Statement of Purpose and Goals
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Purpose:
The central purpose of the University of Virginia is to enrich the
mind by stimulating and sustaining a spirit of free inquiry directed
to understanding the nature of the universe and the role of mankind
in it. Activities designed to quicken, discipline, and enlarge the
intellectual and creative capacities, as well as the aesthetic and
ethical awareness, of the members of the University and to record,
preserve, and disseminate the results of intellectual discovery
and creative endeavor serve this purpose. In fulfilling it, the
University places the highest priority on achieving eminence as
a center of higher learning.
Goals:
The University of Virginia seeks to achieve its central purpose
through the pursuit of the following specific goals:
1. To
offer instruction of the highest quality to undergraduates from
all walks of life, not only by transmitting established knowledge
and skills, but by fostering in students the habits of mind and
character required to develop a generous receptivity to new ideas,
from whatever source; a disposition for applying the most rigorous
criticism to all ideas and institutions, whether old or new; an
ability to test hypotheses and re-interpret human experience; and
a desire to engage in a lifetime of learning.
2. To
sustain liberal education as the central intellectual concern of
the University, not only in the curricula of the College of Arts
and Sciences, but also as a foundation for the professional undergraduate
programs.
3. To
educate men and women for the professions in certain undergraduate
and in graduate programs leading to degrees in the School of Architecture,
Business Administration, Commerce, Education, Engineering and Applied
Science, Law, Medicine, and Nursing.
4. To
lead in the advancement and application of knowledge through graduate
study and research and to disseminate the results among scholars
and the general public.
5. To
attract and retain eminent faculty in order to provide the highest
quality of instruction and leadership in research.
6. To
seek the ablest and most promising students, within the Commonwealth
and without; and, in keeping with the intentions of Thomas Jefferson,
to attend to their total development and well-being; and to provide
appropriate intellectual, athletic, and social programs.
7. To
strive for diversity in the student body and in the faculty and
to promote international exchange of scholars and students.
8. To
provide for students and faculty an atmosphere conducive to fellowship
and understanding and to their constructive participation in the
affairs of the University and the community at large.
9. To
expand educational opportunities for persons with special challenges
such as minority status, physical disability, ethnic heritage, or
insufficient financial resources.
10. To
engage in research in the medical sciences and to provide innovative
leadership in health care and medical services in the local community,
the Commonwealth, and the nation.
11. To
offer to the local community, the Commonwealth of Virginia, and
the nation the various kinds of public service and intellectual
and cultural activities which are consonant with the purposes of
the University.
12. To
provide continuing education programs of the highest quality to
the Commonwealth and the nation.
13. To
cooperate with and assist other colleges, educational institutions,
and agencies, especially in the Commonwealth of Virginia, by making
available to them the facilities of the University and the experience
and counsel of its members so as to contribute to education in the
Commonwealth and beyond.
14. To
establish new programs, schools, and degrees, and to undertake such
research as the needs of the Commonwealth of Virginia and the nation
may require.
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| This page was last modified on August 10, 2001 |