Courses

This course will introduce the student to the many ways in which mindfulness is currently being implemented to support the health and success of students of all ages.  Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), in particular, which utilizes secularized practices from Asian and South Asian traditions for the remediation of various health concerns, has revolutionized behavioral medicine, and the scientific evaluation of MBSR has shed new light on the bio-mechanical pathways linking mind and body.

This course — the first Penn in Washington course to be delivered on campus — will give students the opportunity to explore both the roots and the evolution of conservative thought by engaging with readings and directly with the prominent leaders on the right.

The goal of this course is to help students develop concepts, tools, dispositions and skills that will help them engage productively in the ongoing experiment of American democracy. Civil dialogue is an aspiration, a theory and a practice—and one of the most misunderstood terms in contemporary political life.

What is a participatory city? What has that term meant in the past, what does it mean now, and what will it mean going forward? Against the backdrop of increasing inequality and inequity, and the rise in a search for solutions, what role can citizens play in co-creating more just cities and neighborhoods? How can citizens be engaged in the decision making processes about the places where we live, work, and play? And most importantly, how can we work to make sure that all kinds of voices are meaningfully included, and that historically muted voices are elevated to help pave a better path forward?

Designated as an Academically Based Community Service (ABCS) course.

This course offers both a substantive introduction to constitutional law and the opportunity to teach the U.S. Constitution and civil dialogue skills inside Philadelphia schools. Substantively, we work to develop a sound understanding of the U.S. Constitution itself—its text, its history, and its caselaw. Taught by experts from the Constitution Center.

Designated as an Academically Based Community Service (ABCS) course.

The SNF Paideia Fellows Proseminar I introduces sophomore Fellows to academic research and practice related to dialogue across difference. The course also explores the relationship between robust, civil dialogue and citizenship, wellness, and service. We engage diverse perspectives on the purpose of higher education, the role of dialogue in learning and communities, the nature of citizenship, the value of civility, and the relationship between individual and community wellness.

In the SNF Paideia Fellows Proseminar II, Fellows engage in deeper exploration of the themes of dialogue, citizenship, wellness, and service, especially considering potential connections with their chosen major.

The 2020 protests about monuments in Philadelphia and across the nation have exposed this truth: Arguments over the past are arguments about the future. This place-based course examines local and national public memory in relation to the built environment. Students will learn about the making of the U.S. memorial landscape in the long nineteenth century, its remaking in the twentieth century, and its possible futures in the (un)making.

This seminar will synthesize research about preserving and promoting well-being amongst students, while they simultaneously pursue traditional educational outcomes. Positive Psychology is an upper-level seminar.