In Journeys Class, Students Seek Wisdom, Not Knowledge

Grinnell College professors William Freeman and Dr. Kesho Scott seem like an unlikely pair.

Freeman, a former international athlete who became a track and field coach and teacher of sports psychology described Scott, a former Black Panther who became a scholar of sociology, as “not somebody I would’ve probably reached out to on campus. I didn’t see anything in common with her.”

Scott felt the same way. “What would motivate me to talk to some white boy over in the gymnasium?” she thought. But the two have partnered on one of Grinnell’s most unique courses—a class called The Journey Within that centers student self-exploration. It is perhaps the only American studies class in the world that has “appreciating and loving our core selves” as a key tenant.

Dr. Kesho Scott, professor at Grinnell CollegeThe Journeys courses—The Journey Within is the third edition—came together after a chance meeting between Freeman’s wife and Scott at Grinnell’s indoor track. They began talking, and Freeman’s wife recommended that Scott read The Quest, a book that Freeman had written about his own emotional and spiritual journey, by way of a cross-country motorcycle trip with his twelve-year-old son that led to an encounter with a Native American shaman and a transformative vision quest. Scott devoured the book and arranged to have coffee with Freeman, where they talked for two hours, sharing their journeys. Freeman had needed to realize that he had been tying his sense of worthiness to winning. Scott had struggled with family trauma and frustration with her activism and the slow, slow pace of change.

“The thing that struck me most was that she was also a seeker,” said Freeman. “It was an immediate recognition that she, too, is on the path and looking for answers.”

Scott was recognizing Freeman in her own way, realizing that “he ain’t no average white dude,” as she put it in a talk delivered to Grinnell alumni.

That initial meeting led to another, this one for four hours. Soon, they were spending whole days together and brainstorming for what would become the Journeys courses.