WU to offer social responsibility pledge to 2004 graduates
By: Leslie Cantu
Issue date: 2/18/04 Section: News
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The class of 2004 will be the first group of Webster University students to receive a Pledge of Social and Environmental Responsibility along with the rest of their graduation information when graduation packets are mailed.
President Richard Meyers, along with the vice presidents of the university and the president of the faculty, decided to include the voluntary pledge at the request of Webster's Center for Ethics.
Graduates at some 130 campuses will take the pledge this year, which says, "I pledge to explore and take into account the social and environmental consequences of any job I consider and will try to improve these aspects of any organization for which I work."
Students who decide to take the pledge can wear green ribbons to signify their commitment.
Kate Parsons, the director of the Center for Ethics, said the pledge is meant to get people thinking about the wider implications of their jobs.
"What 'social and environmental responsibility' means is up to the person who takes the pledge," she said.
Signing the pledge is also a positive experience for students who may be worried about losing their ideals as they leave the safe haven of academia, she said.
Karla Armbruster, who oversees the interdisciplinary minor in environmental studies, said that environmental studies faculty will be endorsing the pledge.
She hopes that, whether or not students decide to take the pledge, they will at least think about the "ethical dimensions to employment."
"Anybody who's concerned about social issues - from whatever perspective -- would be interested (in the pledge)," she said.
The School of Business and Technology is also endorsing the pledge.
"It is a strong reminder for our students that they have social and environmental responsibilities that go beyond picking up a paycheck every two weeks," said Dean Benjamin Akande.
Parsons acknowledged that the university has no way of checking up on graduates to see if they have chosen the most socially and environmentally responsible path. But following the pledge doesn't have to mean living in a tree and eating wild grasses.
"It's not necessarily that you're pledging to find the most environmentally responsible job you can," Parsons said. Students can work within corporations or businesses to make them more responsible.
Armbruster thinks the pledge will prove popular at Webster.
"I have a sense that - at least the students I see - they would like the opportunity to make a formal commitment," she said.
For more information about the pledge or job searching with social and environmental consciousness, visit www.graduationpledge.org.
