The Citizen Scholars program in Michigan State University’s College of Arts & Letters has received a $50,000 gift to help support students in the program.
The gift, from MSU alumnus Dr. William Lowe and his wife Pamela, will support at least two Citizen Scholars per year for the next four years.
“This generous gift will open the door to immersive, transformative learning experiences for several outstanding Citizen Scholars over the next four years – students who might otherwise not have such an opportunity,” said Sandra Logan, Director of the Citizen Scholars program. “Our students will be energized and inspired by this commitment to their development and success, and we know that the Lowes will be enormously gratified by the tangible benefits of their gift to our students.”
The Citizen Scholars program, which launched in fall of 2016, was created by the College of Arts & Letters to bring out the best in students. The program is dedicated to fostering the next generation of civically engaged, socially conscious, creative, and innovative thinkers. Citizen Scholars are guided to develop the ethical imagination, critical thought processes, cultural awareness, and outstanding communication skills necessary to create positive change toward a more just and inclusive society.
“The Citizen Scholars program is a hothouse for developing innovative, impactful teaching and learning, both in the classroom and in the world beyond,” Logan said. “We encourage and support our students’ local, national, and global engagements, providing enriching service, internship, study away, and study abroad experiences that transform their understanding and broaden their perspectives. What we develop here will percolate out to generate positive new approaches across the College.”
A collaboration between all the units in the College of Arts & Letters, any incoming student with at least one major in the College is invited to aspire to be a Citizen Scholar and perform their way into the program.
This generous gift will open the door to immersive, transformative learning experiences for several outstanding Citizen Scholars over the next four years.
Citizen Scholar Aspirants join a cohort of highly motivated students who support and challenge one another to take advantage of the extraordinary opportunities available at MSU. Those who demonstrate sustained academic excellence over four semesters are admitted as Citizen Scholars and awarded $5,000 of enrichment funding to be used for study abroad or study away, undergraduate research, internships, or other enrichment opportunities.
“We are honored to be able to support the Citizen Scholars initiative as a way to recognize Michigan State’s commitment to undergraduate education. We also have our own commitment to community-based engagement as an integral feature of students’ academic experience,” said Dr. William Lowe, who received his undergraduate degree in History from MSU and is now the Chancellor of Indiana University Northwest. “Citizen Scholars is a model from which a great deal can be learned, including at my own campus.”
The Citizen Scholars program at MSU is building on cutting-edge best practices in liberal arts education.
We are honored to be able to support the Citizen Scholars initiative as a way to recognize Michigan State’s commitment to undergraduate education.
“Liberal learning and the attendant skills have never been more important,” Dr. Lowe said. “A liberal arts education emphasizes communication, collaboration, research, and critical analysis, as well as the acquisition of a broad, worldly perspective and the ability to continue to learn in an environment where knowledge itself and the ways in which we engage it will continue to change rapidly. A liberal arts education is the best preparation for the 21st Century and essential to a well-educated, critically minded citizenry.”
Community service and civic engagement also are key components of the Citizen Scholars program.
“Community-based engagement creates the opportunity for students to put their liberal arts skills, perspectives, and dispositions to productive work in real, very concrete learning situations in which there is something of substance at stake, which is a fine preparation for a career, citizenship, and a satisfying adult life,” Dr. Lowe said.
Dr. Lowe has been Chancellor and Professor of History at Indiana University Northwest since July 2010. A Fulbright Scholar (1990), he received his Ph.D. in Modern History from Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland, and his research and writing is in the field of modern Irish history.
Liberal learning and the attendant skills have never been more important.
He established the William J. Lowe Endowed Scholarship for Undergraduate Study in Ireland at MSU, which is awarded to College of Arts & Letters students to use for study abroad to Ireland. He and his wife, who is a graduate of the University of Detroit and has a master’s degree from Indiana University, also have great fondness for the Detroit area and established the William J. and Pamela A. Lowe Detroit Endowed Scholarship for Detroit residents who attend Michigan State University and select a major within the College of Arts & Letters. In addition, the Lowes also have a planned gift for the College that is unrestricted.
“We are deeply grateful for the generosity Bill and Pamela Lowe have shown the College of Arts & Letters,” said Christopher P. Long, Dean of the College of Arts & Letters. “Their most recent gift will provide Citizen Scholars with the financial support they need to help them achieve their goals in meaningful ways and to become active, engaged citizens of the world.”