For 90 years, the centerpiece of academic study at Columbia College has been its acclaimed Core Curriculum, which provides undergraduates with wide-ranging perspectives on literature, philosophy, history, music, art and science. Citizenship is at the heart of that experience, as it has been since the Core's inception.

The oldest course in the Core is Introduction to Contemporary Civilization, which all Columbia College students must take. Known simply as "CC," the course was conceived with an eye toward fostering knowledge and civic responsibility. In December 1918, the faculty began to discuss creating a course that would, in the words of philosophy professor John J. Coss, "introduce the students to the insistent problems of today through acquainting them with the materials of their situation: nature's resources and human nature and its recent history."

Various titles for the class were suggested (Contemporary History, The World We Live In, Peace Issues), but the plan and purpose remained constant: "The idea rests upon the belief that each new generation as it grows into maturity needs to be aware of the problems of its own group," said Coss, "and should be brought to some appreciation of its responsibility within that group."

That plan has expanded to incorporate not just a recognition of social responsibility but a call to action. "Our linkage of the academic seminar with the service work reflects our belief that service should ideally be linked to study of the social and historical context in which the problem exists and the service takes place," says Andrew Delbanco, the Julian Clarence Levi Professor in the Humanities.

The initiative to integrate service learning into the curriculum has gone beyond the Core. Indeed, Delbanco, along with Roger Lehecka, former dean of students at Columbia College, teaches a course in the American Studies program called Equity and Access in Higher Education. The class is designed with the same commitment to civic responsibility in mind and is an example of how the principles behind the Core are making their way into classes throughout the University.

Mallory Carr (CC'09) says, "The course was one of the most inspiring ones I have taken in my time at Columbia. The service component with Double Discovery Center made me feel like it wasn't just an issue on paper—it was something that I actually had the power to change."

Herbert E. Hawkes, dean of the College from 1918 to 1943, believed that "the underlying purpose of the course is to make the students citizens who can participate in national affairs with clear judgment and intelligence." He would be pleased with how the curriculum has evolved as well as the students who embrace it.

Barnard College student body president Sarah Besnoff points out another goal of the service learning component of such classes: to marry civic responsibility and academic endeavors in a way that fuels a life-long passion for civic engagement. "The best thing about the Equity class is that it allowed me to use the educational opportunities available at Columbia to act on my enthusiasm for community activism. When you're at Columbia, you're not just a member of the University community. You're also a member of the larger community of New York City."

Top   |    E-mail this story