2023-24 Academic Catalog

One of the foundational elements of an ideal democratic society is an educated and informed public. Simultaneously, the maintenance of power in society demands control over what and how the public is educated. This class examines how schools in the U.S. serve both as sites of promoting democratic life and ideals as well as reproducing social, political, and economic oppression. Throughout the class, we will explore the relationships, tensions, and contradictions between schools, power, and democracy with the goal of answering whether schools can protect and save democracy.