IhC - Humanities Hub - SJH 5

“Too often, we let the humdrum reality of life get in the way of the arts, which can feel frivolous by comparison. Don’t make this mistake. The arts are the opposite of a diversion from reality; they might be the most realistic glimpse we ever get into the nature and meaning of life. And if you make time for consuming and producing art—the same way you make time for work and exercise and family commitments—you’ll find your life getting fuller and happier.” —Arthur C. Brooks, writer for The Atlantic

The faculty in the Center for Integrated Humanities are transforming the front part of the 5th floor of St. Joseph’s Hall—the Art Studio, the Gallery, and Classroom 520 (“the treehouse”) to create a lively teaching and learning hub informed by 21st-century pedagogical practices that will highlight Humanities and our work for the College.

Current pedagogical research contends that authentic learning experiences must break down artificial boundaries between the classroom and the world, between the academic and the practical, between the theoretical and the experiential. We believe that “the one doing is the one learning”—and we wish to reimagine Humanities at Chestnut Hill so that our programs manifest this call to practice and experience. Our vision for the Humanities Hub is created with those imperatives in mind. We will create mixed-use spaces that blend academic and social learning by yoking together the intellectual work of our courses with physical, project- and team-based learning.  We believe this approach will energize the sense of intellectual community built on shared learning experiences at the college.

Improvements continue, but the space is now open!

The Art Studio and Treehouse Before…

During…

After…