PUBLICATIONS Inside Illinois Vol. 20, No. 8, Oct. 19, 2000

Lecture-seminar series examines university’s changing role

Melissa Mitchell , News Bureau Staff Writer
(217) 333-5491; melissa@illinois.edu

The image of the university as an ivory tower is rapidly dissolving as increased government and private funding is contributing to a new reality: the university as an engine for growth in a rapidly evolving, knowledge-based world economy.

And while critics argue whether that reality is good or bad, scholars at the UI will be joined by national and international leaders in education, government and public policy for a yearlong discussion regarding that evolution and its corollary issues. The discussion, organized by the UI’s Center for Advanced Study, will take the form of a lecture-seminar series called "Defining Values for Research and Technology: The University’s Changing Role."

"The real world is increasingly impinging upon the academic world," said center director William T. Greenough, a professor of psychology and of cell and structural biology. "As we begin the 21st century, we need to think carefully about the role of the university in a world where the flow of information increasingly bypasses us, where resources must increasingly be earned and where the university’s worth is assessed increasingly in economic terms. These are issues that cut across disciplinary boundaries and demand that individuals from diverse areas of the campus come together to discuss and resolve them."

The series itself evolved from earlier discussions among professors affiliated with the UI center. It is being coordinated by law professors Philip McConnaughay and Jay Kesan.

McConnaughay said lecture topics will focus on such questions as "Has this new status [for universities] weakened or strengthened the incentives of research universities to address the basic needs of mankind?"; "What does this mean for the arts and humanities?"; and "Who should own the discoveries of publicly funded universities?"

Two lectures are scheduled this fall:

• "Culture, Citizenship and Commodities," presented by Toby Miller, 4 p.m. Oct. 23, third floor, Levis Faculty Center. Miller is a professor of cinema studies, Tisch School of the Arts, New York University.
  
  
• "The Changing Nature of Innovation in the United States," presented by Erich Block, 4 p.m. Nov. 14, auditorium, Beckman Institute. Block is the former director of the National Science Foundation.

Most of the lectures are scheduled during the spring 2001 semester, in conjunction with a weekly seminar for faculty members and graduate students. For more information about the series and other CAS activities and interdisciplinary initiatives, visit the center’s Web site: http://www.cas.uiuc.edu/.