Giving to Reed
 |
|
| photo courtesy U.C. Santa Cruz |
Giving News
Reed's support of critical thinking inspires alumnus to fund financial aid
Brewster Smith '39
I only attended Reed College for three years and ended up graduating from Stanford, but I've always been grateful for the rigorous academic grounding I received at Reed.
Education at Reed develops the students' ability to think critically, to integrate knowledge from various disciplines, and to make discerning judgments. I find that rare in an atmosphere where much of what passes for education is really professional training. That's why I chose to make a donation to the Financial Aid Initiative this year.
In my opinion, psychologists should be involved in social action. An understanding of human psychology can have a great impact on social policies. Regrettably, as the field evolved, more emphasis was placed on pure science. Psychologists are now doing wonderful research, but they are not using their findings to address contemporary social issues.
I place a high value on the integrated style of learning at Reed-and I am confident that graduates will begin to bridge the gap between scientific standards and social values.
| As a young social psychologist in the early 1950s, Brewster Smith served as an expert witness, testifying against school segregation in a case before the federal appeals court in Richmond, Virginia. The case was one of four upon which the Supreme Court based its 1954 ruling against segregation in Brown v. Board of Education. In July 2004, Smith helped honor the 50th anniversary of that bellwether case by participating in a panel on the topic at the American Psychological Association's annual meeting. Today he is professor emeritus at the University of California at Santa Cruz. |