PIT Speaker Series Syllabus

Stanford University's Sociology department has a Public Interest Tech speaker series class, with a different guest who works on tech, design, and innovation in the public interest each week.

Member Institution

Stanford University

Resource Summary

Stanford University’s Sociology department has a Public Interest Tech speaker series class, with a different guest who works on tech, design, and innovation in the public interest each week.

This is a 1-credit class open to both undergraduates and graduate students. Grading relied on participation and reflection essays. Students were expected to take at least one turn as a discussant, in which they asked the guests about their work, policy area, ethics, and outcomes. The students usually chose to write their reflection essay on the topic they had been the discussant for.

The syllabus for the class, including the guests, readings, assignments, and evaluation criteria, is available here as a resource for other instructors.

If you are interested in replicating or adapting this syllabus, please feel free to do so. If you have more questions about it, reach out to Margaret Hagan at [email protected].