Humanities Courses

This course introduces students to various methodologies to analyze the meaning and relevance of some of the world's major religions such as Hinduism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. It invites students to study how social situations
and cultural values influence our views on divinities, cosmology, humanity, the human person, belief, ritual, and morality.

A study of the Old Testament against the background of the ancient Near East emphasizing the history and religion of the Hebrew people.

This course introduces the teaching profession by panoramically exploring both general education and special education settings. It includes the study of American schools and considers diversity, multiculturalism, equity, and inclusive educational practices for students with and without disabilities.

Selected works of English and American literature, in all three major genres, focusing on a particular issue or topic of contemporary interest, such as sports, women in literature, science fiction, popular culture, existentialism, religion. Emphasis on how the various writers present these problems in styles peculiar to their genres. Students may repeat this course once for credit with consent of discipline coordinator.

Please contact your instructor for specific topic.

Selected works in English literature with emphasis on historical, cultural, and aesthetic values, including material from Beowulf to Boswell. Lecture and discussion

The writings of the New Testament will be studied in terms of their historical context, literary style, purpose, authorship, and religious teachings. A variety of approaches to the reading and understanding of this literature will be considered.

Selected works in English literature with emphasis on historical, cultural, and aesthetic values, including material from the romantic period to the Second World War. Lecture, discussion.

In this class, you will learn and practice genres for professional and technical writing. You will extend your knowledge of planning, revising, and editing text and adjusting rhetorical strategies for different audiences from first-year writing. We will emphasize collaborative writing, technical skills for designing documents, editing for clarity and consistency, and exhibiting a professional ethos in writing, information design, and online communications.

(Also LAC 205) Fundamentals of Spanish usage, oral and written. An introduction to Spanish diction and phonetics. The student acquires fluency in the reading of selections from the literary works as well as from training in correct pronunciation.

Fundamentals of French usage, oral and written. An introduction to French diction and phonetics. The student acquires fluency in the reading of selections from literary works and through training in correct pronunciation. Conducted in the French language.

(Also CAT 206) The focus is on writing a feature-length film and the basic elements of plot, protagonist, turning point, and resolution. You will be expected to complete a step outline of your story and the first act of your screenplay.

A continuation of FRN 205.

Continuation of SPA 205.

(Also AFS 207) This course begins with the history of Africans in continental Africa and their forced removal and enslavement in North America and continues through the Abolition movement, Emancipation, and Reconstruction. This course will examine the creolization of Africans in what became the United States, and the resultant religious, cultural, and political traditions. This is the first course in the African American History sequence.

The history of religion in the United States from the colonial period to the present day. Topics will include: the religious situation in Europe during the 16th and 17th centuries; immigration patterns of the colonists; frontier expansion and the industrial revolution; the growth of denominationalism; religion and science; liberal and conservative ends; civil religion; "cults'' and other contemporary issues.

(Also PSY 210) The role of psychological concepts in educational practices, focusing on the nature and sources of intellectual development and readiness according to Piagetian, psychometric, and information process perspectives. Beyond these approaches to cognitive development, learning theory, motivation, and the role of emotion in learning will be discussed. This course will also include a section on individual differences in learning; exceptional students and social, ethnic, cultural, and gender differences. The related topics of measurement and evaluation of learning will round out the course.

This course seeks to develop in the student an awareness of sociological approaches to the study and understanding of religion. It will consider the various ways of defining and articulating the sociological dimensions of religion. Included will be an exploration of how American and other societies have been influenced by religious factors as well as an investigation of how society itself can shape religion. The relationship of religion to politics, economics, class structures, sexual roles and other vital areas of human life will be examined.

(Formerly JOU 212) Improvement of the speaking voice is the focus of this course. Attention will be paid to developing a pleasing tone, strong articulation, proper pronunciation, and correct breathing. Students will also learn the International Phonetic Alphabet. The course is highly recommended for those students interested in radio, television, teaching and business.

Religion is an integral part of human culture and society; as such, it has exerted an enormous influence upon the course of history, the formation of civilization, and the development of literature, art, music, and philosophy. The aim of this course is to acquaint the student with the diversity and complexity of religious phenomena in Western and selected non-Western cultures. The student will be introduced to the “language” of religion (mythology, symbolism, ritual) and will examine the influence of religion upon a range of humanistic concerns. These may include: art and architecture, music and dance, drama and literature, and philosophy.

(Formerly JOU 213) Oral interpretation is defined as the study of literature through performance. The course is designed to train students to use their bodies and voices to interpret poetry, drama and prose, children’s literature, world literature and documentary material. Students will present literature in individual and ensemble performances.

This course will address the historical background for current problems of globalization in areas selected from the following: histories of globalization, colonialisms, the unequal distribution of wealth, global health, including a history of plagues, world trade, ethnic wars and their consequences, terrorism, culture and globalization.  

A seminar in the art and craft of playwrighting. Through classroom discussions, selected readings, writing assignments and critical feedback, each student creates a one-act play which is presented to the College community in an informal program of staged readings.

(Also LAC 216) This course explores the history of Latin America and the Caribbean from Conquest to Independence. Special attention will be paid to encounters between various peoples; the economic, political, and cultural institutions of the colonial period; and the wars for independence that ended colonialism. This is the first course offered in the Latin American-Caribbean survey.

Community Orientation & Citizenship This course is designed to foster understanding of the significant roles of families and communities in the growth and education of children. Topics include recognizing children at-risk; recognizing and accepting diverse family units; the impact of home, community, health, and cultural experience on development and learning and understanding social, historical, political, legal and philosophical constructs that impact children, families and communities. Identification and collaboration with community agencies and resources to support individuals with special needs and their families will be addressed. Students cannot take EDC 202 and EDC 217 simultaneously.

This course will introduce students to the fundamentals of writing history. Students will learn to both identify and make historical arguments, use primary and secondary sources to appropriately support an argument and successfully sustain an argument throughout academic papers of varying lengths. Students will develop their writing by editing and revising multiple drafts of papers.