Mission

The College of Humanities, Arts, Behavioral and Social Sciences (CHABSS) offers education rooted in the liberal arts tradition, responsive to new ideas and challenges, and attuned to the diversity of human experience. Grounded in the scholarly and creative activity of our faculty, our programs are dedicated to preparing students for lifelong careers of leadership, learning, creativity, professional achievement, and community service.

Features of the College:

• As a scholarly community, the College integrates diverse academic disciplines, research fields, creative arts, and interdisciplinary programs, offering students multiple pathways to explore ideas, ideals, visions, and values.
• The intellectual identity of the College centers on topics encompassing the origins and structure of behavior and action, society and culture, and the history and future of human expression, reflection, and creativity.
• Students gain a global perspective on diverse peoples, histories, societies and cultures, through sustained exploration of the arts, humanities, and social and behavioral sciences.
• College faculty and staff foster a supportive, inclusive, and rigorous learning environment and workplace, upholding the highest standards of academic endeavor and organizational ethics.
• The faculty is committed to a teacher-scholar model of academic life, drawing from active scholarship and creativity to sustain inspired and effective teaching.
• College programs emphasize active student learning, critical thinking, and original student research and creative work. Students sharpen age-old skills of writing, speaking, and reasoning, while exploring the newest technologies in the classroom, studio, and laboratory.
• Undergraduate and graduate degree programs enable students to explore their chosen fields in depth, master specialized knowledge at advanced levels, and focus their commitment to individual and social progress. General education courses present basic orientations to multiple disciplines, helping students attain a broad and coherent worldview. Service learning opportunities reach beyond campus, engaging students in community partnerships, building awareness of regional needs, and inspiring practical realization of ethics, integrity and citizenship.
• Together, the faculty and staff of CHABSS promote education that is comprehensive, integrative, and transformative, offering students new ways to see themselves and the world, from the foundations of animal behavior to the highest expressions of human existence.