Discover New York (DNY) encourages students to engage both intellectually and personally with the remarkable city that not only houses St. John’s University but also serves as home to people from literally all over the world. Faculty members develop DNY courses around the application of their own academic disciplines, employing these disciplines as the conceptual lenses to address the general framework defining DNY’s educational goals.  As a result, students have the opportunity to “see” New York City through a particular academic perspective including those focused on the arts, business, social and political relationships, literature, and media in the city.  With a continual emphasis on critical thinking and information literacy skills as the primary pedagogy of learning, the city becomes the laboratory for the students’ application of the course focus.  Moreover, with the course mandate for Academic Service Learning, the city is experienced by students as a place populated with “real people,” many of whom live in difficult situations and need assistance.