North Park University Launches Innovative Program for Off-Campus Experiential Learning in Chicago

CHICAGO, March 22, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- North Park University announces Catalyst 606__, the University's Chicago-based applied academics curriculum. Catalyst 606__ designates time in the undergraduate schedule for learning outside the classroom in the city of Chicago.

North Park's Catalyst 606__

• is a Chicago-centered urban, intercultural experience.
• offers hands-on learning.
• provides cultural experiences in the city.
• blends theory and practice with applied academics.

Facts about the labor movement in a textbook become alive with visits to the Historic Pullman Foundation; accounting becomes relevant in visits to the loop's financial district; economics becomes visible in tours of manufacturing companies; art and culture open eyes with attendance at operas and exhibits.

Arranged by faculty and staff, these experiences connect students to the world around them. Students engage with their peers to discuss and process their experiences together, build a better understanding of options for their career paths, derive inspiration to contribute to the community, and participate in their own learning experiences, making the connection between the theoretical and the practical.

Career interests of students, combined with a philosophy of hands-on learning, prompted North Park to restructure its weekly schedule to designate Wednesday afternoons for city experiences. "By the year 2050, 2.5 billion more people are expected to live in cities and the rural population will shrink," comments North Park Provost Michael Emerson. "In short, human population growth going forward will be urban," adds Provost Emerson.

About the name: "Catalyst 606__"

Catalyst describes…

• North Park students as agents of change and service in the world.
• lives of significance and service through vocation and civic engagement.

606__ represents…

• the first three digits in Chicago ZIP codes.
• no borders separating students from Chicago's neighborhoods.
• a community that embraces diversity, loves its neighbors, and serves in Chicago.
• a Chicago-centered University.

Launching the Catalyst 606__ program marks an exciting time in the University's 125-year history, complemented by earning consistent rankings as one of the "Best Colleges" in the Midwest by U.S. News & World Report and named—for the third time—a Top Producer of U.S. Fulbright Students by the U.S. Department of State.

NORTH PARK UNIVERSITY 

North Park University is an urban, intercultural, and Christian university located in Chicago.  

Visit northpark.edu/about.

SOURCE North Park University

Related Links

http://www.northpark.edu