BY WILL BRADLEY
Stonehill College has opened opportunities for students to introduce courses they love for their fellow classmates to partake in for the coming semesters with the IDEAS Program.
“IDEAS”, which stands for “Integrating Democratic Education at Stonehill”, is “an interdisciplinary centered program that fosters engagement and active learning by creating an environment for students to share their passions, wisdom, and knowledge with one another through student-led courses” according to the program’s description. The IDEAS program has been made possible with backing from Professor Shane-Savage Rumbaugh and students Devin Gallant and Lacy Moran.
IDEAS classes are created, developed, and facilitated all by students. As stated in their application form “These courses, with their small size and discussion/activity-based format, offer a great opportunity to take intellectual risks and explore relevant topics in a comfortable environment.” These courses meet once a week for two hours, are pass-fail based, and are worth one credit toward your overall academic involvement.
This past month, the IDEAS program held an open house in the Roche Dining Commons which allowed students to meet the members who make these classes possible, see which facilitators are teaching upcoming courses, and to take a deeper look into what these classes will look like. Some courses previously introduced through this program include Decolonizing Science, Drugs Impact All, Ending Racism in Sport, and more, all facilitated and ran by current students.
For example, “Ending Racism in Sport”, which has been offered to students since its introduction, describes the benefits that sports provide in the development of children, young adults, and adults regarding breaking racial barriers and developing relationships.
If you or anyone you know may be interested in teaching an IDEAS class next year, or partaking in a course, please do not hesitate to contact the current leaders and facilitators who make it all possible!
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