Spring 2026 Course List
The School of Civic and Economic Thought and Leadership offers four distinct academic tracks in its undergraduate curriculum.
- Moral and Political Thought
- American Political Thought
- Economic Thought and Political Economy
- Leadership and Statesmanship for the 21st Century
To graduate with a BA or a BS degree in civic and economic thought and leadership, students are required to take at least one course from each academic track in addition to the required core courses. A variety of upper-division courses are offered in each track every semester to allow you to tailor your academic experience in SCETL to your own goals and interests.
"SCETL is kind of a mix of a few things. You get economics, you get history, you get philosophy all blended into one, which is a really cool and unique experience to be able to hear from all of these different schools of thought and you get to challenge yourself." - Justin H.
Required Core Courses
Introduces fundamental debates and ideas of politics in both the West and beyond. Surveys ancient, medieval, and modern thinkers — such as Plato and Aristotle, Aquinas and Augustine, Machiavelli, Locke, and Rousseau — tracing their influences on contemporary debates with a focus on the great questions of human nature, social and political life, and the relationship between religion and politics. Enrollment requirements: Credit is allowed for only CEL 100 or CEL 194 (Great Ideas of Politics and Ethics)
Courses:
M/W 10:30am - 11:45am | Matt Slaboch| Tempe Campus | Session C: #23067
M/W 12:00 PM – 1:15 PM | Peter McNamara |Tempe Campus | Session C: #26645
T/Th 1:30pm - 2:45pm | Steele Brand | Tempe Campus | Session C: #17511
M/W 3:00pm - 4:15pm | Matt Slaboch | Tempe Campus | Session C: #24508
T/Th 1:30pm - 2:45pm | Nick O'Neill | Tempe Campus | Session C: #29080
M/W 10:30am - 11:45am | John Von Heyking | Tempe Campus | Session C: #29393
T/Th 12:00 PM – 1:15 PM | Nick O'Neill |Tempe Campus | Session C: #19995
Available as an iCourse
Session A: #19812
Provides students majoring in the School of Civic & Economic Thought and Leadership the opportunity to explore and develop the skills necessary for their careers after graduation. Students learn from faculty, alumni, and area professionals what careers students of civic thought and leadership typically enter into and what skills can be translated from theory into practice in different professions.
F 10:30am - 11:30am | Richard Avramenko | Sean Beienburg | Tempe Campus | Session C: #35174
Introduces fundamental ideas and debates about liberty and equality in American thought from the colonial era to the present, focusing on major political figures and issues--ideas that continue to shape political debates in 21st-century America, thus providing crucial foundations for future leadership roles in either public affairs or the private sector. Enrollment requirements: Credit is allowed for only CEL 200 or CEL 294 (Great Debates in American Politics and Economics)
Courses:
T/Th 10:30am – 11:45am | Tyler Thomas | Tempe Campus | Session C: #17363
M/W 1:30pm - 2:45pm | Aaron Kushner | Tempe Campus | Session C: #26532
M/W 12:00pm - 1:15pm | Paul Carrese | Tempe Campus | Session C: #30195
T/Th 12:00pm - 1:15pm | Tyler Thomas | Tempe Campus | Session C: #20345
T/Th 9:00am - 10:15am | Evan Lowe | Tempe Campus | Session C: #30189
T/Th 1:30pm - 2:45pm | Evan Lowe | Tempe Campus | Session C: #21863
T/Th 3:00pm - 4:15pm | Tyler Thomas | Tempe Campus | Session C: #35182
Available as an iCourse and oCourse
Session A: #24231/26661
Session B: #19813/32235/26662/32234
Explores and debates the politics, economics and morality of 'capitalism'--the system of society that allows space for markets, profit-seeking and money-making. Readings cover the period from antiquity to modern commercial society. Authors studied include Aristotle, the Apostles, Aquinas, Locke, Franklin, Smith, Marx and Weber. Also serves as a broad introduction to the study of political economy.
T/Th 9:00am - 10:15am | Nick O'Neill | Tempe Campus | Session C: #19902
Discusses great ideas and figures in political leadership and statesmanship, from ancient Greece and early modern Europe to America's founding and the present global uncertainty, especially the major arguments about war, peace and international affairs--ideas that shape foreign policy and grand strategy debates in the 21st century, thus providing crucial foundations for future leadership roles. Major thinkers and episodes include Thucydides, Plutarch, Montesquieu, George Washington, Lincoln, Truman and the Cold War, and Reagan, as well as contemporary debates about America's post-Cold War strategies for its leadership role in global affairs. Incorporates a Marshall brief (a policy presentation) and a group simulation exercise.
MW 3:00pm - 4:15pm | Paul Carrese | Tempe Campus | Session C: #17509
The School of Civic and Economic Thought and Leadership works closely with congressional offices in Arizona, nationwide, and Washington D.C., as well as nonprofits, government agencies, and large and small businesses to develop internship programs for its students.
Our students are interested in facing complex problems, aspiring to become leaders in their field, and are just as eager to learn outside the classroom as they are inside.
The school accepts internship programs for the summer, fall, and spring semesters.
You will need to work 7-10 hours per week in a paid or unpaid position and enroll in CEL 484 to earn three credits and meet the SCETL graduation requirement.
M/W 10:30am - 11:45am | Andrew Porwancher | Tempe Campus | Session C: #22191
Moral and Political Thought
Examines classics of medieval political philosophy across Christianity, Judaism and Islam, including such thinkers as Thomas Aquinas, William of Ockham, Maimonides, Averroes and al-Farabi, asking such questions as: What can we know about the good by nature? Can reason suffice for determining laws governing the common good or do human beings need recourse to divine revelation? Is God bound by natural law or is God's will independent of reason?
M/W 9:00am-10:15am | Eduardo Schmidt Passos | Tempe Campus | Session C: #35184
Erika Bachiochi | Session B: #37324
American Political Thought
James Madison and the Constitutional Convention" will critically examine the critique of the Articles of Confederation that Madison developed in the mid-1780s, the constitutional reform program that he formulated to address the "vices" of this system, and Madison's role in the drafting and ratification of the Constitution. Madison is frequently called the "Father of the Constitution," but the veracity of this claim has recently been firmly challenged. He has also recently been accused of falsifying his famous record of the debates at the Convention. This course will involve a deep immersion (we are going into the weeds!) in the debates surrounding the drafting and ratification of the United States Constitution to formulate answers to these disputes.
T/Th 9:00am - 10:15am | Alan Gibson| Tempe Campus | Session C: #25495
Economic Thought and Political Economy
The tradition of combining the study of Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE) originates at Oxford University. It aims to provide an interdisciplinary foundation for students to become active participants, as citizens and leaders, in a liberal democratic society that faces an uncertain future. It provides familiarity with core conceptual tools provided by philosophy, politics and economics, and an appreciation for the foundation they provide together to address social and political uncertainties we face today as well as in the future. Reliance on any one disciplinary set of tools and skills is useful, but the real challenges of any liberal democracy are met by neither technocratic nor bureaucratic solutions. They require an awareness of the relevance of ethics, politics and economics, as well as an appreciation for the limitations of each and the necessity of thinking through their interactions.
W 4:30pm - 7:15pm | Alex Rosenburg | Tempe Campus | Session C: #34427
Provides an introduction to the schools of thought concerned with explaining and influencing economic activity.
T/Th 10:30am - 11:45am | Ross Emmet | Tempe Campus | Session C: #24262
Leadership and Statesmanship for the 21st Century
Allows ASU students from a variety of disciplines to encounter liberal education, classic texts and Socratic seminars, in an intensive, supportive and beautiful environment. Explores a fundamental question: How do I live a life of meaning? Students read thinkers ranging from Aristotle, Plutarch and Cicero to Viktor Frankl, Toni Morrison and Marge Piercy--and brings to bear their own life experiences--to understand concepts of love, friendship, work, community, citizenship and identity in relation to living an examined life. Expands these studies through practical experiences of service work, meditation and film to create a vital cohort and intellectual community. A central assessment for the course, the Organic Reflective Assessment (ORA), is a series of prompts and responses designed to allow students to think about and receive feedback from professors regarding the practice and methods of liberal learning: how to read texts and annotate them, how to ask questions of authors, how to think about one's own life in relation to and using language from classic texts--on the idea that to use existing, perhaps even widely known, language and relate it to our lives is a way to make our ideas known to ourselves and others. Students have need to keep up with these responses during the retreat.
Susan Carrese | Prescott 3/8/2026-3/13/2026, | Prescott National Forest | DYN #26608
Examine how war, economics, and statecraft have shaped the modern world. This seminar-based course dives into the strategic ideas and historical events that defined international relations, drawing from both primary and secondary sources—including treaties and declassified documents that reveal the foundations of modern statecraft.
M/W 12:00pm -1:15pm | Megan Brand | Session C: #24271
5/11/2025-5/23/2025 | Ileana Orlich | Session C: #37949
Literary, cultural, and historical issues.
T/Th 12:00pm - 1:15pm| Ileana Orlich | Tempe Campus | Session C: #24996
Explore the timeless question of whether war can ever be just. Through classical, medieval, modern, and contemporary perspectives, this course examines the ethical and political dimensions of warfare—free from partisanship and ideology. Students will learn how to think critically about the moral responsibilities, limits, and duties surrounding political violence.
M/W 12:00pm - 1:15pm | BJ Dobski | Tempe Campus | Session C: #19903
Course Spotlights
Explore the roots of political order, from ancient Greece to modern India or study the debates over fundamental American principles! Hear directly from our students and faculty on what civic and economic thought and leadership courses are all about.