Future Generations University (formerly Future Generations Graduate School) is a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...

online In computer technology and telecommunications, online indicates a state of connectivity and offline indicates a disconnected state. In modern terminology, this usually refers to an Internet connection, but (especially when expressed "on line" or ...

graduate school Postgraduate or graduate education refers to Academic degree, academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications pursued by higher education, post-secondary students who have earned an Undergraduate education, un ...

headquartered in Franklin, West Virginia. It offers one degree program, a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

in Applied Community Development. Future Generations grew out of Future Generations, a

non-governmental organization A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...

that began in the early 1990s in response to a

UNICEF UNICEF (), originally called the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund in full, now officially United Nations Children's Fund, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing Humanitarianism, humanitarian and Devel ...

sponsored review of community-based initiatives worldwide.

History

In 1992,

James P. Grant James Pineo Grant (May 12, 1922 – January 28, 1995) was an American diplomat and children's advocate. Grant served for 15 years (from January 1980 to January 1995) as the third executive director of the United Nations Children's Fund, United Nat ...

, then executive director of

, asked

Daniel C. Taylor Daniel C. Taylor (born June 26, 1945) is an American scholar and practitioner of social change, with notable achievements in community-led conservation and global education. He also recognized as giving a definitive explanation for the century-old ...

, co-founder of

The Mountain Institute The Mountain Institute (TMI) is an international non-profit organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., and operates regional field offices in the Andes, Appalachians, and Himalayas. Respectively, these are the longest, the oldest, and the ta ...

, and his father Carl E. Taylor, founding chair of the Department of International Health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, to investigate why there was no correlation between the amount of money that UNICEF invested in sustainable development projects and the output that the projects achieved. The main issue that UNICEF faced was that they had many successful projects in specific communities, but fell short when they attempted to scale them up.Future Generations & Future Generations Graduate School. (2012). Two Decades of Global Impact: 1992-2012. Franklin, WV: Author. The Taylors founded an NGO called Future Generations in November 1992 to address the questions of how to scale up local successes and how to sustain these successes using primarily local resources. They called the approach that they developed

SEED-SCALE SEED-SCALE describes a comprehensive theory of social change sometimes also categorized as social development theory. SEED-SCALE can be used both to tell how to implement change and/or it can be used to analyze social change. SEED-SCALE's distingu ...

(Self Evaluation with Essential Data - Selecting Communities As Learning Examples). SEED-SCALE had three phases: (1) identifying a successful local project for social development; (2) transforming it into a community-based Action Learning Centre; and (3) a systematic process of facilitating community-to-community extension. SEED-SCALE fieldwork began in Tibet's

Qomolangma National Nature Preserve The Qomolangma National Nature Preserve (QNNP), also known as the Chomolungma Nature Reserve (QNP), is a protected area 3.381 million hectares in size in the Tibet Autonomous Region of the People’s Republic of China. Located on the Roof of the ...

. By 2012, Future Generations was working in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...

, and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. In 2003, Future Generations Graduate School was formed to engage the global network of communities that Future Generations, the NGO, had become. The school would offer an applied master's degree for mid-career community development practitioners who work directly with communities, organizations, and governments worldwide.

Academics

The institution offers only one degree, a

in Applied Community Development. It also offers certificates and diplomas. Future Generations University is accredited by the

Higher Learning Commission The Higher Learning Commission (HLC) is an institutional accreditor in the United States. It has historically accredited post-secondary education institutions in the central United States: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa ...

References

External links

Official website
{{authority control Educational institutions established in 2003 Private universities and colleges in West Virginia 2003 establishments in West Virginia