What It Mean to be Educated

In the introduction to Chapter 12, I was the most disturbed by the concept that colleges no longer seek to focus their attention on education, but on interests that create a "retirement for the young." It is true, when I was looking for a college, I did not look for what school had the best Justice Studies program (my major), but somewhere I could feel at home. Should we see college as a home though? Being a full-time student is my current occupation, so my home should be separated from my education, right? While I debated this, I came across one main point. I am at college so I can be a well-rounded person, who can hold an intelligent conversation with anyone. In order to pursue this goal, it makes sense that there would be fun along the way. I disagree with the notion that education has to be boring, dull, and purely intellectual.
To be educated we don't have to lock ourselves in the library because studying books will only get a person so far. Being educated means being able to be in a variety of places and absorb new information. We can look around JMU and find something new to learn. Education comes from learning, which should never be limited to the classroom. There is a mindset needed to have to accept learning, but once you accept the challenge of learning something new and different, you have made the choice to educate yourself.
As for who decides what it means to be educated, it is entirely left up to the individual. Who decides, how, and to what extent someone allows themselves to be educated is a decision the person in question needs to decide. We are in a great school for academics, but if a student does not take advantage of the oppurtunities, can you even say the student received an education? Having your parents pay a tuition doesn't foster an education, a dedication to studies will solely birth an education.