SOCI 101S 03 Introduction to Sociology
(4 Credits)
McEvoy, Alan
This course examines the cultural and structural patterns of human behavior. The content of this course focuses upon norms, social interaction, social organization, and social change. This course pays special attention to the characteristics of social institutions and how they shape human conduct. In this section, there will a special focus on how sociologists design and administer research surveys.
SOCI 110C Cultural Anthropology
(4 credits)
Jobrack, Stewart
Anthropology is a scientific and humanistic discipline that studies the entire human species throughout the world and throughout time. Cultural anthropology is the part of anthropology that focuses on human society and culture. Cultural anthropologists try to describe, interpret and explain socio-cultural similarities and differences. This class is an introduction to the field of cultural anthropology, with an emphasis on how the anthropological perspective can be applied to a wide range of human problems. Some topics that will be addressed in this class are language and symbols, the role of religion, equality and inequality, and the place of sexuality and gender in human life. Through a combination of readings, films, lectures, discussions and web-based online activities, we will explore what is unique to our culture and society and what we share with the most remote human groups. Students will be expected to participate in discussions and activities in the classroom and on the web and to write several short essays on assigned topics.
SOCI 201 01 Social Work in the Postmodern Era
(2 credits, 2 nd block)
Eldridge, William
This course will utilize lectures, movies and music, experiential exercises, art projects, and group dialogue to explore the predominant individual/cultural behavior systems that characterize this postmodern period of social history. Specific attention will be given to the implications of this cosmology to social work practice: including definitions of the self-system, categories of wellness and “pathology,” informal/formal systems of service provision, theories and methodologies of intervention, training and evaluation of professional practitioners, and overall paradigms of quality life and relationships.
SOCI 201 02 Community Development & Activism
(2 credits, 2 nd block)
Eldridge, William
The focus of this course is on practice interventions with organizations relative to the process of community development. One learning goal is to understand the nature of social work problem-solving and change process within a systems perspective as applied to social work practice with organizations and communities related to a community development model. Another learning goal is to develop a special sensitivity to members of groups undervalued or oppressed due to their race, gender, age, socioeconomic class, sexual preference, or condition of mental, physical, or social impairment.
SOCI 201C 03 Africa in the World Today
(4 credits)
Carlson, Andy
This course focuses on issues of development, population growth, ethnic conflict, and state formation in Africa. This course is designed to provide to you an opportunity to think, read, talk, and write about the interdependent contemporary world—in a classroom with an open attitude to multiple perspectives. Two textbooks are Vincent B. Khapoya's The African Experience: An Introduction and Nega Mezlekia's Notes from the Heyena's Belly: An Ethiopian Boyhood.
SOCI 245C 01 Gender and Society
(4 credits)
Julie Markin
This course introduces the student to the construction of gender categories, roles, and inequalities across cultures. Men and women are biological organisms embedded in complex cultural and personal histories that vary from society to society. We will begin with a discussion of whether or not gender is biologically or culturally constructed. We will then consider the ways in which sexuality (homosexuality, heterosexuality and bisexuality) is culturally and/or biologically constructed. We will look at the way that gender is constructed in societies which are egalitarian, move on to more complex hierarchical societies and end with a discussion of how gender is constructed in societies such as our own. We will utilize ethnographic, archaeological, linguistic, biographic, and biological data to explain the different worlds in which men and women must learn culturally specific gender behavior. One of the aims of the course will be to dissolve some of the stereotypes about other cultures' constructions of gender and sexuality and develop a more rich and sophisticated understanding of them and ourselves. Some of the topics of the course will include definitions of femininity and masculinity, marriage, kinship systems and how these shape men's and women's roles and relationships. Comparative cross-cultural methodologies will be employed to examine particular human traits across diverse societies in the world today and in the recent past.
SOCI 250S 01& 02 Sociology of Deviance
(4 credits)
McEvoy, Alan
Sex, violence, insanity, fear and loathing! This course focuses on public perceptions and responses to behavior that is considered a violation of societal rules. Sociological theory, research, and case examples will be employed to help the student understand the causes and consequences of a variety of behaviors labeled as deviant. The emphasis will be on examining the patterns of interaction within which deviant behavior emerges, the impact of certain types of deviance on others, as well as attempts to prevent or reduce these behaviors by agents of social control. Of paramount concern will be our effort to understand the meaning of deviant behavior from the perspective of both the deviant actors and the audience that expresses disapproval. (Sociology 101 or 110 or permission of the instructor as a prerequisite.)
SOCI 270S 01 & 02 Sociology of Minority GroupsSince humanity developed the capacity to produce an economic surplus, countless masses of earthlings have been oppressed, and many have had their labor appropriated, by relatively small groups of privileged humans. This course will examine the historical and contemporary causes for the continued oppression of entire groups, including various ethnic groups, women, the impoverished and other species of animals. Special attention will be given to the roots of oppression within the United States, particularly of people of color. The course will include class discussions, videotape presentations, and assignments outside of class. Students are expected to respond actively to assigned readings by discussing key ideas and by using examples to support or question these ideas.
SOCI 301 1W Advocacy & Theory/African American
(4 credits )
Doubt, Keith
This course will survey the tradition of African American social thought and the establishment of this tradition as a decisive and critical force in modern social thought. We will focus on key social theorists such as Booker T. Washington, W. E. B. DuBois, Martin Luther King, Audre Lorde, bell hooks, Anna Julia Cooper, Malcolm X, and Cornel West who have made substantial contributions toward defining the character of the relation between advocacy and theory. We will examine the contributions of Black feminism and compare and contrast the contributions of different authors. The course will require intensive readings of challenging but rewarding texts. The course will also require clearly written and analytically astute papers. Two to three hours of outside preparation - involving reading, journal writing, and library research - are required for each class.
SOCI 330S Social Stratification
(4 credits)
Nibert,
David
This course will examine the causes and consequences of social inequality with emphasis on the institutionalization and ideological legitimation of oppression. Special attention will be given to the role of the state. While historical and cross-cultural examples will be examined, primary attention will be given to the existence of inequality in the United States. Oppression by gender, race, cognitive ability, sexual orientation and species will be among the forms of inequality discussed. Prerequisite: One sociology course
SOCI 380 01W Identity, Self, and Society
Doubt, Keith
This course will survey leading theories of self and identity in the tradition of symbolic interaction and apply them creatively and critically to the everyday world. After studying the conceptual positions of George Herbert Mead, Charles Cooley, and Erving Goffman on self, the course will test the explanatory character of these positions against demanding subjects like madness, prejudice, friendship, and leadership. The course will also address how self and identity are important issues in areas of postmodernism, feminism, and colonization. The question that will center our inquiries is, How is the individual dependent upon as well as autonomous from the social community? Lectures, group discussions, films, writing assignments, and tests will be oriented toward addressing this question. While taught from a sociological perspective, the course will encompass an interdisciplinary approach; it will draw upon readings in psychology, education, philosophy, theology, and political science. Prerequisite: One sociology course
SOCI 460 Teaching and Research Practice
(2-4 credit hours)
Staff
Teaching assistant or research assistant practicum in which the student engages in experiential learning through assuming professional responsibilities, e.g., teaching assistant assistants lead small group discussions and direct group projects and research assistants help to develop and carry out research projects.
SOCI 490 Independent Study
(2-4 credit hours)
Staff
Individual research elected by the student in consultation with the department faculty.
SOCI 491 Internship
(2-4 credit hours)
Staff
Work-study course that provides opportunity to observe decision-making processes, relate course material to practical problems, and participate appropriately in a work environment. An internship involves the application of learned skills to a setting, agency or organization. An internship should challenge the student to examine the values of the organization or agency involved in the experience, and to assess the student's education as it relates to that experience. The internship, whether paid or unpaid, should be viewed as both an academic and a work experience.
