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(Undergraduate and Graduate, Listed Alphabetically by Departments and Programs)
ARCH 370 - Junior Year Writing
This seminar course provides several frameworks to explore critical architectural/spatial dialogues between a broad range of political, cultural and social contexts.
ART 497 JS - Junior Senior Seminar
Tues, Thurs, 8:30-11:15am
In the time that we gather together we will approach ways of making, ways of being, and ways of seeing from a holistic and collaborative perspective. When we are more present with ourselves and others we can align our interests to relevant systems of production and circulation, including understanding how expressions of power are encoded in every aspect of a project’s lifecycle from sourcing materials to its final departure.The course is divided into three sections. Becoming an Artist, where we will attend to who you are becoming as you create your projects. Labor: where we will attend to the roles you and other people take on in order to create a project and Sourcing/Departure where we will attend to where materials for projects are sourced and where those materials go when they are no longer of use, value, or interest.
ART 397 DT - Design Thinking and Collective Impact
This course offers a practical, experience-based introduction to design thinking tools and techniques. Students explore design for social impact through individual assignments and by working in teams. In this service-learning course, students will participate in a community project or placement guided by an organizational partner that contributes to the public good. By developing projects on and off campus, students will build core skills in creative research, art direction, visual design, prototyping, and the ability to work collaboratively.
ART 311 - Visual Arts & HumanDevelopment II
Mon, Wed, 1:25-2:40pm
social justice approaches to visual art education
ART 397DG - Visual Culture: Contemporary Indigenous Media
In what ways can we understand the visual cultural practices currently being produced globally by Indigenous media makers? Is it possible to decolonize vision? How might visual cultural practices disrupt traditional Western narratives that position Indigenous people outside of technological progress and innovation? This course will provide students with a critical vocabulary for discussing a wide range of contemporary Indigenous media through the viewing of work created by established and emerging media makers in concert with contemporary media theory and criticism produced by Indigenous scholars and artists. Visual Cultures will survey global Indigenous media art produced post-1990 with a focus on new media practices. Students will view and interact with media across a broad range of mediums and technologies illustrative of global Indigenous media practices including experimental film, video art, media installation/projection, animation, Web projects, mediated performance, activist media and community video, Virtual reality (VR), Augmented reality (AR), video games, and machinima.
ARTS-EXT 509 - Greening Your Arts Nonprofit Org
Thurs, 4:20-5:35pm
The arts have always been at the forefront of change, and never has change been more required than today. Whether an organization needs to cut its facility costs, be first in line for donation dollars, or serve as a 'green' model for its community, this class determines which changes are easy to institute, provide the greatest cost-saving, really reduces its carbon footprint, and builds programmatic credibility with audiences. This class concludes with a final green plan tailored to the unique needs of a case study organization.
HISTORY 111 - World History since 1500
Mon, Wed, 9:05-9:55am + discussion
This course examines world history from the late fifteenth century to the very recent past. To provide coherence to this vast range of peoples, places, and events, we will focus on two related themes: first, the formation and transformation of Eurasian and global empires; and second, the “Columbian exchange” of peoples, raw materials, manufactured goods, and biological organisms that has characterized the history of the world since 1493. Over the course of the semester, we will explore aspects of these themes, including the enslavement and forced migration of millions of human beings; the radical transformation of the landscapes of eastern North America, western China, and elsewhere; the formation of world economies; and other subjects.
HISTORY 154 - Social Change in the 1960s
Few periods in United States. history experienced as much change and turmoil as the "Long Sixties" (1954-1975), when powerful social movements overhauled American gender norms, restructured the Democratic and Republican parties, and abolished the South's racist "Jim Crow" regime. This course examines the movements that defined this era. We will explore the civil rights and Black Power movements; the student New Left and the antiwar movement; the women's and gay liberation movements; struggles for Asian American, Chicano/a, Native American, and Puerto Rican freedom; as well as the rise of conservatism. Throughout the semester, we will assess Sixties social movements' ideals, strategies, and achievements, and their ongoing influence upon U.S. politics, society, and culture.
HISTORY 265 - US LGBT and Queer History
Tues, Thurs, 11:30am-12:45pm
This course explores how queer individuals and members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) communities have influenced the social, cultural, economic, and political landscape in United States history. With a focus on the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the course covers topics such as the criminalization of same-sex acts, cross-dressing, industrialization and urbanization, feminism, the construction of the homo/heterosexual binary, transsexuality and the "lavender scare" during the Cold War, the homophile, gay liberation, and gay rights movements, HIV/AIDS, and (im)migration. We will often look to examples from the present to better explore change over time and the modes and influences that shape both current and past understandings of gender and sexual difference.
HISTORY 397JL - Special Topics- Social Justice Lawyering
Tues, 2:30-5:00pm
From fighting Jim Crow segregation to challenging the recent Muslim travel ban, judicial review has historically been used as a strategy to reign-in executive and legislative over-reach and protect Constitutional rights. This course will examine how lawyers, social movements, and everyday people have used litigation to advocate for social justice in the United States. Through reading in-depth studies of important civil and criminal cases, we will explore such questions as: What is the history of social justice lawyering in the United States and how, why and when have social movements turned to litigation to advance their causes? What are the pros and cons of using litigation to achieve social justice, versus other tools like direct action, lobbying for political change, and community organizing? How effective is litigation in achieving the goals originally envisioned by lawyers, activists, and litigants? How have lawyers constrained or expanded the vision of social justice movements? What dilemmas do lawyers?who are ethically bound to zealously advocate for the interests of individual clients?face when they are additionally interested in advancing "a cause"? Cases explored may include issues such as civil rights, women's rights, free speech, LGBT/Queer rights, disability rights, environmental justice, criminal justice, poverty and people's lawyering, immigration rights, and the rise of conservative social movement lawyering. Prior law-related coursework helpful, but not required.
HISTORY 411 - History of Science Activism
Thurs, 2:30-5:00pm
This course will examine the global history of social and political movements on issues related to science, technology, and medicine. Examples include movements for organic agriculture, against nuclear energy, promoting science literacy, opposing genetic determinism, for climate justice, and much more. We will adopt a historically grounded, interdisciplinary approach to explore the different forms science activism has taken?from intellectual debates, to professional movements of practicing scientists, to state-directed campaigns, to grassroots community organizing?and the different historical contexts in which they have emerged. These explorations will help shed new light on the current political climate: we will ask what it means to "defend science" and to what extent scientists, scholars, and activists have succeeded in developing an analysis of the power relations involved in so-called "attacks" on science. Students will read a wide variety of secondary and primary sources, present regularly during class meetings, write two papers rooted in analysis of the assigned materials, and pursue a final project that examines the historical and global contexts of some aspect of science activism (specific topic and format to be freely chosen). Students may opt to incorporate a community engagement component into their final project if they desire.
HISTORY 493M - Seminar- Policing in Modern America
Tues, Thurs, 1:00-2:15pm
In this course we will investigate and analyze major trends in the history of policing, broadly conceived, in the 20th century United States. This course is not meant as a chronological survey of U.S. history; instead, we will take a thematic approach, each week studying an issue or set of issues through a historical perspective. We will begin with an introduction to general theoretical approaches to the study of policing and the state, then turn to study the development of several different kinds of police forces in their historical contexts; private police in labor conflicts; the Bureau of Prohibition; and the Border Patrol. The course will also explore how evolving ideologies of race, class, gender, and sexuality have shaped understandings of what qualifies as criminal behavior in need of policing.
ARTHIST 213 - Venice: Art, History, Environment
Mon, Wed, Fri, 12:20-1:05pm
History and Culture of Venice and its Empire from its foundation to the present day, includes discussion of ecology, impacts of and responses to climate change, the effects of mass tourism, and history of environmental and cultural preservation.
ARTHIST 118 - History of Architecture and the Built Environment
Mon, Wed, Fri, 10:10-11:00am
ARTHIST 397V/697V - Vexed Antiquities
Mon, Wed, 2:30-3:45pm
This course focuses on the illicit market in antiquities and works of art stolen from countries and indigenous groups around the world to feed private collectors and art museums. It explores current efforts and possible reforms to protect international cultural heritage.
ARTHIST 327-01 - Contemporary Art
Tues, Thurs, 2:30-3:45pm
Addresses the history of contemporary art since 1980 from a western perspective, but in a global context. Introduces students to major issues in contemporary art and criticism such as conceptualism, new media, earth art, postmodernism, neo-expressionism, institutional critique, identity politics, political interventions, installation art, ecology, globalization, relational aesthetics, and the role of consumerism and the art market.Includes a new emphasis on community engagement and social practice art: students will work with the UMCA education curator to coordinate group visits of area high school students to the museum, in person or virtually, for critical discussions on the culture of museums and the way they relate to diverse and racialized communities.
ARTHIST 979D - Drawing in Contemporary Art
Wed, 2:30-5:15pm
This course addresses how drawing, once a preparatory medium for painting, is now a major medium in its own right. However, drawing is resistant to modernist medium specificity and thus can be seen as an "anti-medium" whose contemporary definition is not based on internal properties, such as line or the use of paper, but rather its ability to connect disparate practices, such as hand-making and digital expression; genres, such as art and design; and communities, such as art and science audiences. The course will develop around the hands-on study and research of objects in Five College collections, and will culminate in a series of web projects based around the objects researched by individual students and/or virtual exhibitions designed by student teams. Spring 2022 course will emphasize figural drawing and its links to intersectional identities and decolonial histories in contemporary art practices.
ARTHIST 397AA - Special Topics--African Art
Global Masquerade: Introduction to African and African Diaspora Art
This course is an introduction to African and African diaspora art history through the lens of masks and masquerade. Yoruba masquerade, Mardi Gras, and Caribbean Carnival are among the topics covered. We will discuss the lively interplay between sculpture, costume, dance, spirituality, and embodiment in global African practices of masquerade.
ARTHIST 391F - Topics in African Art
Tues, Thurs, 4:00-5:15pm
Visualizing Black Queer Feminisms
Sec 02-This section will examine the theme of architecture and race within the context of the Americas and the Caribbean from the colonial era to the contemporary moment. The close examination of pertinent literature, history, and theory will help us to flesh out the ways that architecture narrates race, and vice versa.
ARTHIST 391AA - Seminar in African Art
Mon, 4:00-6:45pm
Black Aesthetics and Globalization
Judaic Studies
JUDAIC 101 - The Jewish Experience I
Exposes students to diversity of cultures and histories Jewish people experienced prior to modern era.
JUDAIC 102 - The Jewish Experience II
Tues, Thurs, 10:00-11:15am
Diversity of cultures and histories of Judaic peoples in modern era
JUDAIC 189 - Culture & Immigration in Israel
Diverse and multicultural issues in a Middle Eastern country
JUDAIC 497B - Bad Fences: Trauma, Memory, and Desire in Israeli & Palestinian Cinemas
Thurs, 4:00-6:45pm
Issues around multiculturalism, memory and trauma in a key Middle Eastern society.
Middle Eastern Studies
MIDEAST 189 - Culture & Immigration in Israel
MIDEAST 190A - Water, Oil, & Blood: Middle East in Global Policy
Broad overview of the contemporary Middle East, including specific attention to environmental issues.
MIDEAST 391A - Islamic Society & Culture in the Middle Ages
Broad historical and social cultural background for a diverse region of the world.
MIDEAST 290C OR MIDEAST 245 - Environmental History of the Middle East
Environmental history of the Middle East with attention to social diversity.
MIDEAST 497BF - Bad Fences: Trauma, Memory, and Desire in Israeli & Palestinian Cinemas
PORT 497J/697J - Exploring Social and Environmental Justice through Lusophone Literature, Film and Visual Arts
Tues, 4:00-6:30pm
In this course we will learn about how cultural production from Brazil, Lusophone Africa and Portugal imagines and represents society, the environment, and the human impact on the world. We will draw on literature, film, and visual arts to engage in a conversation around topics and issues such as social and environmental (in)justices, different forms of violence and human rights violations, gender, race, class, politics and memory. We will study cultural practices that resort to different aesthetic and ideological approaches in order to respond, denounce, and creatively resist to.
SPAN 465 - Business Spanish
A course taught in Spanish that reviews the basics of macroeconomics, microeconomics and development economics with a particular focus on what we mean by being "rich" and "poor" from a comparative nationhood standpoint, and from a comparative individual standpoint across regional contexts. This course analyzes the history of economic development in the US and Spanish-speaking countries, especially after World War II, and contextualizes the institutional systems, goals and realities of the current international system of "development aid".
FRENCH 397Z - French for Science Professions
Mon, Wed, 2:30–3:45pm
In this class that introduces French for Science Professions, students will be asked first to investigate and share knowledge in French about certain environmental challenges such as plastic pollution, resource depletion, and global warming, and then to popularize one or more scientific concepts or technical solutions using Minecraft Education or other simulation software/games.
LLC 501 - Translation and Interpreting Ethics and Standards
Fully online - no required synchronous meeting times
This course introduces ethical considerations as it applies to the human activity of translation and interpreting. Coursework includes an overview of ethical behavior and morality, discussions of accountability, professional translator and interpreter codes of ethics and standards of practice.
GERMAN 376 - The Holocaust
Tues, Thurs, 2:30-3:20pm + one Friday discussion
This course explores the causes and consequences of what was arguably the most horrific event in all of history. Topics include both the long-term origins of the Holocaust in European racism and anti-Semitism and the more immediate origins in the dynamics of the Nazi state and the war against the Soviet Union. Particular attention will be given to the debates and controversies, including the motivations of German and non-German perpetrators, bystanders, and collaborations, the place of the Jew and non-Jews in Holocaust historiography, the continuities of racism and genocide and their comparability, and the consequences of the Holocaust for memory and world politics. Conducted in English.
PHIL 175 - Intro to Philosophy of Technology
Investigates the nature of technology and how it structures and affects our individual and collective lives and our relationship to both the built and natural environment.
PHIL 570 - Topics in Social and Political Philosophy
Mon, 12:20-2:50pm
Covers the doctrine of Political Liberalism as articulated by John Rawls and addresses both race-based and gender-based challenges to that doctrine.
PHIL 163 - Business Ethics
Mon, Wed, Fri 1:25-2:15pm
Explores issues like: moral limits on what can be bought and sold, the implications of social media companies' business models for privacy and political misinformation, and ways that the use of Big Data can exacerbate bias and discrimination.
PHIL 170 - Problems in Social Thought
Mon, Wed, Fri 10:10-11:00am
Introduction to contemporary issues in social and political philosophy.
