"The scientist does not study nature because it is useful.
He studies it because because he delights in it,
and he delights in it because it is beautiful."
Henri Poincaré
Science and Method, 1908
THE IDEALS THAT INSPIRE US...
Educate for a
good life
To help students see their college education as
- primarily -
an occasion to reflect on how to live a good life, whatever their goals to promote economic advancement, social justice or civic participation
might be.
Engage the classics
To bring contemporary thought into sustained, open and rigorous engagement with
classical intellectual tradition.
Foster interdisciplinary dialogue
We believe that the emphasis on technical specialization prevalent in academia today constrains the great human potential of the university experience. Consideration of larger questions of personhood, meaning and humanity can illuminate and enrich every field of academic inquiry.
Discover the richness of intellectual friendship
To engage in open, free and fair inquiry on questions of meaning and existence. We believe that these are best considered when exposed to the scrutiny of an intellectually
diverse community of friends, who will both
support and challenge one another.
Seek
the truth courageously
To challenge the university to pursue the truth more vigorously. Thinking and acting independently of prevailing trends does not require open confrontation at every opportunity.