Dominican Liberal Arts Education in the New Millennium: A Defense in the Age of Homo Economicus

Abstract

In an age when colleges and universities are being challenged to justify themselves in purely economic terms, Catholic and Dominican institutions must articulate the value-added nature of the education they provide. By calling on the rich Catholic/Dominican intellectual tradition, they can present a vision of a values-based liberal arts education that produces graduates who engage the contemporary world with a unique set of integrated skills and values. The complementary nature of truth, knowledge, faith, and engaged service to the world forms the unique constellation of values offered by the Dominican Catholic higher education experience.