School of Civic Life and 领导 debuts new minor

The 文理学院’ School of Civic Life and 领导, launched last fall with the appointment of nine inaugural faculty, 创造了一个新的 辅修公民生活和领导能力 with courses designed to provide students with interdisciplinary training in civics, 人文科学素养.

“The minor will train students in civil discourse so that they can be engaged citizens prepared to safeguard our democracy. It is intentionally designed to be interdisciplinary and appeal broadly to a wide range of undergraduates regardless of specified major or career objectives,莎拉·特鲁·罗伯茨说, 学院临时院长、院长.

The minor will be offered beginning in fall 2024, with course registration for the fall semester scheduled to begin later this month.

The civic life and leadership minor will consist of three core courses and two electives. 核心课程有:

• SCLL 100: Foundations of Civic Life and 领导, in which students will use classic texts in politics, philosophy and literature to examine the role of the state in society and the tensions that exist between individual freedom and the power of the state to keep order.
• SCLL 101: Practice of Civic Life and 领导, which will focus on the ideas and practices necessary to analyze arguments and to disagree in a productive and compassionate way. The course will cover four topics over the semester for students to practice re太阳城娱乐城ing multiple sides of an issue.
• A culminating capstone course, which will be offered beginning in fall 2025. It will involve a service-learning or original project that will allow students to put the interdisciplinary skills they have developed into practice.

The two required elective courses can be chosen from more than 30 offerings grouped into three categories: scientific evidence and engagement, 思想史与人文学科, 公民和政治制度. The two electives must come from different categories.

“One of the strengths of this minor is that it draws from a multitude of disciplines across campus, exposing students to a range of courses that will help them to understand the historical roots and future repercussions of contemporary debates,马修·科岑说, a faculty member in SCiLL and chair of the philosophy department.

总共, 横跨艺术的九个学术部门, 人文学科, social sciences and natural sciences will offer courses that meet the elective requirements.

One new elective created especially for the minor is SCLL 200: Science and Society. This course explores the role of the sciences in the polity in general, 尤其是在美国的民主制度中.

“We are predicting strong student interest in the civic life and leadership minor. 它反映了我们这个时代的两极分化,吉姆·怀特说, Craver Family Dean of the 文理学院. “A strong democracy depends on engaged citizens who are committed to open inquiry and working with others to embrace challenging topics. 我们的辅修课程将使他们具备这些技能.”

杰德·阿特金斯是 最近被任命为主任兼院长 的SCiLL.

More information about the school and the minor can be found on the SCiLL网站.