What Public Affairs Means To An International Traveller

Last semester, I had the amazing opportunity of spending a semester in London, England, taking classes on the lovely campus of Imperial College. This was a bit like kindergarten for internationl-travelel-wanna-bes, since we only had class on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, took field trips on Wednesday, and got naptime/snacktime from 12:30-1:30 on our class days. And being one of the SMS students in the group, I could appreciate my trip in a way no Mizzou or Truman student could: I truly realized the place of public affairs in my travels. To me, my conduct in this international setting was the chance to practice our university’s public affairs mission.

Officially, the public affairs mission aims to create educated persons through a five theme focus in professional education, health, business and economic development, creative arts, and science and the environment. A cynical person could call these five aims merely an attempt by the university to get more money from state funding and by requiring five core courses from every student that seem otherwise ancillary and useless. However, a more positive person could take this mission and attempt to glean a more personal interpretation of the mission.

Looking back on my trip to England, I see that I had many opportunities to develop my public affairs mind set while there. According to the official interpretation, I indeed had many opportunities to grow as an educated person, at least in the field of creative arts. London is full of theatres, concert halls, and art galleries, all offering a glimpse into the minds of creative geniuses for a reasonable price, or even for free. In the area of health, I ate more fruit while in England than while living on campus. As for the other three themes, I am not really sure what they mean and therefore cannot identify any personal growth in those areas. But personally, I saw that while there I was representing SMSU, Missouri, and the United States of America to the British people. What I did or said reflected not only on me, but also on my university, state, and country. The lessons I learned in my first three semesters of college would hopefully serve my nation well.

With this in mind, I choose to interpret the pubic affairs mission as a way of relating to people all over the world. Whether one is working with the person next door or a lorry driver from Wales, a person’s actions reflect upon those people or institutions that helped create that person. That being said, I don’t see why Missouri State, as it is now called, is the official "public affairs" university of Missouri. Creating well-rounded individuals that work to better their community and the lives of those around them is something towards which all the universities in the state should work, not just one specific university. Everyone needs to relate well with other people, not just Missouri State alumni. And everyone kept this in mind, the world would be a better place.