"Liber is the root word for tree/tree bark, and since tree bark was used to write on and make contracts with, and processed to make paper for more writing and contracts, the word Liber came to be associated with those who could read, write and engage in contract. With this definition, in the classical world of Greece and Rome, there were two classes of people: slaves and Liber. The fundamental difference between slaves and Liber was freedom, and Liber is the root word of Liberty. Liber is also the root of the phrase 'liberal arts'. As Robert M. Hutchins, former president of the University of Chicago, put it: 'liberal education...is the education that prepares us to be free men. You have to have this education if you...are going to be an effective citizen of a democracy; for citizenship requires that...you do not leave your duties to be performed by others...A free society is composed of freemen. To be free you have to be educated for freedom.' " - Oliver DeMille A Thomas Jefferson Education
