Fall 2024 Strand Course Descriptions
Technology and Innovation (301)
Conflict (302)
Citizenship (303)
Wellness (304)
Sustainability (305)
Technology and Innovation (301)
English (ENGS 301)
ENGS 301-01 (CRN: 50549) “The Future Now: Reading Sci-Fi,”
MWF 10:00-10:50
Professor Michael Livingston
The future is coming. It always is. What will it bring? What does that mean for us today? This course investigates the ways in which science-fiction allows us to examine our present while preparing for what’s to come.
ENGS 301-02 (CRN: 50550) & ENGS 301-03 (CRN: 51086): From Robots to A.I.
TR 09:30-10:45, TR 13:30-14:45
Professor Thomas Horan
While technology often fulfills its promise to make our lives easier, innovations that replicate human intelligence, dexterity, and efficacy can also create significant challenges, anxieties, and hazards. Spanning the last hundred years, the literature you will read for this course addresses these concerns by raising important questions: How will A.I. affect the need for human labor, particularly if used in the service of corporations and other profit-motivated institutions? What are our moral responsibilities to these artificial yet conscious entities? To what extent could these developments blur the distinction between human and mechanical? Could A.I. ultimately threaten our existence? Course content will include Karel Čapek’s play R.U.R. (1920), which originated the word “robot”; Ray Bradbury’s “There Will Come Soft Rains,” which envisions a future in which our sentient creations survive human extinction; Philip K. Dick’s post-apocalyptic novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? (1968); Ridley Scott’s Bladerunner (1982), a cyberpunk film based on Dick’s novel; Morna Pearson’s play Dark Lands (2019), in which a corporation induces a vulnerable young couple to raise a cyborg child; and Nobel Prize-winning author Kazuo Ishiguro’s Klara and the Sun (2021). Through a series of activities and assignments, you will connect the concepts and concerns raised in this speculative fiction to contemporary aspirations and anxieties.
History (HISS 301)
HISS 301 01 (CRN: 50569) & HISS 301 02 (CRN: 50575) & HISS 301 03 (CRN: 51413): “The Gun and The Press”
MWF 09:00-09:50, MWF 10:00-10:50, MWF 11:00-11:50
Professor Kurt Boughan
This course examines the impact on western Europe, in the period 1450-1650, of two transformative technologies: the gun and the printing press. While the press was invented c. 1450 and the gun existed well before that, both technologies only began to realize their revolutionary potential decades later. We will explore how both profoundly altered the warfare, economy, politics, society, and culture and of Early Modern Europe. This course’s learning objectives are to 1) chart the development of firearms technology in the period 1325-1650 and print technology in the period 1450-1650; 2) situate guns and the press in their economic, political,religious, social, and economic contexts; 3) interpret and analyze primary and secondary sources in the early history of firearms and print; 4) chart the transformative consequences, both tangible and psychological, of these transformative technologies on early modern Europeans.
Social Science (SCSS 301)
SCSS 301-01 (CRN:51555) & SCSS 303-02 (CRN:50693) & SCSS 303-03 (CRN:50694): “Technology & Society”,
MWF 08:00-08:50, TR 13:30-14:45, TR 08:00-09:15
Professor Paul Roof
This course examines the basic concepts and principles of technology. A scientific approach to the analysis and explanation of the complex cultural and sociological debates that surround modern technology.
Natural Science (NTSS 301)
NTSS 301 03 (CRN:50890): “How Airplanes Fly”
TR 09:30-10:45
Professor Joel Berlinghieri
The course has several components which are important in acquiring a physical understanding of How Airplanes Fly. Unlike training, educating means that you will have a knowledge of why something occurs in addition to how to bring about that something by pulling or pushing on a control knob. Lectures, measuring data using a wind tunnel, plotting and analyzing data, understanding the language of equations, describing in words observations, and experiencing flying using a sophisticated flight simulator will all be used to acquire that understanding. Team projects to include building model air foils, gliders, and other aerodynamic models will be performed if time during the semester permits.
NTSS 301 04 (CRN:50892): “Making Smart Tech”
TR 11:00-12:15
Professor Henry Yochum
A number of innovative technologies use a mix of software and hardware to sense and respond to the surrounding world. Example devices include sensor-based toys, kinetic sculpture, low cost scientific instruments, interactive wearables, and Internet of Things (IoT) connected devices. This course is an accessible, project-based introduction to conceiving, designing, and developing interactive sensor-based prototypes. Students will pursue projects based on their interests. Practical hands-on exercises will introduce the fundamentals of circuits, microcontroller programming, sensors, and actuators. No experience needed.
Elective (ELES) 301
ELES 301-01 (CRN:):
Description coming soon!
Conflict (302)
Elective (ELES 302)
ELES 302-01 (CRN: 51561): “Muslims and Christians”
TR 09:30-10:45
Professor Zane Segle
This course focuses on the study of narratives about Muslims and Christians during the medieval and early modern periods in Spain. Students will be provided with the foundation for understanding the complexity of the relationship between both the Moorish and Christian populations as both friends and foes. Through a critical lens, students will analyze various texts and attempt to make sense of the curious nature of Spain’s creative imagination that defined the social, religious, and political environment
English (ENGS 302)
ENGS 302 01 (CRN: 50551) & ENGS 302 02 (CRN:50552):”Literature of War”
TR 08:00-09:15, TR 09:30-10:45
Professor Jennifer Adair
This class provides a broad overview of the major themes of modern war through a mixture of fictional and nonfiction texts. Although the majority of the works cover the Global War on Terror (GWOT), other classic selections have been woven in to provide evolving perspectives. Subjects covered include training for combat, modern combat, the crippling military bureaucracy, PTSD and other post-combat experiences. Finally, the course hopes to raise awareness of psychological stressors in both the military and civilian world and consider healthy coping techniques.
ENGS 302-03 (CRN 50606): “Stories of Medieval Warfare”
MWF 09:00-09:50
Professor Michael Livingston
Description coming soon!
ENGS 302-04 (CRN 51087): “Cities Under Siege: Contested Urban Spaces“
TR 11:00-12:15
Professor Licia Hendrix
Stark photographs and raw footage of ruined Ukrainian cities in the aftermath of Russian bombings convey the harsh reality of ruined human lives amid the rampant destruction and devastation of war. Natural disasters wreak similar havoc on landscapes, most viscerally of late on American soil with the wreckage left of the Gulf Coast of Florida caused by Hurricane Ian in the fall of 2022. Major incidents notwithstanding, climatologists have long warned against coastal erosion and the increasingly intense impacts of weather systems on residential areas. This Conflict Strand class explores the narratives of the displaced and disenfranchised as society sorts out how to rebuild communities, serve the needs of refugees, and house the marginalized. The syllabus includes a classic work of literature that depicts the struggle to gain a foothold in a hostile environment and live autonomously—Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun, a play that chronicles the lives of three generations of a working-class Black family living in mid-twentieth-century Chicago—and a collection of poetry engaged with similar themes of the obstacles to existential safety and security disproportionately affecting the marginalized segments of society. Susan Crawford’s investigative assessment of Charleston’s vulnerability to the destructive force of floodwaters predicts that those left in harm’s way will be those who cannot afford to save themselves. We will also read selected excerpts from P. E. Moskowitz’ How to Kill a City, a modern-day investigation of the particular challenges facing New Orleans, Detroit, San Francisco, and New York, which will help us to think about contemporary issues of urban development, public policy, and the competing priorities that jeopardize lives and livelihoods, and their impacts on where people choose to make their homes as well as the communities from which they are excluded. Through reading, writing, analysis, and discussion, students will improve their capacity to think both critically and empathetically: to understand and respect the views and concerns of others, especially regarding gender, ethnicity, and religion. Academic performance will be evaluated through midterm and final examinations and an assortment of writing assignments and recorded presentations, several of which will incorporate attention to scholarly publications, culminating in an essay of at least 2000 words.
History (HISS 302)
HISS 302-01 (CRN:50570): “Life & Death in WWII Europe”
TR 11:00-12:15
Professor Christopher Wright
Description coming soon!
HISS 302-02 (CRN:5580) & HISS 302-03 (CRN:50698) : “Islamic Conquest”
MWF 09:00-09:50, MWF 13:00-13:50
Professor Christopher Wright
This course examines the era of the Islamic Conquests from the 7th through the 8th centuries. Attention is given to the historical, political and religious contexts of the conquests, motivations, the makeup of Islamic armies and those of their adversaries, and how these armies changed over time. Includes a detailed look at the conquests of Syria, Palestine, Iraq, Egypt, Iran, North Africa, India, Central Asia, Spain and the invasion of France. Finally, the course discusses Arab migration and settlement into conquered territory, the treatment of conquered peoples and the impact of the conquests.
HISS 302-04 (CRN:50699) & HISS 302-05 (CRN:51415): “Great Britain and the experience of World War“
MWF 09:00-09:50, MWF 10:00-10:50
Professor Kathrine Grenier
World War I was a watershed event in European history, with transformative effects in international relations, economics, politics, society, and culture. This course will consider the British experience of the war. In addition to an overview of the military experience of the war, we will examine the various ways in which the war influenced the home front, including conscription, rationing, air attacks on those at home, the changing role of government, gender roles, relationships with the British Empire, and understandings of what it means to be a citizen. In this course, students will:
– Articulate the facts of history and place them in their contemporary context.
– Construct and develop historical arguments, based on course materials.
– Practice the skills of clear and effective writing.
– Analyze the structure and ideas of historical writing on the British home front in the world wars.
– Develop an understanding of the impact of World War I on British social, political, and cultural history.
– Characterize the ways in which the experience of World War I influenced the relationship between Great Britain and its colonies.
Natural Science (NTSS 302)
NTSS 302-01 (CRN: 50896): “Chemistry in War and Peace”
TR 11:00-12:15
Professor Blakely Adair-Hudson
Humans have used chemicals and chemical properties to create weapons for centuries, but the conflict associated with the use of chemicals is not just related to war. Both negative and positive impacts on people, animals, and the environment (natural and fabricated) frequently occur with the use of chemicals. For example, food waste and cost can be reduced when lightweight plastics are used for shipping and storing. However, recycling of many plastics can be cost prohibitive due to the same chemical properties that make them useful. Students will learn some common chemical structures and properties to better understand their uses. Students will research and discuss many quantitative factors that produce conflict from chemical use during times of war and peace.
NTSS 302-02 (CRN:51364) & NTSS 302-05 (CRN:50880): “Bioterrorism”
MWF 11:00-11:50, MWF 10:00-10:50
Professor Kristy Johnson
This course will examine diverse aspects of the creation, use, and response to the weaponization of biological agents. An understanding of the science underlying biological agents is critical to preventing the escalation of biological outbreaks. A detailed study of the biological characteristics of these organisms will be the focus for this course.
NTSS 302-03 (CRN: 51559) & NTSS 302-04 (CRN: 51560): “Human-Wildlife Conflict”
TR 09:30-10:45, TR 11:00-12:15
Professor Andrea Gramling
As the human population grows and the habitat for wildlife shrinks, conflicts between humans and wildlife increase in frequency. These conflicts can be deadly, costly, and frustrating. This elective Conflict Strand course will discuss the biology of predators, pests, and plagues to better understand the nature of their impact on humans. We will also explore methods of wildlife damage management to answer the question: Can we balance the needs of humans with the needs of wildlife?
Social Science (SCSS 302)
SCSS 302-01 (CRN:50741) & SCSS 302-02 (CRN:50742): “National Guard in Conflict”
TR 08:00-09:15, TR 09:30-10:45
Professor Platte Moring
The use of the National Guard in domestic and international conflicts to establish law and order has a contentious history in the United States. This course will examine the sources of conflict and the methods of conflict resolution. Beginning with the Colonial Militia at the Battles of Lexington and Concord, the curriculum follows the evolution of the citizen-soldier in conflict through the Global War on Terrorism. The deployment of the National Guard in domestic disputes and overseas combat implicates Constitutional and legal issues involving federalism, separation of powers, and political concerns. LTC Moring, Deputy General Counsel of the Department of Defense in the Trump Administration, explores the role of the citizen-soldier in war, insurrections, labor unrest, protests, and the conquest of the West.
Citizenship (303)
Elective (ELES 303)
ELES 303-01 (CRN: 51562): “German Soldier’s Stories”
MWF 11:00-11:50
Professor Laura Means
Regardless of country or time period served, there are aspects of the soldier experience that are universal. This course seeks to examine that experience through the lens of German stories (translated to English), ranging from fairy tales involving Soldiers to a play set in the Seven Year’s War to a brutal and uncanny short story by Kafka to and adaptation of the well-known novel All Quiet on the Western Front set in WWI. Course materials include various mediums, such as readings, graphic novels, and film.
ELES 303-03 (CRN: 51259): “Immersive Cultural Experience”
Selected topics or problems in the general area of culture and leadership. This course examines the culture(s) of host country, leadership styles/philosophies, conflicts, changes, and human resources involved in entities/organizations.
English (ENGS 303)
ENGS 303-01 (CRN: 50553): “Plague & Penance: Atonement”
MWF 08:00-09:15
Professor Licia Hendriks
In this Citizenship Strand course of the General Education curriculum sequence, we will perform close readings of four celebrated tragic plays that form the foundation of the Western artistic and cultural tradition. These works of literature encompass narrative situations that prompt the interrogation of our notions of heroism, moral courage, and principled leadership; the significance of defiance against authority (both sacred and secular), personal conscience contrasted against what is commonly accepted as socially appropriate behavior in the pursuit of one’s desired ends, and what is required to bring members of a social order into compliance with established power structures and the standards of civilizations. When characters live in community, there is an implicit expectation that they will adhere to the written and unwritten rules governing that society. When they fall out of compliance—whether the inciting incident is rooted in personal choice, immutable circumstance, or some combination thereof—the attendant friction takes on a life of its own, impacting the perspective, judgment, and limits of autonomy of the parties involved. In Plague & Penance we will use the material provided by these four classic texts not only to challenge our own preconceived notions of the basis of how to redress wrongdoing, but also to analyze the premises upon which the works of fiction we read/view are based:
• What are the embedded values that provide a barometer for character and contextual assessment, and do we share those values today?
• How do characters seek to justify their own choices and actions?
• How do characters endeavor to make up for their transgressions?
• Is it fair to hold entire communities accountable for the transgressions of errant individuals?
• Does ideological dissent release individuals from obligatory adherence to particular cultural codes and standards?
• What are the repercussions of the rejection of an imposed social script?
• To what extent do works of literature or their performative interpretations operate to endorse or condemn the fictional situations contained within them?
• How do texts serve to reflect or shape the cultures within which they are situated?
• How do unorthodox representations impact the lived experience of those who read/view them?
Through reading, writing, analysis, and discussion, students will improve their capacity to think both critically and empathetically: to understand and respect the views and concerns of others, especially regarding gender, ethnicity, and religion. Academic performance will be evaluated through midterm and final examinations and an assortment of writing assignments and presentations, a number of which will incorporate attention to scholarly publications, culminating in an essay of at least 2000 words.
History (HISS 303)
HISS 303-01 (CRN:50568): “History of US/Mexico Borderlands”
MWF 10:00-10:50
Professor Nancy Aguirre
This course will give students an overview of U.S. immigration history. Students will be asked to think critically about different types of migration, as well as the political, economic, and sociocultural dynamics that resulted from the movement of people into and within the U.S. Through an analysis of primary and secondary sources, students will explore how immigration and the inclusion/exclusion of specific groups have shaped the United States.
Natural Science (NTSS 303)
NTSS 303-07 (CRN: 51092): “Biology, Environment and Law”
MWF 10:00-10:50
Professor James Berry
This course will explore the ways that the legal system protects and regulates biological systems in the environment. We will examine the profound influence that environmental laws have on species, ecosystems, and landscapes, and the effects of the regulation of air, water, and land in maintaining biodiversity, sustainability, and ecosystem health.
Social Science (SCSS 303)
SCSS 303 01 (CRN: 51620) & SCSS 303 02 (CRN: 51621): “Exploring National Identity and Political Participation.”
Professor Michael Ferguson
This course delves into how a nation’s identity influences citizens’ political engagement. It examines the formation of national identities, considering factors like ethnicity, language, and historical narratives. The course also explores how national identity shapes political behavior, including voter turnout and civic activism, and analyzes its impact on participation in politics. Students will gain insights into the complex interplay between national identity and political engagement, equipping them with analytical tools to advocate for equitable citizenship.
Wellness (304)
English (ENGS 304)
ENGS 304 01 (CRN:50548) & ENGS 304 02 (CRN:51441): “Improvise, Adapt, & Overcome”
MWF 08:00-08:50, MWF 09:00-09:50
Professor Sean Heuston
This course will examine a wide range of written sources (fiction and nonfiction from the Roman Empire to the present) and films that deal with the central issue of the Wellness Strand: how to live a good life. We will read and discuss selections from classic works of nonfiction (including the Meditations of Marcus Aurelius, Henry David Thoreau’s Walden, and Virginia Woolf’s A Room of One’s Own,), fiction (including Ernest Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea and Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried), poetry (including poems by Robert Frost, Rudyard Kipling, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, and William Wordsworth) and films (such as Apocalypse Now, Bigger, Stronger, Faster*, and Little Dieter Needs to Fly) alongside more recent nonfiction texts about facing and overcoming life’s manifold challenges. In addition to developing familiarity with our course texts, students will become familiar with related research on aspects of wellness they can apply to their own lives. This course will help you hone your skills as a critical viewer and reader who engages with and questions a variety of challenging texts and issues. In addition to the required texts listed above, we will read and view a wide range of critical essays, news articles, and online resources. Many of the texts will require substantial, careful reading and will give us a great deal of provocative material to discuss, so make sure to look ahead in the syllabus and budget sufficient time to read them thoroughly. You will apply your ideas and insights directly to your chosen area of academic interest and/or specialization by developing a semester-long research project in consultation with me. The course will also help you develop your skills as a writer. I will assign short response papers and a longer essay (the culmination of the semester project), all of which will be related to the texts or issues we read, view, and discuss in class.
ENGS 304-03 (CRN:50935): “Overcoming Ego for Good”
TR 09:30-10:45
Professor E. Frances Frame
In the first part of this course, we will build an interpretive framework from Karl Jung’s shadow self theory, connect Jung’s concept of the shadow to behaviors (punishing, placating, projecting, and denying) and emotions (fear, anger, and hatred), apply the interpretive framework to analyze works of literature and film, and evaluate victory over inflated ego as a potential key to healthy maturity, creativity, mindfulness, letting go, and reconciliation. In the second unit of the course, we will construct an interpretive framework from Murray Bowen’s family systems theory, contrast Bowen’s relationship patterns and postures (conflict, distance, pursuit, cutoff, over-functioning/under-functioning reciprocity, triangles, and reactive repetition) with autonomy, equality, and openness as healthy alternatives for managing emotional intensity in relationships, and apply this framework to analyze works of literature and film. In the final phase of the course, we will identify points of intersection between Jung’s and Bowen’s theories, synthesize an integrated framework, and apply this framework to analyze a work of literature.
ENGS 304-04 (CRN:51463): “Honors Advanced Writing”
TR 13:30-14:45
Professor Lauren Maxwell
This course will examine a wide range of written sources (fiction and nonfiction from the Roman Empire to the present) and films that deal with the central issue of the Wellness Strand: how to live a good life. We will read and discuss selections from classic works of nonfiction (including the Meditations of Marcus Aurelius, Henry David Thoreau’s Walden, Virginia Woolf’s A Room of One’s Own, and Viktor Frankl’s Man’s Search for Meaning) and fiction (including Ernest Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea and Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried) and films (such as Apocalypse Now, Bigger, Stronger, Faster*, and Little Dieter Needs to Fly) alongside more recent nonfiction texts about facing and overcoming life’s manifold challenges. In addition to developing a familiarity with our course texts, students will become familiar with related research on aspects of wellness they can apply to their own lives. This course will help you hone your skills as a critical viewer and reader who engages with and questions a variety of challenging texts and issues. In addition to the required texts listed above, we will read and view a wide range of critical essays, news articles, and online resources. Many of the texts will require substantial, careful reading and will give us a great deal of provocative material to discuss, so make sure to look ahead in the syllabus and budget sufficient time to read them thoroughly. You will apply your ideas and insights directly to your chosen area of academic interest and/or specialization by developing a semester-long research project in consultation with me. The course will also help you develop your skills as a writer. I will assign short response papers and a longer essay (the culmination of the semester project), all of which will be related to the texts or issues we read, view, and discuss in class.
History (HISS 304)
HISS 304 01 (CRN:50607) & HISS 304 02 (CRN:50893): “A Good Life & Death in Chinese History”
TR 09:30-10:45, TR 08:00-09:15
Professor Keith Knapp
Over the three-thousand years of China’s recorded history, its people have long thought about how to live well and prolong life. Since death was viewed as a continuance of life under slightly different circumstances, Chinese simultaneously pondered how to die well. By reading translated philosophical texts, hagiographies, medical treatises, short stories, and diaries, we will see how one could lead a healthy and meaningful life, and perhaps even cheat death by attaining immortality. By examining death testaments, Buddhist scriptures, and archaeological evidence, such as tombs, grave goods, and excavated documents, students will ascertain how Chinese envisioned death and prepared the deceased for a pleasant existence, or even Buddhahood, in the afterlife.
Natural Science (NTSS 304)
NTSS 304-01 (CRN:50881): “An Ounce of Prevention”
TR 09:30-10:45
Professor Mary Katherine Zanin
This Wellness Strand Science Course will allow students to explore the value of healthy living as it relates to disease prevention, with focus on the biology of diabetes, heart disease, and cancer, among others. Inquiry will include a literature review, group work, and a comparison of the normal function of the related systems as compared with the disease state.
NTSS 304-02 (CRN:51136) & NTSS 304-03 (CRN:51137): “Human Diseases”
MWF 10:00-10:50, MWF 11:00-11:50
Professor Andrea Gramling
What causes human diseases? In NTSS 304, a wellness strand science course, we will explore the general classifications of the causes of disease as well as investigate the disease processes associated with specific diseases and body systems. We will also explore our body’s defense mechanisms to combat diseases and begin to quantify the prevalence of diseases in multiple populations. The purpose of this course is to present a systematic approach and application to the study of human diseases so that the student will be able to use appropriate terminology to describe diseases 2) understand the mechanism and progression of diseases and 3) understand the appropriate treatment options.
NTSS 304-03 (CRN:51500): “Physics of Sports”
MWF 10:00-10:50
Professor Kaelyn Leake
This course covers the physics behind a wide variety of sports, including football, baseball, soccer, swimming, and archery. Topics such as force, momentum, energy, and aerodynamics will be covered to help explain athletic performance, equipment, rules, and plays. Students will have the opportunity to use the physics they learn to analyze a sport of their choice as part of a final project.
Social Science (SCSS 304)
SCSS 304-01 (CRN: 51160) & SCSS 304-02 (CRN:51491): “Social Problems”
TR 09:30-10:45, TR 11:00-12:15
Professor Robert McNamara
This course is designed to acquaint students with a fundamental understanding of social problems in American society.
This course is designed to:
1. Acquaint students with a fundamental understanding of how social problems emerge in American
society;
2. Analyze and inquire the incongruence between conventional wisdom about a problem and the data outlining actual trends and features.
3. Describe how these problems impact our society, both in terms of social policy as well as how they influence people’s understanding and interaction with others.
SCSS 304-04 (CRN: 51360): “Psychology of Human Interactions”
MWF 11:00-11:50
Professor Allison Grace
In this course, students will delve into the psychological processes that govern how individuals interact with one another to shape attitudes, behaviors, and relationships. Through a combination of classic and contemporary research, students will examine key topics such as group dynamics, leadership, social identity, and social influence to uncover the intricacies of human behavior and its impact on social interactions.
SCSS 304 05 (CRN: 51343): “Survey of Economics“
TBA
Professor TBD
Economics traditionally has two branches or sub-areas of study: Microeconomics and Macroeconomics. Microeconomics looks at the logic of human decision-making and choice under conditions of scarcity and the workings of the market economy under competition and monopoly. Macroeconomics, the focus of our course, addresses the wider economy-wide questions that often affect society: What are the possible causes behind economy-wide fluctuations in employment, output and prices, in general. In other words, what’s behind inflations and recessions, and economic growth for the society as a whole? How do we measure and determine output, employment, and the movement of prices in the economy? What is the role and place of money in the overall economic system, and how does the monetary and banking system work? What are the options and impacts of various monetary and fiscal policy tools available and often used by governments and central banks? These are questions, I hope you see right away, frequently fill the newspaper headlines: What has happened to the unemployment rate? By how much has the economy as whole grown over ( or contracted during the last three months, or the last year? What is the rate of price inflation, and what is its significance for business and consumer decision-making? What monetary and interest rate policies is the Federal Reserve (the American central bank) following that can influence investment spending and employment in the overall economy? By how much has the government been running a budget deficit and what impact or importance is there to the resulting accumulated national debt, which now comes to well over $26.6 trillion! What we shall also see is that there are no unanimous or clear cut answers to either how the macro-economy fully operates or what the effects are of different policies may be set in motion by the government through its taxing and spending policies or by the Federal Reserve with monetary and interest rate policies. That is what a lot of the economic policy debates and arguments are all about in Washington, D.C. I hope this suggests the relevance and importance of a course in Economics for all those pursuing business or related careers, because any and all individual business enterprise decisions inescapably are made and carried through in the general economy-wide setting and situation. The most well-made investment or marketing decisions, for instance, can be thrown off track by the booms and busts of the business cycle, that is, inflations and recessions. As they can be by the policies implemented by governments and central banks.
SCSS 304 06 (CRN: 51362): “Nature and Nurture in Psychology”
TR 11:00-12:15
Professor Lori Fernald
This course examines human development (both typical and atypical) through the lens of a developmental psychopathology perspective. More specifically, this course focuses on how biological and environmental forces interact to shape human development. Developmental processes will be examined through a review of current research. Students are provided with an overview of the field of developmental psychopathology, including issues related to etiology, typical and atypical developmental processes, developmental pathways, neuroscience, assessment, and prevention and intervention. In this course we will investigate the factors that contribute to making us who we are as humans. More specifically, we will examine the interaction between nature (genes) and nurture (environment) in human development. Through readings, discussions, videos, presentations, and other sources we will study the protective factors that help make us resilient, as well as the risk factors that contribute to more negative outcomes.
SCSS 304 07 (CRN: 51461): “Honors Communication: Understand Your Audience: Communication Theory & Research”
TR 09:30-10:45
Professor Sean Forney
The great Robert Frost once said, “Half the world is composed of people who have something to say and can’t, and the other half who have nothing to say and keep on saying it.” Understanding Your Audience: Communication Theory & Research makes sense of both groups from a theoretical and methodological perspective. Students will be asked to embody the role of the scholar/researcher who is curious about the messages we compose, share, and employ to spur society in positive and negative directions. In a world of constant communication, this course allows students to critically ask why and systematically investigate how it is that we have so much to say. Theoretically, students will understand the process of communication from multiple angles: public, interpersonal, mediated, group, critical-cultural, and intrapersonal. Methodologically, students will analyze studies that test messaging in quantitative, qualitative, and/or critical designs. Comprehensively, the understanding of communication theory will broaden students’ adaptability to a more diverse world and widen the utility of such theories to fit a new generation of scholars; the practice of communication research will help students understand research design, construct measures, deductive vs. inductive perspectives, results vs. discussion ethics, and increasing the body of knowledge to help solves larger communication problems today.
SCSS 304-08 (CRN: 51462): “Honors Blue Mind/Blue Spaces“
M 15:00-15:50 & W 15:16:40
Professor Lloyd Taylor
Description coming soon!
Elective (ELES 304)
ELES 304-01 (CRN: 51563): “Luna-Tic: Image of the Werewolf”
MWF 11:00-11:50
Professor Kyrie Miranda Farnell
This course will examine the evolution of the werewolf in Western Europe. While the focus will be on werewolf imagery and its perception over the course of human history, namely in France, an emphasis will also be placed on historical, social, and cultural conditions that arose in which the image of the werewolf was cultivated. In this course, you will read a combination of (translated) primary sources and critical articles, as well as watch and review several films / clips / music videos that all focus singularly on the connection(s) between humanity and wolf.
Sustainability (305)
Elective (ELES 305)
ELES 305-01(CRN: 51583): Critical Thinking in Sustainability
MWF 09:00-09:50
Professor Alba Ortiz
In this course students will be encouraged to think critically, ask questions, and analyze sustainability issues from multiple angles while considering ethical implications. Students will be actively engaged in real-world projects and decision-making activities. The course will explore the United Nations 2030 agenda, and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals.
“The world community has refined its commitment to sustainable development to ensure sustained and inclusive economic growth, social inclusion, environmental protection and to do so in partnership and peace.”
English (ENGS 305)
ENGS 305-01 (CRN:50554): “Saving The World in Sci-Fi and Fantasy”
MWF 11:00-11:50
Professor Michael Livingston
Description coming soon!
History (HISS 305)
HISS 305-01 (CRN:50608): “Viking Age and Sustainability”
MWF 10:00-10:50
Professor Melanie Maddox
The history of sustainability considers man’s use and control of his environment during different historical periods. This use and control can lead to long-term success and/or failure. This course will broadly focus on human interactions with nature and the environment during the Viking Age, c. AD 750-1100. Topics to be discussed are: land use, travel, belief systems, commerce, city formation and political authority. Regions included in the course are: Greenland, Iceland, Ireland, Scandinavia, early England, and Francia.
Natural Science (NTSS 305)
NTSS 305-01 (CRN:51001) & NTSS 305-02 (CRN:50882): “Foraging Wild Plants”
TR 08:00-09:15, TR 09:30-10:45
Professor Joel Gramling
In Foraging Wild Plants (NTSS 305) students will be challenged to learn the biology of native plants through the application of foraging. The core topics of the course will be ecology, evolution, plant identification, systematics, and human nutrition. Students will further their understanding of general biology through lectures, interpretive walks and hands-on activities. Daily in-person participation is a requirement of this course.
NTSS 305-03 (CRN:51450): “Extreme Weather and Climate”
MWF 11:00-11:50
Professor Walter Curtis
The study of extreme and hazardous weather and the unusual climate phenomena that alter weather patterns. Students will investigate the composition, characteristics, and processes in the atmosphere, which can lead to severe weather events, such as heat waves, cold spells, floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, and lightning. Climate variability and change, which alter the frequency and severity of these weather hazards will also be explored.
Social Science (SCSS 305)
SCSS 305-01 (CRN:50703) & SCSS 305-02 (CRN:51557): “Sociology & Sustainability”
TR 11:00-12:15, MWF 10:00-10:50
Professor Paul Roof
This course examines the basic concepts and principles of sociology. A scientific approach to the analysis and explanation of culture, personality, and social organization are emphasized along with the major sociological paradigms along with a heavy emphasis on sustainability issues.