Memphis ’25 Institute on Teaching Social Action – Mar 8-9

Posted by Bonner Foundation on December 17, 2024

We would like to invite you to apply to the Memphis ’25 Institute at the National Civil Rights Museum on March 8-9, 2025. All sessions will be led by Dr. Scott Myers-Lipton, Director of Teaching Social Action, Bobby Hackett, President of the Bonner Foundation, and host faculty from the regional colleges. The Institute runs from Saturday, 8:45 am-6:15 pm and Sunday, 8:45 am-1 pm; food will be covered during the Institute.

Our no cost Institutes train faculty and staff to develop social action syllabi for a course or workshop series that engages students in leading “policy change” campaigns. The key component of this experiential and transformational learning model is that students choose a campaign to work on and attempt to enact a policy change on campus or in the community by making demands of a decision-maker during the semester the class is taught. Click here to learn more about this model.

Here is what Dr. Arun Agrawal at the University of Michigan’s School for Environment and Sustainability has to say about the Institute:

“I have personally gone through the Institute and found it incredibly helpful in developing a social action course, that I then taught at the University of Michigan the following semester. Teaching social action has been one of the highlights of my career, as it provides students with concrete tools with which to organize social action campaigns. I highly recommend it!”

We are building a movement to spread this pedagogy with a public purpose by training and building a community of practice among faculty and staff across the country and around the world. We would be honored if you join us.

Learn more and apply here.