Community-Based Learning Courses

Students can take courses across majors that contain a Community Based Learning component. Building upon the foundations established in CIVC 101, these courses provide students with an opportunity to gain real world skills by partnering with a community organization.

To view current and upcoming courses, please see below. CRNs link to the Term Master Schedule

Questions? Please email Jennifer Johnson Kebea at jpj38@drexel.edu.

Fall Term 2018-2019

College	Course #	CRN	Course Title	Instructor	Date/Time	Location
CoAS	CJS 261	13545	Prison, Society & YOU	Cyndi Rickards	Thursday 1pm-4pm	Curran- Fromhold Correctional facility
Course Description This course utilizes the Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program to explore the relationship between individuals and the prison system. The Inside-Out Exchange Program is an evolving set of projects that creates opportunities for dialogue between those on the outside and those on the inside of the nation’s correctional facilities. The program demonstrates the potential for dynamic collaborations between institutions of higher education and correctional institutions. Most importantly, through this unique exchange, Inside-Out an this course seeks to deepen the conversation- and transform ways of thinking about crime and justice (Crabbe, Pompa, 2004) Course Goal and Mission: At the most basic level, this course and program allows students to go behind the walls to reconsider what they have learned about crime and justice, while those on the inside are encouraged to place their life experiences in a larger framework. Students will exchange ideas and perceptions about crime and justice, the criminal justice system, corrections and imprisonment. It is a chance for all participants to gain a deeper understanding of the criminal justice system through the marriage of theoretical knowledge and practical experience achieved by weekly meetings and extended throughout the semester. (Crabbe, Pompa, 2004).

College	Course #	CRN	Course Title	Instructor	Date/Time	Location
CoAS	CJS 260A	15458	Justice in Our Community	Cyndi Rickards	Monday 10am-12pm + Recitation Section	Dornsife Center for Neighborhood Partnerships
Course Description This course is a community-based learning course that will begin with an introduction to our local community and examine problems unique to cities. The majority of our instructional time will take place with our community partner. The synthesis of scholarship and community classroom experience will provide a holistic leans in which to explore issues in our urban community. Topics include: urban economies, access to education and health care, information justice, race and crime. Students meet for two hours in the classroom and work as Navigators at the Dornsife Center T, W or TH from 1-3 or 3-5. You will need to choose one shift to work each week, which will appear as a recitation on your schedule.

College	Course #	CRN	Course Title	Instructor	Date/Time	Location
CoAS	COM376-900	13129	Nonprofit Communication	Lawrence Souder	Online	Online
Course Description All nonprofit organizations must develop and maintain effective communication strategies in order to survive in a competitive economy. Nonprofits have unique needs and limitations in their long-term goals and short-term operations that relate to communication. This course introduces students to the ways nonprofits communicate with both their constituents and their benefactors and the ways researchers have examined these practices. Students will explore these two perspectives on nonprofit communication through a combination of scholarly readings, dialogues with local representatives in the nonprofit sector, and direct contact and work for a local nonprofit organization. This course articulates with the content and goals of other courses in the Department of Communication, specifically COM280 (Public Relations), COM220 (Qualitative Research Methods), COM282 (Public Relations Writing), COM286 (Public Relations Strategies and Tactics), COM675 (Grant Writing for the Arts and Humanities), and COM680 (Public Relations Writing and Strategies). Questions of interest are: What is the nature of a nonprofit organization? How are nonprofit organizations governed? Who are the various stakeholders in a nonprofit’s community? What particular and unique kinds of formal communications do nonprofits engage in?

College	Course #	CRN	Course Title	Instructor	Date/Time	Location
CoAS	WRIT 215	34094	Story Medicine	Nomi Eve	Tuesday/Thursday 11am-12:20pm	Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
Course Description This is a Community Based Learning Course in Fiction Writing and Collaborative Creative Processes. Students go to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) to perform in the Ryan Seacrest T.V. studio. Drexel Students write, perform and produce live shows for patients. Students will always use a teleprompter, so no memorization is necessary. Students regularly interact with patients who come down to participate in the Story Medicine show. All writing exercises are suitable for beginning and intermediate fiction writers. Ultimately, students will undertake self-reflective writing, and become active participants in building this course for future quarters.

College	Course #	CRN	Course Title	Instructor	Date/Time	Location
CoAS	BIO T280	16326	Connections in Life Sciences	Mariah Beaver and Monica Togna	Monday/Wednesday 3:30pm-4:50pm	Alain Locke Elementary School
Course Description Course Description: Connections in Life Sciences is a new open enrollment course designed and intended to allow students to build connections with fundamental biology and their community which together will develop their future professional and personal pursuits. Each week a new insight into genetics that ranges from plants to the human brain will give students the opportunity to learn and to share that knowledge with the Philadelphia community. The course is designed on the Community Based Learning platform (CBL) and is scheduled to meet twice a week: one meeting will be a formal lecture on campus and one meeting will be at a partnered elementary school with the instructor and Drexel students leading an 8 week after school science club. Course assignments focus on taking a particular concept or skill learned in one of our Drexel courses, connecting it to the lesson demonstrated at the elementary school that week, researching real world applications of that technique, and identifying careers which would utilize that technique or concept. Students will gain an introduction to civic engagement, benefit from community based learning practices and connect their Drexel course material to the bigger picture in their lives.

College	Course #	CRN	Course Title	Instructor	Date/Time	Location
CoAS	PHIL 105	16286	Critical Reasoning	Stacey Elizabeth Ake	Thursday 1pm-3:50pm	Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility
Course Description Course Description: Introduces and develops the skills involved in reasoning effectively about experience, and being able to distinguish strong arguments from weak ones. This course utilizes the Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program. Drexel students will travel each week to the jail to meet with the other half of the class, men who are incarcerated. Collectively, Drexel and incarcerated students will learn critical reasoning as colleagues for the ten-week term.

Summer Term 2017-2018

College	Course #	CRN	Course Title	Instructor	Date/Time	Location
Pennoni Honors College	HNRS 302	42456	The Civic Spectrum	Cyndi Rickards & Jennifer Kebea	Tuesday 5pm-7:50pm	Dornsife Center for Neighborhood Partnerships
Course Description The health of our communities depend on democratic engagement and public participation. Individually, and as a society, we arguably have an obligation to both engage in shaping our future and recognize a larger public purpose. Throughout this course we will discuss consensus over whether, and how, civic engagement efforts should be directed; we will explore concepts of being a citizen in society, and critically analyze the following questions: What does citizenship mean? What are your civic experiences? Who are civic role models? Who has the power to become a civic leader? What privileges and responsibilities come with civic leadership? The class will have an opportunity to learn and engage with several different types of local civic leaders through a seminar style format. Students will create and reflect upon their personal civic spectrum and analyze how they may further develop their leadership skills. Course Objectives Students will: Define civic spectrum Analyze local civic leaders contribution to our community Analyze civic learning theory and leadership Identify own civic pathway

College	Course #	CRN	Course Title	Instructor	Date/Time	Location
Westphal	URBS T580	42420	Immigration and Global Philadelphia	Andrew Zitcer	Tuesday 3:30pm-6:20pm	Varies: Philadelphia Sikh Society, Welcoming Center, Office of Immigrant Affairs
Course Description Immigration and Global Philadelphia examines the effects of immigration on contemporary Philadelphia. The instructors are Nora ElMarzouky, an artist, educator and organizer active in a number of local conversations about immigration and culture; and Andrew Zitcer, assistant professor of Urban Strategy and Arts Administration. The class is designed to introduce students to the landscape of immigration in Philadelphia through critical reading, and site visits to neighborhoods with large immigrant populations. We will with local organizations on site and have guided tours. We are also bringing in policy experts from organizations at the City of Philadelphia, and non-profits working with immigration. Students will conduct research on a neighborhood of their choosing and produce a rich, multimedia project.

Spring Term 2017-2018

College	Course #	CRN	Course Title	Instructor	Date/Time	Location
CoAS	CJS 261	32570	Prison, Society & YOU	Cyndi Rickards	Thursday 1pm-4pm	Curran- Fromhold Correctional facility
Course Description This course utilizes the Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program to explore the relationship between individuals and the prison system. The Inside-Out Exchange Program is an evolving set of projects that creates opportunities for dialogue between those on the outside and those on the inside of the nation’s correctional facilities. The program demonstrates the potential for dynamic collaborations between institutions of higher education and correctional institutions. Most importantly, through this unique exchange, Inside-Out an this course seeks to deepen the conversation- and transform ways of thinking about crime and justice (Crabbe, Pompa, 2004) Course Goal and Mission: At the most basic level, this course and program allows students to go behind the walls to reconsider what they have learned about crime and justice, while those on the inside are encouraged to place their life experiences in a larger framework. Students will exchange ideas and perceptions about crime and justice, the criminal justice system, corrections and imprisonment. It is a chance for all participants to gain a deeper understanding of the criminal justice system through the marriage of theoretical knowledge and practical experience achieved by weekly meetings and extended throughout the semester. (Crabbe, Pompa, 2004).

College	Course #	CRN	Course Title	Instructor	Date/Time	Location
CoAS	CJS 260	34446	Justice in Our Community	Cyndi Rickards	Monday 10am-11:50am	Dornsife Center for Neighborhood Partnerships
Course Description This course is a community-based learning course that will begin with an introduction to our local community and examine problems unique to cities. The majority of our instructional time will take place with our community partner. The synthesis of scholarship and community classroom experience will provide a holistic leans in which to explore issues in our urban community. Topics include: urban economies, access to education and health care, information justice, race and crime. Students meet for two hours in the classroom and work as Navigators at the Dornsife Center T, W or TH from 1-3 or 3-5. You will need to choose one shift to work each week, which will appear as a recitation on your schedule.

College	Course #	CRN	Course Title	Instructor	Date/Time	Location
CoAS	CJS 380	34840	Policing, Theory, & Practice	Robert Kane & Cyndi Rickards	Tuesday 1pm-5pm	Drexel Police
Course Description This is an undergraduate course that examines the roles, processes, and implications of policing in America. The class represents a unique collaboration between the Department of Criminology and Justice Studies and the Drexel University Police Department. It offers both a classroom component that grounds students in the academics of policing, as well as a Citizen Police Academy experience to teach policing through the collective lens of those who do the job. Each week, students will study a topic in American policing through readings and lecture, and also through a simulated police activity hosted by Drexel police officers. For example, when we study the rules governing police search & seizure, students will read academic materials on the topic and will also conduct mock car stops in an actual police car with Drexel police officers. This combination of classroom and applied pedagogy teaches students how the rules -- both in terms of social expectations and formal requirements -- translate to actual work settings for officers in the moment while on the job. Ultimately, this course hopes to integrate two aspects of American policing that are typically separated: How we teach policing, and how we do policing. Please contact Cyndi Rickards at crr46@drexel.edu for course application link.”

College	Course #	CRN	Course Title	Instructor	Date/Time	Location
CoAS	ENGL 360	34690	Publishing Veterans' Memoirs	Karen Nulton	Wednesday 11am-12:20pm	Philadelphia VA
Course Description This seminar-style community-based learning (CBL) course connects Drexel students with local Veterans to create texts for the library of congress veterans’ history project. By publishing experiences that are not often heard, students will broaden social understanding of the relationship of gender, race, and socio-economics to war and peace. Students will explore writing as a healing modality, read selected texts, and learn interview techniques while meeting with local veterans. As students learn the veterans’ stories, they will work with the vets to craft narratives that fit the library of congress guidelines. Male and female veterans will be included and will represent a wide range of military experiences. The veterans will approve the final product before it is uploaded to the library of congress veterans’ history project archive. Students will practice writing, analysis, and editing, and create a library of congress product to list on their resumes..

College	Course #	CRN	Course Title	Instructor	Date/Time	Location
CoAS	WRIT 305	34095	Life is Beautiful	Kenneth Bingham	Thursdays 3:30pm-4:50pm	Crossroads Hospice
Course Description This community partnership course links memoir with life, story-telling, and dying. Specifically, the course partners students with local hospice patients to co-create a life-story for the patient and his or her family. Students learn interviewing, listening, and writing techniques as well as skills in analysis and presentation. Additionally, the course facilitates interactions with the community and helps students to see themselves as linked to a community outside of college.

College	Course #	CRN	Course Title	Instructor	Date/Time	Location
CoAS	ENGL 103	34862	Once upon A Lifetime (So Far...)	Cassandra Hirsch	Wednesday 2pm-3:20pm	Kirkbride Center
Course Description In this side-by-side course, blending Drexel students with individuals at Kirkbride Center, Drexel's community partner, I will create a setting for these two groups of students to put aside their preconceptions of the “other” as they read selected works of memoir, engage in conversation about these works, and together learn the craft of writing memoir.

College	Course #	CRN	Course Title	Instructor	Date/Time	Location
Westphal	DANC T280	23712	Politics of the Body	Valerie Ifill	Thursday 1pm-3:50pm	Riverside Correctional Facility
Course Description This course explores how the human body is political. Readings, discussions and movement explorations will be used to better understand how the physical body we live in shapes the way we perceive and are perceived in the world. This is a side-by-side course with Drexel and the Philadelphia Department of Prisons.

College	Course #	CRN	Course Title	Instructor	Date/Time	Location
CoAS	WRIT 215	34094	Story Medicine	Nomi Eve	Tuesday Thursday 11am-12:20pm	Children's Hospital
Course Description This is a Community Based Learning Course in Fiction Writing and Imagination Exploration. Students go to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) to perform in the Ryan Seacrest T.V. studio. Drexel Students will host, write scripts and lead imagination activities for patients. Students will write fiction and be introduced to a variety of undergraduate-level fiction writing techniques. Subjects covered include: character, plot, setting, sensory writing, specific writing and high-stakes storytelling. All exercises are suitable for beginning and intermediate fiction writers. Ultimately, students will undertake self-reflective writing, and become active participants in building this course for future quarters.

College	Course #	CRN	Course Title	Instructor	Date/Time	Location
CoAS	BIO 200	33103	Connections in Biology	Monica Togna	Monday Wednesday 3:30pm-4:50pm	Alain Locke Elementary School
Course Description Connections in Biology (BIO 200) is an open enrollment course which gives students the opportunity to make exactly that: connections. Building upon a new theme in biology each week, students connect that material to their current Philadelphia community as well as to their future professional and personal pursuits. The course is designed on the Community Based Learning platform (CBL) and is scheduled to meet twice a week: one meeting will be a formal class period on campus and one meeting will be at a partnered middle school with the instructor and Drexel students leading a 9 week after school science club. Course assignments focus on taking a particular concept or skill learned in one of our Drexel courses, connecting it to the lesson demonstrated at the middle school that week, researching real world applications of that technique, and identifying careers which would utilize that technique or concept. Concepts can range from DNA extraction using common over-the counter supplies to microbiology to biodiversity and genetics. Students will gain volunteer hours, get an introduction to civic engagement, benefit from community based learning practices and connect their Drexel course material to the bigger picture in their lives.

College	Course #	CRN	Course Title	Instructor	Date/Time	Location
CoAS	PSCI T380 001 and PLCY T580 001	34890	Neighborhood Economic Development	Richardson Dilworth	Tuesday 6pm-8:50pm	ACHIEVEability
Course Description This course explores local strategies for community and neighborhood economic development, with a particular focus on retail commercial corridors. Topics include: community organizing for economic development, urban planning as an economic development strategy, the role of government in neighborhood economic development, and the history of retail in American cities.

College	Course #	CRN	Course Title	Instructor	Date/Time	Location
CoAS	WRIT 302	34890	Writing Fiction	Nomi Eve	Wednesday 5pm-7:50pm	Dornsife Center for Neighborhood Partnerships
Course Description Have you always wanted to write fiction? Have you been writing for a while, but are finding yourself unsure of what to write next? In this creative writing course, students learn to banish writer's block by using prompts to jumpstart the creative process. Music, fashion, family secrets, fossilized bones, historical relics, railway stations, and alluring photographs will be the basis for high-impact writing exercises. Emphasis at all times is on writing that shows guts and reveals soul. This course is appropriate for both beginning and experienced writers and is supported by enriching readings from stories that grab readers by the collar and don't let go. This class will pay due homage to inspiration, while acknowledging that perspiration—focused work on specific teachable skills—also plays an essential role in the making of good fiction.

College

Course #

CRN

Course Title

Instructor

Date/Time

Location

CoAS

WRIT 302

34890

Writing Fiction

Nomi Eve

Wednesday 5pm-7:50pm

Dornsife Center for Neighborhood Partnerships

Course Description

Have you always wanted to write fiction? Have you been writing for a while, but are finding yourself unsure of what to write next? In this creative writing course, students learn to banish writer's block by using prompts to jumpstart the creative process. Music, fashion, family secrets, fossilized bones, historical relics, railway stations, and alluring photographs will be the basis for high-impact writing exercises. Emphasis at all times is on writing that shows guts and reveals soul.

This course is appropriate for both beginning and experienced writers and is supported by enriching readings from stories that grab readers by the collar and don't let go. This class will pay due homage to inspiration, while acknowledging that perspiration—focused work on specific teachable skills—also plays an essential role in the making of good fiction.