BU Cross-College Challenge Projects (DME)

HUB XC 420

  • Creativity/Innovation
  • Digital/Multimedia Expression
  • Research and Information Literacy
  • Teamwork/Collaboration

Are you looking to take on a real-world challenge, build your collaboration, leadership, and multimedia communication skills? Would you like to work with fellow students from across BU and with a community partner on an interesting and engaging project? Then the Cross-College Challenge (XCC) is for you! This particular course will focus on digital-multimedia expression within the communication Hub area. Each semester there are exciting new courses offered in areas such as social equity, data science, sustainability, public health, and more. XCC courses are open to juniors and seniors from all schools and colleges at BU. For specific course offerings visit: bu.edu/xcc. Create-Communicate- Collaborate. Effective Fall 2021, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Digital/Multimedia Expression, Teamwork/Collaboration, Creativity/Innovation, and Research and Information Literacy.

FALL 2024 Schedule

Section Instructor Location Schedule Notes
B1 Anastasi FLR 152 TR 9:30 am-10:45 am Project: Photovoice for Youth Activism This course empowers students to harness the profound impact of photography as a tool for advocacy, awareness, and social transformation. Through this journey, students will delve into the history of photography in activism, understanding the ethics of representation, and mastering the art of visual storytelling. With a specific focus on youth-led movements, the course will provide hands-on experiences in conceptualizing, capturing, and curating photographs that resonate with causes close to young hearts. Students will not only learn technical photography skills but will also explore the dynamics of engaging with communities, ensuring that their photographs voice the narratives of those they represent authentically. Alongside theoretical discussions, students will collaborate on projects, drawing inspiration from real-world youth activism campaigns to craft compelling visual messages that can catalyze change. By the culmination of XC420 B1, students will have a rich portfolio of activist photography and a deeper appreciation for the intersection of art, youth, and societal transformation. This course is designed for those who wish to blend their passion for photography with a desire to make a difference, turning every snapshot into a potential movement.

SPRG 2025 Schedule

Section Instructor Location Schedule Notes
A1 Torre Perez EPC 206 W 2:30 pm-5:15 pm Project: Music and Dance of Boston’s Brazilian and Caribbean Communities This course will take students on a journey through the music and dance cultures of the Luso-Hispanic world and their local manifestations in diasporic communities in the greater Boston area. In “Music and Dance of Boston’s Brazilian and Caribbean Communities,” students will learn about and engage with the culturally rich and racially diverse histories of the Luso-Hispanic world through several of its most salient music and dance genres, including reggaeton, Dominican bachata, Puertorican bomba, Brazilian frevo, forró, and capoeira. Students will be introduced to important debates concerned with the aesthetic, political, cultural, and economic dimensions of the genres studied, paying close attention to their broader connections to race, gender, nation, class, and sexuality politics.Throughout the course, students will consider questions of cultural hybridity and authenticity, and varying definitions and understandings of “Black music” in different contexts. In-class conversations will provide students with the theoretical framework to critically examine some of the most pervasive problems these musics and practitioners have faced, while outside the classroom, students will participate in immersive learning experiences, such as live performances as well as dance and music workshops with local performance artists. By the end of the semester, students will create their final group research project and presentation: a podcast featuring personal interviews with members of a local music scene of their own choosing. Weekly assigned reading and blog posts/responses will be accompanied by assigned listening and listening journals.

Note that this information may change at any time. Please visit the MyBU Student Portal for the most up-to-date course information.