What are the differences between Republicans and Democrats? Why is there such a fuss about immigration? Who is the Tea Party? And what does the government actually do with my (parent’s) money? If you’ve ever asked these questions, this is the class for you! We’ll be exploring the current political landscape of the United States, discussing how different groups and events have impacted politics, and debating some of the most polarizing issues in the news today. This class has two main objectives: to deepen the student's understanding of modern America--its strengths and its challenges--and to provide students with the opportunity to discuss complex issues with peers.

Does the First Amendment protect the freedom of speech for students? Should it? Why does the First Amendment protect some kinds of speech in schools, but not other? And what's the significance of "Bong Hits 4 Jesus"? Come discuss and debate these questions and more!

One week before the inauguration of President Obama, Reuters reported that segregation in schools was higher than at any time since the civil rights movement. Understand why this has happened, and how we can fix the problem, are difficult but important questions. We'll try to find some answers by talking about the civil rights movement, important court cases, and the economics of education.

In elementary school, we all learned the Founding Fathers' battle cry "No taxation without representation". But the real relationships between representation and elections, between elections and money, aren't all that simple. For example, California, with almost 37 million residents, has equal voice in the Senate with Wyoming, which has only 500,000 residents. We'll talk about whether this system of representation makes sense, argue if money is speech, debate the relevance of the electoral college in today's world, and more.

In this class, we will explore the Harry Potter series from a variety of perspectives. A major theme of the course will be the roles of morality and justice in the series. Also, we will spend significant time considering the ways JK Rowling uses wizard-Muggle relationships as a metaphor for race relations. Other topics will include gender issues, politics, psychology, and the interactions among the Harry Potter series, individual readers, society, and the media. All students are strongly encouraged to contribute to and shape the direction of our discussions.