Nur University Background

Mission

To contribute to an educational process that facilitates individual and social transformation through the development of human capabilities, fostering a dynamic coherence between the intellectual, spiritual and physical dimensions, for the establishment of a just, peaceful, and harmonious global society.

Personal and collective transformation

Nur believes that the mere technical preparation of human resources resulting from the transfer of information and knowledge is insufficient to bring about a personal and collective transformation in service of the common good. It builds upon the traditional roles of a university — teaching, extension, and research — and defines two additional roles that guide its functioning and development: Developing moral capabilities, and integrating concepts of development with focus on the importance of understanding the integrative and disintegrative forces that promote peace and world citizenship, through an analysis of modernization and globalization trends.

Education for more than 4,700

Nur University currently has 3,200 undergraduates, 500 graduates, and in excess of 1000 continuing education students, with teacher-training apparatus in 8 countries in Central and South America. Of that number 46% of the students receive financial assistance from the University through scholarships, discounts based on economic need, or work-study positions.

Its undergraduate diploma programs include Development Administration, Agri-business, Animal Husbandry, Systems Analysis, and Accounting and Public Relations. Undergraduate baccalaureate programs currently offered are Administration, Commerce, Communication Science, Public Relations, International Relations, Systems Engineering, Agricultural Economics, and Education.

Graduate diploma programs are offered in Health Systems Administration, Human Resource Management, Marketing, Finance, Animal Husbandry Projects, Community Forestry, Sustainable Development, and Positive Psychotherapy. Master degree programs are offered in University Teaching, Sustainable Development, Business Administration, Public Health Management, and International Commerce.

Education

Nur considers itself a development project. Nur defines education as a continuous and creative process, whose purpose is to develop the capabilities latent in the reality of each human being and to coordinate their expression for the betterment and progress of society.

Development

The process of development is understood as the dynamic and participatory process through which the fundamental needs of the human being are satisfied. This process is achieved through the full expression of each person's capabilities (by means of education) in service to her/his own community and in harmony with her/his environment. The needs to be satisfied refer not only to the basic human necessities such as security, shelter, food and health, etc., but also to the emotional, intellectual and spiritual needs such as affection, participation, understanding, creativity, freedom, identity, transcendence, etc. Education – formal, non-formal, and informal – is indisputably the most effective way to shape the values, attitudes, behaviors and skills that will make it possible for people to function effectively in an integrated world society .

Changing Role of the University

Building upon the traditional roles of a university — teaching, extension, and research — Nur defines two additional roles that guide its functioning and development. Nur's approach to education incorporates the belief that the mere technical preparation of human resources resulting from the transfer of information and knowledge is insufficient to bring about a personal and collective transformation in service to the common good. For this reason, Nur emphasizes ethical and moral education and stresses the importance of understanding the integrative and disintegrative forces that promote peace and world citizenship, through an analysis of modernization and globalization trends.

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More than 1000 projects in Santa Cruz

UNIRSE has been functioning for 10 years, and has carried out more than 1000 projects in the neighborhoods and communities of Santa Cruz, Bolivia, with the participation of over 3200 university students. Over 270,000 hours of community service have been offered to the community directly benefiting thousands of citizens and organizations.

Examples of such services include literacy programs, academic tutoring for children and youth, remedial tutoring for students within the university, and family well being programs - where the youth study the issues and problems afflicting families in the community and then offer training programs so that the people develop their own capacities to solve their own problems. UNIRSE also offers a youth leadership program in high schools, a capacity-building training program which enables students to offer services articulated by the community, such as inter generational-activities, artistic festivals and camps, art and cultural programs, and sport and recreation programs, which include nutrition, hygiene, and physical education.

Student Union at Heart

At the heart of Nur University, both physically and metaphorically, is its students union. UNIRSE (University Students in Service to the Community) was created in 1991 by Nur students. It was created as a strategic element within the larger vision of the development of human resources for Bolivian society based on moral principles and the value of community service. The development of future professionals represents a strategic investment which will bring great benefit to the community both in the short and long term. In the short term, the community benefits from the service of thousands of students prepared to respond to their basic needs. In the long term, the community of Santa Cruz in particular and Bolivian society in general will count on a growing number of professionals who are well-acquainted with the challenges of social and economic development of the country, and committed to fulfilling their responsibilities to contribute to the well being of their fellow citizens, especially the less fortunate.

Preserving regional art and culture

UNIRSE has also worked to preserve regional art and culture through a series of public events, workshops for singing, poetry, popular theater, and a talent festival. It has also sponsored a program on ecology and the environment to educate the community about preserving the environment, conserving natural resources, contributing to the ecological balance and searching for solutions to the problem of pollution. Some students have even gone to local neighborhoods to promote the development of family orchards and helped make it happen.

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Educational Philosophy

Universidad Nur bases its educational philosophy on universal principles which, when put into practice, create a social consciousness in individuals for a more humanistic development. The following universal social principles form the philosophical base and educational processes of Universidad Nur.*

The Independent Investigation of Truth: The application of this principle creates an intellectual environment that fosters the academic freedom required for the discovery of truth in all its wondrous manifestations, an activity which is the true basis of all human progress. When this principle is violated, methods of demagogic indoctrination replace those of true education.

The Essential Harmony between Science and Religion: This principle recognizes science and religion as the twin pillars of civilization and the need for harmony to exist between these two potent forces in order for human society to progress. Religion, without the logical and rational influence of science, has a tendency to fall into fanaticism and obscure superstition; and science, without the moral and ethical influence of religion, tends to become a cold and calculating instrument that can be easily misused for the destruction of humankind.

The Elimination of Prejudice: A primary prerequisite for a truly educated and enlightened mind is freedom from all forms of prejudice. Any form of prejudice, whether racial, religious, social, cultural, or political in nature, is like a dark veil in the mind's search for knowledge and truth. The injustices engendered by these forms of prejudice have been the primary cause of conflict and war. For this reason, the elimination of prejudice is essential for the establishment of justice and peace in the world. Education is considered to be the most effective means for eradication of prejudice, since the root cause of prejudices is ignorance.

The Equality of Women and Men: This principle recognizes the need for equal rights and opportunities between the sexes as a basic requirement for the full development of human potential. Even today, women are unjustly denied the same educational opportunities available to men. This injustice has been a serious obstacle to the development of human society. Lack of equal access to education often prevents women from more effectively assuming their vital role as the first educator of each new generation. However, as the first educator of their children, women are vital catalysts for world peace.

The Unity of Humankind: This principle is based on the truth that all people are part of the same human family. Consequently, the recognition and application of this principle liberates humanity from prejudices and serves as a solid foundation for the establishment of world unity.

The Elimination of the extremes of Wealth and Poverty: This principle seeks to establish moderation between the extremes of wealth and poverty that exist in human society today. Nur promotes the application of spiritual solutions (assisted by a system of laws and economic measures) to create conditions of justice and cooperation that will progressively eliminate these extremes. Emphasis must be placed on the importance of education to develop human capacities toward reducing the causes of poverty, in recognition that, "Man's true wealth is his knowledge".

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Developing Moral Capacities

Latin American nations are still consolidating stable forms of democratic government. Leaders of thought in Latin America recognize that sustainable democratic government must be rooted in moral leadership. Nur University was founded, in large part, to help create these leaders, and has collaborated with educators from around the world in developing the material on moral leadership that now forms a core element of all Nur?s activities.

Nur's approach to moral leadership gives students the opportunity to discover that they have the option and obligation to search for, adopt, live by and structure their institutions in accordance with moral principles. Leadership is shown to be a responsibility that is exercised by all members of society and requires the development and exercise of moral capabilities.

There is a direct relationship between one's capabilities and the effectiveness of the service which a person can offer to humankind. Therefore, each student is encouraged to develop her/his capabilities as part of their process of personal transformation, so as to be better prepared to serve. Nur distinguishes between technical capabilities, which differ from profession to profession and moral leadership capabilities, which empower the person to effectively exercise leadership in whatever field s/he may endeavor. To date Nur has identified 18 personal, interpersonal and societal capabilities which contribute to the exercise of moral leadership. These are:

Capabilities that contribute to personal transformation

• The capability to evaluate one's own strengths and weaknesses without involving the ego: self-evaluation.
• The capability to learn from systematic reflection on action within a consistent, evolving conceptual framework.
• The capability to take initiative in a creative and disciplined way.
• The capability to endeavor, persevere and overcome obstacles in the achievement of goals.
• The capability to oppose one's lower passions and egocentric tendencies by turning towards higher purposes and capabilities: self-discipline.
• The capability to manage one's affairs and responsibilities with rectitude of conduct based on moral and ethical principles.
• The capability to think systemically in the search for solutions.

Capabilities that contribute to improve interpersonal relations

• The capability to imbue one's thoughts and actions with love.
• The capability to encourage others and to bring joy to their hearts.
• The capability to participate effectively in the process of consultation in group decision making.
• The capability to be a loving and responsible member of a family.
• The capability to create and promote unity in diversity.

Capabilities that contribute to social transformation

• The capability to create a vision of a desired future based on shared values and principles, and to articulate it clearly and simply so that it inspires in others a sense of commitment towards its fulfillment.
• The capability to understand relationships of domination and to contribute towards their transformation into relationships based on reciprocity, sharing and mutual service.
• The capability to contribute to the establishment of justice.
• The capability to commit oneself to the process of empowering educational activities.
• The capability to serve on institutions of society in ways that assist their members to develop and utilize their talents and capabilities in service to mankind.
• The capability to perceive and interpret the meaning of present-day social processes and events in the light of an appropriate historical perspective.

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Service oriented leadership focused on the common good

History has shown, and the great spiritual leaders of mankind have emphasized, that man has a dual nature. He can be either self-oriented or service oriented. When people act in a self-interested way, true development becomes impossible. Collective activities that accept individual self-interest as the operating ethic will fail. Inevitably it becomes possible for one person to profit at the expense of the group, and the self-interested individual will do so. The only solution to this problem is to develop moral capabilities concurrently with technical capabilities. This is particularly important for those who exercise visible positions of leadership, whose actions can have significant consequences and whose example influences the moral character of their community. This approach is based on the premise that the inmost self of human beings is essentially noble and responds to noble principles. Our success suggests that this assumption is well founded.

Commitment to individual and collective transformation

Nur's moral leadership curriculum teaches participants that there is a reciprocal relationship between individual transformation and collective transformation. In order to better society, each person must first commit himself to a process of personal transformation, based on the development and practice of capabilities and principles. Through this process of personal transformation, individuals may have a significant impact on the function of the groups to which they belong, which improves the prospects of success of the group's development activities. Conversely, belonging to a group, in which the majority of the members are committed to the twin processes of individual and collective transformation, strengthens the individual?s resolve to continue his own process of personal transformation and permits his efforts at collective transformation to have a more far-reaching effect.

Searching For and Recognizing Truth

Commitment to fulfilling the twin fundamental moral responsibilities of searching for and recognizing truth, and of applying those truths recognized in all aspects of one's life.

This "definition" of the fundamental moral responsibility protects Nur's approach to morality from becoming dogmatic. No one tells the student what morality s/he has to accept. Rather, the emphasis is placed on the responsibility to search for principles on which one can base one's life and actions and to conscientiously try to base one?s decisions and actions on whatever principles s/he has accepted to date, while maintaining an open mind willing to investigate "new" principles whenever s/he may encounter one in the coursework or life. Each student is then encouraged to develop a principle-based vision of the desired future of their community. Likewise, emphasis is placed on the need to investigate contingent truth, which implies investigating different points of view and trying to discover the facts related to whatever situation one is working with. Together, the development of the vision and the investigation of contingent truth, develops the student's ability to make a sound assessment of her/his current situation, to collectively develop a realistic vision of a desired future state and to cooperatively identify a realistic sequence of activities that will move the community from its current condition to the preferred state they have identified.

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Education for Peace

Individuals must be able to retain their vision in the face of setbacks, temptations and immediate pressing concerns. By learning how to detach from the immediate situation, center themselves and connect once again with their vision, individuals can maintain the personal and collective conviction and commitment needed for their efforts to succeed.

Recognition for the Essential Nobility of Mankind

Work in the field of development must be based on a conviction of the essential nobility of mankind; otherwise, it becomes an exercise in cynicism. Nur?s approach emphasizes that at the core of every human being there is an essential nobility, and that when we look for that nobility in others, believe in it and show that belief in our actions, the great majority of people begin to develop their potential nobility, initiating the process of personal transformation.

Education for Peace and Moral Leadership

Building upon the traditional roles of a university -- teaching, extension, and research -- Nur defines two additional roles that guide its functioning and development. Nur's approach to education incorporates the belief that the mere technical preparation of human resources resulting from the transfer of information and knowledge is insufficient to bring about a personal and collective transformation in service to the common good. For this reason, Nur emphasizes ethical and moral education and stresses the importance of understanding the integrative and disintegrative processes at work on the planet.

Developing Moral Capacities

The incorporation of ethical and moral education is partially achieved through Nur's approach to leadership. Nur's approach to leadership gives students the opportunity to discover that they have the option and obligation to search for, adopt, live by and structure their institutions in accordance with moral principles. Leadership is shown to be a responsibility that is exercised by all members of society and requires the development and exercise of moral capabilities.

Nur's approach is based on concepts found in the Bahá'í Writings, and revolves around the following six essential elements:

• 1. Consistent service-oriented leadership focused on the common good
• 2. Active engagement in the process of individual and collective transformation
• 3. Commitment to fulfilling the twin moral responsibilities of searching for the truth and applying truth in all aspects of one's life
• 4. Transcendence through vision that entails connecting with eternal values and renewing a commitment to service and the process of transformation
• 5. Recognition of the essential nobility of each human being ? a nobility that endows the individual with the potential to develop and exercise moral leadership in society
• 6. The exercise of personal, interpersonal and societal leadership capabilities

In collaboration with international educators, Nur faculty are continuing to elaborate and apply this approach to moral leadership as a core element of its academic and extension programs.

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