdom of biblical teaching as understood in the Quaker tradition.

Building on the ideas in his earlier work, in The Heart of Higher Education: A Call to Renewal (2010) Palmer promotes what he calls “integrative learning” which is learning that is grounded in his holistic view of the human person. Recognizing the challenges facing higher education, and the ways it sometimes falls far short of its ideals, he asks:

"How can higher education become a more multidimensional enterprise, one that draws on the full range of human capacities for knowing, teaching, and learning; that bridges the gaps between the disciplines; that forges stronger links between knowing the world and living creatively in it, in solitude and community?" (2)

As he makes his case for what can foster such a multidimensional academic approach, Palmer explains that the type of change that is needed is one that is not a simple administrative or structural fix. He writes:

"The change we seek within the academy is not one that flows from administrative mandate, but one that arises in the energized space between caring and thoughtful human beings. When personal agendas subside, and genuine interest in the other is established, then a quality of mutual attentiveness emerges that can become the safe harbor for the new and the unexpected that may become a seedbed of educational renewal." (12)

While administrative mandate cannot bring this kind of cultural change about, there are ways that structures, policies and procedures can be developed and aligned in ways that support and encourage this kind of genuine interaction. If there is one thing I have encountered in my own experiences of higher education it is a multitude of “caring and thoughtful human beings.” Many thoughtful and caring people are drawn to education and one of the things I love about working in higher education is getting to work among such wonderful people. Higher education attracts people who are passionate about their particular area of study and are experts in it, and who are also passionate about seeing others learn and grow. What can be lost at times amid the institutional and cultural pressures of our higher education system are the concern for others and the inspiration that caused us to pursue advanced study in our academic areas of interest in the first place. In the midst of such pressures Palmer promotes the recovery of wonder and humility:

"A mode of knowing steeped in awe, wonder, and humility is a mode of knowing that can serve the human cause, which is the whole point of integrative education." (22)

This sense of awe, wonder, and humility around discovery is something that both faculty and students need, and is something that integrative learning can help foster. And as valuable as that is inherently, it also has value for humanity as it opens up potential for serving others. With this recognition Palmer points to the idea of education serving the needs of humanity—a notion which is also a feature of any education grounded in the liberal arts.

This idea of serving others also comes out clearly in the two audio-books I recently listened to about vocation and the inner life. Palmer writes about the need to connect “soul and role,” in order to integrate who we are with what we do in our professional and public lives of service. In Let Your LifeSpeak: Listening for the Voice of Vocation (1999), he writes:

“Our deepest calling is to grow into our own authentic self-hood, whether or not it conforms to some image of who we ought to be. As we do so, we will not only find the joy that every human being seeks--we will also find our path of authentic service in the world.”

Along similar lines, in An Undivided Life: Seeking Wholeness in Ourselves, Our Work, and Our World (2009) he cites Frederick Buechner: 

“Vocation is the place where our deep gladness meets the world's deep need.”

In Palmer’s work I find encouragement to be present in the world in a thoughtful way that recognizes that I have something to give others, and that this something comes from being who I truly am. I also find encouragement to be in the world with a deeper awareness of the dignity of all people and the inter-connectedness of all of us.

To me these ways of thinking about life and vocation are central features of what a liberal arts education provides for those who embrace it. And particularly a liberal arts education at a Christian college or university that is grounded in the centuries old tradition of wisdom, of faith seeking understanding, and the sacredness of all of God’s creation.

A complete list of Parker J. Palmer’s books can be found here. If your library has any of them and if you are looking for a reliable and also challenging guide for the inner journey, I highly recommend his work.