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For those of you who may be interested, I’ve done a book. It is modestly titled, Big Man On Campus: A University President Speaks Out On Higher Education, published by Simon & Schuster; it was released last week and The Chronicle recently ran an excerpt. I can’t help but notice that within 24 hours of its delivery, used copies were available on amazon.com. Where do used copies come from the day after a book hits the market? Is it possible that reviewers offer them immediately upon receipt? In any case, they are for sale from prices ranging from the full list to deeply discounted on a variety of book Web sites. I hope that some of you will find it of interest.
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I have in the past posted on the subject of public service. I find that there is a burgeoning interest in the subject. A few days ago I attended a meeting here in Washington of an event organizing committee of Service Nation, hosted by America’s Promise Alliance. They brought together, from all over the United States, representatives from numerous organizations with service-related agendas: They ran alphabetically from AARP to Year Up. I had heard of many but not all. City Year is famous but I knew less about Michigan Community Service Commission. Prominent as always was the Partnership for Public Service and Teach for America.
The purpose of the gathering was to plan a campaign to bring the concept of service to the nation to the attention of the country, in anticipation of the upcoming presidential election and the administration that follows. The range of service ambitions runs from programs for high-school seniors to legacy opportunities for retired boomers. The goals are two-fold: It is hoped community service will address pressing national problems; and to “ignite citizen inspired change” through service.
Through these innovative endeavors, Americans will be given the opportunity to strengthen the country by creating a culture of service and, as the materials say, “Together, we can reshape how we think about what it means to be an American and heal our fractured patriotism.” The effort intends to create a collation of 88 organizations bringing together between 75 and 100 million Americans, drawing on nonprofit, faith, and community-based groups to recruit, train, and utilize volunteers. This is an ambitious initiative; they have their eyes on education reform, conserving the environment, anti-poverty efforts and disaster relief. They are particularly focused on college campuses (more about that later).
Their vision is primarily domestic, but also in part international. They hope to encourage Peace Corps growth; stimulate Americans to join with international NGO’s; and they are rubbing their hands in anticipation of the opportunity provided by the millions of Americans over the age of 50 who have a capacity to give of themselves in legacy careers and a lifetime of experiences to bring to the party.
Keep an eye on September 27th, which has been identified as a possible “Day of Action,” during which these ideas and plans to implement them will be broadly shared through coast-to-coast initiatives. For those interested in more information, you can reach America’s Promise Alliance at 11 Vermont Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20005.
For those in my age category interested in the opportunities for people in their 50s and above, check out Civic Ventures, 2120 L Street, NW, Washington DC 20037.
The Partnership for Public Service, and its head, Max Stier, (mentioned above) have something going that deserves an extra line or two: The partnership is urging the passage of H.R. 6160, presently before Congress. The purpose of this bill is to establish a ROTC like scholarship program to encourage outstanding graduate students in critical fields to pursue a career in the federal government. The short title of the act is “The Roosevelt Scholars Act of 2008,” named after Theodore, not Franklin or Eleanor.
If the idea comes to pass, a nationwide competition would be held to identify a defined number of Roosevelt Scholars in much the same way that the Rhodes, Mitchell, and Marshall Scholarships are awarded selectively. This would be a genuinely constructive and hot item, as generous in its own pacific way as a military service ROTC program. Students would enroll full-time in accredited graduate degree programs in disciplines and professional areas considered mission critical for the country. They would receive grants covering tuition, room and board, books and fees, up to $60,000 for up to five years. Obviously, that would attract some of the most robust students in the country and underscore the nation’s commitment to bringing America’s talent to America’s service. Pay back would require working in government for a defined number of years similar to the ROTC model.
Two key legislators in this enterprise are Rep. David E. Price (D-N.C.) and Christopher Shays, (R-Conn). See: Stephen Barr’s article in The Washington Post on Friday May 23, 2008 on the subject.
