Center for Science and Society within School of Sciences

“NDNU instills in every student an ethic which stands for responsibility and commitment to excellence. The privilege of education calls upon each of us to give back and make a difference in people’s lives. NDNU strives to exemplify this through our mission statement and our values of social justice and global peace.”

Mission

The School of Sciences represents the behavioral, social, natural and computational sciences. The word "science" means having knowledge, to know. The disciplines in the School of Sciences focus on the knowing of the self, others, nature and its laws, and the technology used to understand these phenomena. This knowledge empowers students to be inquiring, insightful, informed, and critical thinkers.

The mission of the School of Sciences is to provide the highest quality of education, training, research and service. We provide students with a breadth of knowledge and the skills necessary for further careers in the sciences. We hope to instill an appreciation for all forms of life and a sense of the social responsibility of the scientist, awakening a sense of wonder, of both the analytic and the synthetic, in the student. The school strives to improve the quality of life by addressing major contemporary social and scientific issues through problem solving and critical inquiry.

Our faculty are committed to exhibiting the highest personal, professional, and ethical standards. We foster respect for diversity in a multicultural society and we actively combat discrimination in all its forms. Our programs strive to instill a personal and professional appreciation and commitment to community, global service, and justice, and to foster tolerance and acceptance for individual and group differences.

Our school focuses on the personal as well as the professional development of the student. An important element of our core curriculum is the education and training of students in the development of interpersonal skills, empathy, and respect for others as well as self-reflection and self-awareness.

Goals

The goal of the Center is to develop comprehensive and integrated programs of community education to enhance physical, psychological and spiritual well being and to produce favorable changes in lifestyles.

Education

Established within the NDNU School of Sciences, the Center for Science and Society will utilize the school's interdisciplinary subject areas to contribute relevant research and theory. The disciplines include biomedical life sciences, psychology, art therapy, sociology, computer science, history and political science. University core values of the whole person, the collaborative community and the just society dictate the mission of the Center for Science and Society.

Biological, sociological, environmental and economic models of health and illness will be explored in the local community. The intention is to use the research data to develop curriculum and community based learning projects integrating the center's knowledge base (including faculty and student research and teaching) with the multiple needs of the local Bay Area community.