Our Program
Scholars Seminar
In your first semester at Ithaca, you'll meet weekly with other first-year MLK scholars and a faculty fellow. You'll talk, laugh, and engage in lively discussions about the entire scope of scholarly work -- from listening critically to using research tools effectively to participating in fieldwork and speaking with authority.
Get ready, too, for some life-changing debates: What's the difference between social justice advocacy and volunteering? Why do either? What can you learn from King's life and work? And how will you promote his legacy?
As the semester draws to a close, you'll be asked to choose one social justice issue to focus on -- and travel the globe to research -- over the next three years.
Upper-Level Seminars
As an upper-level MLK scholar, you'll use your weekly fall seminar to prepare for international travel and research. Following King's directive to think critically, you'll dive into social justice issues that are reflected throughout the world.
Framed in the context of your own research topic, you'll consider questions like these: How are social issues shaped by larger political, historical, and cultural influences? What can be done about these issues? Should anything be done? Is it worth it?
At the same time, you'll become acquainted with ethnography, a holistic research method based on observing people in their natural environment. Then pack your bags and you're off: to travel, explore, and apply what you've learned as you research the social justice issue that interests you most.