A statue of ancient Athenian politician Cleisthenes in the John Glenn College of Public Affairs on Wednesday. Credit: Campus Photo Editor | Daniel Bush
The Salmon P. Chase Center for Civics, Culture and Society is launching 10 new courses and a minor in Civics, Law and Leadership, beginning in Spring 2026.
The Chase Center launched its first two courses for the Autumn 2025 semester following its creation through the state legislature in 2023 and official opening in 2024, according to prior Lantern reporting. The Chase Center has been a staple of controversy on campus since its introduction and the passage of Senate Bill 1, a bill banning diversity, equity and inclusion programming, per prior Lantern reporting.
The minor was approved by the university Council on Academic Affairs on Nov. 5, according to a news release. The minor curriculum will seek to engage students with how to become an informed, active citizen and how a foundation in civics can lead to a fulfilling career and life, according to the Chase Center website.
Lee Strang, executive director of the Chase Center, said that while the center is still very new and not yet mature, these new academic offerings demonstrate the center is “moving very strongly in the right direction, towards fully implementing this mission of citizenship education.“
“It’s an exciting moment for the Chase Center, getting that minor was like, ‘Wow, we’ve reached a new step in our growth,’” Strang said.
Chase Center Assistant Director Brian Schoen said that the minor will equip students with skills that will be useful across majors and career paths.
“Mastering a knowledge of America’s shared civic tradition and honing civic skills will be assets in law, business, education, government, STEM and any other career,” Schoen said.
Additionally, 10 new courses will be offered through the center, with topics ranging from self-governance in a class titled “Can We Rule Ourselves?” to navigating political reasoning and identity in “How Politics Breaks Your Brain.”
The new courses dive into American civic thought and discussions, analyzing politics from the past and present and American traditions.
Strang said that the new courses underwent an extensive development process that involved discussions with other departments to ensure the curriculum was complementary but not duplicative of other courses.
“We have lots of relationships with other departments around the university, and so we ask for syllabi, we look at courses, we look at course descriptions, we talk with people, we talk with chairs, we talk with faculty,” Strang said. “We’re doing a lot of work as we’re building out a particular syllabus to make sure that we’re able to meet that goal.”
More information on the Chase Center can be found here.
