Citizen Scholars

Students attend 3 creative or artistic activities or events, such as a theatre performance, concert, art exhibition, or related activity, which places them in contact with new or innovative ideas or modes of expression. 

Like the cross-cultural events under the Global Leadership badge, this event exposes you to a different culture, but this requirement differs from those in that there is more to the requirement then exposure alone. For this requirement, you should select an event such as an art exhibit, a theatrical performance, a foreign language film, or some other artistic form that uses artistic expression to convey a particular perspective on a larger social issue or concern pertinent to another culture. It differs from the Global Leadership requirement to attend a discussion of a global issue, in that this is clearly not a discussion, but a representation in artistic or creative form. The objective of the experience is to engage with and interpret the implicit meaning of the event, using analytical skills to recognize and understand the ways that these particular works of art or this particular performance or film serve as a commentary and provides a perspective on a larger social or political issue in another cultural context. The larger goal is to demonstrate your understanding of how works of art participate in social and political debate and critique, and to consider, if you can, how you might draw on that understanding as a participant in your own community or in our larger society.

A workshop on research and creative activity will be presented by the program at least once per year. Generally, this workshop will be offered in conjunction with an event that will fulfill one of the event-attendance requirements for this badge. The purpose of the workshop is to provide you with techniques of analysis so that you can more fully engage with and discuss the role of creative activity as a form of social and political intervention, and/or understand how scholarly research can be undertaken as a form of social and political critique.

This experience aims to open the way to your participation in your field at the professional level, and to put you into contact with peers and scholars from other institutions and organizations. It builds on several other experiences, requiring that you summarize and present the key ideas of your work to an interested but not necessarily informed audience. It also provides you with an opportunity to actually participate in a professional event related to your field, and in that case to receive feedback from those beyond MSU. Finally, it is an opportunity to increase your circle of contacts and acquaintances, and to develop professionally as a researcher or creative artist.

This is an opportunity to put your research into practice, or showcase it in a public forum. Once you have completed your Civic Engagement Project, you may either collaborate with CS cohort members to put that research into practice by working with community stakeholders, OR present your research projects at a public forum, such as a professional conference, UURAF, art exhibit, or other venue (public event, scholarly or popular journal, social media, etc.). You may alternatively present another research project publically. This project encourages effective collaboration, the selection of an issue or concern that is of interest to the group, the distribution of project completion tasks among the group, including research into the issue, defining the scope of the project, bringing a range of methods and voices to bear on shaping the project, and decisions about how and where to present. this complex, multi-layered process provides experiences and opportunities that link many of the skills and capabilities developed throughout the program.