Initiatives

The College continues to respond to the needs of students and the community by developing new and revising current programs of study. For undergraduates, we are now offering minors in Bioethics and Society, Food Studies, Illustration, Medical A​nthropology, and Museum Studies. There are two new graduate programs: Critical Ethnic Studies and Refugee and Forc​ed Migration Studies​. Five new combined degree programs allow students to complete a second degree more economically, and three new graduate-level certificates (Digital H​umanities, Globa​l Health, and Public Health) give students the chance to gain an extra area of competence. Our next task is to complete a framework whereby we expand combined degree program options to link undergraduates from any major with select graduate programs.​

Our centers and institutes are the places where the college and community intersect most deeply.  This year we inaugurated the Center for Community Health Equity, in partnership with Rush University, to improve health and eliminate health inequity in Chicago.  We also welcomed into our fold the Women’s Center – a catalyst for positive social change around gender, race, class, nationality, ethnicity, and sexual orientation – which has been part of DePaul for 30 years.  And our Center for Interreligious Engagement became the Center for Religion, Culture, and Community​, better re​flecting its work of building sustainable bridges among individuals and groups of different faith traditions.  Work is ongoing to make established centers more responsive to DePaul and community members.