Who are we?
The Foothill-De Anza Center for Applied Humanities is a joint endeavor between the Humanities Departments at Foothill College and De Anza College.
With the generous support from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Humanities Mellon Scholars Program provided faculty from both Humanities Departments with an opportunity to convene for a one-day workshop on November 22nd, 2019. This event was to examine opportunities to create a joint statement that articulated the benefits of the study of Humanities within the context of the California Community Colleges and Foothill-De Anza Community College District missions. Additionally, this collaboration was meant to generate ideas as to how the Humanities Mellon Scholars Program could optimally promote the aims of both departments to serve the needs of our students.
The Foothill-De Anza Center for Applied Humanities was one of the fruits of this collaboration.
Visit our Fellows page to learn more about the Center’s current faculty participants.
What Do we Do?
Mission Statement: The Foothill-De Anza Center for Applied Humanities is a diverse group of socially engaged Humanities scholars and practitioners, rooted in the open access orientation of community colleges, who are committed to Humanities project-based critical inquiry for the purpose of developing meaningful paths towards more just communities.
Objectives:
- Promote student research in which students learn program management, critical thinking, team-work, and problem-solving skills by identifying complex issues/problems, considering the impact of these on local communities, and developing research programs to collaborate with partners in addressing these issues
- Build coalitions with other California Community Colleges and Silicon Valley organizations and businesses to increase awareness of the value of a humanities-based education in developing students who are prepared to help solve the complex problems that all sectors, industries, and fields face today and in the future.
- Serve as a think tank and clearing house for humanities-based pedagogical innovation.
How do we do it?
The primary modes of achieving these objectives are through the funding of quarterly faculty-lead projects and the continuation of regular Center faculty workshops. Past projects have included the development of the Center’s online presence (Summer 2021) and the Singularity is Now symposium (Fall 2021).
Future projects in discussion include the development of student and faculty research projects, student educational resources, faculty instructional resources, a humanities faculty community, corporate and community outreach programs, public courses and speaking events, publications across various media, and more.
Interested in financially helping us keep the lights on? Visit our Contribute page.
Interested in being involved in Center activities? Contact Us to learn how.