College of Arts and Sciences Students Provided Strong Academic Foundation In the fall of 1969, the faculty of Harding restudied the goals, objectives, and aims of the in· stitution and adopted a statement of purpose that was approved by the Board of Trustees. Although an in-depth, independent, objective study was made, the statement of purpose formulated was basically and fundamentally a reaffirmation of the purpose that had guided the institution since Harding College was chartered as a senior college in 1924 upon the merger of two junior colleges, Arkansas Christian College in Morrilton, Arkansas, and Harper College in Harper, Kansas. "Harding College was found1979. Although the entire in· stitution was dedicated to achieving academic excellence and genuine Christian commitment, as was strongly emphasized at the 1981 presession faculty conference at Camp Tahkodah on August 20, the College of Arts and Sciences was delegated the responsibility of providing each student, regardless of major, a strong background in the arts and sciences that would undergird all the professional programs and areas of specialization_ Each of the 15 departments in the College of Arts and Sciences also offered one or more majors_ In the fall of 1981, the Col· hours compared to 7,948 by the lege of Arts and Sciences had School of Business, 2,331 by 1,313 declared majors with 150 the School of Education, and additional students specifying 1,271 by the School of Nursing. only professional goals, com· The number of semester hours pared to 805 declared majors in credit generated per teacher by the School of Business, 304 in the 129 teachers in the College the School of Education, and of Arts and Sciences was 251.7 101 in the School of Nursing. compared with 496.8 by the 16 Students were not admitted to teachers in the School of the School of Nursing until they " Business, 211.9 by the 11 had satisfactorily completed a teachers in the School of specified two-year program in Education, and 105.9 by the 12 the College of Arts and teachers in the School of NursSciences. ing. For the fall semester, the Col· During the period July 1, lege of Arts and Sciences ac· 1980·June 30, 1981, there were counted for 73.8 per cent of the 278 undergraduate degrees student semester hours granted in the College of Arts generated - 32,467 semester and Sciences, 117 in the School ed to provide Christians the op- , •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••." portunity to achieve their goals of higher education in an environment deliberately planned to strengthen Biblical faith and values ," was the opening paragraph of the reaffirmation of purpose. Expanding on the work of the institution, the statement continued, "The College seeks to develop in her students a strong faith in God, genuine Christian character, and love for Christ and His church . . _ Harding College is a Christian liberal arts college. As such it is essential that her students be given a strong foundation in the arts and sciences _ __ They should develop the ability to think and to solve problems they will face in life, and be able to communicate their ideas __ _ It is the purpose of Harding College to acquaint her students with the cultural heritage of man so that they will have the historical and philosophical perspective from which to make their maximum contribution to sOciety . .. to provide her students with the best academic tools possible so that they can achieve the highest academic standing consistent with their desires and ability." Harding University in Florence: Disciples in the Land of Italy The metamorphosis from a college to a university was dramatic and important in the history of Harding. But another momentous occasion which has been somewhat overlooked in the heritage of our institution was the transformation in the fall of 1980 from university Americana to university international. Since Harding began its program in Florence, Italy, four semesters ago interest and participation has grown tremen- - dously. The year of '81 best ex· emplified that growth by setting an enrollment record while giving those involved a taste of life overseas. The fall semester of this year saw a small contingent of University students depart from their accustomed Searcy location to become foreigners in and yet disciples of the land of Italy_ Eleven studiers and two teachers, director L. Y_ Pfeifer of the Bible Depa rtment and Bobby Coker of the Education Department, arrived on the faraway Harding campus and 2 " -; " ~~'t~'j;jr::it;-; t~~~A ~'b~;~~ii'l u' ttif When Harding had grown in enrollment, diversity of programs, and the academic standing to merit university status, in keeping with prevailing trends in higher education, the name was changed to "Harding University" on August 27, _ ••••••••••• 1IIi! 68 -College of Arts and Sciences
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