Shimer Great Books School

School Chairperson: Dr. Stuart Patterson

Mission Statement

Shimer Great Books School provides and preserves education centered on discussion of enduring questions and issues. Historically influential original sources are studied through Socratic questioning in small seminar classes, following the kind of Great Books curriculum advocated by Robert Maynard Hutchins. The core values informing education at Shimer are free inquiry, dialog, critical open-mindedness and integration of disciplines

A Shimer education demands much of both the intellect and the character of students, and prepares them for responsible citizenship and the examined life.

Degree offered: B.A.

Programs

• Humanities, B.A.
• Liberal Studies, B.A.
• Natural Sciences, B.A.
• Social Sciences, B.A.