Honorary Doctorates Should Be A Trend Setter
Written on January 21, 2008 – 5:20 pm | by admin
As president of a new distance-learning seminary, I have just approved an honorary doctorate to a distinguished South African.
He lives in a place I have never heard of: Mogoditshane, Botswana. Since my church and seminary are both located in Jacksonville, Florida, this was a remarkable experience for me, and it really drove home the unifying power of the internet.
On my way to the post office to mail the document, I wondered whether it would cost a fortune to send it so far or whether it could even be delivered there by U.S. mail. But the clerk handled the matter routinely, and the postage was $2.67 first-class.
The recipient, Mosimane C. Rammika, no doubt heard of our institution through this article service, for which I do a lot of writing.
When I first made the decision to offer honorary doctorates in addition to our academic curricula, I was excited about what the opportunity could do for people. There are millions and millions of people all over the world who have made tireless contributions to humanity but have never been recognized.
Rammika is an excellent example. From youth work to advocacy for justice and peace, this gentleman has gone all out for years. He is a lay preacher in the Catholic Church, the manager of a football team, and a patron of the Botswana Council of Women. And there is much more, too much to go into here.
He has bolstered my long-held belief that not only seminaries but all colleges and universities should honor people in this way. Why should sitting in a classroom and passing exams count more heavily than achievements “in the trenches”, where people need help?
Not only should honorary degrees be offered, but life experience of substantial merit should be given academic credit toward a traditional, earned degree. Working as a policeman should count for more than a few courses in sociology.
Volunteering for the Red Cross in a disaster should be respected more than a course in psychology 101. And adopting multiple children should turn more heads than a certificate as a day-care worker!
Here is a practical example of my point: All the criticisms of the health-care industry aside, medical education is on track. Doctors-to-be acquire their real education by seeing, touching, hearing, and even smelling.
Only two years are spent in classroom rigors. All other training is by supervised experience with real, live patients.
For all of these reasons, I think the academic community needs to take a fresh look at what they are really accomplishing. The world needs people willing to get their hands dirty. While textbook knowledge has indisputable value, so does experience in service.
I hope I can award a thousand honorary doctorates before my time is up.
Dr. Heyward Ewart, III, is a former psychologist and active priest. He is president and academic dean of St. James the Elder Theological Seminary online, http://www.child-to-adult-victim.com The distance-learning seminary is part of the Catholic Charismatic Church. An expert in child and domestic abuse, he has a newly released book
Tags: academic credit, distance learning, honorary doctorate, seminary, trends