Human rights

The University of Dayton will launch one of the first bachelor's degrees in human rights studies in the nation.

The University of Dayton's board of trustees today approved one of the nation's first bachelor's degrees in human rights studies.

The interdisciplinary degree will prepare graduates for careers in human rights advocacy and humanitarian assistance as well as law school or other advanced study.

In other action, the trustees approved UD's master plan, contingent upon revisions surrounding several issues, including parking and timing of projects. UD officials plan to publicly release the final version of the plan later this year.

The University of Dayton, one of the nation's preeminent Catholic universities, is a pioneer in human rights education. In 1998, UD launched the country's first undergraduate human rights program that included both an international studies degree with a concentration in human rights and a minor in human rights.

''Human rights has become the language in the political and international community for talking about social justice and morality. Students interested in social justice and issues of peace and peacemaking have gravitated toward human rights,'' said Christopher Duncan, chair of UD's political science department. ''This degree captures the mission of a Catholic, Marianist university. It prepares students for professional careers as leaders in service to others."

The new degree is driven by student interest. In 2006, 89 percent of students studying in UD's human rights program said they were likely to pursue the new degree, if offered.

Like Claire Yerke, a University of Dayton senior international studies major with a concentration in human rights. She's currently taking classes through the School for International Training and conducting research on international humanitarian NGOs (non-governmental organizations) in Nicaragua for her honor's thesis. She also spent a summer in Santiago, Chile, where she studied Spanish and worked with Juan Guzman, the judge who prosecuted former Chile dictator Augusto Pinochet on human rights charges.

''I definitely would have pursued that degree if it were available to me since the human rights program is a large part of what drew me to UD. I think it's a very important addition to a university that takes pride in its Marianist heritage and social justice,'' said Yerke, who hopes to pursue a graduate degree and work for an international NGO that's active in Latin America.

Beth Lownik, who graduated last spring with a minor in human rights, landed a job as a clinic administrator and public health coordinator of a new hospital that will open next month in rural Haiti. The study of human rights has provided her with a deeper understanding of the relationship between poverty and poor health. ''I see the external forces that rob people of their rights and autonomy and, far too often, their lives -- which is a lot different than seeing a lot of inactive, poor people who are sick and need some medicine,'' she said. ''A bachelor's degree in human rights studies is the ideal starting point not only for work in actual human rights legislation and implementation, but also for any work in impoverished settings in just about any field -- economics, medicine, agriculture, politics or business."

Today's college students are entering a world grappling with genocide and global poverty, terrorism and torture.

''Students understand that there aren't any simple answers, that the humanitarian challenges won't go away. There will be global poverty and some other Darfur,'' said Mark Ensalaco, the Rev. Raymond A. Roesch Chair in the Social Sciences at the University of Dayton. He founded UD's human rights program and is also the co-founder of the International Human Rights Education Consortium that promotes human rights education at colleges and universities around the world.

It's particularly appropriate that a Catholic university offer this degree. ''A Catholic university's concern for human dignity, the common good, peace and social justice is very consistent with human rights discourse," said Ensalaco, who teaches courses in human rights, political violence and terrorism.

As part of the degree, students will be required to demonstrate proficiency in a foreign language, complete an internship and take a course in research methodology. Other classes include such offerings as philosophy and human rights; politics of human rights; international law and organization; faith and justice; rhetoric of social movements; and sociology and human rights. Students can choose elective courses in communication, history, political science, religious studies and sociology.

''This degree will prepare students for work in humanitarian assistance or humanitarian intervention. They will work in agencies such as the Red Cross, Amnesty International and Bread for the World. A number will go off to law school or graduate school. Others will work with refugee groups or embark on careers in more traditional government service,'' Duncan said.

Contact Mark Ensalaco at 937-229-2750 or Chris Duncan at 937-229-3648. Hear how the human rights program drew one student to the University of Dayton -- and ultimately to Latin America, where she's discovered ''I have the power to help." Listen to Claire Yerke's story here.