The Colleges, Ethics, and the Public
| Author | Ralph E. Himstead |
| DOI | 10.1177/000271625228000118 |
| Published date | 01 March 1952 |
| Date | 01 March 1952 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
133
The
Colleges,
Ethics,
and
the
Public
By
RALPH
E.
HIMSTEAD
I N
the
discussion
of
any
subject,
defi-
nition of
terms
is
important.
In
this
discussion
the
terms
which
need
definition
are
college,
ethics,
and
public.
A
college
has
been
defined
as
&dquo;a
so-
ciety
of
scholars,
or
friends
of
learning,
incorporated
for
study
or
instruction,
especially
in
the
higher
branches
of
knowledge.&dquo;
The
basic
concept
is
a
community
of
scholars.
This,
at
least,
is
the
basic
concept
of
what
a
college
should
be.
Later
in
this
article
there
will
be
discussed
in
some
detail
what
a
college
is
and
what
a
college
is
not,
in
relation
to
what
its
ethical
functions
may
be.
Ethics
is
concerned
with
morality,
with
the
ideals
of
morality,
with
ideal
human
character,
and
with
ideal
hu-
man
action.
The
questions
with
which
ethics
deals
concern
the
nature
of
the
summum
bonum
and
the
validity
of
the
criteria
of
its
achievement.
Eth-
ics
has
been
defined
as
&dquo;a
system
of
moral
principles.&dquo;
Thus,
we
have
in-
dividual
ethics,
social
ethics,
profes-
sional
ethics,
and
other
kinds
of
ethics,
which
govern
the
moral
actions
of
in-
dividuals
in
their
personal
relationships
and
in
their
social
and
professional
re-
lationships.
There
have
been,
and
are,
various
theories
of
ethics-the
egoistic,
tle
altruistic,
and
the
perfectionistic;
and
two
conceptions
of
its
nature-ab-
solute
and
relative.
Those
who
view
ethics
as
absolute
affirm
an
unchanging
moral
code.
Those
who
view
it
as
rela-
tive
regard
the
standards
of
moral
con-
duct
as
subject
to
change
with
human
development.
With
these
theories
and
views
of
ethics,
this
article
is
not
con-
cerned.
The
term
&dquo;ethics&dquo;
as
used
in
this
article
means
those
principles
the
observance
of
which
contribute
to
the
highest
good.
The
term
&dquo;public&dquo;
as
used
in
this
article
means
the
whole
of
the
popula-
tion
of
a
nation,
state,
or
community
and
not
merely
those
portions
of
the
public
directly
related
to
our
colleges-
students,
parents,
alumni,
benefactors-
with
which
the
college
has
special
and
direct
relationships
and
which
may
be
regarded
as
having
special
claims
on
the
services
of
colleges.
RELATIONSHIPS
BETWEEN
COLLEGES
AND
PUBLIC
This
article
is
concerned
with
the
relationship
of
the
work
of
colleges
to
the
public
with
special
reference
to
the
principles
conducive
to
the
highest
good
of
the
public.
That
the
work
of
our
colleges
affects
the
public
cannot
be
questioned.
Through
the
process
of
educating
successive
generations
of
youth,
our
colleges
have
contributed,
and
are
contributing,
greatly
to
the
welfare
of
the
public
by
helping
to
lift
the
level
of
enlightenment
of
our
citi-
zenry.
Indeed,
it
may
be
said that
the
state
of
the
public
is
in
large
part
de-
termined
by
the
state
of
our
colleges.
Is
the
work
of
our
colleges
affected
by
the
public?
The
answer
is
clearly
in
the
affirmative.
It
may,
therefore,
also
be
said
that
the
state
of
our
col-
leges
depends
on
the
state
of
the
pub-
lic.
This
has
always
been
true,
but
is
more
so
today
than
ever
before,
when
we
have
so
many
lay
spokesmen
for
education
who
hold
themselves
out
as
specialists
in
higher
education
and
who
speak
with
certitude
concerning
what
our
colleges
should
teach
and
how
they
should
teach
it.
These
self-appointed
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