A Message from the Dean:

“The proper study of Mankind is Man.” That famous observation by the poet Alexander Pope might serve as motto and directive for the College of Liberal Arts. Indeed, the proper study of students in our college is, quite simply, what it means to be human.

In the College of Liberal Arts, which is comprised of the Department of Fine Arts, the Department of Languages and Literature, Department of Behavioral Sciences, and the Department of History and Social Sciences, our students express their creativity through art, music, and theatre; they study the complex and fascinating story of human history; they decipher the complicated psychological motives and social interactions that shape our behavior; they examine and debate the great philosophical and political ideas that have driven human inquiry through the ages; and they study the languages and literatures that have allowed us to preserve and pass on what it means to be human.

But our students don’t simply debate the great questions of our time: they learn practical job skills as well. Graduates of the College of Liberal Arts emerge from their programs of study wielding a flexible array of analytical, creative, and communicative skills essential for an ever-evolving workforce environment.

Fortune 500 CEOs have repeatedly emphasized that the talents they value most in their employees are those gleaned from a liberal arts education: critical thinking, fluency in written and spoken communications, the capacity to read, interpret, and understand sometimes complex texts, and the ability to solve problems with creativity and innovation. Our students develop these very skills in our college and are thus prepared to enter a variety of professions in education, law, and business and industry.

Finally, providing quality instruction is one of our chief aims in the College of Liberal Arts, and indeed you will find some of the finest teachers on campus among our college’s faculty, including several recipients of the university’s prestigious William E. Gilbert Award for Outstanding Teaching. Besides award-winning teachers, we have active scholars and artists on our faculty whose scholarly and creative works and performances continue to raise the profile of our University across the nation and the globe.

We thank you for your interest in the College of Liberal Arts and in the University of West Alabama, and we encourage you to visit our campus and our college to learn more about the exciting and challenging programs of study we can offer you in the College of Liberal Arts.
Warmest regards,

Mark Davis, Ph.D.
Dean, College of Liberal Arts