Civic Engagement

Students in the School of Arts and Sciences have numerous opportunities to become actively engaged in various communities through a rich variety of both curricular offerings and extra-curricular activities. Courses in Community Health, Political Science, Child Development, Urban and Environmental Planning, American Studies, History, as well as many other departments and programs, examine, for instance, the social, historical, political, and philosophical role of institutions and structures in nurturing citizenship, the interactions of citizens with government, the rights and responsibilities of individuals, and the social impact of policy, religion, race, class, and gender, both at home and abroad.

Many courses and programs involve a "hands on" component that allows students to apply theory to practice. For example, students in the School do field work in Biology and Environmental Studies to understand the importance of biodiversity and climate change; research the benefits of early exposure to algebra as part of the Department of Education's Early Algebra Project; spend a semester working in Congress as part of the Tufts-in Washington program through Political Science; engage in community outreach through the Tufts Art Gallery; address a range of water-related issues, including resource management in the developing world and storm water management in the US through participation in the Water: Systems, Science, and Society (WSSS) program, an interdisciplinary effort involving faculty and students from Arts and Sciences and five other Tufts schools; and produce films which tackle everything from the dangers of asbestos to the challenges faced by Somali Bantu refugees through the course "Producing Films for Social Change," a collaborative effort of the Communication and Media Studies Program, the Experimental College, and the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Citizenship and Public Service.

Beyond the classroom, Tufts students have a long tradition of active service in communities at the local and national level. We are well known for the number of our students who participate in the Peace Corps, and many students are active in the Leonard Carmichael Society (LCS), an umbrella organization for a variety of service activities and the largest student-run volunteer organization on campus with over 1,500 volunteers.

Below is a list of departments, programs, and events that coordinate initiatives of this nature:

Anthropology Department

American Studies Program

Biology Department

Boston School of Occupational Therapy

Center for Cognitive Studies

Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Development

Classics Department

Community Day

Communication and Media Studies

Community Health Program

Community Language Bank