Courses Offered

This course is based in the Occupational Therapy and Applied Statistics, Social Science, and Humanities departments (co-led by Drs. Njelesani and Fraser). The course interrogates physical, spiritual, emotional, social, and political wellness by looking at art and Humanities texts by diverse writers (e.g., memoirs, poetry, drama). It seeks to answer the following questions: How do stories of human connection shape wellness? How are some people and nations across history constructed as healthier and happier than others? Students in the course are paired with a member of a spiritual organization, community health program, supportive housing initiative, or campaign for climate or political wellness, and meet weekly at the community site over the period of the course. Students conduct an oral history with the community member, situate what they are hearing within larger historical and social contexts, and then create a narrative about the person and their wellness journey.

This course is based in the Nutrition and Food Studies and Applied Statistics, Social Science, and Humanities departments (co-led by Drs. Ray and Arcilla). It examines the question, “What is it that nourishes our bodies and souls?” While nutritious and appealing food is certainly part of the answer to this question, so too are aesthetic experiences that feed the soul. Among today’s college students, some are physically hungry and some are hungry for meaning and purpose in their lives and who find a narrowly utilitarian education unable to answer larger human questions. Beyond classic and timely texts (e.g., Franz Kafka’s A Hunger Artist), the course offers direct engagement with New York City’s arts, literary, and Humanities scenes. Students will volunteer in food pantries or campaign for street vendors to understand feeding body and soul outside of the classroom.

This course is based in the Nutrition and Food Studies department (led by Dr. Bentley). The concept of sustainability is important in our current moment, yet we use the term in a variety of ways and via different frameworks of understanding. This course explores how we talk about and understand the concept of sustainability, including as environment and climate change, food production and consumption, and individual and community health. Students will examine the concept of sustainability through these different lenses, exploring the connections among them.