Lang Center

for Civic & Social Responsibility

The promotion of a just and civically responsible society depends highly on our ability to provide people with equal access to an education system that helps them think critically about themselves and their communities. That means education is—at its core—an intersectional field that cannot be conceived apart from issues of race, class, and nation. The Education & Access pathway at the Lang Center is concerned precisely with the ways in which the academic discourse on education overlaps with local and national movements for expanding access to higher education, promoting equity in school funding, providing equal opportunities for undocumented immigrants, etc.

Engaged Scholarship Opportunities

Within education, there are several ways that you can get involved on and off campus. The Learning 4 Life program is a wonderful opportunity for students to pair with professors to develop a specific skill or explore a personal interest. If you’re looking for tutoring opportunities, there are several that are easily accessible. The Dare 2 Soar program, Swarthmore’s oldest tutoring program, is for students interested in helping K-12 first-generation students achieve academic and personal growth. Let’s Get Ready, the SAT tutoring program, seeks tutors from Swarthmore and other college to tutor high school students in local high schools around the area. In case you’re more interested in education policy, consider joining the Critical Education Policies Studies group comprised of Swarthmore faculty, undergraduates and more and publish on their Journal of Critical Education Policy Studies, a wonderful way to connect your learning and experiences to consequential policies of the day.

Connect

Key Faculty & Staff

• Edwin Mayorga, Assistant Professor of Educational Studies
• Roseann Liu, Visiting Assistant Professor of Educational Studies
• Lisa Smulyan ’76, Henry C. and Charlotte Turner Professor of Educational Studies
• Jennifer Bradley, Visiting Assistant Professor of Educational Studies

Student Groups

• Learning 4 Life | Contact: Keyanna Ortiz-Cedeno ‘20 and Hussain Zaidi '22
• Chester Youth Courts | Contact: Lauren Savo '20 and Jissel Becerra Reyes '20
• Let's Get Ready | Contact: Sharon Hu ‘21

Learn

Relevant Courses

​Tri Co

Bryn Mawr

• EDUC B266: Schools in American Cities
• EDUC B295: Advocating Diversity in Higher Education

Haverford

• EDUC H311: Theories of Change in Educational Institutions

Act

On-Campus Opportunities

• Journal of Swarthmore Critical Education Policy Studies

Off-Campus Opportunities

• Research for Action
• PHENND VISTA Project
• Education Law Center
• Vassar Teacher Experience for Undergraduates
• Philadelphia Youth Network
• Chester Community Fellowship
• Caucus of Working Educators
• Philadelphia Education Fund
• Subscribe to the weekly newsletter of the Philadelphia Higher Education Network for Neighborhood Development (PHENND)
• Join an ITAG (Inquiry to Action Group) at the Teacher Action Group of Philadelphia
• Mighty Writers
• Breakthrough of Greater Philadelphia 
• Spells Writing Lab 
• Baltimore Algebra Project 

Grants 

• Davis Projects for Peace
• Lang Opportunity Scholarship (apply Sophomore year) 
• Project Pericles Grant
• Summer Experience Funding (faculty-led engaged scholarship, internships, or projects)

Projects

• Lang Opportunity Scholar Nancy Awad '20: The Benat Seshat Initiative 
• Seimi Park '20 Press for Peace Project​