Related Courses
ANT 343--North American Indians
This course concentrates on the Native peoples of North American
(north of Mexico) immediately following the arrival of
Europeans. The cultural patterns of representative groups
will be studied intensively in each major region of North
America. The region by region survey will be preceded by a
brief discussion of the place of origin and time of arrival of
the first people in the New World. This course will not be
considering contemporary Native American issues.
Prerequisite: ARC 200 recommended.
CHE 453/553--Cultural issues in Health Education:
Ethnic, Racial, Religious, and Familial Groups
A study of cultural influences on health and illness.
Values and attitudes held by different groups in America’s
pluralistic society need to be considered in health program
planning. Various racial, ethnic, and religious groups health
beliefs and practices will be examined. Cultural influences and
patterns of communication within cultures and how these affect
health care and utilization of services will be identified. The
U.S. health care system will be analyzed in terms of servicing
its culturally diverse population. Designed for health
professionals, this course will increase their sensitivity in
working with people of various cultural origins. Repeatable for
credit – maximum three. Offered occasionally.
CST 332--Intercultural Communication
The primary objective of this course is to provide an
overview of the study of cultures and their effects on
communication. Cultural, sociocultural, psychocultural and
environmental influences will be explored in terms of how they
affect the communication process. Communication behavior (both
verbal and nonverbal) will be examined to determine its role in
other cultures. Students will learn to communicate more
competently with people from other cultures and ethnic groups.
Prerequisite: CST 190 or 230 or TSL 300.
CST 337--Communication and Race
Human understanding of ethnicity
and race is established, maintained, and changed by
communication. Therefore this course uses a communication
perspective to examine interpersonal and mediated messages about
race. From the perspective of communication studies, ethnicity
and race are continuously defined, interpreted, and acted out as
we communicate with one another on a daily basis in all
contexts. This course introduces students to communication
research on ethnicity race and other aspects of identity such as
gender and class. This course also provides exposure to related
research in other disciplines. Prerequisite: completion of at
least nine additional credits in CST (excluding CST 110).
Offered occasionally.
ENG/ERS 207--Multicultural
Literature of the United States
This course examines cultural themes in American literature in
an effort to enhance student awareness of the multi-ethnic
nature of American culture. Students engage in close
reading, discussion, analysis, and interpretation of texts
written by individuals from a variety of American ethnic and
cultural backgrounds. Content varies with instructor.
Prerequisite: ENG 110 (Cross-listed with ERS 207; may only
earn credit in ERS or ENG.)
ENG/ERS 210--Literature of
Black America
Survey and exploration of Black American prose and poetry from
their eighteenth century beginnings to the end of the Harlem
Renaissance and the Depression years. Prerequisite:
ENG 110 (Cross-listed with ERS 210; may only earn credit
in ERS or ENG.)
ENG/ERS 215--African
American Authors
A study of the principal post-depression (1940-present) African
American authors, critics and scholars which clarifies the
relationship between these writers and the general field of
American literature and which illustrates their unique
contributions as representatives of African American culture.
Prerequisite: ENG 110 (Cross-listed with ERS 215; may only
earn credit in ERS or ENG.)
ENG
380--Literature of American Ethnic and Minority Cultures
Study of selected works representative of American
ethnic and minority cultures, including American Indian,
Chicano, and Jewish. Emphasis will vary according to the
interests of students and the instructor. For the current
content, consult the instructor or the department chairperson.
Prerequisite: three credits in 200-level English courses.
Offered occasionally.
ENG 381--American Indian Literature
A study of a broad range of American Indian literature,
both traditional and contemporary, in cultural and historical
contexts. Prerequisite: three credits in 200-level English
courses. Offered annually.
ENG 382--U.S. Latino Literature in English
Study of representative works in English by writers of
Mexican-American, Cuban-American, Puerto Rican, and other Latino
origins, emphasizing the aesthetic dimensions of this literature
as well as its historical roots and contemporary U.S. cultural
contexts. Prerequisite: three credits in 200-level English
courses. Offered annually.
ENG 477--African American Essay and Short Story
An examination of the African American literary short
form, specifically the essay and short story, across literary
periods, includes such writers as D. Walker, F. Harper, M.
Delany, C. Chesnutt, P. Dunbar, P. Hopkins, W. DuBois, L.
Hughes, C. McKay, Z. Hurston, R. Wright, J. Baldwin, A. Baraka,
E. Cleaver, S. Sanchez and I. Reed. Prerequisite: three credits
in any 200-level literature course. ENG 210 or 215 recommended.
Offered every third semester.
ENG 478--Twentieth-Century African American Novels
A study of significant novels written by preeminent
20th-century African American writers, including DuBois, Toomer,
Wright, Ellison, Baraka and Morrison. Prerequisite: three
credits in 200-level English courses. Offered every third
semester.
HIS 306--History of Ethnic America
The role and impact of immigrants and ethnic minorities on the
political, economic and cultural development of the United
States from colonial times to the present. Emphasis on the
immigrant experience--the problems of immigrant adjustment,
patterns of immigrant mobility and assimilation, and the
persistence of ethnicity and ethnic tensions. Offered once
a year.
HIS 310--Native American History
A survey of Indian history in North America from European
contact to the present, with primary emphasis upon the
nineteenth and twentieth centuries. A major theme to be
explored will be Indian patterns of resistance to white-imposed
policies. Offered once every year.
HIS 336--Hispanics in the United States
This course will introduce
students to the diverse experiences of Hispanic peoples in the
United States through an interdisciplinary survey of their
social, historical, political, economic, and cultural
experiences. Offered every third year.
HST/WGS 370--The History
of Black Women's Activism
An historical overview of the thoughts, actions, and
creative products of Black women activists in the United States,
from slavery to the present. Students will examine historical
analyses, speeches, essays, economic activities, organizational
styles, political issues, and various forms of artistic
expression that women of African descent have produced in order
to query, resist, and defy the interlocking oppressions of
racism, sexism, and classism in the United States. Prerequisite:
W-S 100 or 210 or 230. (Cross-listed with W-S; may only earn
credit in HST or W-S.) Offered alternate years.
PIL 321--American Indian Thought
Reflections of the Native American ways of thinking as
manifest in the literature of various select tribes, on the
essential characteristics of thinking commonly shared by Native
Americans, and on the fundamental differences of the Native
American ways of thinking and those of the dominant (white)
culture. The "primal world" of Native American thought will be
studied as an alternative to the western way of thinking.
Prerequisite: PHL 100. Offered occasionally.
POL 342--Ethnic Politics in Contemporary America
A survey of some major political philosophies of the western
world from the French Revolution through the 20th Century:
Burke, Mill, Bentham, Marx, Shaw, Ford, Camus, Leary, et al.
Prerequisite: POL 101 or 102 or 251. Offered every
other year.
PSY 282--Cross-Cultural Psychology
An orientation to the definitions, concepts, theories, and methodologies of cross-cultural psychology. Included is an examination of cultural and ecological factors and their influences on perceptual and cognitive processes, personality, language, and other psychological variables. Prerequisite: PSY 100. Offered Fall, Spring.
PSY 285--Culture and Mental Health: An
Applied Perspective
This course provides an examination of the
relationship between culture and mental health. Specific
attention is given to the impact of racism, prejudice, and
minority status on the lives of various American minority groups
and how the effects of these factors reveal themselves within a
mental health framework. An eclectic, multidisciplinary approach
that draws from clinical and social psychology, as well as
sociology, is utilized. Prerequisite: PSY 100 and sophomore
standing. Offered Fall.
PSY 360--Cultural Human Development
This course represents a blend of cross-cultural concepts and
human development (across the lifespan) and will seek to explore
the influence of culture on various aspects of human
development. More specific topics include the role of culture
on: socialization, physical growth, cognition, self and
personality, sex and gender, social behavior, family relations,
and health. Prerequisite: PSY 100 and 210, or 212. Offered
Spring.
SOC 225--Racial and Ethnic Minorities
An investigation into the social dynamics shaping racial and
ethnic minority experience in America. Processes of
prejudice formation and prejudice reduction are discussed.
The nature of institutional discrimination and institutional
racism is analyzed in proper socio-historical context.
Minority group achievements and legacies are emphasized.
Contemporary issues and assessment of minority group progress in
America are vigorously examined.
SOC/ERS 280--Hmong
Americans
This course provides an introductory overview of Hmong history,
culture, and contemporary adaptation in the United States of
America. Areas of exploration will include ancient and modern
Hmong history, the Hmong oral tradition, the traditional clan
and leadership structure, Hmong musical heritage, Hmong craft
heritage, marriage and funeral practices, child-rearing customs,
traditional methods of conflict resolution, the tradition of
ancestor worship, and herbal and spiritual healing practices.
Contemporary developments and adjustment issues within the Hmong
communities will be discussed. These will include current Hmong
business initiatives, educational achievements, utilization of
welfare institutions, the role of Hmong Mutual Assistance
Associations, intergenerational conflicts, youth gangs,
traditional vs. modern family structure, and Hmong exposure to
public prejudices and discriminatory practices. Throughout the
course Hmong achievements and triumphs over adversity also will
be highlighted. Prerequisite: Sophomore standing recommended.
(Cross-listed with ERS. Can only earn credit in ERS or SOC.)
THA 130--Multicultural U.S. Plays: Acting the Text
In this performance-based course, students will study dramatic
literature from multiple cultures within U.S. society. Plays
will be selected from African-American, Asian American, Native
American, Hispanic American, lesbian/gay/transgendered/bisexual
and other cultures for study. Students will research cultural
context, analyze the plays, develop basic skills in performance,
and prepare and perform scenes from the plays under study, in
order to enhance student awareness and exchange ideas about
multi-cultural nature of the U.S. No acting experience required.
Offered Spring.
WGS 230--Women’s Diversity: Race, Class and Culture
This course explores the diversity of women’s experience in
America as it has been affected by race, ethnicity, class, and
other factors, and the effects of gender on women of different
groups. Issues that have united and divided women in movements
for social change are also addressed. Offered alternate years.