Pathways to Social Justice Academy

This 2-Week Academy serves as a deep introduction to the multiple pathways that you can take toward the creation of a more just and humane world. Grounded in both the Social Change Model of Leadership Development and the Pathways of Public Service and Civic Engagement framework, this academy will provide you with content and context to support your transdisciplinary understanding of the injustices and structural oppression perpetuating harm in our society. You will learn about the intersecting and necessary ways to create social change through community-engaged research; community organizing and activism; direct service; decolonial philanthropy; advocacy for public policy; and social entrepreneurship for the common good. Through this investigation, you will develop a self-awareness of your own strengths and capacities for participation in social justice work. These two weeks will also provide you the opportunity to explore how your future college studies and careers can contribute to combating injustice and building peace.

Taking advantage of our location in the heart of the country’s capital, you will learn directly by engaging with diverse stakeholders from colleagues at policy think tanks to local, national, and international organizations committed to diverse and intersecting areas of civil, economic, and human rights.

Through site visits, you will also experience Washington, D.C., beyond the monuments and learn about its rich social justice history and the city’s current challenges around structural racism and inequity. Experiential hands-on activities will provide opportunities for practice in public speaking, facilitation, project design, and listening, led by undergraduate mentors and Georgetown faculty.

Your community will be peer high school students, Hoya mentors, and social justice educators from Georgetown University and Washington, D.C. This program concludes with designing and implementing a “teach-in.” Due to the nature of this program, not all students will be going to the same off-sites. You will earn the certificate based on your full two-week engagement, participation, and attendance.