Geneva’s Christian Liberal Arts Core
by Daniel Dieter
 This October, Geneva College marks the 50th anniversary of the adoption of “Foundational Concepts of Christian Education” by the Board of Trustees, a work commissioned by the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America. This document articulated the purpose and beliefs of the college – rejuvenating commitments to the compelling intellectual relevance of biblical truth to all of life.
One lasting consequence of this radical change was development of a Christian liberal arts core curriculum. Since the college affirmed in Foundational Concepts that all truth eminates from God, the curriculum needed to provide a complete education that integrates reformed biblical thought and the humanities into all subjects. To develop this curriculum, the college appointed three faculty members to a Core Curriculum Commission: Dr. Theodore McMillion, Dr. Art Fleser and Dr. Ann Paton.
To say that Foundational Concepts and the resulting core curriculum were “counter-cultural” would be an understatement. Professor Emerita Paton recalls, “To the best of my knowledge, we were the first such enterprise in all Geneva history; imagine; and the context was the late 60s, when most colleges and universities were simply dropping out of requirements and going over to all electives. Geneva did the opposite!”
Paton, along with Dr. Howard Mattsson-Boze and Prof. Elizabeth Douglas, wrote the new curriculum – a four semester sequence of courses required of all Geneva students and launched in 1968. The authors decided on a chronological structure beginning with the ancient Greeks and moving through “periods” of Western Civilization up to present day. Topics covered visual art, literature, intellectual history and music. The curriculum centered on worldview questions:
- How can man understand himself and his world?
- How does the individual relate to the state?
- How does the individual relate to the cosmos?
- How does creative man express through the arts his cultural values and his prevailing world-view?
The structure and content of Geneva’s Christian liberal arts core has been modified numerous times over the past 49 years; however, the influence of Foundational Concepts has unceasingly provided the prevailing standard.
“When most colleges and universities were simply dropping out of requirements and going over to all electives. Geneva did the opposite!”
― Dr. Ann Paton '50, Professor Emerita
When now-retired faculty member Dr. Shirley Kilpatrick, along with other members of the humanities team, attended a national conference on the teaching of humanities a number of years ago, it was apparent to them that Geneva had perhaps the most ambitious Bible and humanities program among the colleges represented. “Some of us who attended that conference, including myself, were ‘products’ of Geneva’s program, students who had returned to Geneva as teachers. We could testify to its transforming power. It gave us an incredible knowledge base as well as a way of looking at the world and asking big questions about it,” Kilpatrick says.
 Today’s Geneva Core Curriculum is organized based upon seven themes present in the Foundational Concepts and the college outcomes. It includes nine credit hours from God (e.g., Biblical Studies/Philosophy); six credits from Reason and Rhetoric (e.g., Communication, English, Critical Thinking); 6 credits from Humanity; nine hours of Society (large selection of electives from various disciplines); eight to 13 credits from Cosmos (Natural Sciences and Physical Education); and one credit from Community of Learners (L&T, Engineering or Freshman Honors College) for a total of 43 to 49 credit hours. There are also study abroad options that meet core requirements.
The college’s emphasis on core curriculum could still be viewed as countercultural in an era of emphasis on professional, techonology and STEM education. On closer inspection, however, more employers are recognizing an increasing need for employees with skills taught in Geneva’s Christian liberal arts core, skills like adaptability, communication and ethics.
To wit, entrepreneur Mark Cuban recently said in an interview, “The nature of jobs is changing… I personally think there’s going to be a greater demand in ten years for liberal arts majors.”
Google executive Jonathan Rosenberg, an advisor to Alphabet CEO Larry Page, was quoted as saying, "We need more traditional liberal arts grads."
“(Geneva's core curriculum) gave us an incredible knowledge base as well as a way of looking at the world and asking big questions about it.”
― Dr. Shirley Kilpatrick '74, Retired Assistant Professor of Humanities/English
The outcome of Geneva graduates certainly back up claims that a comprehensive education equips students for the fast-changing world of work with 96% of them working or in graduate school within a year of graduating.
Dr. Calvin L. Troup, Geneva President, is fond of saying, “A student’s major gets them their first job; the Geneva core gets them their second one.” Employers hiring for entry level positions are looking for good credentials with good professional development experiences. Second jobs—promotions and advanced hires—depend on performance that demonstrates a capacity for practical reasoning, creative thinking and personal character. Instilling these characteristics into students and integrating faith and life continue to be the goals of the Geneva core after nearly 50 years.
(Source: Dr. Shirley Kilpatrick's ME 400 Paper, May 2005)
*See the new 50th Anniversary Foundational Concepts documentary video.
From the Geneva Blog:
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