K-12 Seminars

This seminar introduces educators to Japan’s cultural landscapes through castles, imperial sites, tea culture, and modern memorials. Participants will explore how architecture, gardens, and ritual expressed political power and aesthetic values from the early modern era to today. Through accessible readings and visual analysis, teachers will gain classroom-ready materials and strategies for bringing Japanese history and culture to life. This seminar is ideal for those teaching world history, social studies, art history, and Asian studies.

This five-week seminar traces the spread of Buddhism from India across the Silk Road into China, Korea, and Japan. Focusing on religious migration and cross-cultural exchange, participants will explore how trade networks, diplomacy, and pilgrimage carried Buddhist ideas, art, and practices across Asia. The seminar highlights how Buddhism adapted to local cultures while shaping political life, visual traditions, and philosophical thought. Educators will receive accessible readings and classroom-ready resources for teaching Buddhism’s global influence in world history, social studies, humanities, and art history.

This five-week seminar explores major social and cultural transformations in contemporary Korea. Participants will examine shifting family structures, changing gender expectations, intergenerational differences, and the impact of Korea’s declining birth rate—including how demographic change is shaping conversations about immigration. Through accessible scholarship, real-world examples, and current case studies, the seminar offers a clear and engaging look at how Korean society is responding to rapid social, economic, and cultural change.