“I want to make a case for that misunderstood term—the liberal arts,” said Ellen McCulloch-Lovell, Marlboro president, at a recent Gallup Education Conference, titled Aiming at Career and Life Wellbeing, held in Omaha, Nebraska. In a presentation titled “Liberating Arts Education,” Ellen highlighted the valuable skills and qualities supported by a liberal arts education and urged a redefinition of the concept of “return on investment” as used in higher education. She also participated in a panel discussion called “Linking Education Systems to Better Outcomes,” moderated by Scott Jaschik, editor of Inside Higher Education. “For many months I’ve been declaring, proposing, and insisting that we who care about our students’ lives and our institutions of learning must redefine their worth. If not, the terms of what is valued and what ‘performance’ means will be defined for us.”
