Beginning next fall, up to 20 Hillsdale College students can spend their semester in the nation’s capital as part of the “Semester in D.C.” program.
Distinct from the Washington-Hillsdale Internship Program, students will take a full course load as part of the new program without the expectation of an internship.
Professor of History and Director of the Allan P. Kirby Center Paul Moreno said the purpose of “Semester in D.C.” is to allow students to enjoy the benefits of living in D.C. without the fear of falling behind in their classes.
“They can take core classes they would have to take anyway and do it at the Kirby Center,” Moreno said. “It allows the college to have more of a public profile because people in D.C can see what Hillsdale students are like, what they study, and the connection of the liberal to arts to public life.”
Participating students will still be able to use their scholarships, and they will not be required to purchase a meal plan, since there is no cafeteria service. The college’s D.C. housing cost is comparable to The Suites, according to Brittany Baldwin, the on-campus representative for the program.
Moreno said that upperclassmen needing to take a class for their major could arrange taking that class with a nearby college. Freshmen cannot participate, but other students do not need to apply for admission into the program. They only have to talk with Moreno or Baldwin and sign up for the classes at the Kirby Center.
Moreno, Professor of Political Economy Gary Wolfram and Associate Professor of English Stephen Smith hosted a panel on March 11 to explain the benefits of the semester in Washington, D.C.
Wolfram focused on the opportunity to make career connections.
“If there’s a position open in an office, they are not going to send out a mass email,” Wolfram said. “They are going to say, ‘Hey, remember that guy from Hillsdale who was here? Let’s see if he wants to do it.’ The position will be filled before you even know it’s open. The Hillsdale connection really works.”
Smith focused on the cultural opportunities provided by the nation’s capital, including lectures, public readings, the Smithsonian, the Library of Congress, the Kennedy Center, the Folger Shakespeare Library, and the opportunity to interact with different people.
“The liberal education that we honor and pursue is continued there, and we have an unparalleled classroom outside the walls of the Kirby Center,” Smith said. “From walking around the city last summer, I saw how great a city it was and the cultural opportunities there are.”
