Many in the general public understand the role of a university part way. They know that faculty are teaching students and that students are preparing themselves for their lives and careers. Those more familiar know the university is a site for research and the arts. Having them in the community is a sort of added bonus for the area surrounding the university.  And none of this is incorrect.

But what fewer know is the way a university such as Grand Valley State University, and its largest college—the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences—grounds and supports the very best things going on in our communities through the service of the faculty, staff, and students.

Without great fanfare, our students spend their spring break performing service at home and abroad. When extreme weather brought sections of our country low, we learned that a group of our students had packed up the car and driven many miles to provide relief to people they had never before met in places they had never been. Student groups fundraise for the less fortunate and volunteer their labor for environmental cleanup.

Those of us very close to the work of the faculty know that in addition to their teaching and research, our faculty and staff are serving the public from their expertise—consulting with local communities such as Grand Haven on their forests, with the Coroner’s office on forensics, with industry on the testing of disinfectants. They are serving on boards that deal with everything from the environment to zoning to curing diseases. They are working with church and community groups to help refugees in transition to new homes. They are fundraisers for burn victims, preventers of blindness. They bring their expertise to our Public Museum, the public libraries, Meijer Gardens, our zoos, our theatres, our concert halls, interfaith groups and local places of worship. They are serving on the ethics boards of our hospitals and providing expert commentary on the events of our time for media and local audiences.  From the dunes of Lake Michigan to the water quality in Kent County neighborhoods, the expertise of faculty in our college couples knowledge to serving the public good.

CLAS faculty members are providing K-12 education with surveys, presentations, tutoring, and donated materials. They and our Regional Math and Science Center staff are the very backbone of the Science Olympiad which gives so many of the kids in our state their first taste of scientific experimentation. Meanwhile our faculty are making it possible for our communities to meet the author and the artist, learn real archaeology, experience geocaching, know more about their own neighborhoods, and discover other cultures.

These dedicated professors are keeping languages alive, teaching the public about astronomy,  volunteering with veterans, bringing accessible research to the public in fun venues (such as the SpeakEZ Lounge!),  informing the public on nutrition, teaching children animal care, working to save endangered species, helping our communities be greener and more sustainable, even consulting with local brewers.

In their professions they are making sure that journals are thoughtfully edited, and professional associations remain strong. They bring conferences here to West Michigan which supports the local economy as well as their disciplines.

In addition to all of this public and professional service, our faculty, staff, and students are serving the university on internal committees and the campus community and beyond through mentoring, tutoring, and organizing events.

You will not be surprised to learn that the briefest sketch of this work from 2017 alone ran to 67 pages. In these pages you will read in a little more depth about some of these projects. I hope you will agree that we have something special here—a community of scholars who see the potential of their roles and act for the benefit of us all. Is education a public good? There really should be no doubt.