Visiting Scholar

A visiting scholar or policy professional can join Ursinus for a short-term residency, allowing students to benefit from the practical knowledge and insights of someone with international expertise. Visiting scholars lead policy seminars, conduct career conversations, meet with small groups of faculty and students, and/or teach classes.

Service Trip to Puerto Rico

The Melrose Fellows embark on a service-learning trip to Puerto Rico. This faculty-led program allows students to put ideals of global and civic engagement into practice through an experiential learning opportunity. Students engage in volunteer service with a local organization dedicated to promoting recovery and resilience from natural disasters and meet with leaders of community organizations to learn about local initiatives addressing social issues.

The Freedom, Citizenship, and Equality Seminar

A two-week summer program for high school students that invites motivated rising juniors and seniors to discuss the statesman and thinkers such as Jefferson and Lincoln, Frederick Douglass and W.E.B. DuBois who have shaped the American community. These discussions focus on the meaning of freedom and equality, those two essential American values. Participants also examine the difficulties to which these values have led, from the Civil War to the political polarization that characterizes contemporary American life. They are led in discussion of the readings during the morning by Ursinus faculty members. Afternoons are devoted to mentoring of participants’ writing by Ursinus undergraduates and other program-related activities. The goal is to help students write more clearly, read more carefully, and engage actively in class discussion.

Melrose Conference

Our bi-annual conference focuses on a key global issue and features scholars, practitioners, and alumni sharing their perspectives. Depending on donor support, this can be combined with other interdisciplinary programming for a multi-day symposium. For example, the conference can be accompanied by an art exhibition, dance or theater performance, and a film. The conference is open to the entire campus and the local community, possibly through partnerships with local organizations such as the Rotary Club or veterans’ organizations.

Model United Nations

Students can receive support in preparing for and attending a high-profile National Model United Nations (NMUN) conference. NMUN offers students an opportunity to engage in cooperative, experiential learning during an intensive five-day conference. Students negotiate solutions to real-world issues such as international security, global trade and finance, sustainable use of natural resources, global health, children’s rights, and women in science. A two-semester course at Ursinus prepares students for their research and committee work.

Passport Scholarship

Donors can fund a “passport scholarship” for students affiliated with the Melrose Center who apply to study abroad. While Ursinus sponsors students’ academic fees, this scholarship covers essential fees to enable students with financial need to travel abroad and acquire the necessary documents to study in their host country.

Site visits in Washington, DC

The Melrose Center organizes field trips to Washington, D.C. to get first-hand experience in global policy-making with a visit to institutions such as the World Bank and/or IMF embedded in a semester-long course on global policy.