Race, Class, Gender
This is an interdisciplinary course in which students learn to think chronologically about the effect European crises, wars, reformations, and faiths brought to bear on the descendants who colonized America, and ultimately created the nation that dispossessed, enslaved, and perpetuated the destructive Triangle of racial, class-based, and gender oppression. Students unpack the myth of American Land as “free” and colonizers as settlers fleeing religious persecution, and even the Revolutionary War myth that free, landowning white men were oppressed by taxes. Through a study of fiction, non-fiction, primary and secondary documents, students think with interdisciplinarity about their own and the experience of others who dwell in America and are daily impacted by its legacy.
History Through Food
This course looks to answer one single question: How has food shaped history? In doing so, we dive into case studies which chart this relationship through some of history's most central movements: such as the connection between spices and the age of exploration and the connection sugar and slavery. We examine the role of food in shaping history including the impact on empire building, wealth and the economy, and race and class. We also explore contemporary issues of sustainability and the environment, and the politics of food scarcity. This course is broken into two semesters, and students may take either semester or both. We periodically venture out of the classroom to explore, learn, and reinforce the themes of the course. Students hone analytical skills by reading demanding primary and secondary sources, develop oral history interview and presentation skills, engage in challenging group discussions, write short essays, and refine research skills by writing a significant paper.
Modern Standard Arabic Language and Culture
Modern Standard Arabic Language refers to the standard literary and communicative language of the Middle East and North Africa and is recognized as one of the UN’s six official languages. Students learn about the Arab world through group work, task-based instruction, playing games, watching videos, and class discussions. Arabic language skills are developed in the context of culture and civilization. Learning about Arabic culture provides the opportunity to learn more about the world around us while raising awareness about Arabic culture and ending stereotypes.
