The goal of the School of Arts and Sciences is to prepare our graduates for life in a complex society by providing each student with the opportunity to develop those characteristics that distinguish the truly educated man and woman. The ability to gain perspective on the present and future through understanding humans and their behavior historically, artistically, and culturally. The ability to understand the natural universe and the methods of inquiry by which that knowledge is obtained, as well as the implications of that knowledge for the world now and in the future. In the quest to achieve our goal, the School fosters and features excellence and innovation in instruction, active and collaborative learning, independent student research and creativity, outreach and distance delivery of its programs, and interdisciplinary modes of learning. School programs ensure both depth and breadth of learning.
Depth is realized through intense training in a major.
Breadth results from the assimilation of the substance, approach, and insights of several different disciplines through minors and general education requirements. One of the hallmarks of an Eastern education is the extent to which faculty actively involve themselves in the students educational process. This involvement is based on the deep learning our faculty have in their several disciplines and also on their own continuing growth and development, as they discover, create, research, and publish their contributions to the world s knowledge. Every Eastern student has the opportunity to know one of these faculty members as a personal mentor. The School of Arts and Sciences offers myriad opportunities for this personal attention from the Grande Ronde Symphony to the Community Chorus, from the Chemistry Club to KEOL Radio, from collaborative art events to the Science Journal, from the herbarium to the electronic music studio, from Ars Poetica to the Indian Arts Festival.