
Politics & Public Policy
Politics & Public Policy is a broad category that encapsulates everything from social justice advocacy to law to political campaigns and community organizing. It is the critical way in which communities can engage with their government and their fellow constituents. Through participating in politics and political discourse, as well as by helping shape and formulate public policy, individuals can help set and carry out agendas on a local, state, and national level. In this way, Politics & Public Policy describes a powerful method of facilitating change and progress across a variety of issue areas; this category can encompass engagement in the form of advocacy, awareness, education, internships, projects, employment, public service, and more.
Engaged Scholarship Opportunities
- PEAC 053: Israeli-Palestinean Conflict: Typically offered in the Fall, this Peace and Conflict Studies course gives students an in-depth look into the origins and current state of the conflict between and within Israel and Palestine. The course’s field component gives approximately 35 students the opportunity to study abroad over Winter Break in Israel/Palestine, combining course material with real-world exposure and application.
- POLS 031: This course explores the causes and impact of migration and the refugee crisis, as well as the impact of foreign and domestic policies. This course’s field component includes observations of immigration hearings as well as meetings with prominent NGOs in the Philadelphia area.
- SwatVotes: SwatVotes is a student group dedicated to increasing voter education, provide tools and guides to better understand registration, and curate resources on how to vote by mail with the goal of fostering democratic engagement at Swarthmore.
Connect
Lang Center Associates
San Winickoff '23 | Satchel Tsai '23 |
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Sign up for an appointment with them on the LCA appointment calendar.
Key Faculty and Staff
- Ben Berger, Associate Professor of Political Science and Executive Director of the Lang Center
- Keith Reeves ’88, Professor of Political Science and Department Chair; Director of the Urban Inequality and Incarceration program
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Sa’ed Atshan ‘06, Assistant Professor of Peace and Conflict Studies
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Krista Thomason, Associate Professor of Philosophy; Coordinator for Peace and Conflict Studies Program
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Daniel Laurson, Assistant Professor of Sociology
Centers
Student Groups
- Sunrise Movement | Contact: Alana Ballagh '22
- Swarthmore Democrats | Contact: Sam Marks '22
- SwatVotes | Contact: Ann Sinclair '23 and Cat Crochunis-Brown '23
- Women in Political Science | Contact: Sophia Peterson '23
- War News Radio | Contact: Martin Tomlinson '2
Learn
Relevant Courses
- ENVS 035 Environmental Justice: Theory and Action
- POLS 028 The Urban Underclass and Public Policy
- POLS 054 Identity Politics
- ENVS 028 Global Environmental Governance
- POLS 029 Polling, Public Opinion, and Public Policy
- POLS 063 Politics of Sub-Saharan Africa
- SOCI 148 Topics in Political Sociology: Power, Governance, and the State
- ANTH 042D Political Anthropology
- ECON 041 Public Economics
- POLS 020B Special Topic: Political Inequality in the U.S.
- POLS 045 Disaster Politics and Policies
- POLS 051 Global Justice
- POLS 070B Politics of Punishment
- POLS 071 Negotiating the U.S. Policyscape
- SOCI 058C Manufacturing Scarcity: The Housing Crisis in American Cities and the People’s Fight for a Home
Act
Off-Campus Opportunities
- Brookings Institution
- Center for American Progress
- American Enterprise Institute
- Cato Institute
- Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Internships
- Congressional Hispanic Leadership Institute Leadership Program
- Hispanic Association of Colleges & Universities National Internship Program
- Morris K. Udall Foundation Native American Summer Congressional Internship Program
- Public Policy and International Affairs Program Junior Summer Institutes
- The Washington Center
- Washington Internship Institute
- Serve.gov
- PeaceCorps.gov
- CitizenCorps.gov
- Volunteer.gov
- USAJobs.gov
- Careersingovernment.com
- Natural Resources Conservation Earth Team Volunteers
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
- Planned Parenthood