As you know, the Herbst Program was launched in 1989 as the Herbst Program of Humanities in Engineering. For the founders, Clancy and Linda Vitti Herbst, this name encompassed the content of its seminars: works primarily in literature and philosophy. In fact, we read from a variety of disciplines, including science and history, but “humanities” still seemed a good name for the program.
Over the past 30 years, however, this name has caused two common misconceptions:
The Herbst faculty spent several months trying to find a more accurate name – one that does a better job of indicating what we actually do and why it is important to engineering.
Well, what do we do? We read foundational texts closely in order to discuss the human condition. This helps students develop self-awareness, maturity and a sense of responsibility to the intellectual community of the classroom. Because Herbst is in the College of Engineering and Applied Science, class discussion of these texts generally circles back to engineering education and practice, and to the larger community of engineers and of the society within which they work.
Why is it important to engineering? Herbst courses challenge CU Engineering students to apply their intellectual rigor to the ethical and social complexities not only of being human, but also of being responsible engineers. Along the way, students hone the non-technical skills (reading, writing, critical thinking and negotiating open-ended questions) crucial to their future engineering careers.
It is not easy to put all of that into a single title, but that’s what we tried to do. We are now the Herbst Program for Engineering, Ethics & Society. Our courses consider the overlapping fields of engineering (education, practice and perspective), ethics (considered not as an academic discipline but as a personal responsibility) and society (or the socio-cultural context within which personal and professional lives are lived). We use the humanities to explore their ethical responsibilities as human beings and as engineers.
Please note that we are still the Herbst Program. That part of our name will never change! Incidentally, Linda and Clancy have embraced this name. So have the dean and other members of college and campus administration.
Removing “humanities” from our name was a big decision. The Herbst faculty love the humanities, and we always will. We still read literature and philosophy because they provide us the means of grappling with enduring questions. We still attend operas and other cultural events, and we still send junior seminar students to the Denver Art Museum, because we think that these activities enrich the spirit. The humanities inform and inspire us; they give us perspective on the human condition.
As a consequence of our name change, we will be retiring our old course prefix, HUEN—HUmanities for ENgineers. As of fall 2020, our new prefix will be ENES—ENgineering, Ethics & Society.
We hope that this change makes sense to you as alumni of the program, and that you will embrace it as we have. We welcome your comments, in any case, so please send them along.
Incidentally, the Boulder Daily Camera ran a story about our anniversary and name change last month!