Undergraduate Consortium

2020-21 was in many ways a stress test for the relationship between businesses and governments. We saw complicated questions raised about the respective roles of government and corporations in the Covid-19 response; we saw tech platforms and legislators wrestle with the practice and limits of free speech; and we saw corporations defund politicians for challenging U.S. election results. What do undergraduates, with career aspirations in business, need to know about the relationship between business models and management practices and the vibrancy of democracy? In polarized times, how do we contribute to the civic development of our students—and help them recognize and confront misinformation? And how might we draw on the liberal arts and business to teach in ways that explore business-government engagement as a public service—one that upholds obligations toward the collective good?

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This convening and its theme were in part an outcome of an ongoing collaboration, supported by the Teagle Foundation, between Franklin & Marshall, Bucknell University, and the University of Pennsylvania—aimed at exploring how liberal arts content, skills, and pedagogies can illuminate the study of business and commerce.