Enlightening Experiences

A) The most obvious influence philosophically for the Genius Reserve is the Native American's connection between their community and the environment or Nature. This integrating effort that has been created with this Reserve is sadly unique due to the incorporation of maintaining Native species of plants and keeping it well protected. This isn't a well-supported argument, but a mere thought of mind in relation to the Reserve. Very easy to explain the connection between Native philosophies and the ideas behind the Genius Reserve. The basis for the Reserve is to keep the land in its natural state apart from the alterations man has caused in building up suburbs and other structures. Upon visiting such a place, I imagine it is much like visiting Mead Gardens which is quite the enlightening experience in itself. As the car sounds fade away you can become enraptured in the beauty and seclusion of nature. It starts making sense what the Native American's felt being so close to the land. Living in such a way would allow a person to know the land and the land to know the person.

In the case of Hamilton Holt's philosophies in relation to the mission of the college were very Pragmatic, but also seem influenced by the ideas of Transcendentalism. This may be a stretch, but if Pragmatism is influenced by Transcendentalists then it follows that Holt's philosophies can be as well. In class we discussed briefly how they are for improvement at the development of the self. There was a transition that Holt brought upon Rollins where instead of focusing on bringing in more students the college would develop how the student and professor relate to each other. "The things that make a college great are the quality of those who teach and those who are taught" (Holt, 3).

B) Ethics as a sub-division of philosophy is interesting in relation to Holt's philosophies for Rollins because he conceived of a new approach to the student/professor relation. The classroom no longer was a place for students to sit and listen to professors lecture for hours, but a open forum of discussion. This put everyone on an equal level, and ethically speaking this revolutionized the way we conduct ourselves in class. This can open up a very interesting discussion about how different does learning occur for other colleges in relation to Rollins? Ethically, do the students feel that same level and comfort with professors?

Works Cited: "Ideals for the Development of Rollins into the Best Small College of Liberal Arts in the United States."