Edward Ginsberg Center's Core Beliefs
The Ginsberg Center staff developed seven core beliefs that guide the Center's work:
Learning and Consciousness Raising. We believe an integral part of higher education is the learning that occurs through service and community involvement, results in the critical understanding of social issues, and develops a deeper commitment to justice.
Social Justice. Our work reflects the vision of a more just society. We seek to address the root causes of social inequality by challenging the personal beliefs and social systems that create it.
Ethic of Service. We believe that each of us has the ability and power to impact, positively and negatively, our global society. Therefore, we seek to promote an ethic of life-long service and social responsibility. Through education, reflection, and community partnerships, we empower individuals and groups to identify and respond to oppression and inequality, to bring about fundamental change in social systems, and commit to a life-long investment in service and social responsibility.
Personal and Professional Development. We believe in challenging individuals to explore and develop their values and identity by providing meaningful opportunities for personal, professional, and intellectual growth. These opportunities for growth include community involvement, issue education, critical reflection, and leadership development.
Community Engagement. We believe that our service in the community must engage community members as equal partners. We actively involve the voices and perspectives of community partners in our work at the Ginsberg Center: in training students, setting goals, planning events, and developing programs. We value the expertise of our partners and stakeholders, and base roles and responsibilities on each partner's capacities and resources. We share accountability, risks, and costs of our partnerships.
Authentic and Diverse Coalitions. We believe that social justice can occur by identifying our commonalities, building upon our strengths, and engaging our differences. Our efforts to build authentic partnerships and coalitions across social, ethnic, and geographic boundaries and roles are sincere and based on engagement, honest and open dialogue, mutual respect, and shared vision and goals. We seek to foster collaborative decision-making and a collective vision, resulting in solidarity within and between groups of students, staff, faculty, and community members.
Integrity of the Ginsberg Center. We believe that our commitment to service and social justice mandates that we live our core values and act with respect, honesty, trust, and fairness. As a unified Ginsberg Center with a common vision, we strive to communicate authentically, make decisions collaboratively, and share knowledge and resources. These actions are essential to maintaining the integrity of the Ginsberg Center, living by our core values, and furthering our collective vision of social justice and equality.