13 NEW DIRECTIONS FOR HIGHER EDUCATION, no. 164, Winter 2013 © Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Published online in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com) • DOI:10.1002/he.20072 This chapter examines the existing literature in two major areas. A review of literature related to higher education’s mission to educate for personal and social responsibility provides a rationale to refocus our collective attention on this important area of student learning and development. The chapter also reviews the current understanding on how well colleges and universities are currently doing in educating for personal and social responsibility. Higher Education’s Role in Educating for Personal and Social Responsibility: A Review of Existing Literature Robert D. Reason, Andrew J. Ryder, Chad Kee What kind of people do we want our children and grandchildren to be? What kind of society do we want them to live in? How can we best shape our insti- tutions to nurture those kinds of people and that kind of society? Kezar, Chambers, & Burkhardt, 2005, p. 324 Educating students for personal and social responsibility (PSR) has roots in American higher education history. The priority placed on educating for PSR in higher education has waxed and waned over time (Checkoway, 2000), assuming primacy during the early years of higher education in the United States then losing favor until the recent resurgence (Checkoway, 2000; Rudolph, 1962). Strong components of educating for PSR existed during the early establishment of higher education institutions through the promotion of civic engagement, engagement in community service, serving the public good, and volunteering (Rudolph, 1962). Faculty members emphasized intellectual development of college students, to the detriment of other forms of development, during the late 1800s and early 1900s. Although some attention was paid to civic engagement during the early to mid-1900s, in particular with Dewey’s emphasis on engaged education in the 1920s and 1930s, intellectual development remained, and remains, the primary emphasis of higher education. Educating for PSR, as part of a holistic understanding of student learning, is making a resurgence cur- rently, likely due to the work of the Association of American Colleges & 2