The Shadid Curriculum draws from the outstanding journalism of those who have won or been named a finalist of the Anthony Shadid Award for Journalism Ethics, an honor given annually by the Center for Journalism Ethics at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Launched in 2021, the curriculum encourages student journalists to consider thorny ethical issues and place themselves in the position of making difficult journalistic decisions.

The case studies fall into one of six areas of study – approaching stories without prejudice, balancing intrusion and respect, intervening in a story, journalism as a public service and protecting sources. Many are paired with a video interview with a reporter or editor tied to the story. See an example of one case study below: