Issue link: http://digital.corporatepress.com/i/416289
Facilities Manager | november/december 2014 | 17 T he land and the built environment of America's col- leges and universities have always meant far more than just the physical fabric; they have been both a source and a mirror of the unique features of American history and society, according to Dr. Jeremi Suri, the Mack Brown Dis- tinguished Chair for Leadership in Global Affairs and professor of history, public policy, and global leadership at the University of Texas at Austin. At a plenary session at APPA's Centennial Conference in July 2014, Suri traced the unique history of higher education in the United States, and he challenged the audience to find ways to enhance the distinct contributions and ethos of American universities while meeting new challenges with fresh ideas and practical innovations. He noted repeatedly that the facilities management component of universities would have to do much of the heavy lifting. "Universities as we know them are manifestations of our de- mocracy as well as promoters of our democracy," he said. The experience of public higher education reflects the American experience, he explained, and what made American society— and universities—so different from those of other counties was the physical, psychological, and philosophical role of the frontier. Suri cited Frederick Jackson Turner, a major thinker about American democracy in the late 19th century, who said that American society was formed on the frontier. Above all, the frontier represented the ability to start over. "You are not defined by your family or background but by what you do in the open space to make your way," Suri said, and you do not do it alone; you do it in a community, working together. (This rich promise, he admitted, didn't apply to some populations, such as slaves or American Indians.) RECREATING THE PROMISE OF THE FRONTIER This frontier ethos and promise applied to the many colleges and universities that were being founded in the 19th century, Suri explained. Many were founded literally along the frontier, in places that were not yet settled. Their origins were in the openness of new space, and they shared that sense of infinite possibility. In fact, Suri said, "Universities were formed as built environments before they were educational institutions. The buildings preceded the students—they structured the students." This was the perfect example of "If you build it, they will come." Professor Jeremi Suri, University of Texas Austin, spoke on the history of American higher education in his keynote address at the APPA 2014 conference. ience