President's Letter

Generation after generation of students at our institution -- from the days of the normal school to today's vibrant university -- have spoken with pride of the close professor-student relationship that exists here. The "all together one" spirit of JMU is directly linked to faculty members who care and who reach out to touch the lives of their students. We have a superb faculty. In this issue of Montpelier, you will read about five professors who have received highest honors for their work from their peers or professional organizations. These five are representative of our entire faculty -- men and women

who are true experts in their academic fields and who have dedicated their professional lives to sharing that expertise.

Academic readiness is a key element to the JMU education, but there is a great deal more. At JMU, we are not only preparing educated men and women, we are also preparing educated men and women to be meaningful contributors to society. Our mission statement, simply and to the point, states that goal: "We are committed to preparing students to be educated and enlightened citizens who will lead productive and meaningful lives."

Our mission mirrors advice set forth more than 200 years ago by James Madison, who told us that "the public good, the real welfare of the great body of the people, is the supreme object to be pursued."

We have not made a conscious attempt to direct our programs in a fashion that would fit with Mr. Madison's advice. It is pleasing, however, to find that the longtime objectives and goals of the university mesh so smoothly with the guidance that our namesake provided for the new nation. As we strengthen the relationship between Mr. Madison and the university, we are even more conscious of following his advice.

As important as formal classroom education is, it has long been only part of the total educational experience JMU offers. At JMU, learning takes place for the student during every waking moment, in all parts of campus -- classrooms, residence halls, dining areas, athletics fields, meeting rooms. Our goal is to instill in our students a sense of the importance of the public good -- of not only being educated but also growing as individuals who will enrich society.

Community service and helping one's neighbors are at the heart of good citizenship. Can there be a better-known example of helping others than the Peace Corps? JMU takes great pride in the fact that nearly 40 of our alumni are serving as Peace Corps volunteers. This ranks JMU -- a medium-sized university -- 21st in the nation among all colleges and universities whose alumni serve overseas with the 40-year-old volunteer organization. Experiences of JMU graduates who have served in the Peace Corps in Sierra Leone, West Africa, and Nicaragua, form the basis for this issue's cover story.

Also highlighted is JMU's Center for Service Learning, which coordinates the efforts of some 2,000 students who are involved in community service not only in the United States but also in such far-flung locales as Haiti, Mexico and Romania. Yet another story in this issue describes work that JMU students are doing to help Latino immigrants in the Harrisonburg area to promote good health practices in their community.

Throughout campus, the state, the nation and the world, JMU students and alumni are living lessons learned at the university by reaching out to help their fellow human beings and to enhance the "public good" that Madison described.

The horrifying events of Sept. 11 have shown that, more than ever, we all need one another. We want our students to be educated but, just as importantly, we want them to be prepared to make a contribution to society. It will be citizens like JMU graduates who will help us overcome the current threat to our way of life and to reach a new level of American greatness.

Linwood H. Rose

President