2022-2023 Freshman Foundation Lecture Series Launches
Professor Mark Kalthoff kicks off the series with a lecture on learning
HILLSDALE, Mich. — Dean of Faculty and Professor and Chairman of History Mark Kalthoff gave the first lecture for the Freshman Foundation series on Oct. 11, addressing the first of the four pillars of Hillsdale College: learning.
“The vast majority of students arrive on their campuses primed to ask, ‘How is this course, this assignment, this lecture relevant?’” said Kalthoff. “These are not bad questions for those seeking vocational training. But liberal learning is something different. If these concerns become the ends or specific goals, the liberality of learning can be lost.”
Kalthoff discussed the history and purpose of liberal learning, which is an approach to education that aims at the heart and the mind and pursues knowledge for its own sake rather than solely for a specific vocation. Kalthoff addressed Hillsdale College’s core curriculum, which stands apart from the curricula millions of American college students are likely to encounter today.
“If the aim is to develop the minds and improve the hearts, some courses might take priority over others. In such cases, there would be the claim that there are some things regardless of your intended vocational path that all liberally educated people ought to know,” Kalthoff said.
He argued that Hillsdale College’s core curriculum develops each student’s critical capacity to sort out good ideas from the bad. He encouraged students to free themselves to take pleasure in learning, saying that such an authentic love of learning will equip them not just for a job, but for all capacities.
“Free yourself to enjoy learning for its own sake, not for the sake of what learning will do for you or for the sake of a grade you think you need to have, for when learning is pursued for its own sake and only then will that learning do its most for you,” said Kalthoff. “It will order your soul, discipline your mind, and equip you not just for a job, but for flourishing in all the capacities that await you in life after college.
Freshman Foundation is an introduction to the academic life, the partnership on a college campus, and what it means to be a Hillsdale student. It is required for all first-year students. The series addresses the four pillars of Hillsdale College in student life and will include three more lectures by Hillsdale College faculty deans. The series takes place over the course of the academic year:
“Faith” — Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022 | Dr. Matthew Young, dean of natural sciences
“Character” — Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2023 | Dr. Stephen Smith, dean of humanities
“Freedom” — Tuesday, March 21, 2023 | Dr. Paul Moreno, dean of social sciences
All lectures take place in the Hillsdale College Searle Center and include a complimentary lunch for students.
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