Many of the charter M.L.S. students at IU Kokomo said they were attracted to the program because of its more general nature. Sharing a light moment are (from left) Danielle Rush, John Rudy and Christal Atkins. Atkins chose the program to stay competitive with her peers and to work toward a future as a teacher.
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Wrapping a Western mind around the paradoxes of Zen Buddhism is “fascinating,” “tough” and best done with a dictionary at your side, says IU Kokomo student Carol Garber. “I went through these readings five times, and I danced when it finally clicked—whoo hoo!”
Wanting to “do more,” to challenge their intellects and to broaden career opportunities is why Garber and five classmates enrolled in IU Kokomo’s first master of liberal studies (M.L.S.) course last August.
“They don’t seem to be afraid to explore,” John Rudy, professor of English, said of his students after a discussion of Herman Hesse’s Siddhartha and other class readings. “That is the essence of education. There’s greater depth and insight when you can’t find all the answers.”
Through readings and seminar-type discussions, the M.L.S. students look at literature, art and philosophy inspired by Zen Buddhist practices. Aimed at “awakening” its practitioners to the immediate moment, Zen Buddhism, Rudy said, is not so much a religion as a religio-philosophical practice emphasizing freedom and oneness with all things.
It has inspired modern-day physicists looking at chaos theory as well as basketball great Michael Jordan, who practiced Zen meditation to focus his playing.
Rudy has just had a third book published in a series about the Zen Buddhist themes reflected in British and American Romantic literature.
Romanticism and Zen Buddhism was published by the Edwin Mellen Press this year. He is “building pages” for two more books related to meditation, reflective spirituality and literary ethics.
Cross-cultural and cross-disciplinary applications make Zen Buddhism a fruitful subject for M.L.S. study, Rudy explained. The first graduate degree offered by IU Kokomo’s School of Arts and Sciences, the M.L.S. program also exposes students to a wide range of career paths.
Liberal studies are distinct from studies in a specific discipline, Rudy said, such as the campus’ graduate degrees in nursing, education and business administration.
This spring, Ligaya McGovern, associate professor of sociology, led an M.L.S. seminar drawing from several social sciences. Future M.L.S. seminars will pull in natural and mathematical sciences while maintaining a liberal studies bent, a “big challenge” in Rudy’s eyes.
Many of the charter M.L.S. students said they were attracted to the program because of its more general nature. Newspaper reporter Danielle Rush and Christina Tanner, IU Kokomo coordinator of special facilities, said the M.L.S. complemented their previously earned bachelor’s degrees in English and journalism, respectively. With the M.L.S., “I don’t have to take 50 million other classes to start in a graduate program,” Tanner said.
University Division counselor Christal Atkins said she chose the M.L.S. program to stay competitive with her peers and to work toward a future as a teacher. “And, I don’t have to go out-of-town for graduate classes,” she said.
Carol Garber has earned three undergraduate degrees through IU Kokomo and regularly audits additional classes, so the graduate program is a natural progression for her. She sees her ongoing education as practicing what she preaches as a mentor in the Project Success Program and manager of supplemental instruction at IU Kokomo.
Similarly, co-workers Lisa Wright and Tracy Martino said taking the M.L.S. class lets them empathize and gain credence with the young mothers they work with at Family Services/Healthy Families. “We set goals for education with our clients,” Wright said. “Now, Tracy and I can relate better with their struggles to go to school.”
“I’ve always wanted my master’s degree.” Martino added. “The M.L.S. program gives you a lot of freedom to pick the classes you want.”
Freedom should also be the hallmark of individual M.L.S. classes, Rudy told his students. “There are certain standards to meet, papers to be written. But, as graduate students, you are the equal of your professor. We are colleagues.” By the end of the semester, he said, “I want to turn the class over to you as much as possible.”
http://www.iuk.edu/ACADEMICS/artsci/dean/MLS1.html
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