Duncan Dobbelmann, adviser to the president at Bennington College, Vermont, wrote a commentary on the objectives and need of pop-up courses as part of Special Report on How to Revamp a Curriculum in The Chronicle of Higher Education, May 2017. Following are some excerpts from the commentary. 

There are times that colleges — especially those dedicated to instilling a social purpose — must offer courses that address unfolding events such as Ferguson with the same attention, skills, and rigor as regularly scheduled courses. Courses that can — and should — be seen as existing on the same continuum of learning.