“For a class to be memorable, it has to have emotional resonance, which can come from joy, shared struggle, or deep connection,” says Dr. Marissa King, an LDI senior fellow and Wharton School professor of health care management. “There is a science to creating connection, and that is what we do in this course.”

How do dance contests and paper airplane races relate to effectively teaching a health care leadership course at the Wharton School? That question quickly comes to mind upon entering the classroom of Dr. Marissa King as she presides over what can feel like an academic mosh pit: nearly five dozen students in constant motion — dancing, flailing, and shouting encouragement at their chosen teams while the Village People’s “Y.M.C.A.” thunders through the room, loud enough to shake the tables.

“My goal is impact,” explained King, a Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics (LDI) senior fellow and Wharton School professor of health care management. “As students enter medical school, nursing school, and other health care career paths, they often get bogged down in the technical side of medicine. I want them to remember — and live — the importance of social connection.”

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By Hoag Levins

Posted: January 23, 2026

Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics

Two professors (center and background), stand amidst a classroom of students seated at tables.
Marissa King (center), an LDI senior fellow and Wharton professor of health care management, and Sara Kelly (background), a director at the Netter Center for Community Partnerships, lead their class of over 60 students. (Image Credit: Hoag Levins)

 

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