A Letter from Dr. Paul Root Wolpe, Director of the Center for Ethics

Dear students,

The reason students choose Emory University is because they know they will be offered unique educational programs that other schools simply cannot match.  I write to encourage you to take advantage of such a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity: The TRACE (The Renaissance Academy at the Center for Ethics) Summer in Italy program.

Dr. Judy Raggi Moore, director of the Italian Studies program has successfully been leading this program for over 33 years, along with Dr. Ruth Parker, Professor of Medicine and Public Health, who has been her partner in this program for 16 years. The four-week program is a unique cross-university program abroad and undergraduate students who complete the course receive a unique Certificate in Bioethics & Humanities with concentration in medicine, bioethics, healing and the arts. More on the certificate below, but it is a useful and marketable credential.

The Summer in Italy program travels to over 40 different cities experienced through an interdisciplinary immersion in the art, culture, politics, religion, philosophy, and medicine of Western culture and history. Students engage in cross-disciplinary inquiry with an array of faculty scholars from Emory as well as established local and international professionals. Engaging scholars in settings ranging from museums to historical orphanages to palaces to countryside allows a transformative, place-based learning. The course also challenges students to think through enduring ethical principles, to develop critical thinking, and, through their own digital scholarship, to contribute to our general repository of knowledge.

The course incorporates an additional integrated theme of Medicine, Compassion, and the Arts. Students explore the history of Western medical treatment, ethics, and philosophy through engaged learning, such as visiting Santa Maria Nuova in Florence, the oldest continuously operating hospital in the world, or taking a walking tour of indigenous medicine plants in the Italian countryside. The course allows a deep exploration of bioethical themes that underlie our sense of life and death, sickness and healing, and themes like justice and equality. Please see the accompany FAQ sheet with answers to some practical questions about the course.

The Summer in Italy program and TRACE are run under the auspices of the Emory Center for Ethics, among the most prominent and well-known centers of its kind in the world. The Center’s unique scholarly and programmatic offerings range from explorations of medicine and life science to a unique Ethics & the Arts program, to the Ethics and Servant Leadership program, to work with corporate and not-for-profit organizations and boards. Please see our website at ethics.emory.edu to see the remarkable range and depth of this unique Emory resource.

As Director of this Center, and as a teacher of ethics and social thought for over 30 years, I can assure you that this summer program in Italy is absolutely one of a kind.  Judy Raggi Moore is an Emory treasure, and having her guide you through this intense and authentic immersion into the ethical underpinnings of Western culture is one of those experiences that you will remember for the rest of your life. I got engaged when I went as a faculty guest, and was deeply impressed and moved by the quality, depth, and even beauty of the way the course is designed and implemented. That is why I was so pleased to have the course move into our Center.

We have a jewel here at Emory that I wish I could offer to every student at our University. So the most important question is: how can you NOT participate?

Sincerely,

Paul Root Wolpe Ph.D.

Asa Griggs Candler Professor of Bioethics

Director, Center for Ethics

Frequently Asked Questions

Why a certificate? Why not course credit?

The Summer in Italy program earns you a Certificate in Bioethics & Humanities. A certificate shows that you engaged in a special training opportunity outside your regular coursework, and is an impressive entry on your resume. It responds to the growing need to show what you can do with your education rather than simply list courses taken. It also allows you the opportunity to expand on what the course is; it highlights the uniqueness of the experience. Taking such a course for credit simply buries this unique educational experience in your overall transcript, as one of many other courses you took. A certificate is a prestigious added credential.

What about Nursing and Professional students?

For students in Nursing, as well as graduate/professional students, course credit can be earned through the Master in Bioethics program based at the Center for Ethics and credited through the Laney Graduate School.

Does this experiential learning program offer mentoring opportunities?

Yes, not only by the primary course faculty, but by the multiple visiting scholars and experienced professionals from various fields who give of their time and resources because they believe so deeply in the purpose and value of this unique experience.

How are the costs determined?

Costs for the Summer in Italy program include room and board in 3 or 4 star hotels, travel to over 40 towns and cities throughout ALL OF Italy on our private bus, fees to enter and engage in unique study over 80 museums, archeological sites, villas, castles, and monasteries, and unique immersion in the food, culture, and traditions of Italy for a rich six week experience. While Italy is a prime tourist destination, so costs can be considerable, for over thirty years we have developed a network of ongoing relationships that allow us to offer the lowest rates possible while offering first rate accommodations and opportunities. Also, as this is a certificate course, rather than a credit course, we do not charge tuition. The costs of this program are about a third to half less than a typical six week college program.

Can I get a scholarship for the course?
Yes.  Needs-based scholarships are available for the program. In addition, while college financial aid is not available, you also have equal access to all national scholarship/funding opportunities for studies abroad. Information on such scholarship will be provided.

Who attends the course?

While the majority of the undergraduate students will be from Emory, students are welcome from all institutions of higher learning in the US. The course also includes graduate and professional students, particularly in the fields of Medicine and Nursing, dedicated and highly experienced faculty, esteemed professional guests, and numerous Italian experts and friends of the course throughout the country, who are dedicated to making this Center for Ethics experience the best possible.