Preparing Our Students for the 21st Century

Abstract

When America’s first universities were founded in the 1600s, gaining a degree in higher education wasan intellectual right of passage saved only for the most wealthy and privileged. Those few who couldattend were destined to become the social, political and business leaders of society. A collegeeducation was meant to prepare them for that role.In today’s global knowledge economy and hyper-connected world, many can have an impact on societythrough contributions across a variety of industries – not just a select few. Higher education today ismeant to prepare the masses as they consider a much wider realm of possible career paths that arebased on a certain assemblage of knowledge, rather than skills inherited or passed along throughfamily.