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Brian Flores
Dr. Evan Farr
FRINQ Portland (8:00 9:15am)
20 October 2015
The Place of Education: Responsible Unity
How many times have you heard your parents or family members
explain why college education is beneficial in order to get a well-paying job?
This question and its reason is common among families in all backgrounds.
However, William Cronon, the author of his article Only Connect: The Goals
of a Liberal Education, states that the purpose of a college education is to
gain a liberal education in the sense of liberty and freedom, not political
liberalism (1). The purpose of education is to unite people in different
backgrounds by taking responsibility in their careers, communities, and
relationships.
By responsibility, I refer to the obligations people have in their lives,
from a simple notification to a friend to managing a position in a city project
offering long-term benefits to the public, and unity refers to bringing people
together from a shared idea or purpose in life. Through my perspective, I
wasnt as responsible as I should have in elementary school because I didnt
analyze the importance of education in general and I had the idea that life is
all about having fun. Its not to say that no one should have fun in their lives,
but its important to accomplish any obligations while engaging in an activity
thats enjoyable at the same time. As I learned more about myself, the world,
and my community in high school, I became aware about the personal
responsibilities I had with my family, such as helping my brother and sister
with their homework, news updates in social media, such as immigration

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issues in public forums, and my community, like organizing food boxes for
people in need at my local resource center. Within those obligations, I felt a
sense of unity, especially in my community because I understood their
problems as much as they understood mine, and I wanted to offer more than
just assisting them with food.
In any career, everyone has to meet specific tasks that need to be
done within a deadline that are difficult to manage alone without solid
college education. Given the different backgrounds and skills in a workspace,
the knowledge obtained through college will encourage people to share ideas
and include everyone in the work environment (West). Cronon would argue
that this falls in the fifth idea in his list of ten qualities that a liberally
educated person has, which is solving a variety of puzzles and problems (4).
Although, no person can solve a wide array of problems because people
often specialize into a field of study in college by signing up for specific
classes to earn a degree in their intended major for a career. Afterwards,
they apply their experience from college and other jobs to cooperate with
teams or businesses who need someone with a specific branch of knowledge,
meaning that all specialists depend on each other and unite to get answers,
assist someone in particular tasks, or effectively communicate ideas. By
having people with college education in a company or team understand their
individual and group responsibilities, they make an attempt to collaborate
and comfortably express their ideas without fear of harsh judgment or lack of
confidence.

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While college education benefits the occupation environment,

communities also feel a similar sense of responsibility and unity through it.
As mentioned in a document from two CollegeBoard associates, Sandy Baum
and Kathleen Payea, people who have a college education are more likely to
volunteer in society and less likely to be incarcerated (6). Through my
experience, I truly understand why people with a college education would be
much more inclined to volunteer than people with a high school education
because those who completed college have developed a new responsibility
to share their knowledge and advice to people in their community who need
help while giving back to people within their community as a form of
gratitude and improving their hometowns or cities with communication and
education. This encourages small and large communities to propel current
and future children, as well as adults, into getting a college education since
society values it to create healthier, connected communities with an
awareness to societal issues and the intention to resolve them.
Lastly, college education benefits people in relationships, whether
with friends, family, colleagues, or a significant other, based on responsibility
that creates unity. Through the college experience, people have found that
the bonds theyve created in college continue beyond the university into
building lifelong friendships and connections with businesses through
references (College Education). Personally, that derives from developing
friends through study groups and making a responsible choice to rely on
each other for information and help while making sure they can finish their
work independently. Under the emotional perspective, I respect and value

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people from backgrounds different from mine since I have been raised in an
accepting community with a variety of people coming from Latin America or
other cities in the United States, but college will reinforce my ability to
understand and accept others from the fact Im meeting lots of people from
other countries who may have completely different lifestyles and cultures.
That in itself creates an emotional responsibility to comprehend what
someone else is saying in order to build unity and break barriers that may
otherwise turn people away, which responds to one of the qualities Cronon
states that makes someone liberally educated by empowering and
nurturing people around them (4).
Through different but shared responsibilities in a career, town, or
relationship, a college education can bring people together and respect any
differences. In the workplace, a college education helps employees actively
share information to each other and build good communication skills. Within
a community, people are willing to dedicate their time to help others who are
not as fortunate or participate in community-building projects with the
knowledge theyve gained in college. Finally, relationships strengthen and
last longer from a college education in terms of assisting someone who
needs an understanding, trustworthy person. Although we can be united and
responsible without a college education, is the price of college education
worth the true understanding of what it means to be united with people and
places around us?

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Works Cited
Baum, Sandy, and Kathleen Payas. "Education Pays: The Benefits of Higher
Education for Individuals and Society." Trends in Higher Education
Series (2004): 1-55. College Board. Web. 10 Oct. 2015.
Cronon, William. "Only Connect: The Goals of a Liberal Education."
Philosophy 64.250 (1989): 1-6. William Cronon. Web. 6 Oct. 2015.
McGuire, Jeff. "The Benefits of Having a College Education." Articles &
Advice. Hobsons, n.d. Web. 9 Oct. 2015.
West, Cassandra. "Colleges, Corporations Work Together on Inclusion."
Diverse. Cox, Matthews, and Associates, Inc., 4 Oct. 2015. Web. 11 Oct.
2015.