Remarks by Jamie Bufalino, Department Head for General Social Sciences
6/22/2023
It is my great privilege to be here today to celebrate Kevin’s achievement of the bachelor’s degree in General Social Sciences from the University of Oregon.
The general social sciences program allows students to develop social scientific reasoning by analyzing various types of texts addressing a particular social issue or institution. One of the benefits of the program’s topical focus is that students take courses from many different departments and examine a single problem from a multitude of different perspectives. They apply numerous different methods, qualitative and quantitative, to considering some of the most pressing challenges facing U.S. society and the world today.
Along with many other UO students, Kevin has taken courses concentrated on issues related to crime, law and society. Each student’s path to a GSS degree is unique, but Kevin’s path mirrors that of many students in that he has taken courses from across the social sciences and been taught by some of UOs most dedicated teacher-scholars. He has completed courses in sociology, political science, anthropology, geography, planning, public policy, and management family and human services, among others.
I’d like to invite us to reflect on the intellectual journey you have taken and to bear witness to your hard work as well as the effort of those who have nurtured and supported you, many of whom are here today. While each person’s intellectual journey is unique, there are common experiences shared by students pursuing a liberal arts degree. For instance, it allows us to take leave of our everyday reality and explore new worlds of ideas, uncover the complexity beneath previously unexamined truths, discover the inner workings of the systems the influence our society, and critically reflect on the interplay between our society’s highest ideals and its daily practices. It connects us with other people in profound ways by allows us develop insight into and empathy for people whose experience differs from our own. Some of those people are our instructors and our classmates, some the authors and subjects of the works we examine. And ideally, it allows us to turn our gaze inward on reflect more deeply on our own lives.
Embarking on this intellectual journey is an act of courage. It requires us to submit to an ongoing process of seeing beyond ourselves, and that process changes us forever. Kevin, your dedication to your studies over many, many years and your incredibly strong academic record bring us to this moment. This degree, then, is exemplary of your incredible commitment to expanding your understanding of the world around you. It also highlights your meaningful participation in the intellectual community of the prison education program, including your fellow students and your instructors who have benefited from your many insights.
In my years directing the GSS program I have found the prison education program to be a transformative experience for both inside and outside students. As we celebrate your accomplishment today, I want to thank you are the profound impact you have made on those who have made this journey with and also thank Katie and Shaul and everyone who makes it possible for students to come together to learn from one another.
Congratulations!!