Phase One: Vision and Learning Goals

The Fordham Core: Vision

The Fordham University Core Curriculum immerses students and faculty in collaborative and interdisciplinary learning experiences that encourage curiosity and animate broad and deep engagement with the most morally urgent issues of our times.

  • Building on the traditions of Jesuit and Catholic education, the Core is humanistic (i.e., attends to an appreciation of human dignity), integrative (i.e., makes connections between and among fields of inquiry), and ethically-aware (i.e., remains alert to the ethical implications of actions/decisions in all areas of life).
  • Aiming to help them become lifelong learners with a growing sense of personal agency and a discerning inner life, the Core provides opportunities for students to cultivate the critical intelligence and creative imagination necessary for them to flourish as active, empathetic, globally-informed citizens who collaborate effectively with others across differences in service of justice and the common good.

The Fordham Core: Learning Goals and Objectives

The Vision and Learning Goals are animated by our desire for our students to engage with the Core in a way that leaves them not only knowing about topics, but also with the practical skills and character to navigate their education—and subsequent professional/social lives—with the motivation and wisdom to make a positive change in the world. As such, both the vision and learning goals reflect an integrated framework organized around students' 'knowing,' 'doing,' and 'being.' The 'Knowing' dimension reflects conceptual grasp of course material. 'Doing' reflects practical skills that allow students to engage wisely and effectively with their learning. And 'Being' reflects the way in which students show up in the world, how they make decisions, and the quality of character necessary to become an agent of change.

  • Students will deepen and broaden their knowledge to reflect critically upon their human experience and address the most pressing problems in the world.

    1. Students will examine carefully a range of global cultural productions (e.g., creative works, written texts, governmental and economic systems, religious traditions, scientific frameworks, etc.) and their contexts in order to appreciate the complexity of the human condition and ways of making meaning.
    2. Students will learn about the natural world and explore the relationships among science, mathematics, technology, and society in order to make ethical and informed decisions about ourselves and our common home.
    3. Students will learn how people produce and challenge knowledge systems and other social structures in order to help them recognize and imagine a broad range of possibilities for creating a more peaceful, just, and sustainable future.
    4. Students will study the beautiful, the transcendent, and the intricate in the arts and sciences, in order to experience wonder, stimulate curiosity, and encourage exploration.
    5. Students will explore their relationship to the world by deepening their engagement with NYC as a gateway to understanding the importance of communities, conditions, and contexts.

  • Students will develop, integrate, and apply critical and creative skills for effective participation in a global society and responsible leadership in service of social justice.

    1. Students will think critically, write and communicate effectively, listen actively, and reason logically to make compelling and imaginative arguments.
    2. Students will reason scientifically, quantitatively and computationally – interpreting data ethically with an eye toward social responsibility and a more sustainable world.
    3. Students will work collaboratively with their peers and faculty to create, research, and reflect to become informed and empathetic citizens.
    4. Students will work within a linguistic or cultural context other than their own in order to promote equity and understanding within local and global communities.
    5. Students will contribute to a more equitable society by examining systems and histories of colonialism and racial injustice and supporting initiatives for social change.
    6. Students will critically engage diverse religious traditions adopted by human communities in constructing a meaningful life.

  • Students will graduate from Fordham as discerning citizens of integrity who are practically wise and work toward the common good.

    The Core will offer students opportunities to become

    1. Reflective persons who cultivate an inner life and are capable of holding personal convictions while being open to having their views challenged.
    2. Individuals who prioritize intellectual and personal growth, value the learning process, and are resilient and comfortable with uncertainty and nuance.
    3. Persons who cultivate intellectual curiosity, critical thinking, and an awareness of biases while being inspired by the possibilities for creative action.
    4. Critically engaged citizens who recognize the inherent dignity of all human beings and work towards making the world and their communities more peaceful, sustainable, and just.
    5. Responsible for their learning and self-assessment.