As they neared days of sunbathing and relaxation, students and faculty took in an extra lecture Thursday on what they would be leaving for one week — college.
Addressing a crowd of more than 50 in Dey Hall, Andrew Delbanco, director of American studies at Columbia University, spoke on the history and common issues surrounding higher education.
The lecture marked the third of four events in the Critical Speakers series organized by the English department. The series will conclude April 11 when UNC graduate Cary Wolfe speaks on animal studies and biopolitics.
Delbanco said higher education’s goals have changed significantly since Harvard University — then Harvard College — was established in the 17th century.
Delbanco said college was originally intended to disseminate knowledge and was highly religious in nature. At first, the primary reason to attend university was to learn how to better read and understand the Bible, he said.
But in the late 19th century colleges began to pursue new knowledge, a theme Delbanco said has continued into present-day education.
He said Johns Hopkins University first shifted the collegiate focus toward research and discovery — and other universities soon followed suit.
He said college is also more central to today’s society than in the past, and college degrees have replaced high school diplomas as the means to enter the middle class.
“I enjoyed the lucid and honest analysis of the origins of college in the 17th and 18th centuries,” said first-year Nathan Tilley.
