7e. Ernest Boyer asserts, Increasingly, the campus is being viewed as a place where students get credentialed and the faculty get tenured, while the overall work of the [college] does not seem particularly relevant to the nation's most pressing civic, social, economic, and moral problems. [Campuses should] be viewed by both students and professors not as isolated islands, but as staging grounds for action ("The Scholarship of Engagement." The Journal of Public Service and Outreach, 1996) Respond to Boyer's position. Do you agree or disagree? How might SLCC look different if it were one of these "staging grounds"? I agree with Ernest Boyer's statement that the college campus should be a "staging ground for action". Back in my country, I never wanted to go to college because I felt that it was a waste of time and money. Students had to memorize answers so they could get good scores on the tests. I saw many of my high school classmates who went to college struggle to find a suitable job after graduating because they only knew how to take tests. I felt it was better for me to gain real world experiences by joining the army and later working in a factory. Here in the United States I feel that colleges are focusing more and more on helping students become productive members of society. For example, in this class we have been focusing on a social justice issue and I have learned a lot about women's rights. I feel I have more of a desire to go out and make a change in this area. I think that SLCC is becoming more and more like the "staging grounds" that Boyer talks about. I often see booths set up on campus that are focused on different causes. Students are encouraged to participate in clubs and organizations outside of their class studies. Even the addition of the eportfolio is a way to prepare students for their future career and life after college. We are able to record and reflect on our achievements in each class. In the future, I see more and more teachers assign homework that expects students to go out and make a change in their communities. Assignments would include joining an organization, attending a speech or protest, researching problems we face in our society, and contacting government representatives to fight for what we believe in. We have a unique opportunity in the college where students can gather together to make change happen in our society. By focusing more on these civic, social, economic and moral problems, I believe we can make a difference in the world.