Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Elective Option

Students pursuing the MEAM DEI Elective Option must complete 4 course units, most of which also fulfill the MEAM BSE Electives requirements: Social Science (SS), Humanities (H), and Technology, Business, and Society (TBS) courses, and/or some of the Professional Elective (PE) courses. Therefore, the Option does not require students to take additional CUs to complete their undergraduate degrees, unless they choose to, or if they choose DEI Elective Option approved courses that are not also approved as MEAM General or Professional Electives.

Students who successfully pass the courses in the MEAM DEI Elective Option will receive a letter of completion from the MEAM Department upon graduation.

 

Courses and Requirements

Students pursuing the DEI Elective Option must complete 4 course units in the following categories:

Requirement 1: Impact of Technology (1 Course Unit)
Requirement 2: Community Impact (1 Course Unit)
Requirement 3: Depth (2 Course Units)

All courses taken to satisfy the MEAM DEI Elective Option must be taken for a grade. Students may petition to include a course not listed in the pre-approved list by filling out a MEAM DEI Elective Option Petition Form.

Requirement 1: Impact of Technology

  • This requirement helps students focus on how technology impacts marginalized communities, such as when engineers/companies fail to assess and address communities’ needs, or the benefits and successes that occur when they do consider different communities.
  • One (1) course unit is required from the list below.

Impact of Technology

Course Number Course Title MEAM Elective Type
AFRC 2430 / SOCI 2430 Race, Science, and Justice Social Science
HSOC 0600 / STSC 0600 Technology & Society Social Science
HSOC 3185 / STSC 3185 Global Radiation History: Living in the Atomic Age 1945-Present Social Science
PSCI 2103 Information Communication Technologies for Development Social Science
HSOC 2198 / LALS 2198 / STSC 2198 Race, Science, and Globalization Social Science, Humanities
ENGR 1400 Robotics and Rehabilitation Technical – Engineering
IPD 5040 / BE 5140 Rehab Engineering and Design Technical – Engineering
IPD 5280 Design of Contemporary Products: Design for Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Technical – Engineering
MEAM 0099 Independent Study (see Important Notes below) Technical – Engineering
LGST 2420 Big Data, Big Responsibilities (0.5 CU) Not Approved MEAM Elective
MGMT 2240 Leading Diversity in Organizations (0.5 CU) Not Approved MEAM Elective
NPLD 5930 Design Thinking for Social Impact Not Approved MEAM Elective

Requirement 2: Community Impact

  • This requirement allows students to develop and apply their knowledge of the interaction between technology and marginalized communities to have a positive impact.
  • One (1) course unit is required from the list below.

Community Impact

Course Number Course Title MEAM Elective Type
AFRC 1780 / HIST 0811 / URBS 1780 Faculty-Student Collaborative Action Seminar in Urban

University-Community Relations (special permission required to count this course)

Social Science, Humanities
LALS 4240 / SOCI 2931 Latinx Communities and the Role of CBOs in Social Change Social Science, Humanities
MEAM 0099 Independent Study (see Important Notes below) Technical – Engineering
EDUC 2100 Math Tutoring in Urban Elementary Schools Not Approved MEAM Elective
ENVS 1665 Air Pollution: Sources & Effects in Urban Environments Not Approved MEAM Elective
NURS 3520 Case Study: A Community-Based Approach to Mitigating

Climate Change and Food Insecurity

Not Approved MEAM Elective

Requirement 3: Depth

  • This requirement allows students to look into a wide range of departments that will expose them to people, identities, and cultures outside of their own.
  • Two (2) course units are required within the areas below.
  • Students may count up to one (1) course unit per area.

Social Class/Economic Inequality

Course Number Course Title MEAM Elective Type
AFRC 0010 / SOCI 2940 / URBS 0010 Homelessness & Urban Inequality Social Science, Freshman Seminar
SOCI 0001 / URBS 0005 Poverty and Inequality Social Science, Freshman Seminar
AFRC 2219 / GSWS 2219 / SAST 2219 / SOCI 2970 Social Inequalities: Caste and Race Social Science
SOCI 1050 Social Stratification Social Science
SOCI 1051 Class Matters: Poverty, Prosperity, and the American Dream Social Science
LALS 0270 / SOCI 0270 / URBS 0270 The Immigrant City Social Science
URBS 2850 Health on the urban margins: the experience of health in American cities Social Science
WRIT 0920 Writing Seminar in URBS: The Unequal City Social Science, Writing Seminar
WRIT 0390 Writing Seminar in ENGL: Literacy Learning in Prison Humanities, Writing Seminar
AFRC 0405 / RELS 0405 / URBS 0405 Religion, Social Justice & Urban Development Social Science, Humanities
HIST 0812 / SOCI 2944 / URBS 4200 Perspectives on Urban Poverty Social Science, Humanities
BEPP 2650 Economics of Diversity and Discrimination Not Approved MEAM Elective
EDUC 2002 Urban Education Not Approved MEAM Elective
LGST 2300 Social Impact and Responsibility: Foundations Not Approved MEAM Elective
MGMT 2410 Knowledge for Social Impact Not Approved MEAM Elective

Gender/Sexuality

Course Number Course Title MEAM Elective Type
AFRC 1131/GSWS 1130/SOCI 1130 Discrimination: Sexual and Racial Conflict Social Science
EALC 3559 / GSWS 3559 Gender and Sexuality in Japan Social Science
GSWS 0050 / RELS 0050 Gender, Sexuality, and Religion Social Science
GSWS 1101 / SOCI 1100 Sociology of Gender Social Science
GSWS 1490 Law and Social Policy on Sexuality and Reproduction Social Science
GSWS 2537 / HSOC 2537 Gender and Health Social Science
GSWS 3400 Money, Power, Respect: Funding Social Change Social Science
AFRC 0320 / ENGL 0320 / GSWS 0320 Black Queer Traditions Social Science, Humanities
ASAM 1400 / GSWS 1400 / SAST 1400 Asian American Gender and Sexualities Social Science, Humanities
COML 0003 / ENGL 2303 / GSWS 0030 Introduction to Sexuality Studies and Queer Theory Social Science, Humanities
GSWS 0002 / ENGL 0159 Gender and Society Social Science, Humanities
GSWS 2320 / HIST 0819 Queer Life in U.S. History Social Science, Humanities
FNAR 2320 Queer Imaginings Humanities
WRIT 0250 Writing Seminar in CIMS: Reality TV & Gender Humanities, Writing Seminar
WRIT 0330 Writing Seminar in DH: Data Feminism, Data Justice Humanities, Writing Seminar
NURS 3420 Health of Sexual and Gender-Diverse Individuals and

Populations Across the Lifespan

Not Approved MEAM Elective

Disability/Neurodiversity

Course Number Course Title MEAM Elective Type
GSWS 1500 Introduction to Disability Studies: Form, Text, and Practices Social Science
HSOC 1312 / SOCI 1111 Mental Illness Social Science
WRIT 0770 Writing Seminar in PSYC: The Power of Neurodiversity Social Science, Writing Seminar
WRIT 0770 Writing Seminar in PSYC: Biased Perception of Mental Illness Social Science, Writing Seminar
ASLD 1039 Disability Rights and Oppression: Experiences within Global Deaf Communities Humanities

Race/Ethnicity

Course Number Course Title MEAM Elective Type
AFRC 1001 Introduction to Africana Studies Social Science
AFRC 2180 / LGST 2180 Diversity and the Law Social Science
AFRC 4480 / URBS 4480 Neighborhood Displacement and Community Power Social Science
ASAM 1020 The Asian American Entrepreneur Social Science
COMM 3510 Media and Migration in the 21st Century Social Science
PSCI 4991 Philadelphia: Power, Space, and Diversity Social Science
SOCI 2450  URBS 2450 Poverty, Race, and Health Social Science
SOCI 0003 Sociology of Race and Ethnicity Social Science, Freshman Seminar
WRIT 0760 Writing Seminar in PSCI: Mass Incarceration in America Social Science, Writing Seminar
AFRC 1115 / ANTH 1150 / ASAM 0115 / LALS 0015 / SAST 1115 / URBS 1150 American Race: A Philadelphia Story Social Science, Humanities
AFRC 1060 / ASAM 1510 / LALS 1060 / SOCI 1060 / URBS 1060 Race and Ethnic Relations Social Science, Humanities
ASAM 1000 / SAST 1000 South Asians in the United States Social Science, Humanities
ASAM 1500 / SOCI 1140 Asian Americans in Contemporary Society Social Science, Humanities
ASAM 2159 / GSWS 2159 / HIST 2159 The History of Family Separation Social Science, Humanities
LALS 1290 / PSCI 1290 Race and Ethnic Politics Social Science, Humanities
LALS 4240 / SOCI 2931 Latinx Communities and the Role of CBOs in Social Change Social Science, Humanities
AFRC 1120 / RELS 1120 Religion from Civil Rights to Black Lives Matter Humanities
AFRC 1169 / HIST 1169 History of American Law Since 1877 Humanities
AFRC 2325 / ENGL 2222 / THAR 2325 August Wilson and Beyond Humanities
ANTH 3930 / ENVS 3445 / LALS 3930 / SPAN 3930 / URBS 3930 Latinx Environmental Justice Humanities
ASAM 0100 Introduction to Asian American Studies Humanities
ASAM 3110 / HIST 3910 Immigration and the Making of US Law Humanities
LALS 0720 / HIST 1702 Introduction to Latin American and Latino Studies Humanities
SOCI 2610 Latinos in the United States Humanities
WRIT 0150 Writing Seminar in ARTH: Museums and Anti-Racism Humanities, Writing Seminar
WRIT 0350 Writing Seminar in Ethnic Studies: The Model Minority Myth Humanities, Writing Seminar
WRIT 0350 Writing Seminar in Ethnic Studies: The Rhetoric of Asian American Activism Humanities, Writing Seminar
WRIT 0390 Writing Seminar in ENGL: The Politics of Passing & Covering Humanities, Writing Seminar
WRIT 0580 Writing Seminar in LGST: Criminal Injustice Humanities, Writing Seminar

IMPORTANT NOTES:

Counting MEAM 0099: Independent Study towards the Impact of Technology Requirement: Students must formulate a proposal to learn established knowledge, and/or perform research to help establish new knowledge, related to DEI issues and engineering, science, or technology under the guidance of a MEAM faculty advisor. The proposal will then be submitted for review and approval by the MEAM DEI Task Force. Following that, the usual process for MEAM Independent Study credit will be followed, namely, the proposal will be submitted for approval to the MEAM Undergraduate Chair and final approval by OAS.

Counting MEAM 0099: Independent Study towards the Community Impact Requirement: Students must formulate a proposal to perform service work in the community that applies engineering principles and practice under the guidance of a MEAM faculty advisor. Assessment, research, or other academic study related to that service experience would also be required. The proposal will then be submitted for review and approval by the MEAM DEI Task Force. Following that, the usual process for MEAM Independent Study credit will be followed, namely, the proposal will be submitted for approval to the MEAM Undergraduate Chair and final approval by OAS.

 

ACTION FORMS:

Declare Your Intent to Pursue the MEAM DEI Elective Option. Fill out this form to declare your intent to pursue the MEAM DEI Elective Option. You can also use this form to formally withdraw from the Option.

Request Additional Courses. Students may submit a petition to count a course outside of the approved list towards the MEAM DEI Elective Option. Petitions are reviewed and approved by the MEAM DEI Task Force and the MEAM Department.

Request Letter of Completion. Students who have completed the DEI Elective Option must submit this form by the deadline to apply for graduation in their final semester.

Questions?

Contact Us!