Humanities

2 terms, solid, 2 credits

What does it mean for a country to be a democracy? What norms, values, and institutions must it keep to be labeled as one? Why is it hard for democracies to sustain themselves right now? Democracies across the globe are struggling, with many backsliding into autocracy, as trust in elections – and belief in the electoral process – wains. This class will look at the challenges that face democracies, potentially investigating a variety of countries, or just a single state, to understand the institutions that help sustain a country’s regime. After the instructor-led study of democracy, students will then pick a challenge and policy of their choosing to research further. They will be expected to produce an annotated bibliography and literature review on the issue before offering up a solution-driven argument of their own. 

2 terms, solid, 2 credits

Boom-and-bust cycles, speculative bubbles, and widening inequality all complicate the stability of modern economies. As globalization deepens and financial systems grow more complex, markets face pressures from technological disruption, climate change, and shifting geopolitical power. This class will look at the challenges that face economies and markets, potentially investigating a variety of countries, or just a single system, to understand the institutions, policies, and actors that help sustain or destabilize economies. After the instructor-led study of economic systems and their vulnerabilities, students will then pick a specific challenge and policy of their choosing to research further. They will be expected to produce an annotated bibliography and literature review on the issue before offering up a solution-driven argument of their own.

2 terms, solid, 2 credits

Many groups aspire to equality (political, economic, civic, social), but when progress for one group feels like a loss for other groups, conflict can easily arise as status and power seem to change hands.  This class will look at the challenges faced by countries or communities as groups assert their rights within a larger social and political context.  After the instructor-led study of either a single or several movements, students will then pick a group or movement to study and research further.  They will be expected to produce an annotated bibliography and literature review on the issue before offering a solution-driven argument of their own.

2 terms, solid, 2 credits

Artificial Intelligence, social media, and misinformation campaigns narrow our perception of the world, thus limiting our understanding of ourselves, and yet solidifying our confidence in those views. In a media environment driven by attention, online systems often tap into our worst cognitive instincts to keep our focus, exacerbating animosity across differences that are often exploited by nefarious government actors. In order to value truth, this course will study how knowledge is formed to examine either one or several modern dilemmas to the truth-seeking process.  Through an instructor-led study of truth, students will be able better evaluate the never-ending stream of information that we are treated to daily. In the second half of the term, students will be expected to produce an annotated bibliography and literature review on a modern challenge related to truth before offering up a solution-driven argument of their own.

2 terms, solid, 2 credits,

With nearly 8 billion people on Earth and growing, how can humanity live well without undermining the planet’s life-support systems? From climate change, biodiversity loss, and ecosystem disruption to inequality, poverty, and political instability, this course explores the complex, interconnected challenges shaping our world. Students will investigate how human activity drives environmental change before analyzing either one or a few responses to global crises, including – but not limited to – migration, food production, clean water, textile production, disease, conflict, and rapid urbanization. After an instructor-led study of environmental challenges, students will then pick an issue and policy of their choosing to research further. They will be expected to produce an annotated bibliography and literature review on the challenge before offering up a solution-driven argument of their own.

2 terms, solid, 2 credits

Despite all the interconnections between people, nations, and international organizations today, discord and wars persist.  What causes these conflicts and how do they get managed, waged, and resolved?  How can leaders best address foreign policy challenges? In this course students will study the origins of conflicts, the shadows of past battles, and how foreign policy seeks to meet those challenges through both military action and international relations. After an instructor-led study of international relations and war, students will then pick a challenge and policy of their choosing to research further. They will be expected to produce an annotated bibliography and literature review on the issue before offering up a solution-driven argument of their own. 

1 term, solid, 1 credit

This course surveys world literature from ancient times to the present, with an emphasis on different cultures and writing traditions. All sections of World Literature will explore this grand variety through the lens of the short story (and related forms such as myth and folktales). Content chosen by the instructor can come from across the globe, but special emphasis will be put on works often left out of the traditional Western canon. Throughout the term students will further develop competency in analytical reading, supporting conclusions, and written expression through the composition of a robust literary analysis paper. 

1 term, solid, 1 credit

All African-American Literature sections will explore the experience of being Black in America, including writers’ attempts to grapple with the lingering effects of racism throughout American history and culture. Throughout the term students will further develop competency in analytical reading, supporting conclusions, written expression, and iteration as they produce robust literary analysis of major works. Content chosen by the instructor may include a broad survey of African-American literature from a variety of authors past and present or a deep dive into the works of a single author (e.g. Toni Morrison, James Baldwin, Colson Whitehead) or specific literary movement (e.g. the Harlem Renaissance). 

1 term, solid, 1 credit

In this course, students will explore stories that introduce readers to new worlds, distant futures, ancient kingdoms, and alternate realities while also asking big questions about society, technology, morality, and human nature. Throughout the term students will further develop competency in analytical reading, supporting conclusions, written expression, and iteration through the composition of a robust literary analysis paper. Content chosen by the instructor may include a broad survey of SF & Fantasy from a variety of authors past and present or a deep dive into the works of a single author (e.g. Shelley, Tolkien, Herbert), analyzing how these genres reflect real-world issues through the lens of the fantastic or futuristic. 

1 term, solid, 1 credit

All Dramatic Literature sections will consider the complex interplay between writers, actors, directors and their audiences in co-creating the theatrical experience. Throughout the term students will further develop competency in analytical reading, supporting conclusions, written expression, and iteration through the composition of a robust literary analysis paper. Content chosen by the instructor may include a broad survey of drama from a variety of playwrights past and present or a deep dive into the works of a single author (e.g. Shakespeare, Miller, Wilson) or a specific period (e.g. Greek Tragedy & Comedy). The major understandings (threshold concepts) of the course are text, context, analysis, figurative language, narratology, and cultural transmission. 

1 term, solid, 1 credit

All Music as Literature sections will deal with how musicians explicitly or implicitly engage with political subjects and themes through the poetry of their lyrics. Content selected by instructors may include a survey of artists engaged in a political movement (e.g. environmentalism, feminism, civil rights, etc.) or a deep dive into the work of a specific era (e.g. the protest music of 1960s, hip hop of the 1980s, feminist music of the 1990s). Some instructors may choose to focus on the work of a single artist's engagement with the politics of their historical and culture moment (e.g. Kendrick Lamar, Bob Dylan, Rage Against the Machine, etc.). Throughout the term, students will further develop competency in analytical reading, supporting conclusions, and written expression through the composition of a robust literary analysis paper.

1 term, solid, 1 credit, Approved as an English course by NCAA

This course will serve as a corrective to a literary canon often dominated by male authors and highlight the rich tradition of female literature. All Literature by Women sections will highlight women authors and the ways in which women expressed agency and both supported and challenged societal norms through their writing. Content selected by the instructor may include a broad survey of literature from a variety of female authors before the twentieth century or a deep dive into the works of a single author (e.g. Hildegard of Bingen, Jane Austen, the Brontë sisters), a single work, or a survey of works written within a specific literary movement. Throughout the term students will further develop competency in analytical reading, supporting conclusions, and written expression through the composition of a robust literary analysis essay.

1 term, solid, 1 credit, Approved as an English course by NCAA

The past has always been a favorite subject for storytelling, and historical fiction has existed in family stories, myths, folktales, tall tales, and newspapers throughout eternity.  All Historical Fiction sections will analyze writers’ use of narrative elements and specific language choices. Content selected by instructors may include a broad survey of Historical Fiction from a variety of authors past and present or a deep dive into the works of a single author (e.g. Michael Schaar’s The Killer Angels, Robert Graves’s I, Claudius, Tolstoy’s War and Peace, etc.).  Throughout the term students will further develop competency in analytical reading, supporting conclusions, written expression and deeper understanding through the composition of a robust literary analysis essay.

1 term, solid, 1 credit, Approved as an English course by NCAA

In a Creative Writing Workshop, whether its focus is poetry, fiction, or nonfiction, students will explore and analyze a diverse range of writers and writing techniques in order to develop their own quintessential voices. All sections of Creative Writing Workshop will engage in cycles of composition, critique, and revision in order for students to sharpen their abilities to connect form and content, their writing mechanics, their analytic capabilities, and their style. Throughout the term students will develop competency in analytical reading, supporting conclusions, written expression, artistic expression, and iteration through the composition of a robust literary analysis essay and a portfolio of creative pieces. 

1 term, solid, 1 credit, Approved as an English course by NCAA

In this course, students will analyze a broad selection of both literary and non-fiction texts as preparation for public performance of speeches, poetry, and/or theatrical pieces. Simultaneously they will build skill and experience in spoken expression through the vocal skills of volume, enunciation, inflection, fluency, and tempo, while also learning and evolving physical skills of proper posture, eye contact, gestures and poise. Throughout the term students will develop competency in analytical reading, supporting conclusions, written expression, spoken expression, and iteration through the composition of a robust literary analysis essay and a repertoire of performance pieces.

4 terms, solid, 4 credits, Approved as English and Social Science courses by NCAA

Admission to European History & Literature with AP requires a minimum PSAT score of 1150 plus a 3-term unweighted cumulative GPA of 3.80 or higher.

This reading and writing intensive course provides a college-level introductory survey of modern European History from roughly A.D. 1300 to the present. It also prepares students for the Advanced Placement exam in European History. The goals of the course are to provide students with an overview and understanding of the themes, periods, events, and people of modern Europe; a good working knowledge of historical practice and writing; and the qualifications that will enable them to pursue upper level history, literature, political science, international relations, economics and Humanities studies in college. Students will explore the literature, art and philosophy or Europe within historical, political, economic and social contexts.  These topics also help introduce them to the foundations of modern international relations, globalization, current international problems and human rights.  Students will examine the inter-relationship between these topics, as well as their roles in the development of the identities of the individual, the state, the nation and Europe as an entity.  Students will also consider questions of cause and effect and change over time, as well as other basic elements of practicing history.   This course regularly asks for the analysis and synthesis of primary and secondary sources in written form, as well as the mastery of historical events, people, eras, and themes.  While this is an interdisciplinary Humanities class, students will be fully prepare to sit for the AP European History exam in May.  

4 terms, solid, 4 credits, Approved as English and Social Science courses by NCAA

Admission to AP Government and Politics requires a minimum PSAT score of 1150 plus a 3-term unweighted cumulative GPA of 3.80 or higher.

An advanced introduction to political science, the class will employ the comparative method to study politics and government in both the United States and around the globe. Through close-reading of the US Constitution and related documents, the class opens with a study of the development of U.S. democracy, looking at the political institutions, linkage institutions, and political culture that both drive policy-making and pose challenges to sustaining democratic norms. Afterwards, the countries of Great Britain, Russia, China, Nigeria, Iran, and Mexico will serve as case study comparisons to help students prepare for the AP Comparative Government and Politics exam. The class will include various types of writing for political purposes along the way. Students will write brief argument papers throughout the year, reviewing political editorials to expose students to the various types of political writing essential for effective written communication. Along with a study of these seven countries’ politics and government, the class will read dystopian novels to explore themes around freedom, human nature, and truth. The class concludes with a research project, where students pick a challenge and policy of their choosing to research further. They will be expected to produce an annotated bibliography and literature review on the issue before offering up a solution-driven argument of their own.

4 terms, solid, 4 credits, Approved as an English course by NCAA

Admission to English Literature with AP requires a minimum PSAT Evidence Based Reading & Writing (EBRW) score of 600 plus a 3-term unweighted cumulative GPA of 3.80 or higher.

An advanced approach to literary studies, this course offers the opportunity to linger in the details of many inspiring, challenging texts: poetry, short stories, drama, and novels. Through close reading, in-depth analyses, and literary criticism, students will consider how writers manipulate language to evoke memories, portray truths, and recount experiences.  Organized thematically, this course invites students to consider how authors “talk” to each other across time and location and the implications of these connections.  They can expect daily reading, writing, and discussing. Drawing upon a thematic topic from a course text as inspiration, students will complete significant research to produce an annotated bibliography, literature review, and solution-driven argument. Students who take this course will be prepared to sit for the AP English Literature exam in May. 

4 term, non-solid, meets 3 days/week, 2 credits, Approved as an English course by NCAA

Prerequisites: Students must complete a Writing Workshop (Expository, Imaginative or Creative Writing). They must be active leaders of a campus publication. They must consistently participate in visiting artists and author activities. Students must submit a portfolio following the criteria here Application for Honors in Creative Writing.docx. 

In the Creative Writing Honors Seminar, students experience a collegiate-level writing workshop which will culminate with a chapbook (or a similar artifact that fulfills the goals of the program) and a performance. In this seminar, students will become efficient, accurate, and supportive critics of their own work and of others’ work as they prepare work for publication, and they will also read deeply. The application process for this Seminar is competitive; students must submit a 7 to 10 page portfolio of work to honors director for consideration.  

Honors Project

Students will significantly contribute to campus publications and to our writing community. Honors candidates will also design and implement several learning experiences and writing projects for their peers in the workshop. Student must successfully defend their thesis in front of committee of faculty and/or professional writers.