Photo by: Natalie Pipe

In an effort to reach out to undergraduates, Christopher Hill, dean of the Josef Korbel School of International Studies, addressed the disconnect between the undergraduate and graduate programs at the school at a meeting in Driscoll Wednesday.

About 20 students attended the event, which was hosted by the Koalition of Korbelites – a student group founded by sophomores Mona Qureshi and Laurel Mazur last spring quarter to facilitate communication between undergraduates and the Korbel School.

“We have tried to be much more open to undergraduates,” Hill said. “They’re not just afterthoughts in the place, they’re a real, essential part of Korbel.”

The school is looking to expand class options available to undergraduates. It will be hiring additional full-time undergraduate lecturers, and Hill is trying to get current Korbel professors to teach more undergraduate classes, he said.

In a personal effort to help repair the disconnect, Hill is considering teaching a class himself. He hopes this would send a message to Korbel students and professors that the school values undergraduates.

“It would be a powerful signal,” he said. “We take undergraduates seriously.”

One student raised concerns at the meeting about his perceived liberal bias in the three required undergraduate core classes.

Hill said he would relay the concern to the professors who teach these core classes. He also would like to see more critical thinking in all Korbel classes.

He wants students to “try to get both sides of the divide,” he said.

Several students commented on the possibility of Korbel adding online courses in expanding its undergraduate course options. Many of the students who spoke were not in favor of online classes, citing anonymity and lack of professor/student connection as reasons.

Hill is considering the addition of online classes, but is still looking for more feedback from students before proceeding.

Current events questions were also raised at the meeting, especially about the current uprising in Egypt.

Hill said that the Obama administration has been smart in its handling of the situation, in which Egyptians are demanding the ousting of President Hosni Mubarak.

He also cautioned against the U.S. siding with the Muslim Brotherhood, who may assume control of the country if Mubarak is successfully removed from power.

“I’d be real careful about jumping in their laps,” he said.