Academics

This program satisfies Experiential Education (EE) for those in the Making Connections curriculum and HI-ABROAD for those in IDEAs in Action.

EXSS 290H: Smart and Connected Teams (3 credits)

Professor Adam Kiefer

Futbol Club Barcelona and the Barça Innovation Hub (BiHub) model specifically will serve as an anchor point for this course as we explore sport science technologies, methodologies, and analytic approaches that connect data, people, and systems to enhance athlete health and performance. Through a partnership with FC Barcelona’s Team Sports area and the associated infrastructure, we will survey approaches from computer and information science, data science, engineering, movement science, and the combination of these for applications to individual athletes and teams. Topics will include multimodal performance measurement and assessment, artificial intelligence/machine learning, data management and visualization, cyberphysical systems, mixed reality simulation technologies and behavioral modeling. The course will culminate with a small-scale on-field research experience at the famous Barca Escola—the flagship FC Barcelona training school for boys and girls between 6-18 years of age.

HNRS 390: Sports Culture in Spain (3 credits)

Professor Dr. Lucia Binotti
Connections: World Before 1750 (WB), Global Issues (GL)
IDEAs in Action: FC-PAST, FC-GLOBAL

Learn about the history of sports in Spain with a concentration on soccer. We will study culture of sports and its role in the Spanish society. This course will help you to understand some relevant aspects of health and physical activity in the country, economical and even political issues that affect sports in Spain. Focusing on specific areas such as nutrition, mass media, architecture, regional and national rivalries, …this course will have exclusive access the some of the Barca facilities and staff who will provide a unique perspective of what sports represent for Spaniards. Weekly lessons will be complemented with side visits and experiential activities to completely immerse in the culture of Catalonia in particular and Spain in general.