A HISTORY OF THE CENTER FOR THE STUDY OF LIBERAL EDUCATION FOR ADULTS (FUND FOR ADULT EDUCATION, ILLINOIS, MASSACHUSETTS).

Abstract

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278 p.

The purpose of this study is to describe the chronological development and the activities of the Center for the Study of Liberal Education for Adults (CSLEA), which was housed in Chicago, 1951-1964, and in Boston, 1964-1968. CSLEA was created by The Fund for Adult Education--a subsidiary organization of the Ford Foundation--at the request of a committee of the Association of University Evening Colleges. CSLEA's mission was to encourage and promote liberal education for adults in institutions of higher education.The report follows the pattern of humanistic historical scholarship employing a narrative to tell the story of CSLEA, and is based almost entirely on primary sources, archival and oral.The thesis which is the unifying theme of the study is that the Center staff's decisions to function with a broad definition of liberal education, flexible goals, and diverse activities contributed to the strengths and weaknesses of the organization and affected its impact.From the research it was concluded that the Center's broad definition of "liberal education" allowed CSLEA to pursue a wide range of activities which encouraged innovation in the field of adult education and led to the development of the "special," or nontraditional, degree for adults. Center activities also created a greater sense of identity and professionalism among many adult educators, and contributed to the development of a body of professional literature. At the same time, the diverse activities and somewhat unfocused approach probably limited the effectiveness of the Center, negatively affected its impact and longevity, and made it difficult to obtain support after the demise of the initial funder, The Fund for Adult Education.