Common Reading Program

Overview

The transition to college in the first year can be very significant. One of the major academic adjustments that students have to make is the increase in the level of and importance of reading.  The common reading requirement is designed to help you with that transition. Students will need to develop the skill to read actively and critically, and to discuss challenging, sometimes conflicting ideas.

You are asked to read the book over the summer and to be prepared to complete an assignment that will be given within the first few weeks of your FYE 101 Experiential Learning course.  During the fall semester, you will participate in additional discussions and activities based on the themes in the book.  There is also a campus-wide activity associated with this book planned within the first semester.

2010 Book

Three Cups of Tea, Greg Mortenson

Three Cups of Tea is the true story of one of the most extraordinary humanitarian missions of our time. In 1993, a young American mountain climber named Greg Mortenson stumbles into a tiny village high Pakistan’s beautiful and desperately poor Karakoram Himalaya region.

Sick, exhausted, and depressed after a failing to scale the summit of K2, Mortenson regains his strength and his will to live thanks to the generosity of the people of the village of Korphe. Before he leaves, Mortenson makes a vow that will profoundly change both the villagers’ lives and his own—he will return and build them a school.

Mortenson’s journey provides a rich text for the 2010-2011 Keuka common read. All members of the Keuka College Community can find connections to our mission and values in this story that takes place in a place far removed from Keuka Park. Social responsibility and service, integrity, diversity and ethical behavior are all manifested in this story of one man’s commitment to provide educational opportunities to the young people of Pakistan.

Reading guide will be available by the end of April.