Course Description

Civil wars are the most common form of conflict across the world, causing death, destruction, and humanitarian crises. Their impact on politics, economics, and international stability can extend far after the war ends. How can the international community address this pernicious problem? What determines whether interventions to stop the fighting are successful?

In this course, students will learn about the tools the global community uses to solve disputes and debate potential solutions to ongoing conflicts. We’ll start by looking at the intersection of foreign policy, strategy, and negotiation—what do countries want and how do they get it? Then we’ll dive into theories of conflict resolution and how the United Nations plays a role as a peacemaker across the world. The course culminates with an exciting, hands-on UN Security Council simulation, where students will tackle issues related to real-world conflicts, develop informed solutions, and put their negotiation skills to the test.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completing this course, students will:

• Understand important concepts related to negotiation and how they are applied both in instances of civil war and within international organizations like the UN
• Learn about the causes of civil war onset and termination, and the effectiveness of conflict resolution strategies
• Apply their knowledge of conflict resolution identify potential solutions to three conflicts covered in our simulation
• Apply their knowledge of negotiation to identify ideal scenarios, trade-offs, coalition-building opportunities in our simulation
• Have facility with finding and evaluating a variety of sources for research in international affairs
• Develop written communication skill from drafting resolutions and oral communication skills by presenting and debating during our simulation.

Tangible Outcomes

The tangible outputs are mostly group-based and most have an (non-material) experiential component. Students put together briefings (slide deck, 2-page policy memo) in teams on an ongoing civil war in Africa.  Students also write draft resolutions in their UN Security Council simulation.

Hands-On Activities 

In the first week, each afternoon is a structured research session in which the instructor demonstrated useful research skills/tools alongside our subject librarian.  This provided an opportunity for students to dig into meaningful research, both individually and in groups, while also having access to support from the instructor and Dartmouth's History and Social Sciences librarian.

Guest Speakers

• Wendel Cox, History Librarian.
• Victoria Holt, Director of Dickey Center, former State Department official in Office of International Organizations and Peacekeeping.
• Elizabeth Shackleford, Dickey Policy Director, former State Department official with experience in Somalia and South Sudan.
• Peter Jenkins, Dickey Center Internship Coordinator.

Field Trips 

Students will spend time in the library and visit the Dickey Center for International Understanding. 

Benefits for Future Study

Understanding negotiation is important for everyone. It's perspective-taking. It's thinking about trade-offs. It's identifying opportunities for constructive compromise. The substance of the negotiations are some of the deadliest conflicts and largest humanitarian challenges happening today.  About a third of the students go on to major in Political Science or International Relations, and some have shared that they are joining the Model UN Team at their school. 

Course Description 

Unlock your full potential in the arena of life! This dynamic pre-college program is designed for high school students passionate about human health, performance excellence, mental fitness, and leadership. Whether or not you engage in organized athletics, we believe everyone should know how to optimize themselves in the pursuit of their dreams. To that end, "Peak Performance" incorporates the fundamentals of human health with modern research in sports psychology, performance training, and team building to prepare student-athletes for success on and off the field. 
 

This course reveals the wealth of collegiate services and resources that help students maximize their education potential. You’ll receive invaluable experiential learning with your instructors and guest speakers as you examine how elite athletes train their minds and bodies, guide you to find your own leadership style, and offer a comprehensive basis for building the skills, habits, values and relationships that give you a competitive edge in learning to last a lifetime.

Learning Outcomes

By the end of the course, students will be able to:

• Design personalized protocols to optimize performance in the classroom and in physical activities
• Lead a group activity focused on team building or peak performance
• Explain how habits support or hinder personal growth and long-term success
• Understand the biological and psychological foundations of human performance and their role in academic achievement, athletics, and lifelong health

Tangible Outcomes

• Final Project: Each student will lead a small group in a team-building or sport performance activity, applying course concepts in a real-world setting

Hands-On Activities

• Daily team discussions and collaborative learning
• Experiential team-building exercises
• Applied performance and leadership activities during field trips

Field Trips & Experiential Learning

Students may visit and engage with:

• Weight room and athletic training facilities
• Competition spaces and locker rooms (e.g., softball and basketball)
• Visual Performance Lab
• Outdoor team-building experiences (kayaking, ropes course, nature walks in Pine Park)
• Pickleball or another entry-level sport to practice mental performance techniques in action

Benefits for Future Study and College Success

Students will use the concepts from this course every day for the rest of their lives. By exploring how humans function biologically, psychologically, and socially, students learn how to perform at their best in the moments that matter most.

This course provides a strong foundation for college readiness, helping students understand how to leverage campus resources, maintain personal well-being, and balance performance demands—whether or not they pursue collegiate athletics.

Ideal for Students Interested In:

• Participating in college athletics (intramural, club, or varsity)
• Supporting athletic or performance programs
• Careers in health and wellness, psychology, sports science, leadership, or professional athletics
• Developing a well-rounded, lifelong approach to peak performance during and after college

Leadership Institute A is the first iteration of our classic Leadership Institute. Taught by Professor Anna Mahoney PhD, Executive Director of the Rockefeller Center for Public Policy at Dartmouth, this course asks the essential questions: What makes a great leader? Can leadership be learned, or is it inborn? What are my leadership strengths and how can I apply them to the topics I care most about?

This course features six and a half days of in-person instruction at Dartmouth in the Rockefeller Center's Public Policy seminar room, followed by two days of immersive outdoor leadership training at the Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC)'s Highland Center. Housing at the Highland Center includes bunk rooms and three hot meals. 

• Arrive to Dartmouth: Sunday, July 12
• First day of class at Dartmouth: Monday, July 13
• Last day of class at Dartmouth: Tuesday morning, July 21
• Transit to AMC Highland Center: Tuesday afternoon, July 21
• Outdoor Leadership: Wednesday, July 22 and Thursday, July 23
• Depart from AMC Highland Center: Friday, July 24 & pick up on campus

No prior outdoor experience is required to participate in this Leadership Institute. To participate in the Outdoor Leadership component of the class, students should come prepared with a water bottle, sneakers, a day pack and a fleece. We provide headlamps for our night hike. 

In addition, AMC Highland Center guests have free use of the  L.L.Bean Gear Room, which offers boots, backpacks, outerwear, snowshoes, and more. AMC's on-site retail store offers books, maps, AMC apparel, gear, and last-minute items.

Please contact us in advance if you have physical mobility concerns.

Leadership Institute B is our signature Leadership Institute curriculum with a focus on personal development for business leadership. Building off of our classic Leadership curriculum, this course will also feature a rigorous hut-to-hut hike in the Presidential Mountains of New Hampshire in which students will work together to cover miles and ensure the group's success.

Given the expertise of the instructors, Tuck alum and entrepreneur Jack O'Toole and peak performance expert Jackson Penfield, this Leadership Institute will ask the questions: What is leadership? How can I understand my strengths as a leader and leverage them? What practices and resources can I draw on to improve my areas for growth? How can I collaborate effectively with people whose strengths are different than mine, especially when operating in ambiguous, rapidly changing or complex situations?

Covering approximately fifteen miles of challenging hiking terrain over the course of three days, students will have the opportunity to summit multiple four-thousand-foot mountains in New Hampshire's Presidential Range, eat and sleep at the Appalachian Mountain huts iconic lodges, and glimpse views from above treeline in the only alpine zone in the Eastern United States.

• Arrive to Dartmouth: Sunday, July 19
• First day of class at Dartmouth: Monday, July 20
• Transit to AMC Highland Center: Friday morning, July 24
• Hike from Highland Center to Lakes of the Clouds Hut (3.1 miles via Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail): Saturday, July 25
• Hike from Lakes of the Clouds to Mizpah Spring Hut (4.6 miles via Crawford Path): Sunday, July 26
• Hike from Mizpah Spring Hut to AMC Highland Center (2.7 miles via Crawford Path): Monday, July 27
• Transit back to Dartmouth: Monday afternoon, July 27
• Classes resume at Dartmouth: Tuesday, July 28
• Last day of class at Dartmouth: Thursday, July 30
• Depart from Dartmouth: Friday, July 31

While on the Dartmouth campus, Leadership Institute participants follow the same daily schedule as the Summer Scholars program.

Students participating in this Leadership Institute should have hiked before and be physically fit for carrying a 20-25 lb backpack up well-maintained, but steep, trails. In addition to their clothing and water bottles, students will need hiking backpacks, hiking boots and sheets or a sleeping bag. The AMC High Mountain Huts provide pillows and wool blankets. We recommend bringing a full or queen sized flat sheet that can be folded in half -- this is the lightest weight way to make a bed at the High Mountain Huts.

Students who already possess this gear are encouraged to bring their own, but AMC Highland Center guests have free use of the  L.L.Bean Gear Room, which offers boots, backpacks, outerwear, snowshoes, and more. Please contact us at summer.scholars@dartmouth.edu if you have any questions. 

Please contact us in advance if you have physical mobility concerns.

Leadership Institute C is the second iteration of our classic Leadership Institute. Taught by Professor Anna Mahoney PhD, Executive Director of the Rockefeller Center for Public Policy at Dartmouth, this course asks the essential questions: What makes a great leader? Can leadership be learned, or is it inborn? What are my leadership strengths and how can I apply them to the topics I care most about?

This course features two days of immersive outdoor leadership training at the Appalachian Mountain Club's Highland Center followed by six and a half days of in-person instruction at Dartmouth in the Rockefeller Center's Public Policy seminar room. Housing at the Highland Center includes bunk rooms and three hot meals. 

Arrive to AMC Highland Center: Sunday, July 26

Outdoor Leadership classes: Monday, July 27 and Tuesday, July 28

Transit to Dartmouth: Wednesday morning, July 30

First day of class at Dartmouth: Wednesday afternoon, July 30

Last day of class at Dartmouth: Thursday, August 7

Depart from Dartmouth: Friday, August 8

While on the Dartmouth campus, Leadership Institute participants follow the same daily schedule as the Summer Scholars program.

No prior outdoor experience is required to participate in this Leadership Institute. To participate in the Outdoor Leadership component of the class, students should come prepared with a water bottle, sneakers, a day pack and a fleece. We provide headlamps for our night hike.

In addition, AMC Highland Center guests have free use of the  L.L.Bean Gear Room, which offers boots, backpacks, outerwear, snowshoes, and more. AMC's on-site retail store offers books, maps, AMC apparel, gear, and last-minute items.

Please contact us in advance if you have physical mobility concerns.

Leadership Institute D is our signature Leadership Institute curriculum with a focus on personal development for leadership. This course features one week of classes on campus and a weekend to enjoy campus life, followed by four days of immersive personal development leadership challenges facilitated at Dartmouth's private Moosilauke Ravine Lodge in New Hampshire's White Mountains.

Given the expertise of the instructors, Tuck alum and entrepreneur Jack O'Toole and peak performance expert Jackson Penfield, this Leadership Institute will ask the questions: What is leadership? How can I understand my strengths as a leader and leverage them? What practices and resources can I draw on to improve my areas for growth? How can I collaborate effectively with people whose strengths are different than mine, especially when operating in ambiguous, rapidly changing or complex situations?

The course logistics are as follows: 

• Arrive to Dartmouth: Sunday, August 2
• First day of class at Dartmouth: Monday, August 3
• Transit to Moosilauke Ravine Lodge: Sunday afternoon, August 9
• Class at Moosilauke Ravine Lodge: Monday, August 10 & Tuesday August 11
• Mt. Moosilauke Hiking Challenge: 7.4 miles round trip via Gorge Brook Trail: Wednesday, August 12 (subject to weather)
• Mini Solo, Closing & Final Campfire: Thursday, August 13
• Return to campus and depart from Dartmouth: Friday, August 14

While on the Dartmouth campus, Leadership Institute participants follow the same daily schedule as the Summer Scholars program.

No prior outdoor experience is required to participate in this Leadership Institute but students should be in good physical condition, able to hike 8 miles up well-maintained but steep trail with a 10-15 lb day pack. To participate in the Outdoor Leadership component of the class, students should come prepared with a water bottle, sneakers, a day pack and a fleece. We provide headlamps for our night hike.

Moosilauke Ravine Lodge does not have cell phone service. Students will have the opportunity to experience how community development and self-reflection can be accelerated in remote settings.

Please contact us in advance if you have physical mobility or connectivity concerns.