Implemented in the spring of the past academic year, the “Right Serving, Right Sizing” plan encouraged academic department heads to review their own curriculums in an overall attempt to increase enrollment for future classes.
The plan also set out to add more courses, integrating multiple disciplines, hopefully encouraging student interest in certain fields and increasing overall class sizes.
There was also the threat that classes with low enrollment would be cut completely and entire majors could be fully integrated into others. As this plan was in its preliminary stages of being implemented, there were considerations that the philosophy major would be eliminated and the courses would be scaffolded into the English major.
As a major in both philosophy and English, I have experienced and learned about the outright differences across these departments. To associate philosophy as synonymous with English paints in dangerously broad strokes; in fact, it is ignorant to think that these two subjects cover the same things. There is so much more to philosophy than people realize or give credit for, and many people do not understand the versatility of a BA in philosophy. With a lot of different subject matter and routes that a student can take, philosophy offers a myriad of options for a student willing to explore those options. I, myself, will be using my philosophy degree to pursue a degree in law, as well as a PhD in philosophy with a concentration in deductive logic.
Philosophy is a very broad subject; there are far more options for a student than just asking skeptical “well how do you know?” questions. You can study history of philosophy, morality, virtue ethics, meaning of life, business ethics, legal philosophy, logic — the list goes on and on. Fredonia offers Intermediate Deductive Logic, for example, which is an extremely challenging and rewarding course, though it is not offered at many institutions. Arguably, this has been my favorite course at Fredonia.
I firmly believe that philosophy is a strong and academically rewarding discipline, offering multiple avenues for the hardworking student to study. Though I’m sure the philosophy department will never be immune to attempts at downsizing, the strengths and opportunities of the department speak for themselves.
With incredibly talented, dedicated professors and a stimulating course load, philosophy should be here to stay.