The Library Science Study Program at UIN Sunan Kalijaga Yogyakarta held a “Seminar on the Empowerment of Alumni of the Faculty of Literature and Cultural Studies,” featuring several alumni of the Faculty of Literature and Cultural Studies at UIN Sunan Kalijaga Yogyakarta from the classes of 2017–2022. The event was led by the Village Head of Guwosari, Masduki Rahmad, SIP, who is also a 2009 graduate of the Library Science program at UIN Sunan Kalijaga. The event took place on Saturday, November 18, 2023, in the conference room of the Faculty of Literature and Cultural Studies at UIN Sunan Kalijaga, Yogyakarta.

During the seminar, Masduki Rahmad, SIP, shared his experiences and insights on the theme “Alumni as Agents of Development and Alumni Self-Reliance in the Millennial Era,” focusing on the vital role of intellectual youth at the village level.

According to him, villages are the most important foundation of a nation. Villages provide essential aspects of life such as clean air, healthy food, traditional culture, and clean water. Villages need high-quality human resources—such as UIN graduates—who possess both enthusiasm and critical thinking skills.

Villages need intellectual youth who understand and can plan the development of village-level databases to better understand the village—and who else but university students could fill this role? Students need to get involved in village institutions and provide literacy education to the village community so that human resources improve and young people are motivated to serve the community. In this way, the era of youth will begin, replacing the previous generation.

The event concluded with a question-and-answer session. During the session, several questions were raised by the participants, who were very enthusiastic about the material presented by the speakers. It is hoped that this event will provide alumni and students of the Faculty of Arts and Cultural Studies at UIN Sunan Kalijaga Yogyakarta with insight into the importance of the role of intellectual youth at the village level, and that they will be able to apply their knowledge wisely and free from corruption.

Author: Athallah Akmal Baihaqi (akb)