Dr. Adam Briggle to Speak to the DRC, August 17
Why is Service a Four Letter Word for Academics?
Rotarians make a big deal about service – it’s your #1 value. Not so for us academics. Indeed, it is the bottom of the barrel. In my world there are three values and they are ranked like this: #1 Research; #2 Teaching; #3 Service. And let me tell you that service is a very distant third.
When we talk about service we mean things like serving on committees for our department and college. Or we mean serving on editorial boards for journals. Or we mean, ugh, the dreaded stuff of popularizing our ideas for the unwashed masses. All of this is looked down upon, because it is not considered intellectual work. It is not the real deal.
In this talk, you’ll get to know what’s behind this attitude -- a certain mythology about the way knowledge relates to society. A Zen koan-like puzzle lies at the heart of this myth.
But more, I believe the academy needs to rethink this mythology. We need to structure our intellectual work as acts of service. For this, Socrates is a good model, inspiring some in our department to start practicing as field philosophers.