Since spring 2005, students and faculty at SU haven’t been able to walk into a university building without seeing the chancellor’s catch phrase, ‘Scholarship in Action.’

But even the concept’s most adherent supporters admit it – most students, and even some faculty, don’t understand what exactly the slogan means.

‘The conversation is just beginning,’ said Harvey Teres, an English professor. He emphasized that both faculty and students are unclear about the meaning of Scholarship in Action at this point.

With the discussion fresh on campus, a panel of faculty members met Wednesday to illustrate their personal applications of the concept thus far.

‘This was the first open forum on Scholarship in Action,’ Teres said. ‘The general views of faculty and students are only speculations right now.’

The panel, sponsored by the University Senate Committee on Academic Affairs, was attended by 20-25 faculty members in addition to the panelists. Chancellor Nancy Cantor was not in attendance.

Teres moderated the discussion and began with a short background of Scholarship in Action’s brief history. An intensive study of the idea of public scholarship began at SU in spring 2005, and since that time, the faculty has worked to grasp a fundamental understanding of Scholarship in Action and the issues surrounding it.

‘It is vital as a faculty that we discuss this so that we will better understand it,’ Teres said.

The first speaker, Louise Phelps, a writing professor in The College of Arts and Sciences, authored the white paper on Scholarship in Action. The intention of the white paper was to ‘be a catalyst to raw discussion on Scholarship in Action.’

The most important section of her paper asks what engaged scholars actually do and how faculty can achieve Scholarship in Action. Discussion among faculty members is the most crucial component of understanding the goals and ideas behind the slogan, Phelps said.

The panelists followed Phelps, describing their own experience in applying the values upheld by Scholarship in Action.

Anne Beffel, an associate professor, showed a short documentary on her public scholarship project. After she was hired by the New York Downtown Hospital in Manhattan, Beffel created an art exhibit that literally reflected the memory of Sept. 11 by hanging small mirrors along lobby windows. She also handed out mirrors to people on the streets, provoking thoughts and reflections among the people of New York.

Beffel then emphasized the importance of including students in the execution of Scholarship in Action. ‘If we can include the students, we set the stage and give them opportunities to experience this idea of Scholarship in Action for themselves.’

Next, history professor Elisabeth Lasch-Quinn discussed how her passion for all subjects may not traditionally fit into an academic setting, but they do offer social criticism. Her desire and ability to publish in public venues is her form of Scholarship in Action.

‘My work is not about career building, or myself – it’s about the public,’ Lasch-Quinn said. She mentioned several concerns with Scholarship in Action, noting pressure to conform and collaboration between businesses and the university as possible disadvantages.

Steve Davis, chair of the newspaper department in the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, took time to elaborate on a project he first began with a class. Davis’ class created a single-edition magazine focusing on the issues in the south side of Syracuse in which students interviewed more than 200 residents. ‘Some people have called it Scholarship in Action,’ he said.

‘It got professors and students out of their comfort zone,’ Davis said. ‘By the end, the neighborhood had been totally demystified.’

This project, which has been turned into an all-out business plan, connected an entire community to SU students and faculty through learning, writing and communicating. ‘It is the most interdisciplinary project you can imagine,’ Davis said.

The last panel speaker, Beverly Allen – a professor of literature, languages and linguistics – spoke of her rejection of the traditional career. Throughout her studies, Allen became entranced by issues of rape-death camps in Bosnia.

After reading testimonies about these virtually unknown camps, she responded by going to these locations and interacting with survivors. She went on to write a book about the women of the camps. Allen said that by crossing several concentrations of work and study, she has gained an invaluable depth in her life.

Issues surrounding Scholarship in Action were touched upon in the discussion at the end of the forum. Both Allen and Davis agreed that grants given directly by the university would be very beneficial.

‘To have someone come to me after hearing my idea…that’s what we need to build momentum,’ Davis said.

Increasing national enthusiasm for theories like Scholarship in Action was agreed to be a needed component.

‘A national consortium really does add value,’ Allen said.

The panelists decided that a broad sense of knowledge and worldliness is crucial to reflecting the ideas behind Scholarship in Action.

‘If we’re really going to take them seriously, we must leave our field,’ Allen said.

Published on November 28, 2007 at 12:00 pm