The teacher/scholar model lies at the heart of any successful liberal arts and sciences institution, and must remain at the center of the Guiding Coalition’s work in imagining the future of Truman State University. It contributes to an intellectually vibrant community with a pervasive sense of the value of the liberal arts and sciences. Faculty scholarship plays an important role in building Truman’s reputation and gaining our graduates entrance to top-notch graduate and professional programs. The teacher/scholar model not only keeps faculty abreast of their field, but even more importantly models behavior that we expect in our students of a life of engagement with ever widening knowledge of our fields and their relation to the larger world. It is important that we do not ask students to do things that we are not willing and able to do ourselves.
Given these realities, it is of utmost importance that Truman State University maintain an active program of internal research grants and sabbaticals. The suspension of this funding threatens the future of Truman State University as a liberal arts and sciences university. We applaud the commitment and support that the School of Social and Cultural Studies (SSCS) demonstrates to faculty research, and call on the entire University to embrace this priority.