Education, the Church, and Globalization

Transcription

1 Education, the Church, and Globalization The International Society th Annual Conference August 2001

2 12 The International Society th Annual Conference Education, the Church, and Globalization August 2001 David M. Kennedy Center for International Studies Brigham Young University

3 The International Society is grateful for the support of the David M. Kennedy Center for International Studies, the J. Reuben Clark Law School, and the Marriott School Brigham Young University, David M. Kennedy Center for International Studies. Printed in the United States of America. To order additional copies, call (801)

4 Table of Contents THE GLOBALIZATION OF THE CHURCH EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM Elder Joe J. Christensen San Diego Temple president, emeritus First Quorum of Seventy, and former Church Education System associate commissioner EDUCATION, THE CHURCH, AND GLOBALIZATION Elder John K. Carmack emeritus First Quorum of Seventy CES EDUCATION AND PROVIDENT LIVING IN AN EXPANDING CHURCH Bryan Weston Church Education System (CES) administrator INTERNATIONAL STUDY PROGRAMS: WHERE HAVE WE BEEN, WHERE ARE WE GOING, AND HOW WILL WE GET THERE? Rodney Boynton David M. Kennedy Center for International Studies associate director, International Study Programs, BYU INTERNATIONAL MISSIONARY TRAINING CENTERS Richard I. Heaton Missionary Department PRIVATE EDUCATION INITIATIVES BY LATTER-DAY SAINTS E. Vance Randall and Chris Wilson Brigham Young University, Loyola University CHURCH LITERACY EFFORT ROLE OF THE RELIEF SOCIETY Mary Ellen Smoot General Relief Society president CHURCH LITERACY EFFORT ROLE OF THE RELIEF SOCIETY Elaine Harris General Relief Society board member WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN? CHALLENGES OF THE PRESENT AND PROSPECTS FOR THE FUTURE Robert S. Patterson Education dean, BYU THE WORLD IS OUR CAMPUS Wayne Lott Division of Continuing Education dean, BYU BYU HAWAII: ITS UNIQUE CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE INTERNATIONALIZATION OF THE CHURCH Arapata Meha Admissions associate dean, BYU Hawaii THE TUMULTUOUS 21ST CENTURY: TURBULENCE AND UNCERTAINTY Elder Alexander B. Morrison emeritus First Quorum of the Seventy HOW EMPLOYMENT RESOURCE SERVICES ASSISTS WITH EDUCATION A. Terry Oakes LDS Employment Resource Services director THE HUMANITARIAN EFFORT OF THE CHURCH CONTINUES TO REACH OUT Garry R. Flake Humanitarian Service director, Welfare Services Department

5 The Globalization of the Church Educational System Elder Joe J. Christensen, San Diego Temple president, emeritus First Quorum of Seventy, and former Church Education System associate commissioner Commendation to the International Society First, I should like to commend all of you who are participating in the International Society. I have read several of your newsletters and published proceedings, including excellent presentations and papers in prior conferences. To my way of thinking, you as a group are a living manifestation of the comments made by President Spencer W. Kimball in 1974 when he said: We need to enlarge our field of operation. We will need to make a full, prayerful study of the nations of the world which do not have the gospel at this time.... I believe we have many men [and, I would add, women] in the Church who can be helpful to us, who are naturally gifted diplomats. I believe we should bring them to our aid and as stated before, I have faith that the Lord will open doors when we have done everything in our power. 1 You are among those who are carrying out this prophetic injunction, and I commend you who are literally making a positive difference in so many parts of the world, either through the efforts of the David M. Kennedy Center, Brigham Young University, the Church Education System; governmental and nongovernmental organizations and humanitarian efforts; in your Church callings; or as concerned individuals who have an international perspective. A Prophetic Global Perspective from the Beginning From the very beginning of this dispensation, the Prophet Joseph Smith and his successors have spoken in global terms in a remarkable and amazing way. For example, beginning with the first verse of the first section of the Doctrine and Covenants, we read: Hearken ye people from afar; and ye that are upon the islands of the sea, listen together. For verily the voice of the Lord is unto all men, and there is none to escape; and there is no eye that shall not see, neither ear that shall not hear, neither heart that shall not be penetrated.... Wherefore the voice of the Lord is unto the ends of the earth, that all that will hear may hear. 2 In this dispensation, the Prophet Joseph Smith received a charge similar to that which the Savior gave to His apostles following His Resurrection and just before ascending to heaven: Go ye into all the world, preach the gospel to every creature, acting in the authority which I have given you, baptizing in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. 3 Wilford Woodruff, shortly after his conversion, received a glimpse of what the destiny of the Church was to be when he attended a remarkable testimony meeting in which all of the priesthood brethren then in Kirtland met in a little log schoolhouse room about fourteen feet square. He heard testimonies for the first time from Oliver Cowdery, Brigham Young, Heber C. Kimball, the Pratt brothers, Orson Hyde, and others. President Woodruff later recalled what the Prophet Joseph said after hearing those testimonies: When they got through the Prophet said, Brethren I have been very much edified and instructed in your testimonies here tonight, but I want to say to you before the Lord, that you know no more concerning the destinies of this Church and kingdom than a babe upon its mother s lap. You don t comprehend it. I was rather surprised. He said it is only a little handful of Priesthood you see here tonight, but this Church will fill North and South America it will fill the world. 4 In 1842, the Prophet Joseph reiterated the intention for the work of the Restoration to become globalized when, at the request of Mr. John Wentworth, editor of the Chicago Democrat, he wrote a sketch of the rise, progress, persecution, and faith of the Latter-day Saints. 5 Toward the end of his letter, he declared: The Standard of Truth has been erected; no unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing; persecutions may rage, mobs may combine, armies may assemble, calumny may defame, but the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the great Jehovah shall say the work is done. 6 Globalization Facilitated by Technology Considering the circumstances in Kirtland, Ohio, 1

6 2 the following prophecy, received in 1833, is truly remarkable: And then cometh the day when the arm of the Lord shall be revealed in power in convincing the nations, the heathen nations, the house of Joseph, of the gospel of their salvation. For it shall come to pass in that day, that every man shall hear the fulness of the gospel in his own tongue, and in his own language, through those who are ordained unto this power, by the administration of the Comforter, shed forth upon them for the revelation of Jesus Christ. 7 One of the factors that makes this such an impressive prophecy is that when the revelation was received, the Prophet Joseph Smith could not travel or communicate from one place to another any faster than the pharaohs in Egypt thousands of years before. To that point in time, and for the preceding thousands of years, the fastest means of travel and communication at a distance was a good rider on a fast horse. The possibility for the globalization of the Church was facilitated following the Restoration of the gospel, as the spirit of innovation and invention was indeed poured out on so many, and man s circumstances began to change rapidly. Like an avalanche came developments such as photography, telegraph, transatlantic cable, telephone, radio, television, jet-propelled aircraft, advances in medicine, satellite communication, computers, the Internet, fiber optics, and on and on. I am confident that so many of the technological developments came in direct fulfillment of Joel s prophecy, which some biblical scholars estimate was recorded approximately eight hundred years before the birth of the Savior, when he spoke for the Lord and predicted: And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit. And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth. 8 Remember that when the angel Moroni appeared to the Prophet Joseph in 1823, he quoted Joel s prophecy and let him know that this [prophecy] was not yet fulfilled, but was soon to be. 9 And thus the flood of technological developments occurred after so many centuries in which there was little or no change. Along this line, I remember hearing President Kimball mention that in his opinion, the scientists who developed jet aircraft were inspired by the Spirit in order to enable the leaders of the Church to travel rapidly from one place to another around the world to supervise the Church and its progress. He added that of course, we let other people ride them. The seriousness with which the Brethren have taken that responsibility to carry the gospel to all the world is evidenced by so many of the early mission calls to elders to leave their families and go into the far reaches of the earth. Among my own family s ancestors, Robert Owens, a great-great-grandfather, marched with the Mormon Battalion, and, when released from his military obligation in San Diego, California, made his way to the Salt Lake Valley, where he was reunited with his wife and the surviving children three of the others his wife Catherine had buried at Winter Quarters. Within just a few years, he experienced one of those calls over the pulpit in the morning session of a general conference in He was called again to leave his family to go on a mission to India and Australia, with the assurance that the announced missions were generally, not to be very long ones; probably from three to seven years will be as long as any man will be absent from his family. 10 To respond to such calls required great faith because you can t get much farther away from home than that! After much challenge and travail, the territory was colonized, and the roots of the Church sunk deep into the soil of America s western inland empire. Speaking of education, efforts were made from the beginning to establish schools to educate the children of the Church. Education Important from the Beginning As Latter-day Saints, we are recipients of a remarkable heritage because that same intense and diligent concern for education of the Church membership has existed from the very beginning, whether the Church was struggling against the elements, sickness, persecution, disappointments, or apostasy. Classrooms were set up in the frontier of Missouri; the poverty of Ohio; the swamps of Illinois; the cold of Winter Quarters; in covered wagons crossing the plains; in log cabins and dugouts; from the center of the Salt Lake Valley to the peripheral colonies throughout Utah; in significant portions of Arizona, Nevada, Idaho, and Wyoming; and even in Mexico and Canada. In far-flung, less-developed areas of the Church, where basic education was not available, Church-sponsored schools were established and operated until public-sponsored educational opportunities became available. In a few locations, they still exist. Yes, this is a church that believes in education, and though our tactics, communications media, and economic circumstances vary greatly from those of the young Church of so many years ago, our strategy and goals are precisely the same. Religion, true religion, lies at the heart of our efforts and quest. It was in 1832 and 1833 that the Prophet Joseph Smith received revelations that are now contained in section eighty-eight of the Doctrine and Covenants. In this section, you will note this same emphasis on education with religious roots. In my opinion, no treatment of the Latter-day Saint viewpoint of education would be complete without reference to this significant latter-day scriptural injunction, which applies to all members wherever they are in the world. Remember, we were counseled to teach one another the doctrine of the

7 kingdom and also to teach of things both in heaven and in the earth, and under the earth; things which have been, things which are, things which must shortly come to pass; things which are at home, things which are abroad;... wars [and] perplexities [and] judgments... ; and a knowledge also of countries and of kingdoms.... Teach one another words of wisdom; yea, seek ye out of the best books.... Seek learning, even by study and also by faith. 11 The Charge to Internationalize the Seminaries and Institutes of Religion Geographically, in the 1950s and early 1960s, the bulk of the seminary and institute of religion programs and faculty were located in a rather compact area. Almost any faculty member, serving even in the outer limits, could be reached personally by a supervisor getting into his car and traveling no more than one full day. That situation was to change greatly in the months and years ahead, because the challenge had been much expanded. After all those early developments that had been made to establish the Church essentially in the intermountain area, California, and, to some degree, throughout the United States, the time came particularly for the international expansion of the religious educational efforts of the Church. As it turned out, that was where I had the personal opportunity to make some contribution to the efforts. I will tell you a little about how that happened. After serving for eight years as director of the Institute of Religion adjacent to the University of Utah, in 1970 my wife and I received a call to preside over the Mexico City Mission. We leased our home for the anticipated three years, bundled up our six children, and moved to Mexico City. We were deeply immersed in all that goes on in a mission. We had enrolled our children in school, and one afternoon we had been out purchasing school supplies. Upon return to the mission home, I was told that President Harold B. Lee had called and wanted me to return his call. It was our wedding anniversary, 2 September. I didn t know that the First Presidency made a practice of calling mission presidents to wish them well on their anniversary! I discovered that they don t. President Lee s first words were, Joe, are you sitting down? I assured him I was. He then shared the purpose of his call with this message: Today, in the Board of Education meeting, it was determined that we would like you to serve as associate commissioner of education to serve with Brother Neal A. Maxwell, the commissioner. Your assignment will be to administer the seminaries and institutes of religion and, in effect, to succeed Brother William E. Berrett, who is retiring. We would like you to return home as soon as we can find a replacement for you. You may call Brother Maxwell for more details. I do not remember ever being more surprised even shocked. We had settled into the mission. The children had adjusted, we were enjoying the challenge of the work, and things seemed to be going well. I had anticipated returning to the Church Education System (CES) for employment in some capacity after finishing the mission. I remember facetiously having said to some of my colleagues in CES that if Brother Berrett were to retire while we were gone, I hope that a new pharoah doesn t arise who knows not Joseph. 12 Within three weeks, President Eran Call and family had been called, and we were home by the end of September 1970 to begin serving in the new assignment. What an experience lay ahead! The Board of Education, at that time, consisted of the entire First Presidency, all of the Quorum of the Twelve, the Presiding Bishop, and Sister Belle Spafford, who was serving as the Relief Society general president. Commissioner Maxwell and the rest of us as his associates were asked to study the direction of Church education in all of its facets and make recommendations to the Board of Education and the Board of Trustees for any developments or adjustments. For our purpose in this conference, which deals with the globalization of Church education, it seems significant to note that in the November 1970 meeting of the Board of Education, it was determined that the seminaries and institutes of religion, in one form or another, should follow the membership of the Church throughout the world as soon as practical. Through the efforts of assistant administrators Frank D. Day, Dan J. Workman, Frank M. Bradshaw, and, a little later, Bruce M. Lake, and other competent and dedicated staff, we tackled the assignment. At that time, as many of you would know, the weekday religious educational program at the secondary and college levels was located only in English-speaking areas of the world, such as England, Australia, and New Zealand. The high-school seminary program was primarily taught in the released-time format in Churchowned buildings adjacent to high schools throughout the Intermountain West and in some early-morning settings particularly in California. In a few less-populated areas, early experimentation had begun with a home-study seminary format that seemed to be well received by those who would not have any other form of weekday religious educational opportunity. It was the home-study seminary format that was developed in the late 1960s that made the international movement feasible. The home-study program consisted of a class meeting once a week in a ward or branch, and the students were expected to study their course materials daily in their homes. Efforts were made through content and layout to make the course interesting and student-friendly. Once a month, students would be brought together for a meeting on a district or stake basis. For a time, this meeting came to be known as Super Saturday. This gathering was usually conducted by the individual CES employee assigned to the area. This system proved to be successful from a cognitive learning standpoint. 3

8 4 Many of the students became remarkably proficient in learning and rapidly finding key scriptures, and their skills were tested in what then came to be known as scripture chase activities that generated a lot of enthusiasm. One of the significant side benefits of bringing the young people together on this monthly basis was that many came from widely scattered areas where there were very few youth who were members. This social contact gave them reinforcement, and many longstanding friendships were established that undoubtedly led to more marriages within the Church than would otherwise have occurred. At the time the charge was given to have the program follow the membership of the Church throughout the world, there was not one seminary or institute course that existed in any language other than English. The translation, publication, and distribution of homestudy course materials presented challenges. There was no international non-english faculty or staff in place or anyone trained in the non-english international areas who was acquainted with the program. The next nine years proved to be very interesting, challenging, and stimulating. Our early decisions had to deal with where to start first which languages and in which countries. After studying the international membership populations, we decided that we should begin with the Spanish, Portuguese, and German languages. Brother Robert Arnold was sent to Guatemala, Brother David A. Christensen to Brazil, and Brother Richard Smith to Argentina and Uruguay, with Brother James Christiansen soon to follow in Germany. They were the first CES personnel to be sent to non-englishspeaking countries. From the standpoint of moving these educational programs throughout the world within a three-year period, three very important guidelines or objectives were given to these first brethren assigned as CES pioneers in non-english-speaking areas. They were to: 1. Develop a positive working relationship with priesthood leaders. 2. Start the home-study seminary program, enrolling interested secondary and college-age students. 3. Find and train a person who could provide local native leadership, thus removing the necessity of exporting others from the United States. We took seriously Alma s message from the Book of Mormon: For behold, the Lord doth grant unto all nations, of their own nation and tongue, to teach his word, yea, in wisdom, all that he seeth fit that they should have; therefore we see that the Lord doth counsel in wisdom, according to that which is just and true. 13 Work in Japan, Korea, Taiwan, the Philippines, and several other locations was soon to follow. In short, the goal was to start the program and have it nationalized within three years. Some remarkable local brethren were found and trained. I know of no other Church program that moved toward globalization and nationalization so quickly. Student Response to Seminaries and Institutes The response of the students to seminary and institute was overwhelmingly positive and went far beyond what we expected. We had thought that the efforts would be successful if even one or two hundred students were registered in the first year. What a surprise it was during on-site visits in July of 1971 to find that more than seven hundred students were enrolled in Guatemala, a comparable number in Argentina and Uruguay, and more than nine hundred in Brazil. At that same time, we made a feasibility study for starting the seminary and institute program in Chile. We held meetings with priesthood and mission leaders and determined that we would recommend to the Board of Education to begin the program at the start of the next school year. Upon return, the report and recommendation were made to President Harold B. Lee. In this case, the proposal to initiate the program was approved, but, surprisingly, his instruction to us was not to wait but to start the program now. That counsel proved to be inspired because many political changes were to come in Chile before the beginning of the next school year. President Salvador Allende became the first communist leader to come to power in a democratic election. Starting the program the next school year would have been more difficult. The students who enrolled around the world seemed especially hungry and thirsty to learn more about the scriptures and the gospel. Among so many, there was a genuine feeling of excitement. Brother Frank D. Day reported that on one of his supervisory visits to Asia, he observed a Book of Mormon class being taught in a rented classroom in a commercial building in downtown Seoul, Korea. He wondered if any students would come to that location, but at the appointed hour the students poured into the classroom. The teacher mentioned that he had a one-page handout describing the various groups of plates from which the Book of Mormon was translated and that he would distribute it at the end of the class period. One of the young girl students picked up one of the sheets and asked, Is this for me? Yes, it is for you to keep. She literally started to dance for joy at the thought of having something she could keep and study on her own. The teacher, Brother Seo Hee Chul, said, You can be sure that when she comes to class next week, she will have memorized the detail on the whole page. We felt confident that if we could get the students into the scriptures, there was a good chance of getting the scriptures and what they teach into the students. Using the students later willingness to respond to missionary calls as a measuring tool, in many cases that proved to be true.

9 A Prophetic Clarion Call for Missionaries from International Areas Within the next few years, what was once a monolingual seminary and institute program, operating mainly in the western United States, was established in sixty-six countries and in seventeen languages around the world. Obviously, those numbers have continued to expand during the last several years. The teenage and college-age students were studying the scriptures and doctrines of the Restoration just in time to receive the prophetic missionary clarion call which President Kimball made with his characteristic candor and clarity in 1974, in which he called on all of us to lengthen our stride and raise our sights. He emphasized that each country should break with prior tradition and be providing its own missionaries. Here are a few selected quotations from that monumental address: When I read Church history, I am amazed at the boldness of the early brethren as they went out into the world.... As early as 1837 the Twelve were in England fighting Satan, in Tahiti in 1844, Australia in 1851, Iceland 1853, Italy 1850, and also in Switzerland, Germany, Tonga, Turkey, Mexico, Japan, Czechoslovakia, China, Samoa, New Zealand, South America, France, and Hawaii in Much of this early proselyting was done while the leaders were climbing the Rockies and planting the sod and starting their homes. It is faith and super faith....today we have 18,600 missionaries. We can send more. Many more!... When I ask for more missionaries, I am not asking for more testimony-barren or unworthy missionaries.... I am asking for missionaries who have been carefully indoctrinated and trained through the family and the organizations of the Church.... I am asking... that we train prospective missionaries much better, much earlier, much longer.... The question is frequently asked: Should every young man fill a mission? And the answer has been given by the Lord. It is Yes. Every young man should fill a mission.... There is ample argument that Mexico, with its nine stakes and five missions, should furnish its own missionaries, or the equivalent. Suppose that South Korea with its thirty-seven million people and its seventy-five hundred members were to take care of its own proselyting needs and thus release to go into North Korea and possibly to Russia the hundreds who now go from the states to Korea. If Japan could furnish its own one thousand missionaries and then eventually ten thousand more for Mongolia and China; if Taiwan could furnish its own needed missionaries plus five hundred for China and Vietnam and Cambodia; then we would begin to fulfill the vision. Suppose that Hong Kong could furnish its needed missionaries and another one thousand to go to both of the Chinas; suppose the Philippines could fill its own needs and then provide an additional one thousand for the limitless islands of southeast Asia; suppose the South Seas and the islands therein and the New Zealanders and the Australians could furnish their own and another several thousand for the numerous islands of south Asia and for Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Burma, Bangladesh, and India.... Suppose that Mexico and Central America provided far more missionaries than they needed themselves and the people of South America had reached the point where they could export numerous fine missionaries and then suppose that the United States and Canada awakened to their real responsibility, sending thousands of missionaries to join them. President Kimball later quoted President Brigham Young: This kingdom will continue to increase and to grow, to spread and to prosper more and more. Every time its enemies undertake to overthrow it, it will become more extensive and powerful; instead of decreasing it will continue to increase; it will spread the more, become more wonderful and conspicuous to the nations, until it fills the whole earth. And finally, President Kimball said that he envisioned great numbers qualifying themselves for missionary service within their own country and then finally in other lands until the army of the Lord s missionaries would cover the earth as the waters cover the mighty deep. 14 That powerful prophetic message came in such a timely way because it was just a few years after the young people in these non-english-speaking areas of the Church had begun to study scriptures and doctrines of the gospel in the weekday seminary and institute classes. Their knowledge and increased testimonies helped prepare them to respond positively to the mission calls that would come. One concrete example of the response of young people to this clarion call came forcibly to my mind in the country of Brazil. When Brother Frank Bradshaw and I made that first on-site visit to Brazil in 1971 to see how the seminaries and institutes were progressing, we were informed that the number of full-time native Brazilians serving missions could be counted on one hand, or at the most, on two. When I returned to Brazil as a Seventy to serve in an Area Presidency in 1989, more than one thousand Brazilians were serving full-time missions. According to information received from the Missionary Department a few days ago, that number has now increased to over twenty-six hundred, of whom 180 have been exported to other countries. Interestingly, thirty native Brazilian missionaries are serving in Japan. Not only will they accomplish much good there among Portuguese-speaking members, but when they return to Brazil, they will have a much greater entrée into the Japanese population there. Some of you may know that there are more Japanese living in São Paulo than in any 5

10 6 other city of the world outside of Japan itself over one million. Almost without exception, the young missionaries called in these countries have had prior seminary or institute of religion experience, and the personal growth and development during the mission provides a powerful contribution to leadership in this Church in which the leadership comes from among the members people like you and me. To illustrate, any elder who follows the prescribed missionary schedule for his two years of service receives more than seven thousand hours of specialized instruction in the following areas: scriptures; basic doctrines of the Church contained in the discussions; how to teach those doctrines; how to relate with leaders, members, and nonmembers; and how to get along with companions. If a person were to attend the three-hour block of meetings every Sunday without fail, it would take him more than forty-six years to accumulate that much specialized instruction. The whole procedure of having more returned missionaries who are native to their countries makes for a relatively young corps of competent priesthood and sister leaders, who are more committed and better prepared than ever before. In a personal conversation I had with Elder Bruce R. McConkie, he shared an interesting experience he had after being in Mexico and calling a twenty-five-year-old returned missionary to be a stake president. He wondered how he was going to explain this action to the other General Authorities when he returned to Salt Lake City. Finally, he decided that the best approach would be to mention that he thought it best to call a stake president who was older than the bishops. Growth Exceeds Expectations The globalization of the Church s weekday religious educational programs has not only been amazing to those of us who were directly involved in their implementation in their early years, but apparently, it is of even greater surprise to Church members generally. In the Sydney B. Sperry Symposium last year, Dr. Victor Ludlow presented a paper entitled The Internationalization of the Church, in which he reported members estimates in several indicators as to whether they thought that more was occurring outside the United States and Canada than inside. The perception of the members was reasonably accurate with regard to general Church membership, Book of Mormon sales, and number of missions, but there was a wide divergence with regard to seminaries and institutes of religion. Generally, members estimated that perhaps 25 percent of the students would be enrolled outside of the United States and Canada. Brother Ludlow noted that the international growth of seminaries and institutes is the biggest surprise to most Latter-day Saints. They assume that the seminary and institute program is primarily a USA Canada phenomenon. They are aware of the elementary school programs for LDS children in the South Pacific and some other underdeveloped areas, but they have no idea how rapidly the CES seminary and institute enrollment has exploded throughout the world. 15 To place the growth more fully into perspective, when I was first appointed as a seminary teacher adjacent to Granite High School in 1955, the international enrollment in seminaries and institutes was listed at zero. In the most recent report, given in 2001, the total outside the United States and Canada is listed at 340,026 almost 50 percent of the total worldwide enrollment. The seminary and institute program now functions in eighty-two countries, and course materials have been translated into fifty-eight languages! All of this has occurred thanks to the efforts of hundreds of dedicated full-time staff and thousands of faithful and effective volunteers. Although the numbers of young people enrolled are impressive, I do not wish to convey an impression that there is not much more that needs to be done. Activity ratios need to be increased in every country, and the percentage of eligible young men serving full-time missions should be greatly enlarged. Gospel Truths Taught to Meet Challenges of Our Time Why do we do all of this? Why do we go to all this effort as a Church? Let s face it, as a society, we are immersed in some serious problems. There is a decided weakening of the capacity of institutionalized churches to influence their members at the level of personal conduct. We see ample evidence that so many in public and private circles do not conduct themselves consistently with Judeo-Christian moral and ethical values. Scan any newspaper and you will know what I mean. There are many in secular education today who believe that truth is relative to time, culture, and circumstance. We hear of situational ethics, of individuals saying that peculiar circumstances determine the rightness or wrongness of actions; or that it may be right for you, but it is not right for me; or that it may have been right for me in the past, but it is not right for me today. We see emphasized in so much of our educational efforts today what is, to the neglect or exclusion of what ought to be, to such an extent that in many ways our continued existence as a civilized people is threatened. It is true, as someone said, that one of our weaknesses in America and so many parts of the world today is that we aim at nothing, and hit it with accuracy. So much of what we do educationally in our society generally lacks direction and commitment. Not so with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, for we hold that there are absolute truths. In other words, true principles are eternal; they never change; they are the same yesterday, today, and forever, in all cultures, in all times, and in all places. The commandments, the standards, the word of God stand firm and unalterable. Someone has said that the Church is never more than a generation away from extinction,

11 and so it is if truths are not taught effectively. Each generation has the responsibility of teaching these truths effectively to each succeeding generation. In other words, an effective religious educational program must exist. I remember that someone said, Religion is always the search for the meaning of life.... The religious problem is therefore the ultimate issue in education. 16 I believe that one of the major reasons why many in the world have been so weakened in their moral fiber is because they have not had operating in society an effective religious educational program based on true principles. In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we have that; and furthermore, we are committed. Our leaders are committed. We make no apology to anyone that we plan, organize, and invest resources of time and money. We drive countless miles to haul children to and from early-morning seminaries and Church-sponsored activities of all kinds. We print manuals by the hundreds of thousands for teachers and parents to use in teaching. We establish seminaries, institutes of religion, schools, colleges, and universities. Why? So that these truths can be taught and learned; so that circumstances can be created in which the Spirit can testify to all our spirits of the eternal truths of the gospel. Without this Spirit, we cannot succeed, and when teachers and students have it, we cannot fail. Our course is charted, and our goals are set. The entire religious educational effort of the Church centers in Christ today, as it did in Book of Mormon times centuries ago: For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do.... And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins. 17 The Church, an Educational Institution This Church is an educational institution. It is made up of teachers all of us, wherever we are in the world. As President David O. McKay has said: We are a Church of teachers. In the Latter-day Saint home the father and mother are required to be teachers of the word expressly required so by the revelation of the Lord. Every auxiliary organization, every quorum, is made up of a body of men and women or of men who are in the ultimate sense of the word, teachers. 18 A basic question is For what purpose do we teach? I am reminded of an impressive experience we had while we served at the Missionary Training Center. On one occasion during a mission presidents seminar, a member of the Quorum of the Twelve was addressing the group of newly called mission presidents and their wives. He asked them, What is your most important responsibility as a mission president? Hands went up all over the room. He called on one of them, who responded with enthusiasm, Baptize converts! The brother agreed that baptizing converts was a very important responsibility, but he went on to say, But that is not your most important responsibility as a mission president. Your most important responsibility is to facilitate the sealing of families. One of the major goals of this Church is to strengthen families and, through effective religious education, to raise up a membership throughout the world worthy of current temple recommends a people fully qualified to enter into the sacred covenants that are performed in the houses of the Lord that bind on earth that which will be bound in heaven. These temples, through the efforts of President Gordon B. Hinckley and all who serve with him, are becoming available in ever-increasing numbers and in closer proximity to the membership of the Church. If all of us, as members of the Church, could genuinely come to the point in our lives that we have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually 19 and honestly qualify for a temple recommend throughout our entire lives, we wouldn t have much to worry about in this life or the life to come. As mentioned, there is so much more yet to be done, but what an impressive array of developments has occurred within the last several decades to fulfill, at least partially, the prophetic pronouncements that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will eventually literally become globalized. The Brethren who lead this Church are committed to the idea that families must be strengthened, and to assist in this process, teenagers and young adults all over the world should have the opportunity afforded to them to enroll in weekday religious education, prepare to fulfill full-time missions, and qualify for temple marriage. Much progress has been made to make this possible, and there is much more that needs to be done. I testify that our Heavenly Father lives, that Jesus is the Christ, that this is His Church led by living prophets, and that, as we have heard, The Standard of Truth has been erected; no unhallowed hand can stop the work from progressing; persecutions may rage, mobs may combine, armies may assemble, calumny may defame, but the truth of God will go forth boldly, nobly, and independent, till it has penetrated every continent, visited every clime, swept every country, and sounded in every ear, till the purposes of God shall be accomplished, and the great Jehovah shall say the work is done. 20 This Church will go forward with or without you and me. I m confident that it can go forth a lot better with us than without us. May we all work with diligence and in harmony to this end is my sincere prayer, in the name of Jesus Christ, amen. 7

12 8 Notes 1. When the World Will Be Converted, Ensign, Oct 1974, Doctrine and Covenants 1:1 2, 11; emphasis added. 3. Doctrine and Covenants 68:8; emphasis added; see also Matthew 28: Conference Report, Apr 1898, History of the Church, 4: History of the Church, 4:540; emphasis added. 7. Doctrine and Covenants 90:10 11; emphasis added. 8. Joel 2: Joseph Smith History 1: Heber C. Kimball, Deseret News, 18 Sep 1852, Doctrine and Covenants 88:77, 79, Exodus 1: Alma 29:8; emphasis added. 14. Ensign, Oct 1974, 6 7, 12 14; see also Deseret News, 5 Jan 1854, Out of Obscurity: The LDS Church in the Twentieth Century (2000), 206 7, Source unknown Nephi 25:23, That You May Instruct More Perfectly, Improvement Era, Aug 1956, Mosiah 5: History of the Church, 4:540.

13 Education, the Church, and Globalization Elder John K. Carmack, emeritus First Quorum of Seventy Introduction The Lord has made it clear that our salvation is tied in with our attitudes and actions toward the poor. Apparently God loves the poor since He has made so many of them. Now, President Gordon B. Hinckley and his associates in the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles have given a tremendous new emphasis on sharing with the poor in announcing the formation of the Perpetual Education Fund and department. The sole purpose of this fund is to help our young men and women in poorer communities of the world gain opportunities beyond what their resources allow. As far as I can tell, every prophet of God has loved and served the poor. While President Hinckley is proud of our institutions of higher learning, he recognizes that most of the opportunities in these universities are for people of means, and these opportunities are not generally available for those coming from poor backgrounds. He has been asking for a long time, What are we doing for the poor of the Church, especially the young people who are trying to get a start in life? That may be more important to him than establishing the best research and teaching university possible. He wants action. He insists that we act to assist those less fortunate than others of us who are so greatly blessed materially. This has been one of his themes in sermons for a long time. For example, in 1978, at BYU, he said, I heard a man of prominence say the other day, I have amended the language of my prayers. Instead of saying, Bless the poor and the sick and the needy, I now say, Father, show me how to help the poor and the sick and the needy, and give me the resolution to do so. A Parable A keen matter of equity and justice is involved in the effort of opening opportunities for the poor. We find a parable in section thirty-eight of the Doctrine and Covenants that has become something of a spiritual theme for the Perpetual Education Fund, as follows: For what man among you having twelve sons, and is no respecter of them, and they serve him obediently, and he saith unto the one: Be thou clothed in robes and sit thou here; and to the other: Be thou clothed in rags and sit thou there and looketh upon his sons and saith I am just? Behold, this I have given unto you as a parable, and it is even as I am. I say unto you, be one; and if ye are not one ye are not mine (Doctrine and Covenants 38:26 27). With this parable in mind, consider President Hinckley s introductory comments about the Perpetual Education Fund. He said, We have many missionaries, both young men and young women, who are called locally and who serve with honor in Mexico, Central America, the Philippines, and other places. They have very little money, but they make a contribution with what they have. They are largely supported from the General Missionary Fund to which many of you contribute.... They become excellent missionaries working side by side with elders and sisters sent from the United States and Canada.... They return to their homes. Their hopes are high. But many of them have great difficulty finding employment because they have no skills. They sink right back into the pit of poverty from which they came (Ensign, May 2001, p. 51). These returned missionaries fit the parable s description of twelve sons who served their father obediently. Some come home to rich educational and job opportunities. They are the ones in the parable clothed in robes and occupying the place of honor. The ones who are clothed in rags are those who go home to nothing but grinding poverty and hopelessness. It is for that second group of sons that the program has been announced and is being readied. We are positioning the Church to reach out to our young men and women in less advantaged parts of the world. There is no quick fix for this global concern, but we are starting and moving forward. Help is on the way. Experience has shown that sprinkling money in a show of benevolent giving is not the answer and, in fact, will usually weaken and harm rather than help. Almost all of our members want to assist, including both those with modest means and those with substantial means. Many approaches have been tried, with some good results and some not so good. Training and Education Opening opportunities for education and training leading to jobs seems the best way to help those facing a bleak future. Although Joseph Smith had little formal education, he and the Church have, from the beginning, 9

14 10 emphasized education. Everyone knows, for example, that the glory of God is intelligence (Doctrine and Covenants 93:36). We all know the scripture that says, It is impossible for a man to be saved in ignorance (Doctrine and Covenants 131:36). The doctrine and literature of the Church abound in admonitions to improve ourselves; to gain knowledge, wisdom, and understanding; and to progress not only in this life, but in the eternal realms. The education promoted by the Church in this new program lays a heavy emphasis on studying the scriptures and treasuring up words of life, but the curriculum does not stop there. The scriptures advocate diligence in teaching and learning:... in theory, in principle, in doctrine, in the law of the gospel, in all things that pertain unto the kingdom of God, that are expedient for you to understand; Of things both in heaven and in the earth, and under the earth; things which have been, things which are, things which must shortly come to pass; things which are at home, things which are abroad; the wars and the perplexities of the nations, and the judgments which are on the land; and a knowledge also of countries and of kingdoms (Doctrine and Covenants 88:78 79). The scope of such a curriculum is breathtaking, requiring a lifetime of study continuing beyond this life. In his books and sermons, President Hinckley often counsels the Saints to get all the education, knowledge, and training they can. And where the economies of the countries allow it, the Saints are making great strides in education, knowledge, and training. Church researchers, moreover, have found that the greater the attainment of formal education, the more likely it is that the person will be found attending Church meetings regularly and giving service to others. President Hinckley, however, put his finger on a serious concern the Brethren have for members that live in parts of the world where education, training, and good jobs are unavailable, generally, or are very difficult to obtain. With the increasing globalization of the Church, how do we help members attain the dignity, financial stability, training, and education they need? From what source will our leaders come in those parts of the world? Success in making new converts is often enjoyed among the poorer and more humble brothers and sisters. How can we help them without destroying their dignity, self-reliance, and initiative? It is a great concern. We are searching for the answers. Just adding to the enrollment of our few great institutions of higher learning, though very important, is not the answer to this larger question we have raised. We know the doctrine. It admonishes us to help the poor; be one; be just in the treatment of your sons and daughters. As James points out, we can t just say, Be ye warmed and filled to a brother or sister naked and destitute of daily food. Rather, faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone (James 2:17). Just as the Church grappled mightily with the plight of the Saints during the great depression, the First Presidency and Council of the Twelve have agonized, pondered, and planned to find ways of meeting the plight faced by many of our members in less-advantaged countries. How can we help without bringing greater harm and misery to our people? Like the medical profession, the Church has the obligation, above all, not to harm its members by placing them on what we used to call a dole. That kind of assistance can paralyze and stultify the initiative and self-reliance of our people and rob them of their self-respect. Many wonderful initiatives and procedures are already in place to assist the poor and disadvantaged Saints. We have a way of helping the poor that has stood the test of time in our fast-offering program. We have also developed many employment centers. We have given loans and grants to some for education. On their own initiative, many of our members with means and skills have done their best to lift and touch members and others less advantaged throughout the world. These continue to be important and wonderful, but something more needed to be done. In announcing the Perpetual Education Fund and new Church department, President Hinckley addressed the major concern head-on. After describing and raising the concern, as outlined above, he announced a bold new program, international in scope, to meet the challenge, at least for our younger returned missionaries and other young adults. We ll talk more about that later, but let s see what we can learn from some other initiatives, in and out of the Church. Similar Initiatives Those of us who are older remember the tremendous debt of gratitude we felt for what Tom Brokaw called The Greatest Generation. Millions of our youth had been in the service of the country for four or five years, forgoing the years they would otherwise have been working, gaining an education, and starting a career. They had performed, on the whole, magnificent service for their countries and for the free world in the fight against tyranny. To help them, bold action was required. The nation created what became known as the GI Bill of Rights. Literally millions received education and training under this powerful program. Other millions received loans for starting businesses, buying farms, and acquiring homes. The program was a tremendous boost to them and to the nation. This bold program laid a new foundation of prosperity and opportunity. Brokaw said, in the introduction to his best-seller, that these soldiers became a part of the greatest investment in higher education that any society ever made, a generous tribute from a grateful nation.... They were a new kind of army now, moving onto the landscapes of industry, science, art, public policy, all the fields of American life.... They helped convert a wartime

15 economy into the most powerful peacetime economy in history. On a global and international scale, is that not what the First Presidency and Council of the Twelve have in mind with the Perpetual Education Fund? Another bold initiative followed World War II, named the Marshall Plan after President Harry S. Truman s Secretary of State George Marshall. This program of assistance saved the economies and independence of many nations that faced ruin without resources to meet the horror and chaos of World War II. The Church, though small, acted quickly and magnificently during that same era to help its own and others under the noble administration of Elder Ezra Taft Benson. Earlier, in 1903, the Church found itself faced with a shortage of well-educated teachers for its young people. To meet that problem, the Board of Education of the Church established the Education Fund of This fund granted loans to worthy and ambitious young people to gain greater competence, particularly in the profession of teaching. The fund was revolving in nature in that as the recipients completed their education, they repaid their loans. This replenished the fund for others to use. Now, back to our present dilemma, we find that the kind of assistance needed in less-advantaged countries is training for our young men and women who want to find good jobs, marry, have families, and serve in the Church. The priority is for training leading to occupations and jobs, not college or university training, although that too is needed. First and foremost, however, they need training that will lead to jobs. One is reminded that John Adams, in a letter to his wife, Abigail, from Europe, where he served as an envoy for the new country, once said: I must study politics and war that my sons may have the liberty to study mathematics and philosophy. My sons ought to study mathematics and philosophy, geography, natural history, naval architecture, navigation, commerce, and agriculture in order to give their children the right to study paintings, poetry, music, architecture, statuary, tapestry, and porcelain (John Adams, David McCullough, p ). Perhaps President Hinckley is saying that our young adults need to study computer technology, brick laying, electrical installation, design and drafting, teaching skills, automobile repair, and nursing in order to allow them to marry, serve in the Church, pay tithing and fast offerings, and become contributing members of their communities. Later, some of their children may have the means and background to study a profession and gain all that universities have to offer. In the meantime, the work available and the skills needed should be our curriculum and the place to use our resources to help. Much of Thomas Jefferson s effort was to lead a crusade against ignorance, establish and improve the law for educating the common people. Is that not the essence of the bold new initiative of the Church? Is it not a crusade against the lack of opportunity for the common people of the Church? Shouldn t that be a major emphasis of Church members today? Looking Back for Answers History often gives us context and answers to present concerns. For example, after the death of Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum in Carthage Jail, Brigham Young and the Quorum of the Twelve moved into the place of leadership. They did not forget the poor. In a meeting held in the Nauvoo Temple to discuss and plan the migration to the west, George A. Smith of the Twelve recalled the covenant they had made in Missouri not to leave behind any of the poor and suggested it was time for another such covenant. Brigham Young moved that we take all the Saints with us, to the extent of our ability. They did that to their great credit and to the credit of the Church members who shared with each other. Having succeeded in establishing a foothold in these valleys, they faced another great need to emigrate the thousands of converts in Europe who wanted to join them. But how were they to do it? Knowing that a huge and complex organizational task faced them, they incorporated a new organization under the laws of the provisional state of Deseret. They called it the Perpetual Emigrating Company. Brigham Young, at the organizational meeting, reminded the Saints of the covenant never to cease our exertions, until all the Saints who desired, should be removed to a place of safety. He was elected president of the company and others were elected to various offices. A fund separate from tithing was established. He then called the people of Europe to gather here. They built into the program the requirement of repaying their loans to maintain self-reliance and dignity in the people. Many could and did pay their own way. Others needed partial loans to make it. Some needed assistance for all of their expenses. Never mind, they did it. The Perpetual Emigrating Company required agents to organize and commence the journey across the sea in Great Britain and Scandinavia. The Perpetual Emigrating Company appointed agents to meet them when the ships arrived in America. Other agents had the duty to find the wagons, provisions, oxen, cattle, and all needed to cross a wide wilderness. They boarded in Liverpool. The noted author Charles Dickens boarded one of the emigrant ships carrying the Saints to the new world and published this report: Two or three Mormon agents stood ready to hand them on to the Inspector, and to hand them forward when they had passed. By what successful means a special aptitude for organization had been infused into these people I am, of course, unable to report. But I know that even now, there was no disorder, 11

16 12 hurry, or difficulty.... I went on board their ship to bear testimony against them if they deserved it, as I fully believed they would; to my great astonishment they did not deserve it; and my predispositions and tendencies must not affect me as an honest witness. I went over the Amazon s side, feeling it impossible to deny that so far, some remarkable influence had produced a remarkable result, which better know influences have often missed ( Bound for the Great Salt Lake, The Uncommercial Traveller & Reprinted Pieces. Oxford University Press, London: 1863, pp. 228, 232). What these approximately 100,000 Saints added to the Church in these valleys is impossible to estimate. They became the Church in large measure. And a great many owed their ability to come to loans from the Perpetual Emigrating Fund. Repayment was hard and was often made in labor and in kind. Leaders extended tremendous efforts to keep the fund equal to its task. The Moroni Fund, the Provo Fund, the Ephraim Fund, and the Scandinavian Concerts helped. Sarah Ann Peterson s plan to have sisters donate eggs laid on Sundays spread from her community in Ephraim to surrounding communities. The plans and thoughts of the Church revolved around and were dominated by this program of emigration. There was nothing like it anywhere. After Brigham Young died, John Taylor took the laboring oar as president and forgave half of the remaining debts of the emigrants as an act of celebrating the year of jubilee. When the United States disincorporated the Perpetual Emigrating Company and the Church, the fund and company had fulfilled its essential purposes. The Church and its growing communities were well supplied with boot and shoe makers, accountants, boiler makers, cabinet makers, engineers, miners, masons, printers, spinners, weavers, and many others representing specialized skills and occupations. Back to the Present and Future We no longer need all of these people and their skills in these valleys they are bursting with growing population. We need to do the same thing in less-advantaged countries that we once had to do here. And President Hinckley, on behalf of the Brethren, announced the plan and way to do it. Before making that announcement, he began developing a plan to organize a new department and establish a plan to accomplish the purposes of the new Perpetual Education Fund. He invited contributions. All contributions would go to assist the needy young adults in less-advantaged areas of the Church. The local administration of the program was delegated to institute directors in those countries. The Perpetual Education Fund Board of Directors has approved the program designed by the new Church department. The plan of action has been created. The expenses of the department will be minimal because the only paid employee is its secretary. The budget for travel and other expenses will be paid, not out of the fund, but by the Church budget. The department is establishing the program on a small basis, as President Hinckley counseled, and, by the end of the year, loans for worthy and needy recipients will be available in all of the lessadvantaged countries of the world where we have institutes of religion and a number of returned missionaries. The scope of the plan is enormous, limited only by the size and income of the fund. The fund is rapidly growing due to the generosity of the Saints. This program greatly enhances the future of disadvantaged returned missionaries and other young adults. The president and the entire Church are behind this bold new program. The policies designed by the Perpetual Education Fund Department have built selfreliance into the program by requiring commitment to repay the loans with modest interest once the training has been received. We are all committed to it like the covenant the Saints entered into in the Perpetual Emigrating Company to bring the Saints here. This fund does not replace other programs to help the poor. Fast offering continues to be a grand and fundamental program and principle. Conclusion The meaning and value of the Perpetual Education Fund will probably not be known and appreciated for a decade or two. Surely the Perpetual Education Fund will help the Church fulfill its destiny to roll forward until it fills the whole earth. It is patterned after the old Perpetual Emigrating Fund and Company and, in fact, is based on heavenly and spiritual patterns. The course of God is one eternal round. Principles of equity and justice underpin it. We are remembering all twelve of our sons and not forgetting less-advantaged returned missionaries who have served so well. It is magnificent. One reason it will work is that the earth is full, and there is enough and to spare (Doctrine and Covenants 104:17). We need no new organization, except for the focus on a new fund with its special mission, but we will use volunteers and our magnificent institutes of religion. Under the direction of prophets of God, like we did with the old Perpetual Emigrating Fund, we will do things that will amaze the world around us! May God grant us the intelligence, energy, and faith to make our principles a reality.

17 CES Education and Provident Living in an Expanding Church Bryan Weston, Church Education System (CES) administrator What a wonderful occasion to talk about the Church as it moves out into the world. In the early days of the Church, the effort was to gather the members of the Church to Zion and to help establish in their hearts and in their lives a society in which they could grow up and make their contributions in their communities and, subsequently, the world. The efforts of our day have changed a little bit from that early effort. Whereas we first brought Zion to these valleys of the mountains and to these concentrations, where we could be unfettered in some ways in living our religion, now there is a major effort to take Zion to the world and to establish Zion in lots of places in the world wherever there are stakes and wards of the Church established. Years ago, we were in a meeting with President Spencer W. Kimball with Church Education administrators and his early comments were, Brethren, we follow the priesthood, don t we? And literally that has been the effort in Church Education: to follow the priesthood; to support, assist, and sustain their efforts; and to strengthen the members of the Church, whom we re charged to serve. My desire is to describe briefly some things that are happening in Church Education meaning religious education, especially as it expands out into the world. I ve entitled this CES Education and Provident Living in an Expanding Church. Provident living really, as the Church has used it over the years, speaks about preparing wisely for the future living providently while doing our best to both prepare for the future and also enjoy those blessings that are available to us presently. I represent CES on the religious education side, and we have special appreciation in this day for the things that are happening in a concentrated effort from many departments of the Church, including priesthood leaders, Area Presidencies, CES leaders, our Church Board of Education, some thirty-eight to forty thousand volunteers who help throughout the world in teaching and administering CES programs, and many other Church departments. The new Perpetual Education Fund, in many ways, has brought together and allowed some things to happen between CES, welfare, and a number of other Church departments in serving these young people of the Church. I think this is providential and part of the destiny of this Church, as we consider this statement from the prophet Joseph Smith, The greatest temporal and spiritual blessings never attended individual exertion or enterprise (TPJS, p. 183). There are some unique blessings coming to the Church because of the working together and teamwork of the agencies of the Church. There is an urgency in this day in which we live in assisting priesthood leaders working with young adults internationally. Some quick statistics: in Brazil alone there are 230,000 young adult members of the Church. About forty-five thousand of them are considered active, or attend Church at some point during a given month. About 5 percent of those serve missions. After their missions, many of them become less active in the Church because of the lack of educa- 13

18 tion, jobs, and Church association. As President Hinckley has said, they go back to their poverty and to the difficult circumstances from which they ve come. Let me share with you a few statistics in terms of six countries which are all heavily populated in terms of young adult members of the Church. These six countries Mexico, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Peru, and the Phillippines are all Latin American, except the Phillippines. There are great numbers in those various been able to get our building built yet. The other Lima institute showed an equal explosion of growth. The use of the institute building was dramatic. They started in most cases at 6 A.M. and would finish at 11 P.M. or later. The desire of these young people to get on a computer was tremendous. They would sign up not only to take the computer classes, which were taught by volunteers, but they would sign up to do their practicing on the computer, starting at six in the morning and going until 14 countries, totaling 1.7 million young adult members of the Church. The activity rate of those members that we can anticipate would be in church on a given day is about 300,000 of the 1.7 million overall. Institute enrollment in the various institutes in all these countries is less than 10 percent of the total members and about just over half of the actives. We have some work cut out for us in terms of working with potential institute students. The percent of the actives enrolled ranges from a high of 77 percent in Peru down to 26 percent in Mexico; overall, 54 percent of the active members of the Church are involved in the institute program. Of that total pool of young adult members of the Church, there are a number who are serving missions or who have recently served missions. A couple of years ago, we had a preliminary effort in a pilot program that President Hinckley and the Board of Education authorized to be extended in Mexico and Brazil to try and reach some of these young adult members. In this expanded program, we offered, in addition to our normal institute classes, some English classes and computer literacy classes to try and help these young returned missionaries learn English, for which there were jobs available in most cases. It has been about three or four years since that effort was initiated. It has now blended into the Perpetual Education Fund as a joint effort. To demonstrate this effort, I will illustrate using the Lima North Institute. There was an explosion of enrollment when these new classes were offered. In ten months, we went from an enrollment of 195 to 1,136 students. We didn t know where to put them. We had two small homes rented and we still do. We haven t midnight or thereabouts as late as we would let them stay in the building. We found that starting the English and computer class in the institute program spawned a number of other programs with the institute young people twenty-seven other classes. We put that in quotes because none of them were for credit at the institute, but came about because of interest and the abilities of these young people to stimulate interest in special programs. These classes enhance the sociality of the institute program in many ways, with offerings in dance, piano, organ, aerobics, French, Portuguese, Italian, and Russian. They had music classes where they learned to sing and then they would sing for one another at the start of their classes. In Peru,

19 there was a finance class in Quechua, and there were some pre-university classes, so that some of the students could be admitted to universities. They had a wonderful experience with some eight hundred students involved. The institute became a hive of activity, and it was a wonderful place to be and still is. Those young people are hard to turn off once they get started and have such a good experience. There are scriptures that support what s happening in Church Education: Wherefore, the things of which I have read are things pertaining to things both temporal and spiritual (1 Nephi 22:3). The Lord speaks about both sides of our nature. Nephi records that it appears the house of Israel sooner or later, will be scattered upon all the face of the earth, and also among all nations (1 Nephi 22:4). Nevertheless, after they shall be nursed by the Gentiles, and the Lord has lifted up His hand upon the Gentiles and set them up for a standard, and their children have been carried in their arms, and their daughters have been carried upon their shoulders, behold these things of which are spoken are temporal; for thus are the covenants of the Lord with our fathers (1 Nephi 22: 5 6). Elder Carmack commented earlier about the covenants helping the poor and the needy. Nephi goes on to say: And after our seed is scattered the Lord God will proceed to do a marvelous work among the Gentiles, which shall be of great worth unto our seed; wherefore, it is likened unto their being nourished by the Gentiles and being carried in their arms and upon their shoulders.... Wherefore, he will bring them again out of captivity, and they shall be gathered together to the lands of their inheritance; and they shall be brought out of obscurity and out of darkness; and they shall know that the Lord is their Savior and their Redeemer, the Mighty One of Israel (1 Nephi 22: 8, 12). I just returned this last week from Lima, Peru, helping with some of this initial effort in implementing some of the Perpetual Education Fund as it works with institutes and in the institute program. I was training some of our local institute directors for the role they will play. We asked some of the students who came, and who were applying for some of these first loans from the Church, what their reaction was when they heard President Hinckley s announcement. It was interesting to hear their response. Most of them said, We wept. We knew that the Lord was conscious of our needs and our desperation, not knowing what to do and where to turn. We were so grateful. This response is interesting in light of this scripture saying they ll be brought out of obscurity and out of darkness; and they shall know that the Lord is their Savior and their Redeemer, the Mighty One of Israel (1 Nephi 22:12). President Jolley, of the Brazil South Area, in discussing linkage of institutes with education, job placement, and a broader role, said, This is the most important thing that could be done for the Church in Brazil. We have to act now or we ll lose this whole generation of members. We have asked ourselves a few questions: Can the institute program become a catalyst to provident living? Both to have the sociality and the enjoyment of membership now, but also to prepare for the future among LDS young adults? Secondly, as the institute is such a great gathering place for young adults, how can we assist the students to seek educational training, obtain job placements, and to prepare to arise out of obscurity in context of an institute? How do we stay true, in our CES role, to our trust and also implement these important and good developments in international institutes? Our objective, given to us by the Church Board of Education, is to assist in accomplishing the mission of the Church to teach students the gospel, to provide a spiritual and social climate, and to prepare young adults for Church service. It seemed that the board had already put in place the basic parameters in which we could operate. Then we ve made recommendations, within the context of the Perpetual Education Fund, to work with priesthood leaders to get newly-returned missionaries and all young adults to become actively involved in the institute, because of the association and the spirituality that occurs there and the strengthening of young people and their testimonies. Another objective is to work with Employment Resource Services to get career planning and training for students. And thirdly, to bring family history courses more into the institute in this day of temple building, including computer usage in the institutes. That seemed to be a natural, but it would also give students the opportunity to become a little more confident on computers, within context of what we re asked to do. The institute must enhance the idea of a gathering place of young single adults; the activities should facilitate the gathering. We would add, as we proposed, a wrap-around class in institute, one which could be started at any time. When a young man or young woman comes off of his or her mission, or when they re activated in the Church and enrolled at any point, they could come into the class and they would start and then continue through the next semester the first few classes they had missed as they enrolled. This class is now in a draft form, we have it out and it is going the same places the Perpetual Education Fund is, called Provident Living. We ve given it a tentative number and there are some marvelous things in it. When Elder Carmack read the draft he said, I think those principles were never taught before in the Church, but there is surely a need now. We look forward to what this might add to the institute in terms of provident living, to help students prepare for the future and answer the questions, How am I going to support a family? What can I do so that eventually I can give service to the Church? And what can I do to then prepare to be in a situation as 15

20 16 a mother and father to raise my children in the Church in faithfulness? We have thought we could set up computer training where appropriate to enhance the students use of the family history course and their general literacy with computers. We could encourage other enhancements to the institute classes and activities, as budgets and talents and interests may allow. Meaning that if a group of students had certain talents and abilities, they could be involved in serving one another and preparing themselves for effective Church service. We are working currently to provide full-time employees and buildings to support enrollments and programs as justified. We are sharing office space with Welfare Services for the Employment Resource people and Family History offices in our institutes internationally. We are jointly serving these young people. Another factor that we are actively involved in is using BYU interns and faculty, as available, to support career planning, family history, etc., in institutes, with accountabilities, job descriptions, and budgets set up to allow those things to happen. The context of our efforts would be first to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ. We use scriptures to teach English, enhanced by the use of computers, whether using the TALL or Elis or other programs that would be appropriate. And as a peripheral step, we would provide computer training to enhance family history and the use of computers among the students. Again, President Jolley said, This is the most important thing that could be done for the Church in Brazil. We have to act now, or we will lose this whole generation of members. In conclusion, in the Doctrine and Covenants, it says: You cannot behold with your natural eyes, for the present time, the design of your God concerning those things which shall come hereafter.... Behold, verily I say unto you, for this cause I have sent you... that you might be honored in laying the foundation... that a feast of fat things might be prepared for the poor... unto which all nations shall be invited.... And after that cometh the day of my power, then shall the poor, the lame, the blind, and the deaf, come in unto the marriage of the Lamb, and partake of the supper of the Lord, prepared for the great day to come (58:3, 6 9, 11). We really are taking Zion to the nations of the world where the stakes and the young people are already there, and the gospel is established, and trying to help them build themselves strong in a way that will allow the Lord to do His marvelous work among them in preparation for those days to come. I express gratitude to so many, those who are here, and a number of others who are not, all of whom have been part of this ongoing effort. I think we are just on the threshold. The tip of the iceberg seems to be in sight. We have no idea of all the dimensions of this wonderful iceberg that we are starting to float on in this world of building Zion throughout the world. I pray that the Lord s blessings would be with us in this effort, in Jesus name, amen.

21 International Study Programs: Where Have We Been, Where are We Going, and How Will We Get There? Rodney Boynton, David M. Kennedy Center for International Studies associate director International Study Programs, BYU Where Have We Been? International study experiences began almost forty years ago when language teachers in the foreign language departments responded to the pleas of their students and allowed the most enthusiastic ones to join them on their personal trips to Europe during their summer months away from BYU. The experiences were invaluable and from those first student/faculty collaborations in the early 60s came a spirit of international study which has grown and matured over the last four decades. As you know, some things reach maturity in a fairly quick amount of time and others require more time because of the sheer number of variables involved in the project. International study seems to be a rather slow maturer. Many faculty members, department chairs, and college deans have had experiences abroad with students and various administrations have had to deal with the formation of institutional policies and procedures to govern the educational processes when they are done away from campus and outside of the regularly understood systems of procedures and protocols of BYU day school. Nevertheless, in my judgement, we are on the threshold of getting more and more things right as we send students and faculty members abroad. Where are we going? We have twenty-six study abroad programs the most traditional of all programs that are accompanied by a faculty director with all students studying the same curriculum. Volunteer programs number eleven and feature international study based on the principles of service-learning. These programs are also directed by accompanying faculty directors. Internship programs, fifteen in all, focus on the principles of skills-based, onthe-job training for students wishing to have maximum exposure to careers in an international setting. Lastly, Field Studies programs offer research experience to juniors and seniors who are writing a senior honors thesis, recipients of research grants for study related to capstone courses in their major, and some graduate students working on a master s thesis. There are seven programs in this category. Faculty members typically do not accompany students in these latter two programs. However, in almost all cases, faculty make visits to the students sometime during their time abroad. In all, we are dealing with fifty-nine programs. All BYU-sponsored programs require students to register for academic credit and complete all academic work associated with the program. I believe there are twenty of the twenty-nine church areas that include countries outside of the United States. International study programs occur in all twenty areas. As you would expect, when looking at our fifty-nine programs listed by their sponsoring academic college, the College of Humanities is the heavy hitter. BYU has nine colleges and two professional schools, and international programs are sponsored by one of the professional schools and seven of the nine colleges. Now let s take a quick look at the students. The number of students and program opportunities is increasing. Slight increases and decreases in numbers can be attributed to the addition or deletion of only one or two programs each year or by programs that decide to go in alternating years. We are now averaging over twelve hundred students per year and when you add the students who participate on the Jerusalem program, approximately eight hundred per year (current year excepted), over two thousand students will have an international study experience each year. This represents the largest number of students abroad from any single university or college in the country. Being number one is an onerous recognition. There is a lot of work to do and hundreds of worries over each program and each student and faculty member we send out. Because of the current challenges in Israel, it is necessary to cancel many sessions of the Jerusalem program, which will drop us to seventh or eighth position in the overall count. How Will We Get There? Let me now move to a brief discussion of the guiding philosophies that govern the development and implementation of international study experiences for departments, faculty, and students at BYU. We have seven major principles that the BYU administration has determined will govern international study programs. Our experience over the last thirty-five years has taught us a few things. First, we can t do all things for all students and faculty. With an educational program the size of our s and an international orientation such as our s, it is very easy to try to offer something for everyone. We have had several negative expe- 17

22 18 riences with faculty, students, and colleagues in host countries, etc., which have taught us the need to be cautious in our academic planning. These seven principles, articulated and implemented just one year ago, are having a very positive impact on the development and implementation of international study programs. Believe me, it is wonderful to have a set of guidelines and principles against which to measure and determine the directions we should travel. All seven are critical features of proper and responsible institutional priorities. We will continue to work with our university colleagues in the spirit of doing the right things for the right reasons. We have attempted to define our mission, our vision, and our guiding principles. We believe in the spirit of this language, i.e., A sincere desire to help all parties involved in organizing and carrying out an excellent program of foreign study. These types of statements are always subject to questions, criticisms, suggestions for better choice of words, etc., but the substance shows the mind-set that governs our style of work. Let me turn to four scenarios that will complete the picture of international education at BYU, each one representative of the nature of our four different program types: study abroad, volunteers, internships, and field studies. Study Abroad The London Center consists of two contiguous row houses at 27 and 29 Palace Court, just a stone s throw from Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park. The buildings were purchased by BYU in 1977 and offer sleeping accommodations for forty students and three faculty families. Faculty teach courses from three disciplines, generally English literature, history or political science, and humanities or fine arts. In the last ten years, there have been slight modifications to the original model of the London program. Initially, the program was six months in duration with two student groups and two faculty directorates each year. For one month of each program, the group traveled to Paris, Madrid, and Salzburg on an academic rotation studying at the other BYU centers. In the late 80s, the cost of the program was climbing dramatically, almost beyond reach of the average BYU student, so a calendar change was made. Each six-month program was split into a four-month semester program and a two-month term program. This doubled the number of students who could participate from 80 to 160 each year, yet kept the faculty directorate there for the usual six months, reducing the faculty costs to each of the students by 50 percent. Faculty now teach two groups of forty students, one for two months and one for four months. It seems like everyone is happy and the program now has almost three applicants for every space available. In addition, the office of Student Auxiliary Services has assumed responsibility for the upkeep and maintenance of the physical plant. Now I don t have to worry about choosing paint colors for the walls or furniture styles and fabrics for each area of the center! There is one other unique feature of the London program I would like to mention. At the invitation of the London stake president, students from BYU are given the opportunity to share their time and talents with members of the church in various wards and branches in the stake. Several units are in rather constant need of leadership training, musical help, or general staffing. Our students are called and sent to an area of need that matches their experience, and for the duration of their program they have the opportunity to instruct and share with their brothers and sisters. Many students comment on the richness of this experience and hold it as one of the best features of the London program. Study Abroad groups bond together in unique ways and the relationships developed with faculty and fellow students provide lifelong memories and increase their awareness of the reality of the globalization phenomenon. International Volunteers Almost two years ago, the university established the Jacobsen Center for Service and Learning. One of the major purposes of the center was to promote the concept of volunteer service as a learning strategy applicable across the full spectrum of the university curriculum. The Kennedy Center invited key departments and faculty to establish International Volunteer programs, wherein students of a particular discipline were organized into a volunteer service group and sent to a specially selected country to carry out a service project based on the skills and practices of their discipline. The Department of Health Sciences and the Kennedy Center s European Studies program determined to provide needed service on behalf of the Ukranian Ministry of Health in assisting with a special tobacco abatement program. While tobacco use is dropping in many areas of the U.S., it is growing rapidly in Ukraine. For the last two summers, students have participated in seminars, street meetings, and various other activities teaching youth and adults about the dangers of tobacco use. This year, the students have helped in a grant-writing effort in order to secure needed funding to continue to extend education and advocacy regarding the perils of tobacco use. They have also studied the health impacts and the effects of tobacco on the body with their BYU Health Sciences faculty director. As you can imagine, the combination of service and learning has produced dramatic results in both students and the Ukrainian people. International Internships These on-the-job type learning experiences are, theoretically, some of the easiest to set up for our students. For example, while on a special trip to BYU last summer, the director of UNICEF Philippines, a devout Latter-day Saint, was asked to consider hosting BYU students as work interns in a few key projects in Manila. As the lights went on in his head, it took only several months before he had made arrangements for four students to intern in Manila this summer. The interns were majors or minors in international development in the

23 Kennedy Center. They worked in the main offices of UNICEF in Manila as well as in field projects dealing with child services in selected neighborhoods, computerized database systems for tracking projects, people and services, and with NGOs who serve abused and abandoned children. Let me quote from one of the students, Kathryn Gourley: My internship with UNICEF has been in the department of Children in Need of Special Protection. In particular, I have been working with Mr. Pol Moselina, contact officer for street children projects and focal officer for Quezon City. I have spent half of my internship hours volunteering at Pangarap, a partner NGO of UNICEF. Pangarap works specifically to address the problem of street children through four programs: street education, drop-in center, residential shelter, and community outreach. I have worked specifically with the drop-in center doing activities with the children and encoding intake data on the computer. The other half of my internship has been spent with UNICEF at training meetings and conferences. I attended a one-week training for social action leaders in Roxas City and, more recently, attended a one-week training for the Philippine National Police. Attending the conferences and trainings has given me exposure to what UNICEF is doing on the macro level, while my time at Pangarap has given me exposure to the grass-roots. There are many agencies and businesses around the world who are looking for or who would accept the idea of a well-trained student offering his or her time and skills in a work environment. International Field Study Programs Students of anthropology and international development are strongly advised to have an international experience related to their academic interests and course of study. Over the space of the last five years, Professor John Hawkins of the anthropology department has mentored almost fifty students in the art and science of anthropological field research. He has taken the time necessary to see that the students are well trained in field research methods and that they have the required cross-cultural understanding to be successful in their research project. The students spend eight weeks conducting interviews, taking field notes on their observations, and developing an ethnography on a wide variety of subjects relating to Guatemalan Indian cultures. They have studied the economics of open-air markets, girls education, home/cottage industries, village politics, maternal health issues, language and linguistics, and a host of other very interesting subjects that help to understand life in a rural village. At the present time, Professor Hawkins is completing the final editing of a compilation of the best student papers over the years to be published in book form in the very near future. His professional expertise has had profound influence on his students both in the classroom and in direct field work. This type of undergraduate research with a mentoring faculty member is one of the hallmarks of a BYU education. I suppose it could be argued that we have tried to be all things to all people, a something for everyone type of program. Each department at BYU is faced with the challenge of supporting necessary curriculum with the limited resources provided by the university budget. Developing an international agenda requires some very careful thought and planning. Notwithstanding the challenges and pitfalls, time marches on. With forty years of experience, we offer that which we have learned. First of all, the world is a big place, but more than big, it is complex, full of sensitivities, opportunities, and unique qualities that make for a very exciting global community. BYU students today have been taught to love and serve all of Heavenly Father s children with no strings attached. There is much good happening in all parts of this world. At BYU, we must be concerned about academic integrity. If I have been told once, I have been told a hundred times, We are not a BYU peace corps. Students and faculty must agree on the overarching educational goals and objectives of an international study program. Everyone wants to travel, see the world, return to the mission field, provide humanitarian service, and, in short, experience the world. Our job at BYU is to provide the very best educational experiences possible within the spirit of the aims of a BYU education, which are to spiritually strengthen, intellectually enlarge, build character, and to prepare for lifelong learning and service. In international education, we must be concerned with the selection of students who will be the most successful in the field. We must continue our efforts to provide the best pre-departure preparation possible. We will assist academic departments and colleges in evaluating proposals for new programs so that they meet all the criteria that guide international programs. We will follow the leadership of this administration in seeking new ways to collaborate with church departments and programs around the world where BYU students and faculty can add value and quality to church goals and objectives. As of the first of July, President Bateman organized the Office of International Affairs and appointed Professor Sandra Rogers as the first vice president of international affairs. International Study Programs will continue to report through the Kennedy Center and to Vice President Rogers regarding the development and implementation of international programs and strategies for the future generations of BYU students. We hope our efforts will be acceptable to all concerned. 19

24 The World IS Our Campus Wayne Lott, Division of Continuing Education dean, BYU 20 In 1952, the Division of Continuing Education organized a department called Travel Study to take people throughout the world to study in an educational setting under the direction of a faculty member. More than simply playing shuffle board or happening to see this or that site, the program was designed to provide an educational experience. At that time the director of the program, Robert Taylor, coined a phrase The World is Our Campus. A year later it was seen as something that might be used by the university, so President Wilkinson adopted it as a university slogan and today you see it near the entrances to the university. The reason IS is capitalized on the title is because much of what I address comes out of our department of Independent Study that we abbreviate IS. The question that I ask then is, Where are we going in the world today? And, quite frankly, the answer is everywhere, as has been demonstrated by the things that have been said in this conference. Who is it that s taking us there? I start first with faculty. Let me give you some statistics that came out this past week from the office of Scholarly Publications. There are 1,229 full-time faculty at Brigham Young University. Those faculty were associated with the following kinds of work in the past year: 80 reference and creative books 92 instructional textbooks 440 chapters in books and reviews 1,271 critically-reviewed publications (peerreviewed publications) 229 creative works that don t fit strictly in the category of publication 294 performances, productions, and interpretations 2,765 scholarly presentations at conferences worldwide There are a lot of people going worldwide and producing material who are part of the Brigham Young University faculty. Also, students participate in international study programs that Rod Boynton covered. The academic internships publication indicates there are six thousand academic internships per year. Again, we are going all over the world. Another group that you may not think much about, except in a cultural way, are the performing groups. There are seventeen performing groups on this campus 629 students who went to over 120 cities in twenty different countries and put on 325 performances last year. Those are some figures that give us a bit of an idea as to what is happening. In addition, there is the area of continuing education and what we re doing there. CES We call these programs CES, because Continuing Education is both the provider of services for Brigham Young University as well as in the Church Educational System, the non-credit religious education. Bryan Weston has already mentioned a bit about the experimental English-as-a-Foreign-Language projects in Mexico and Brazil. They began three years ago. I also want to talk with you about the online course work that we have. Then we will talk about what is in the future. In the list of offerings, we have correspondence courses. Those were called Home Study prior to what they are currently called, Independent Study. Before Home Study, it was Extension Work, and it has gone by various names, including Correspondence Coursework. Especially for Youth This past year, we had about fifty programs each running a week long in about three dozen locations across the United States. Nine of those programs were on this campus, eight at Ricks, and on and on, with various places where we simply rent a facility (renting a campus is what it amounts to) and bring anywhere from two hundred to one thousand young people to that campus. There s a whole tale about missionary work there besides. Travel Study Typically twenty-two hundred people participate annually, going to six of the seven continents in the world. We ve thought about Antarctica, but it has been a little bit risky lately so we haven t gone there. But people go to a location, typically for ten to twenty-four days and learn under the direction of a faculty member while on-site. Regional Youth Conferences We help with various stake youth conferences on location around the nation, providing speakers and helping them organize the kinds of activities that strengthen the youth.

25 Campus Education Week It s that little program whose attendance will be twenty-five thousand plus. If the weather is good, more people will come. The Campus Education Week program, in addition to the people who actually come here on campus, will, in any given year, have from ten to twenty hours of broadcast on KBYU, BYU TV, and over the Church satellite system into Central and South America and Europe. Typically, the figures show that we have about fifty-seven thousand people per hour watching the Campus Education Week program. The last statistics we had on that showed million viewing hours of Campus Education Week worldwide in a dozen different languages. Women s Conference Twenty-one thousand people participate in this program that is held in conjunction with President Smoot and the General Relief Society. Again, it is broadcast worldwide and is available on the Internet with audio streaming and then archived for review anytime during the year for people to listen to these presentations. We re talking millions of hours of viewer and listener time in conjunction with this offering. CES Conference Held annually for seminary and institute teachers, volunteers, and administrators is held here on campus, with 10,500 registrants this year. It is basically an Education Week program for those who are in Religious Education. Experimental Employment/Language Project Bryan Weston has already talked about this computer literacy, employment skills, and English-as-a-foreignlanguage program. Offered in Monterrey, Mexico, at the Monterrey North Institute, and in São Paulo, Brazil, at both the Brooklin and the Taboão Institutes. One of the main functions was to involve local volunteers to teach. Those local volunteers came with a tremendous variation in their skill level in teaching and their background in English. So to assist with that, we used the Technology Assisted Language Learning (TALL) program that was developed at the MTC. It is still under development by a group that the university has set up separate and distinct from the MTC, charged with moving that work forward and making it available at some point over the Internet. Now, don t interpret from what I m saying that everything that is being done must be done with technology or the Internet. The fact of the matter is, much of this can be ported on the Internet, but it can also be printed out in paper and pencil and put out for use locally to people who have some kind of support from a central area. Currently, the TALL program is being used at the Benemerito High School in Mexico City. They run two complete high school curriculum sessions everyday at the high school, with about twelve hundred students in each session. They have a computer lab that is set up, where they are learning English as a second language using TALL and some other materials as well. We have here at the conference Yvonne Garzola, who is using this computer arrangement. You can teach with it, and you can do in-service training with it in multiple ways. The best thing of all is that it costs about two hundred dollars to set up. The keyboard she uses for instant messaging back and forth just like anyone else on an instant-messaging program. She uses ear phones and a microphone so that she can use either Net-Meeting or just audio telephony without getting into any kind of video, and then she has a video camera here on the monitor. The reason that she is using this right now is in support of the people in São Paulo at the Brooklin Institute, who are teaching EFL. She spent six months there a couple of years ago, getting things set up, and moving it along. As recently as Saturday, Yvonne spent three hours using an Internet connection to teach classes in São Paulo and yet she never left Utah Valley. She has also been using it to train the teachers prior to them actually beginning the course work. For the past three weeks, she held classes with the instructors, and the video camera was then hooked via the Internet to a projector in São Paulo, and the teachers could see her on a large screen and could talk with her through a microphone. Now all of this cost virtually zero on the per minute, per hour cost. After the initial investment, you have the Internet connectivity. Now, it isn t exactly the same as full-motion video, but what it gives to you is very close to lip-synced audio. There is a slight time delay between here and Brazil, but it s not bad. And if you pick the correct time of day, you have very good connections with it. Independent Study We have currently on the web 126 university courses that are available to people anywhere in the world, 68 high school courses, and 46 personal enrichment courses that are non-credit, lower-cost courses. Our projected web enrollments for the current year will be just under twenty thousand individuals. Those are all paying customers. The next category has two free genealogy courses with projected enrollment of thirty-three thousand. At the direction of the Brethren, we, along with the faculty in Religious Education, put together the two courses. They were put on the web and right now there are a lot of genealogists, both members and non-members, who are going into those and being instructed. I ll show you what those look like in just a moment. For a total, in addition to the 240 web courses that are shown here, we have 627 paper and pencil courses. About 80 percent of our current enrollments are in paper and pencil courses. And we are not giving up on paper and pencil. They have great application in lots of places in the world where the cost of computers, and/or the cost of Internet hook-up is simply too much. But there are tremendous advantages in the electronic mode. We were charged many years ago to be the experimental 21

26 22 university, and so we are pushing ahead with some of these areas, knowing that they may not be usable immediately, but hopefully in the future. As you see our total projected enrollment for Independent Study this year will be 104,000. Under the Personal Enrichment courses in Independent Study, you will locate Finding Your Ancestors and Providing Temple Ordinances for Your Ancestors courses. There is a title page with navigational aids, questions, and answers. We find that if we give people an opportunity to read through some questions, it will take a load off of the student support services. When you move the cursor over the pictures, there are options for a live presentation: The divine plan of happiness enables family relationships to be perpetuated beyond the grave. Sacred ordinances and covenants available in holy temples make it possible for individuals to return to the presence of God and for families to be united eternally (President Hinckley on video). As participants go through the course, there are various items, quotations, and such from individuals. There are also lesson materials with hot links; one can click on them and they will take you to other sites that provide additional information. Photo icons can be clicked to enlarge and see what a form looks like. On university-level courses, say, art history, you must enter a password. When a person signs up for a course, we are not at the point of doing video streaming over the net, so they get a CD. On that CD are various video clips. Some of those, such as a welcome from President Bateman, an introduction from the instructor of the course, and an overview of the course, are put on the CD, as well as materials supporting the Our projected web enrollments for the current year will be nearly 20,000 individuals. Free genealogy courses have a projected enrollment of 33,000. The total projected enrollment for Independent Study this year will be 104,000. assignments throughout the course itself. In particular lessons, there are various pages for students to read from a textbook and then assignments that they can actually do. After they ve read, they complete objective materials concerning what they have read and demonstrate how well they understand it. They select answers, then they check the answers to see if they are correct this actually happens live. Answers are submitted to the computer, the computer sees what they are, and gives back a response if correct or not, or here is the correct answer. That material can be embodied with other outside materials as well. Such as: The correct answer is A, if you chose C you didn t understand this concept. All of this is pre-written by some very, very good faculty. There are also a large number of Internet sites that contain educational material available all over the world thirty-one million sites right now. Roughly 500,000 are being added every month. When you are in the midst of a course and you want to draw the student s attention to something to enhance their education, you provide them with a site link. For instance, one is at Sweetbriar College in Virginia. We do not have to pay anything for use of this site. Art history coming to us from Virginia over the Internet. Or, if you have an interest in the area of near eastern art, you can click on it, and it will bring that up. If I choose to China under Asian Art and click on the Ming Dynasty under calligraphy, we are no longer in Virginia, we re now linked to the Beijing Museum in China. From a list of names of Chinese calligraphers, choose any one to view actual pictures of their calligraphy in the Beijing Museum right now. For closer inspection, simply click to enlarge. The capabilities are dramatic when you get electronic media of this nature; Internet

27 capabilities are dramatic and tremendous. That does not address the major problem that we encounter: most members of the Church do not have computers, and, even if they have a computer, they probably don t have Internet capability, yet. Is that day coming? Yes it is, and it will be provided in conjunction with the Church Educational System or in other ways in their local area. What is the future? The development of interactive capabilities that are scaleable is absolutely paramount in our minds. We cannot have one teacher teaching thirty students and simply have it being done around the world. There is not the capability on this campus for all of the 1,229 full-time faculty (and all of the teaching assistants and upper-level seniors) to address this need. We have to find a technological advantage to make it scaleable to millions upon millions of people. We ll continue our cooperation with other entities here at BYU as well as in the Church Educational System and the Church itself. We are working now on finding ways of bringing courses together, at the completion of which, the individual receives a certificate with a gold seal, and that means something in many places in the world. Basically, what we re trying to do is bless the lives of members and friends worldwide. Frankly, many of the courses that are offered will appeal to our friends, and the reason they will appeal to them is because of their need and because of our need as well. Our need is that we find ways to have very small costs to Church members. If some can pay, by virtue of corporate alliances or companies that they work with, to support the nominal costs for the members, then we will go in that direction. Finally, what are tomorrow s possibilities? The question is what can you and I imagine? What we can do to make this all come together is only bounded by our imagination. As Henry Ford said, Whether you think you can or you can t, you re right. 23

28 BYU Hawaii: Its Unique Contributions to the Internationalization of the Church Arapata Meha, admissions associate dean, BYU Hawaii 24 Aloha. It is an honor and privilege to extend this Hawaiian greeting to you this morning. I bring the greetings of President Eric Shumway and the faculty, staff, and students of BYU in La ie. I am grateful to participate with you in this very important conference on the theme, Education, the Church, and Globalization. I should not have been at all surprised when I received a telephone call two and a half weeks ago from President Shumway s office. As a senior admissions officer, I am always called into his office to discuss sensitive matters. I was surprised however, because I was on vacation in Hamilton, New Zealand, visiting my parents with my family. Only a week earlier, I had completed an exciting tour of the North Island, holding firesides for members in eighteen stakes between Porirua in the south and Kaikohe in the North. I met youth and young adults, parents, priesthood leaders, higher education officials, Church Education System (CES) personnel, and alumni. It was a wonderful opportunity to share the vision, mission, and spirit of BYU Hawaii in my homeland. To introduce my remarks this morning I will begin by sharing a new video, The Light of Hope. Everywhere this video has been shown, it has prompted questions and comments from audiences. I have viewed it many times, and on each occasion I am reminded of how much love Heavenly Father has for his children. I am reminded of the visionary leadership of inspired prophets who have had a hand in the establishment of institutions such as BYU Hawaii. I am also reminded of the responsibility that has been given to many to help fulfillment its prophetic destiny. There is no doubt in my mind and heart that this institution is indeed a light of hope. To give you a sense of the scope of what BYU Hawaii contributes to the internationalization of the Church, allow me to describe a dozen unique features of the university. These are in no particular order; however, I will conclude with specific directions recommended by the executive committee of the Board of Trustees during a recent campus visit. The four goals of BYU Hawaii are: 1) spiritual growth and development, 2) intensive intellectual training in a gospel-centered environment, 3) intercultural harmony amidst diversity, and 4) stewardship and accountability. La ie: a Gathering Place From its humble beginnings in the mid-1860s, La ie has been a gathering place. Despite its initial dark period on Lanai, the Lord had a direct hand in inspiring Church leaders Brigham Young and Heber C. Kimball to visit Elder Francis A. Hammond in a dream, in which they revealed that La ie was the chosen spot. For fourteen thousand dollars the Church purchased six thousand acres of barren, desolate land. After a large aquifer was discovered, the Church established a successful sugar plantation. In 1900, George Q. Cannon prophesied that a temple would one day stand in Hawaii. In 1915, ground was dedicated by President Joseph F. Smith. Many of you will be familiar with the flag raising ceremony at the Church-owned elementary school, when then apostle, Elder David O. McKay had a vision that one day a college would stand in La ie. President Hinckley stated: It was not only President McKay s vision that drove him to establish this school, but his courage also. Today, La ie is still a gathering place, as thousands of young people from all over the globe are attracted to this campus, and more than twenty-eight million visitors have spent time at the Polynesian Cultural Center. Student Diversity The enrollment in fall 2000 was 2,393, of whom 38.4 percent were international students representing fiftyeight countries with Tonga, Japan, Fiji, Hong Kong, and New Zealand leading the way, followed by a sprinkling of students from Africa, Europe, and Latin America. The remaining 61.6 percent were from forty-three states, with the largest numbers from Utah, Hawaii, and California. Almost 95 percent of the students were enrolled on a full-time basis; the youngest is sixteen and the oldest is sixty-two. The official enrollment cap is two thousand, with a plus factor of 10 percent. Enrollment has hovered at twenty-three hundred since The enrollment goals of the university are unique and driven by the mission to reach members of the Church from international countries. In an ideal world, our goals are to enroll 25 percent of the students from Hawaii, 25 percent from Asia, 25 percent from the Pacific, and the balance from North America. For a variety of reasons, this enrollment mix has eluded us. However, with a change in the way that we

29 accepted new freshman from the U.S. for this new semester, we are confident that within one or two years we will significantly reduce the imbalance we currently have in favor of a larger international enrollment. As an example, applicants for fall 2001 were allowed to select by preference those CES institutions they intended to attend. On our campus, we experienced an increase of 100 percent in the total number of applications submitted. Given the caliber and talent of the applicants, we were able to select the top one hundred, or 6 percent, of the mainland new freshman applicants who chose BYU Hawaii as first choice. Regretfully, we were unable to select any second choice applicants. Transfer students fared considerably better, as we give first priority to upper-division students who transfer with one to two years of university work completed and come to La ie for a major that we offer. Applicants from our primary target areas were selected at a much higher rate. We are confident that over time, more students from developing countries and countries where the Church is experiencing growth will have even more opportunities to have a BYU Hawaii experience. International Recruitment Last year, the admissions office established a fiveyear marketing and recruitment plan to shift the demographic composition of the enrollment in the appropriate direction. Given the size of our small staff and the resources at our disposal, it is an ambitious program. Each year we visit selected countries in Asia and the Pacific based on a set of priorities: 1) countries which provide performers for the Polynesian Cultural Center, viz, Samoa, Tonga, Tahiti, Fiji, New Zealand; 2) countries such as Japan, Korea, Hong Kong and Taiwan, where the families can afford to pay all or most of the fees; 3) countries where special scholarships have been established, such as Thailand; 4) countries where there is an enormous need for Church leadership e.g., Malaysia, Indonesia, Micronesia, Sri Lanka, and Mongolia. In the next several years, we will be adding countries where there is very little Church presence, such as Cambodia, Vietnam, India, Sri Lanka, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, and Papua New Guinea. During these visits, admissions representatives meet with members of the respective area presidencies, mission presidents, and local priesthood leaders; hold CES firesides and promote the four Church higher education institutions; visit U.S. Embassies/Consulates; meet government and business leaders to establish positive ties for the Church; train facilitators who act as university liaisons in country; meet with alumni; audition prospective students for the Polynesian Cultural Center (PCC); and identify potential employers. These visits are carefully coordinated and always keep us busy. When we are able to visit the homes of local families, we enjoy the opportunity to relax and visit on a personal level with our hosts. It also gives us the chance to better understand the needs and circumstances of families that make significant sacrifices to serve in the kingdom and, for some, send their children to Church universities. I will always remember the experiences of visiting the Lawrence family in Pohnpei, the Banner family in Majuro, the Mariteragi family in Papeete, and the Rikihanas in Tauranga. English Language Development The English as an International Language program is a model for teaching students using dozens of native languages to survive and thrive in a new educational environment. In addition, the TESOL major has earned a reputation as a very highly regarded undergraduate program. Many of our students gain valuable experience teaching high school students and adults coming to campus for summer language courses. Creative Faculty Endeavors BYU Hawaii faculty are encouraged to direct their research and publications toward countries within the university target area. Examples from the School of Business include: research into the pearl farming industry in French Polynesia; entrepreneurship in Fiji and Tonga; microenterprise in the Philippines; understanding trust in business organizations in South Korea, Japan, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Malaysia, Hawaii, and Illinois; customer perceptions of the tourism industry in Samoa and other Pacific Island nations; and the hospitality industry in the Cook Islands. Faculty in the School of Education offer the International Teacher Education Program in Kiribati, Samoa, Fiji, and Tonga, enabling teachers who do not hold credentials to complete their studies part-time with courses completed in country. Dr. Paul Cox brings his expertise to the university research community as a distinguished professor of ethnobotany. Financial Assistance As you know, all students attending BYU Hawaii are the beneficiaries of significant financial investment by the Church. Approximately 75 percent of our students are sponsored in the sense that they receive some form of financial assistance. The International Work Experience Scholarship (IWES) assists financially needy students from Asia and the Pacific through a unique partnership with the Polynesian Cultural Center. Approximately six hundred students currently hold an IWES scholarship. Recipients work nineteen hours a week and are expected to maintain satisfactory academic progress, earning at least thirty-six semester hours each year. The scholarship is renewable for a maximum of four years. Students must maintain good health and be able to work, adhere to the Honor Code, and commit to return home after graduation. Single students may not own a vehicle, may travel home once during the tenure of the scholarship and must pay an annual family contribution that is indexed to the Gross Domestic Product of their respective country. Students who meet the condi- 25

30 26 tions of the scholarship will have the benefit of leaving BYU Hawaii with no outstanding debt. You can appreciate that much effort is made to counsel and remind IWES recipients of the enormous blessing they receive. The generosity of the Church, the Polynesian Cultural Center, anonymous donors, and the university are brought to bear in this unique financial assistance program. We are justifiably proud of those who excel and make the most of the scholarship and saddened in those instances when students fail academically or leave for violating the Honor Code. Asian Management Intern Program In 1985, the university established a program with the Polynesian Cultural Center to build bridges of friendship and goodwill with the Peoples Republic of China. Interns are selected from government, education, and the business sector for an intensive, ten-month management program on the campus, taking classes in English and the Book of Mormon. To date, more than 130 interns have completed the program. Between 1998 and 2001, more than two hundred delegations from China have visited La ie. Describing the impact of the Church on her experience, one intern stated: I love the Church and the Book of Mormon. When the Church finally comes to China, we will step forward and welcome her. Several interns have come from high-ranking government positions. Mr. Ma is chief of protocol for Xi an s provincial government. He was responsible for arranging the visit of Bill Clinton to Xi an in His daughter is attending BYU Hawaii. Lina Li from Guanghzou completed her internship in 2000, but not before joining the Church. She is one of two members from a city of six million. Performing Arts and Athletics Performing arts ensembles such as Showcase Hawaii and the Concert Choir have enjoyed widespread success in Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and China. In 2002, the choir will tour South Korea and Japan, touching hearts and opening doors for missionary work. The athletic teams, comprised mainly of international athletes, have achieved success off the court as well as on. Convert baptisms have resulted from the exemplary efforts of those team members who have gone out of their way to befriend and help non-member teammates. Leadership Experience BYU Hawaii is a living laboratory for international peace (President Marion G. Romney, 1973). This unique multicultural milieu is an ideal training ground for developing future leadership for the Church. Students are afforded opportunities to serve in campus clubs and organizations, student government, and the many campus wards. As a campus ward bishop, I thrill to watch young married families establish patterns of righteous living that bring blessings to their lives. The young men and women among whom I am privileged to serve are strong examples of faith and obedience, many of them are modern day pioneers in their own right. Lee Khyun is my executive secretary from Seoul, Korea. He literally suffered the scorn, indignation, and beating at the hands of his wife s family in order to claim his bride. Now, as a faithful priesthood holder, he is making a difference among his peers. In no other educational environment will one experience the satisfaction and joy of helping to build happy lives, founded on gospel principles. Alumni The proof of the fulfillment of President David O. McKay s prophetic statements about the university is witnessed in the lives of graduates who leave La ie and make a difference. As a sample, a few years ago we learned that fourteen of the sixteen stake presidents in the kingdom of Tonga are alumni. The majority of teachers at Moroni High School in Kiribati earned their degrees in La ie. Prominent church and business leaders in American Samoa and Samoa are graduates of the Church College of Hawaii and BYU Hawaii. The incumbent U.S. Congressman from American Samoa, Faleomavaega Eni Hunkin, is an alumnus. Two sitting Hawaii district court family judges are counted among our alumni. University faculty in many states earned their undergraduate degrees in La ie. Many have returned to their home islands to work for the Church, either in temporal affairs or Seminary and Institute. The CES country directors of New Zealand, Tahiti, Kiribati, Samoa, Tonga and Fiji began their careers after leaving BYU Hawaii. In addition, I count at least four members of quorums of Seventy who attended this campus in the days when it was known as the Church College of Hawaii. Alumni from Asia are also making important contributions in building the kingdom, serving as bishops, stake presidents, and mission presidents. The immeasurable service of these leaders may be surpassed only by the faithfulness of their spouses, many of whom were themselves students. It is my hope that as you have joined in experiencing the spirit of the campus, as portrayed through this video presentation, you might begin to appreciate the impact that graduates have and will continue to make in the future. I believe that we are just beginning for there is a great work ahead of us in the future. Future Directions In conclusion, may I share some of the thoughts of the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees who recently visited the campus. After their whirlwind tour of the facilities and an evening being hosted by international students, their message to the entire university family was issued as a mandate; to reach into Asia in an unprecedented way and to become an even more important player in terms of opening doors for the Church. One of the ways to accomplish this directive is to increase the rate of return of our graduates. President

31 Bateman directed a blue-ribbon task force to identify strategies that will leverage resources and expertise to help make this happen. Opportunities for constructive collaboration will continue as the university seeks ways to take the gospel to our Asian neighbors. At the front end, the admissions office is directed to accelerate its efforts to reduce the mainland student complement in order to accommodate the anticipated increase from Asia. At the groundbreaking of the Church College of Hawaii in 1955, President McKay spoke of hundreds of millions in China, Japan and India, areas where, with the exception of Japan, the Church does not presently have a foot in the door. Each student, regardless of where they hail from, has been led to the La ie campus, because Heavenly Father has had a hand in making it happen. These are very exciting times. We are witnessing the unfolding of important developments that are surely the will of the Lord. How fortunate we are in the Church to have these great institutions of higher learning, not only for the contributions they make in the pursuit of truth, but, more importantly, for the lives that are inestimably blessed as testimonies grow and faith increases. I am a witness of the fulfillment of prophecy as it pertains to BYU Hawaii. In my travels to Asia and the Pacific and throughout Hawaii, I have seen and felt and experienced the realization of international peace through the lives of many who have been blessed by BYU Hawaii and are now themselves a light of hope. 27

32 The Tumultuous 21st Century: Turbulence and Uncertainty Elder Alexander B. Morrison, emeritus First Quorum of the Seventy 28 It is obvious, to even the most casual observer, that we are in the midst of transformations so broad and comprehensive that they are revolutionizing the world in which we live, think, work, play, and pray as never before in human history. The physical, intellectual, and social world we inhabit has changed more faster and more often in the past century than in the previous twenty thousand years. The ground is still shifting under us as relentless technological progress in the post-industrial world, coupled with social changes, as diverse as redefinition of the value and nature of work; the changing roles of men and women and changes in the nature of the family; the distribution of wealth; and the attitude towards others not of our racial group, all combine to radically alter the way we think and act. In so-called advanced societies, such as that in the United States, stress levels are becoming increasingly difficult to sustain, as we separate the rhythms of our life from those of nature. Perhaps it is only to be expected that in the face of such persistent change, and the lack of firm and unchangeable anchors that provide needed stability and constancy, we see such alarming levels of depression, anxiety, violence, and hedonism. One example will illustrate my point: changes in the family, which in this and many other lands, is under continuous and determined attack. The family in America and elsewhere is not only changing under the pressures, but becoming weaker. Two notable trends of the past generation the rapid increase in divorce rates and in out-of-wedlock childbearing are particularly indicative of the weakened state of the family. Other danger signs include a decrease in the two-parent family as the traditional setting in which most children are raised; a decrease of the influence of the extended family; the documented impact of fatherlessness on a multitude of social problems ranging from crime to domestic violence against women; increased numbers of latch-key children, both of whose parents work outside of the home; competitive demands from a variety of community and school activities, which weaken family cohesiveness; and aggressive, well-financed attempts to legitimize so-called same-sex unions, according them all of the rights, powers, and privileges that have since time immemorial been restricted to marriage between a man and a woman. Another transformation, unlike any other in our history, is changing our world. A new international system, that of globalization, is replacing the Cold War. Unlike the Cold War system, which froze the world into static competing blocks for nearly half a century, globalization is a dynamic, ongoing process. Globalization involves the inexorable integration of markets, nationstates, and technologies to a degree never witnessed before, in a way that is enabling individuals, corporations, and countries to reach around the world farther, faster, deeper, and cheaper than ever before and in a way that is producing a powerful backlash against those who are being left behind or victimized by this new system. Recent violent demonstrations at the G-8 meetings in Genoa (July 2001) were fueled by the anger and fear felt by millions around the world who sense, increasingly, that they are held captive by changes they neither understand nor embrace. Globalization, as I ve already mentioned, is not all smiles and sunshine. It has a number of potentially disastrous downsides as well. When the infection of financial panic spreads in a globalized world and it can do so literally overnight, as the Asian flu of the late 1990s showed it causes ripples, even tidal waves, across the whole global system. I think it is not improbable that globalization, by raising both fears and expectations, may contribute to the development of what Robert D. Kaplan terms the coming anarchy. In a bleakly realistic and frankly frightening collection of essays, which provides a refreshing corrective to the dogma of globalization, Kaplan points out that the glaring global reality is not that we [in the U.S.] are becoming like the Third World, but rather that they have so little chance of becoming like us (The Coming Anarchy: Shattering the Dreams of the Post Cold War, Vintage Books, Feb 2001). Kaplan uses West Africa to illustrate the worldwide demographic, environmental, and social stresses occurring in our brave new world a world in which criminal anarchy emerges as the paramount danger for the future. Disease, over-population, crime and violence, scarcity of resources, environmental degradation, migration of refugees fleeing ethnic cleansing, tribalism with its concomitant erosion and instability of nationstates, the empowerment of private armies, and inept and corrupt governments, all portend the dangers that will soon confront our civilization in the West. Sad to

33 say, West Africa is reverting to the Africa of the nineteenth century a series of costal trading posts (Accra, Kinshasa, Lagos, Monrovia, et al.), and an interior that again is becoming unexplored and off-limits to foreigners. As national boundaries in Africa continue to erode, a more impenetrable boundary is being formed the barrier of disease, which threatens to separate Africa and other parts of the Third World from more developed regions of the globe. Each year, there are million clinical cases of malaria worldwide, 90 percent of which occur in Africa, and each year an estimated one million African children die from that ancient scourge. A dramatic example of the ravages of disease is provided by the AIDS epidemic a scourge of medieval proportions, which is leaving a whole generation of African children without parents. Some twelve million African children already have been left as orphans innocent victims of the AIDS epidemic. Some six thousand African children are dying with AIDS daily. Millions of people are being infected each year with the HIV virus; nearly all will die from AIDS. Through 1999, 450,000 people in North America had died from AIDS, but in sub-saharan Africa the figure was 13,700,000. The percentage of adults ages fifteen to forty-nine already infected with the AIDS virus is as high as 30 percent in several African countries more than one hundred times the rate in the U.S. Half of South African boys aged fifteen will not live to age thirty. Uganda has the dubious honor of having the highest number of AIDS orphans in the world: 1.1 million in all; in some districts in Uganda, one-third of all children are orphans. Destitute African orphans, most of whom end up on the streets, turn to prostitution or violence. None among us can be oblivious to or unconcerned about this terrible tragedy as AIDS tightens its death grip on a whole continent. Despite naively optimistic assertions to the contrary, there seems little reason to believe that meaningful remedies to the current AIDS epidemic will or even can be found and applied on a broad scale in Africa over the next decade or more. And if AIDS establishes a firm lodgment in the villages of South East Asia, as seems likely, today s epidemic could become a veritable maelstrom of death worldwide. Kaplan asserts, and I fear he may be right, that Africa may be as relevant to the future nature and content of world politics as the Balkans were a hundred years ago, prior to the two Balkan wars and the First World War. A century ago, Kaplan notes, the threat was the collapse of empires and the birth of nations based solely on tribe. Now, the threat is nature run amok, with all that implies in terms of environmental scarcity, disease, cultural and racial clashes, and war. Indeed, Kaplan is of the view that the environment broadly described will be the national security interest of the early twenty-first century, worldwide. Surging populations, deforestation, soil erosion, scarcity of fresh water, climatic change, and the probability of rising sea levels in critically overcrowded regions such as the Nile Delta and Bangladesh, will trigger potentially cataclysmic events which initiate and sustain group conflict. In the twenty-first century, fresh water will be in dangerously short supply in such diverse locales as Saudi Arabia, Australia, Central Asia, and the Western U.S., including California. The Ogalalla aquifer, which for more than a century has provided groundwater for the Great Plains of the U.S., is drying up. As this proceeds, it will only accentuate major demographic shifts already occurring in that part of the continent. Further north, the Canadian prairie province of Saskatchewan already has fewer people than in Wars over water, whether in the Nile or in the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, seem a likely possibility. In July, the Canadian Prime Minister, Jean Chretien, proclaimed that Canada s abundant fresh-water supplies are not for sale to the United States at any price. How sustainable that assertion will be in the long run is problematic at best. Another great environmental issue, the availability of energy supplies, also will pose immense difficulties over the next century. Unless some other cost effective source can be found in the form of fusion reactors, solar energy conversion, fuel cells, wind energy, or something else, humanity will continue to drive its technology, lifestyle, and growth with fossil fuels. The willingness of technologically advanced countries to go to war over oil supplies has been demonstrated within the last decade, and the potential for future conflicts remains very high indeed. Increasing deficits in resources will not only engender violent conflicts but will be instrumental in redefining who people are in terms that do not coincide with the borders of existing states. Religion and tribal ethnicity, not national governments or international organizations, will define political realities. Islam, which from its beginnings has been characterized by militancy, can be expected to become increasingly attractive to the downtrodden of the world, in an era driven by environmental stress, increased cultural sensitivity, heightened ethnocentricity, and erosion of national boundaries. Indeed, Islam is already the world s fastest growing religion. Conflicts between Hindus and Muslims in the Indian sub-continent and between Turkic Muslims and Slavic Orthodox Christians in the Caucasus and the Caspian littoral will be increasingly likely in the next few decades. Professor Thomas Homer-Dixon of the University of Toronto has summarized the new world that is upon us, with all its disparities and dangers. Think of a stretch limo, he says, in the potholed streets of New York City, where homeless beggars live. Inside the limo are the air-conditioned, post-industrial regions of North America, Europe, the emerging Pacific Rim, and a few other isolated places with their trade summitry and computer-information highways. Outside is the rest of mankind, going in a completely different direction. The ineluctable truth is that we are entering a bifurcated world, with a comparatively few healthy, wellfed techno-elites, and a much larger number of people condemned to a life that, in the words of Thomas Hobbes, is poor, nasty, brutish, and short. The tech- 29

34 30 no-elites, with a struggle, to be sure, will master or at least contain their most critical environmental stresses of the next century, but the vast majority of mankind, crippled by poverty, a lack of technology, and indifference on the part of their rich neighbors, will be unable to do so. Even in the U.S., where the gap between rich and poor is steadily widening, we are witnessing an increasing polarization between the techno-elites and the techno-illiterates. The fact that many of the latter are African-Americans and Hispanics only exacerbates problems in an already racially-divided country. Make no mistake about it, the brave new world of globalization is filled with uncertainties and replete with dangers, even here in the land of techno-elites. Technology so dazzling and relentless that it may well exceed the capacity of the human species to understand its implications and adapt to its consequences will have immense impact on our perceptions of humanity s uniqueness. None of us can fully comprehend the moral and ethical implications of such advances as mapping of the human genome; transplanting organs from bioengineered animal species; chemical therapies customdesigned to correct deficiencies in the genomes of patients; artificially-enhanced domestic animals; cloning of animal species, perhaps even humans; inter-species hybrids; genetically altered plant species; or computing devices which equal or exceed some attributes of the human mind. No wonder thoughtful observers ask: Will the human species adapt or be overwhelmed? If we are to make our way safely through the uncharted waters of the next century, we must, in my view, look increasingly beyond the lure of technology to the deeper roots of human community, rebuilding positive aspects of the social cohesiveness of earlier times, and learning to put aside the ancient tribal hatreds that have divided and destroyed civilizations from time immemorial. We must consider all of the inhabitants of this globe as fellow travelers on a spaceship, endowed with glorious yet finite resources, and we must learn to replace the selfishness of the natural man with a genuine concern for the good of all mankind. Continuance of the current disparity between rich and poor for every sixty-five dollars earned in rich countries, one dollar is earned in poor ones, and the gap is widening is simply a recipe for disaster on a scale never before seen in human history. We begin to understand the interconnectedness of all peoples everywhere as we internalize the Apostle Paul s famous statement to the Athenians: [God] hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth (Acts 17:26). The implications of Paul s prescient observation are clear: all men and women everywhere literally are brothers and sisters, members of the same spiritual family, with all of the obligations and responsibilities of sibling relationships that implies. If we value the future, then prejudice, bigotry, and racism, all of which have caused so much suffering and harm since time began, must be replaced with the brotherhood of which Jesus and every other great religious leader in history taught. We reaffirm our familial relationships with others as we join in loving, serving, and suffering together. As we do so, we find that the superficial differences that have kept us apart fall away, and we see others not as stereotypes or caricatures, but as real people, not much different than we are ourselves. I finish where I began: it seems apparent that the century we are now entering will be tumultuous and turbulent. That should hardly surprise us. We are, after all, living in the great winding-up scenes of human history. Amidst all the turmoil that will surround us in coming years, we have the divine assurance that the righteous need not fear (1 Nephi 22:17). Secure in our knowledge that we are engaged in God s work, anchored in our testimonies of the strength of this great latter-day work, firm in our faith in God and His prophets, we can face the future with equanimity and optimism, doing our duty as God has revealed it to us, and entrusting the future to Him whose servants we all are. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America

35 How Employment Resource Services Assists with Education A. Terry Oakes, LDS Employment Resource Services director Employment Resource Services (ERS) guiding purpose is to help individuals become career self-reliant through employment, education, and self-employment. Currently we have 201 operating centers with 99 centers in the international areas. Each center has four key activities: 1) Strengthen stake efforts to help individuals become selfreliant in their careers. Career selfreliance is a ward and quorum responsibility. We exist to assist and help local Church leaders in their responsibility. 2) Help individuals to find jobs or improve their employment. 3) Help individuals prepare for better employment through education, training, and other services. 4) Help individuals start or improve self-employment. Since the focus of the conference is education, I would like to address how ERS accomplishes their third key activity of preparing individuals for better employment through education and training. For most of the Church s young adult membership living in Latin America, Africa, and Asia today, obtaining an education or training in a marketable skill will be the only means by which a young man or woman can ever hope to escape poverty. In Brazil, whose emerging economy increasingly demands technical skills with higher literacy requirements, most of our native returned missionaries do not have a high school diploma. Education is the only key to stop the cycle of impoverishment between generations. ERS sees itself as a resource for the undereducated Church members, from which they can receive direction, guidance, encouragement, and most importantly, an introduction to educational resources within the community. Most individuals who struggle in poverty do not know what local resources exist or how to access them. Access to Resources As part of ERS s role as an access to resources, our ERS staff is charged with putting together a Career Outlook Analysis that involves a close look at the nation s job and career trends. In addition to the job trends, we are identifying the skills and experience necessary to enter a particular field, finding the top three to five schools that best train a student for that career, and finally, finding the sources of private and public funds that are available to help our members. Working closely with the Perpetual Education Fund and the Church Education System, ERS offers the expertise in terms of career outlook and planning, job-search training, school identification, and local funding sources to young adults. To make these resources more available, we will have a web site running by January where individuals can obtain career planning training, employer, education, and selfemployment resources, and links to other employment sites. This site will be geographically smart so that a person in Lima, Peru, can find resources that exist in Lima. Resource Development Internationally, ERS has devoted tremendous time and energy to identifying both private and public schools. We cultivate relationships that result in school 31