Politics and Public Policy entails actively addressing societal issues through meaningful interaction with government structures, political processes, and community engagement initiatives; it involves working towards social justice and change by leveraging political mechanisms and policy frameworks to advocate for the interests of individuals and communities. In this context, Engaged Scholarship in Politics & Public Policy encompasses a wide range of activities, including advocacy, legislative work, political campaigns, and community organizing efforts.

The Ethics and Human Rights issue area aims to address social injustice on local, national and international levels. It promotes ethical engagement and transformative justice approaches in addressing interconnected issues of inequality using both grassroots and legal strategies.

The development of a just and civically responsible society depends highly on our ability to provide people with equal access to an education system that helps them think critically about themselves and their communities; as such, education is an intersectional field that cannot be conceived apart from issues of race, class, and nation. The Education & Access issue area therefore aims to explore the ways in which academic discourse on education overlaps with local, national, and international movements to increase equity in access to education, whilst promoting ethical and civically responsible approaches to engaging with the education system.

The Lang Center acknowledges that the United States experiences deep inequality along lines of race, gender, class, immigration status, and education. Black, Brown, undocumented, immigrant, low-income, and first-generation students often face compounded barriers in accessing funding, resources, and networks. The Identities & Inequality issue area is committed to centering the experiences of these students, particularly in relation to wealth and income disparities, and fostering a space where all students can engage with and challenge systems of inequality in meaningful ways.

The Refugee and Immigration Issue Area addresses the interconnection of issues on Migration and displacement with social justice; emphasizing the rights and autonomy of migrant communities. In this issue area we seek to understand and address the political, social and economical factors that drive  forced migration and advocate for better programs and policies that can support refugees, asylum seekers, IDPs and the Migrant community as a whole.

The issue area of Public Health addresses the science of protecting and improving the health of people and communities through the “promotion of healthy lifestyles, research for disease and injury prevention, and detection and control of infectious diseases” (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). Through an interdisciplinary approach to identify and solve problems regarding the well-being of populations, from a small, local neighborhood (such as Chester City) to a global level, public health not only treats ongoing epidemics and health issues, it also makes an effort to prevent them by connecting people to necessary services, conducting research, and implementing educational campaigns and programs.

The Science & Society Issue Area centers on helping students connect their “hard sciences” education in the classroom with their social calling to design meaningful projects and embark on impactful educational and professional opportunities. Including the natural sciences in conversations, initiatives, and education around social justice is imperative, because, despite a widespread belief that STEM is a neutral or objective field, science and technology are influenced by sociocultural and political events and can be wielded for social good or social harm.

Artistic expression opens up the ability to examine humanity at its core. From documentary to painting, journalism to dance—all forms of art and media have the power to preserve and transform culture. How the arts engage in social change is endless. As a common point of reference, arts, media, and culture ultimately bring people together in viewership, production, and experience—serving as a critical avenue of social action and change.

The environment is where we work, live, play and thrive. Any outstanding circumstance that threatens a part of this definition is a form of environmental injustice, such as human-induced global warming, deforestation, or environmental racism.