Past Creative Campus Courses:

Commons Course: Exploring Creative Lives (Spring 2011)

Professor Kate Daniels, English

Do you lead a creative life? When we think of creativity, we often think of writers, artists, filmmakers, or musicians. And although our Vanderbilt community includes artists in many genres and media, our campus is also filled with individuals engaged in everyday and extraordinary creativity in fields and areas other than the arts. This course will offer students the opportunity to critically engage the full range of what is meant by a creative life, and to draw out the stories of the everyday creative lives of Vanderbilt students, faculty, and staff.

We will explore a variety of approaches to eliciting stories from members of the Vanderbilt community, paying close attention to how people talk about creativity in their life, the moments they feel most creative, and how they think about risk-taking, playfulness, imagination and the creative process. We will experiment with an array of media as we illuminate and share these stories with the broader Vanderbilt community. Students will develop a deeper appreciation of how creativity plays out in their own lives, and the ways in which creative practice can foster resilience, resourcefulness, and meaning that can be drawn upon throughout life.

Commons Course: I need to fix that! Problem solving and designing change (Spring 2011)

Professor Elizabeth Long Lingo, Director, Curb Programs in Creative Enterprise and Public Leadership

We are faced with problems big and small on a daily, even moment-to-moment basis whether its wishing we knew when the next Vandy Van might arrive to the desire to help the homeless and support the environment. How are some people better able to develop solutions and create change than others? How do we make larger problems tractable and enlist others to contribute to and adopt our solutions?

This is a course for those students interested in making positive change in their world, and who want to become better problem solvers and innovators. We will draw from the latest theories of design thinking, creativity, and social change as we engage hands-on with the problem solving process.

Commons Course: SAY WHAT?!?!?! Provoking Creative Conversations (Spring 2011)

Professor Steven Tepper (Sociology) and Tim Pierce, Director (Executive programs, Owen GSM)

We have all been involved in conversations where we feel like were following a scripted routine. How are some people able to engage others and curate conversations that bring about differing perspectives, create unexpected insights, and keep everyone fully engaged?

This class is for students who seek to more deeply understand the art and science of conversations from cocktail parties and improvisation to interviews and panel discussions among experts on difficult topics.

Interactive Portable Media and Cell Phone Art (Fall 2010)

Professor Amelia Winger-Bearskin, Studio Art

Use of inexpensive media devices such as cell phones, music players, and other portable electronics to create campus-wide participatory events, including art projects, web interactive movements, unexpected musical environments, and grass roots media campaigns. Collaborative and solo projects.