“Consistent with its Catholic identity and Mercy heritage,” Mercyhurst University’s mission is to educate “…women and men in a culture where faith and reason flourish together, where the beauty and power of the liberal arts combine with an appreciation for the dignity of work and a commitment to serving others.” Mercyhurst community is “Confident in the strength of its student-faculty bonds…” and “…inspired by the image of students whose choices, in life and work, will enable them to realize the human and spiritual values embedded in everyday realities and to exercise leadership in service toward a just world”
The Department of Political Science, in October 1991, established its goals and aims, relying heavily on a report “to the profession” conducted by the Task Force on the Political Science Major, and published in Vol. XXIV, No. 1, March 1991, in PS: Political Science & Politics. The task force, led by Chair John C. Wahlke, was organized by the American Political Science Association as one of twelve learned societies that contributed to a national review of arts and sciences majors initiated by the Association of American Colleges. The original statement was revisited beginning in 2001, and a modified draft accepted unanimously by the departmental faculty in 2003. The goals and aims outlined in this statement inform the foundational premises of the Political Science Department, and are entirely consistent with the spirit of the Mercyhurst mission.
The department’s first premise is that we strive to operate within the parameters established by being part of the broader community that is Mercyhurst University. We believe in the Mercy tradition expressed in the University Mission Statement. As such, we see ourselves as being an integral part of the attempt to provide a liberal arts education. As Robert F. Sasseen has argued “Liberal education in its original meaning is primarily political education. It consists above all in” preparing students “for their life as citizens…Political science…is thus central to liberal education…” (Political Perspectives, Summer 1990, Vol. 19, No. 3, p. 148).
The goals established by this first premise relate to the department’s approach to majors, minors, and to all of those students taking political science courses as part of the Core, as a cognate course, or simply as an elective. We seek the overall intellectual development students while striving to see each student as individuals possessing dignity, value, and the inherent right to express ideas openly and freely. We seek to foster: curiosity and love of learning; responsibility and the ability to work both independently and cooperatively; powers of sophisticated critical analysis and in-depth study skills; creativity and abstract logical thinking; life skills such as reading, writing, persuading, negotiating, and presenting; ability to think spatially; understanding of numerical data; historical awareness; international, cross- and multi-cultural appreciation; an informed understanding of career opportunities; and a thoughtful approach to their spiritual and moral values and how they relate to their studies. Particular emphasis is given to the values of human dignity, mercy, and justice and to the issues of personal responsibility, service, and making a positive difference in the world.
Our second major premise is that political science, as a distinct yet not unrelated academic discipline, rests upon a unique body of knowledge, methodologies, and philosophical premises about the character and use of “knowledge” and how that knowledge relates to other disciplines. While appropriately provided with choices in terms of the nature of their programs of study, undergraduate majors will graduate from Mercyhurst University with a well-rounded knowledge of the major subfields of the discipline of political science and an integrative set of experiences. Further, the discipline of political science suggests not only working to expose our students to this background, but also some specific goals for our efforts with majors and minors. This includes an understanding of how political scientists think, gather evidence, process data, and reach tentative conclusions. Graduates will also develop an ability to think critically about political phenomena and thought. We also seek to foster leadership and team-work skills. We believe that this major/minor will be useful for persons planning to seek careers in education, the legal profession, state and local government, urban and regional planning, the federal bureaucracy, journalism, or in any of the proliferating quasi-public organizations which seek to monitor the political process or to influence public policy.
More importantly, we should strive for these students to be identified by the following characteristics. Our alumni should be politically concerned, aware, and literate. They should be effectively prepared for the worlds of work (formal employment in the labor market) and citizenship (civic and community life) as well as having a solid academic background for those inclined to pursue graduate studies or a law degree. Thus, specific career plans and interests aside, they should be well-prepared to comprehend and interact with the political world in appropriate ways. We recognize, and want them to recognize, that it is a world with ethnic, gender, and cultural diversity that is increasingly becoming a global community. In particular, the years since 1989 have been ones of rapid globalization of economics, business, technology, culture, and politics. People entering the workforce are faced with a rapidly changing and global environment requiring the ability to adapt quickly to changing circumstances and the willingness to work with people from a wide array of cultures, circumstances, and perspectives.
As liberal arts university graduates with a particular interest in politics, they should receive enough in-depth training and a wide enough breadth of perspectives to follow their own inclinations to interact politically with that world whether as “simply” citizens, professional business men and women, journalists, lawyers, interest group participants, active electoral involvement, government or private sector analysts, or academic political scientists. We also believe it is crucial that our program is rigorous enough that our graduates are well-prepared for law or graduate school – since, by and large, if they want to stay within this field (and be upwardly mobile) these are the two normal paths available.
Our third, and final, major premise is closely related to the other two premises. However, it is not just focused on majors and minors, but rather all students who choose political science courses, particularly, those who use our courses to fulfill requirements in the REACH curriculum. We seek to maximize student ability to analyze, interpret, and explain the significance and dynamics of past and present political events and governmental processes; strive to increase their awareness and interest; work to convey factual information; attempt to reveal the importance and personal impact of political events and issues; and, most significantly, we seek to equip them to be able to understand, evaluate, and potentially shape the political events, actions, and problems/solutions of the future.
In sum, these goals and aims are consistent with the goals and mission statement of the university and of the discipline. Students will be taught to: think critically; develop effective oral and (especially) written communication skills; engage effectively in problem solving, bargaining, compromise, and decision making; and be exposed to a rich variety of perspectives and ideas. These are crucial components of a liberal arts education and, along with knowledge of politics and government, key components of the sort of civic education democracy depends on.
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