Dean Sullivan On University And Community

Press, Volume C, Issue 29505, 5 May 1961, Page 19

Dean Sullivan On University And Community

"What is a university and what are its functions? What is the place of this University of Canterbury in the common.ty and the relationship between it and the public which ought to support it?" asked the Dean of Christchurch (the Very Rev. Martin Sullivan) when delivering the graduation address in a crowded Civic Theatre yesterday afternoon. Today there were more than 100 universities in the British Commonwealth, with degree-granting rights; there are 22 in the United Kingdom alone. Separated, however. as they were, geographically, they were all part of one integral university. What, then, were they doing? “Let us not be starry-eyed and romantic in our reply,” Dean Sullivan said. “Their function is at least, in part, frankly utilitarian. They aim to produce ■ technicians of various kinds, with the necessary competence and training In that way, they are constantly feeding the community from which students are drawn and to which they return The graduates in this audience, whom we congratulate today, are this year's batch of finished products. “This may be a crude and wounding suggestion to many, but it is true. It is not the only function of the university, but it is necessary to state it clearly, lest we go on uttering sonorous phrases about ‘truth for truth's sake,’ which so often are heard on an occasion like this and which are beginning to sound like so much eyewash.” he said. In a recent study of the university, a distinguished writer observed that the “Greats'’ at Oxford had been transformed by the middle of the nineteenth century into a means of training gentlemen amateurs to serve as political rulers for a rapidly expanding Empire. And, less than 10 years ago, as a result of a questionnaire circulated in Trinity College, Dublin, it was revealed that 80 per cen*. of the students stated that their sole purpose in coming to the university was to improve their social and econcnic situation, said Dean Sullivan “Main Business” "Alongside these down-to-earth statements, indeed, above them, is the firm declaration that true learning is nevertheless the mam business of a university. It is here that frontiers are explored; it is here that the challenge of truth with truth is faced, as well as the dispelling of error; it is here

that faith finds reason to be her ally, or her foe; it is here that mind meets mind; it is here that research slips over the frontiers of known knowledge, to bring back bits of evidence from the Promised Land. “If the public knows of one part of the university’s work—the training of its professional men and its technicians—it must also be informed of this, the better part, of which I have just spoken. The support of a university means not only the provision of facilities to accomplish what may appear to be its obvious task; it means recognition of its deeper function and a willingness to grant its members freedom to engage in it, even if the rewards and dividends aren’t always at first discernible. “In the light of these declarations, and implied criticisms of the nature and function of a university, a New Zealand community should have a special awareness of and an interest in these matters. The reason is clear. We have a State university system, i.e., financially supported by the state, but administratively independent." Discussing the relationship between Canterbury University and the community, Dean Sullivan said that by 1970 the roll, now a little more than 3500, would have doubled, and some limit would need to be set to the numbers of students, or the problems on the new site at Ham would be worse than those on the old. Furthermore, a university, to be a university, should not be too big. “At that point, a decision will have to be made. Either another university in this educational district will have to be built, if the doors opening to the present one remain as wide as they do at present, or some method of selection of students will need to be introduced,’’ he said. “Whatever happens, the community will be concerned. Any decision made by university administrators or by the Government will be effective only if there is the active goodwill and support of the community behind it.” Living Accommodation Dean Sullivan said that 50 per cent, of the present undergraduates were living away from home. By 1970 or a little later more than 3500 students would be looking for accommodation. They should be living together, in colleges or halls on or near the campus if the university was to fulfil its proper role. This kind of

. corporate life was of the very essence of a university education. The problem was a big one. It was estimated that from £lOOO to £l2OO a student was required to provide such quarters. “Another decision awaits us,” he said. “Either the community, led by graduates, parents, and others accepts this challenge, and, aided by Government subsidy, rises to meet it by generous subscription; or it impresses effectively on a Government the fact that residential colleges are an integral part of a university, taking their place with lecture rooms and laboratories. and should be provided accordingly. “The notice of the appeal for a student union building. given only this afternoon by the Chancellor, is the first shot fired in the long campaign.”