Social Science: 2000-2001 Programs

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Alternatives to American Capitalism

Spring 2001/Group Contract
Faculty: Peter Dorman
Enrollment: 25
Prerequisites: Junior or Senior standing. Introductory Microeconomics and Macroeconomics or equivalents.
Faculty Signature: Yes
Special Expenses: No
Internship Possibilities: No
Travel Component: None

This program will examine actual and potential alternatives to US capitalism. Topics to be studied include socialist, communist, and anarchist theories of economic organization; debates among economists on the merits of economic planning; the historical experience of economic planning in the Soviet Bloc and worker-management in Yugoslavia; cooperative and communal experiments in a capitalist environment; and elements of European and East Asian economies that might play a role in non-capitalist futures. Throughout, economic systems will be evaluated on multiple levels: economic, social, cultural, and political. The final project will be to design an economy.
Total: 16 credits.

Business, Entrepreneurship and Management: Advanced Topics

Fall, Winter, Spring/Group Contract
Faculty: John Filmer
Enrollment: 25
Prerequisites: Junior or senior standing. This program is intended for continuing students who have completed one of the part-time or full-time management programs at Evergreen or elsewhere and desire to learn more about management.
Faculty Signature: Yes. Faculty will assess the level and scope of student understanding of basic management issues and practices. Students must submit a short, written statement describing their management background and expectations of this program to John Filmer, The Evergreen State College, SE 3127, Olympia, WA 98505 or trade@halcyon.com
Special Expenses: Transportation for field trips.
Internship Possibilities: Yes
Travel Component: None

This group contract will be tailored to the needs of students who have previously studied management and desire an opportunity for further study and exploration in management-related topics. The specific content will vary from quarter to quarter depending upon the interests, expertise and preferred direction of the group, faculty and guests. Applications will cover non-profit organizations, for-profit organizations and government organizations. Topics will include leadership, team building, entrepreneurism, marketing, international commerce, communication, global economics, global strategies and public and private sector interaction. Program activities will consist of lectures, workshops, seminars, case studies and group and individual research projects intended to build upon the background and experience of the class and of each student.

  • Credit awarded in organizational management*, planning*, international business*, marketing*, finance*, public policy*, decision making*, project management* and public relations*. Note: credit may vary depending upon the structure, makeup and focus of each class.
  • Total: 8 to 16 credits each quarter to accommodate part-time students.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in public administration, non-profit organizational management and business management.
The Circle of Life: Health in the Human Environment

Fall/Winter/Spring
Faculty: Cindy Beck & Julianne Unsel
Enrollment: 50
Prerequisites: Sophomore standing
Faculty Signature: No
Special Expenses: No
Internship Possibilities: Yes - Spring term

This year long program will study how biology and environment come together to shape a complex human society. We will investigate how the material realities of human biology scaffold the social institutions and social relations of our everyday lives. This program will combine a critical study of the human biological sciences with US economic and social history. Using the United States as a case study, we will investigate how our basic human wants and needs -- food, shelter, health care, love -- have been molded into the modern environment that makes up our post-industrial, mass consumer society. We trace the circle of life through the sciences of human nutrition and wellness, to human genetics, sexuality and reproduction, and to the physiology of aging. Our main themes are: a) a non-threatening introduction to contemporary biological sciences, b) a history of attitudes toward biology and the human body in the United States; c) an analysis of how human biological needs are and have been supported and subsumed within a mass consumer society; and d) an assessment of the current situation with an interest toward progressive political reform. Over the course of the year, program instruction in biological sciences will be paired with historical analysis of how social institutions have recognized and responded to human needs within prevailing contexts of race, class, and gender. Credit awarded in such areas as human biology, nutrition, communication, US history, philosophy of science, history of science. The fall quarter will focus on nutrition, body image, gender issues, and health issues in the context of the national political campaign. Books are still being selected, but will include Nutrition: Concepts and Controversies (Sizer et al, 8th edition), Monica's Story, by Morton; Brumberg's Body Project, and Manliness and Civilization: A Cultural History of Gender and Race. Total: 16 credits each quarter; taught all day Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. This program is preparatory for careers and future studies in the health professions, human services, public policy and education.

Diaspora, A Journey Toward Destiny

Fall, Winter, Spring/Coordinated Study
Faculty: George Freeman Jr., Carrie Margolin
Enrollment: 48
Prerequisites: None. This all-level program will accept up to 25 percent or 12 first-year students.
Faculty Signature: No
Special Expenses: Approximately $60 each quarter for a three-day field trip to Cispus during fall and winter quarters.
Internship Possibilities: No
Travel Component: In-state retreat during fall and winter quarters. Some student research projects may involve travel.

Diaspora, A journey toward destiny
Sometimes I feel like a motherless child,
Sometimes I feel like a motherless child,
Sometimes I feel like a motherless child,
A long ways from home. A long ways from home.

Diaspora, A journey toward destiny
Remember, O Lord,
what is come upon us:
consider, and behold our reproach.
Our inheritance is turned to strangers,
Our houses to aliens.
We are orphans and fatherless,
Our mothers are widows.
— The Book of Lamentations, Jeremiah 5:1-3

Diaspora, A journey toward destiny
My heart is in the East and I am at the edge of the West.
How then, can I taste what I eat,
How can I enjoy it?
How can I fulfill my vows and pledges while Zion is
In the domain of Edom
And I am in the bonds of Arabia?
It would be easy for me to leave behind
All the good things of Spain;
It would be glorious to see the dust
Of the ruined Shrine.
— Yehudah Halevi (1075-1141), Spain.

More often than not, many of us feel a yearning for something or someplace we call home. This yearning is derived in part from a sense of dislocation and “otherness” and speaks to a desire to be at rest. Our program, Diaspora, A Journey Toward Destiny, addresses the patterns of longing and the yearning for a homeland. Through an examination of the forced migrations of two peoples, the Jews and people of African descent, we intend to examine the multiple influences that shape our beliefs about culture, place and time as related to that which we call home and the journey to home.

The first quarter and part of the second quarter of our program explores the African and Jewish diaspora brought about through slave trade, through the exodus of Jews from Europe, and through centuries of intolerance. Referring to specific historical periods, we will examine the factors that shaped these forced migrations and the continual redefining of the concept of home. We will examine the slave trade to Europe and America and the trafficking of people as property. We will explore the factors that led to the extermination of six million Jews during the Holocaust. Along with this search, we will look at how culture both endures and is transformed through its interaction with geographic place. We will examine the dynamic tension of creating a home in hostile lands and of the influence on our current American landscape of these two communities of people.

Using as our foundation a historical understanding of the creation of home by Jews and people of African descent, we then turn our attention to ourselves. The remaining academic year explores our yearning for “home” where no home can be found and no other truly exists. We will develop our understanding of place and identity and how identity formation is associated with place as related to time. This identity, with multiple influences, is blended into the broader American cultural landscape. How does this happen? How do we end up calling any one place home? How do we place ourselves in the overall landscape and make our communities our homes? What roles do education and the media play in creating our cultural sense of home? Our program explores the psychological and sociological structures that support our identity development as an American phenomenon. Diaspora, A Journey Toward Destiny will frame our current challenge to work together as disparate communities affected by this common experience and as a journey toward a common destiny. We will figure out how we can make our lives useful and productive through engagement with one another, community involvement, and through thoughtful and purposeful living. As is true of any journey, the final destination is far less important than the journey itself.

  • Credit awarded in Judaic studies, African-American studies, history, social science, psychology, and the humanities.
  • Total: 12 or 16 credits each quarter. Students may enroll in language studies components for four credits during fall, winter and spring quarters upon approval of faculty.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in education, international studies, the social sciences, humanities and the travel industry.
  • This program is also listed in First-Year Programs and Culture, Text and Language.

From Public Issues to Public Policy: Environmental Activism and the Welfare State

Fall, Winter, Spring/Group Contract
Faculty: Cheri Lucas Jennings
Enrollment: 24
Prerequisites: None - All level
Faculty Signature: No
Special Expenses: No
Internship Possibilities: No
Travel Component: None

So, hundreds of millions are invested in dredging channels for Weyerhauser, at the same time as the endangered Coho salmon are dumb-waitered to a distant inlet. To what extent do environmental issues contend with other public issues such as education, welfare, or economic development? Increasingly, government policies are at cross-purposes as competing issues vie for attention and scarce public resources. Is the Pacific Northwest losing its rich stock of natural resources that once attracted investment capital and prosperity? How can the Washington state legislature possibly accommodate both economic development and the environment? Is a diminishing and slightly impoverished human population a necessary prerequisite to enhanced, sustainable natural resources in the Northwest? How can policy makers reconcile mammoth expenditures toward mutually exclusive goals?

This sophomore-and-above-level program in environmental studies and the social sciences examines these and other questions as it explores the formation, implementation and effects of public policy at all levels. Policy topics will include welfare policy and environmental policy. The program theme will be the tension between social goals (such as clean water or healthy children) and individual rights. An important focus of the program will be the ways public issues or problems evolve into public policies. We will study policy from the viewpoint of the executive and legislative branches of government and at the local, state and federal levels. This program is designed to help students improve their general academic skills and to develop the specific skills of public policy analysis.

Consequently, students will cover statistics, quantitative and qualitative research methods, and expository writing for a policy audience. The fall quarter will emphasize analytical tools that will be used in the winter quarter, when the focus will be the state legislature, and in the spring quarter, when students will develop public policy research projects. The year will conclude with a policy conference featuring panels of policy-makers and students’ presentations of their research.

  • Credit awarded in public policy analysis, economics, environmental policy, political science, statistics, research methods, expository writing and public policy.
  • Total: 16 credits each quarter.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in public administration, environmental studies, the social sciences, law and social research.\
  • This program is also listed in Environmental Studies.

Growing Up in the 21st Century: Youth, Work and Families

Fall, Winter/Group Contract
Faculty: Stephanie Coontz
Enrollment: 30
Prerequisites: Junior or senior standing; some background in history or political economy; upper-division writing skills.
Faculty Signature: Yes. Students must bring a paper from a previous class demonstrating upper-division writing skills to the Academic Fair, May 10, 2000.
Special Expenses: No
Internship Possibilities: This program will provide interested students with internships in the public schools or in child care centers for spring quarter.
Travel Component: None

This advanced two-quarter program will explore the changing demographic, economic, cultural and social context in which American children are born, reared, educated and prepared (or not prepared) for work and adult responsibilities. We will put contemporary family, parenting and youth trends in historical and theoretical perspective, exploring the conceptual issues involved in defining terms, describing social change and analyzing causal relationships. Students will be expected to sort through competing theoretical perspectives and work with statistical material. We will attempt to develop a sophisticated grasp of how race, class and gender interact with general socioeconomic or cultural trends to produce conflict, accommodation and variation in the demands of parenting, the experience of growing up, the interaction of work and family life and the generation or resolution of social problems such as youth violence, educational failure and child neglect.

Reading and writing demands will be heavy, requiring advanced skills in critical reasoning and argumentation. Students will also revise and hone their writing in weekly writing workshops.

  • Credit awarded in history*, sociology*, gender studies*, multicultural studies* and writing*.
  • Total: 16 credits each quarter.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in graduate school, family law, education and social services.

Health and Human Development

Fall, Winter, Spring/Coordinated Study
Faculty: Rita Pougiales (Coord), Elizabeth Kutter (F),
Stuart Matz, Mukti Khanna, Susan Finkel (WS)
Enrollment: Fall - 100, Winter/Spring - 87
Prerequisites: Sophomore standing. One year of college-level work.
Faculty Signature: No
Special Expenses: $40 for fall quarter retreat.
Internship Possibilities: Spring quarter only.
Travel Component: None

Attitudes about health reflect the basic world view and values of a culture, such as how we relate to nature, other people, time, being, society versus community, children versus elders, and independence versus dependence.
— Joseph Hartog, M.D. and Elizabeth Ann Hartog, M.A.

We will investigate the biological, cultural, spiritual and social forces that influence healthy human development so that we may develop strong foundations for further work in the areas of health, human services, anthropology and education. Program material will be presented on the basis of two important assumptions. First, health and development are mutually influenced by biological and social forces. Second, culture defines and influences our understanding and facilitation of health.

Drawing particularly from human biology, anthropology, communication and human development theories, the program will examine the interactions of culture, mind, body and spirit in the facilitation of healthy human development. Emphasis will be placed on physical and cognitive development, perception, interpersonal and intercultural communication, mind-body interactions and the influences of nutrition, environment, gender, culture and world view on human health.

An early fall quarter retreat will provide an opportunity to begin forming a learning community. During fall and winter quarters, through workshops, lectures, seminars, guest presentations, group and individual projects, students will develop skills and knowledge to support their selection of a spring quarter project or internship in an area of interest.

The program will encourage development in reading, writing, self-awareness, social imagination, research and communication, as well as strategies to facilitate students’ own good health.

  • Credit awarded in human biology, human development, cultural anthropology, theories of human learning, approaches to health, interpersonal and intercultural communication, nutrition and composition.
  • Total: 12 or 16 credits each quarter. Students with strong background in science or those pursuing language study may substitute a four-credit course, (i.e., chemistry, college algebra, statistics, language) with faculty signature.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in the health professions, human services and education.
  • This program is also listed in Culture, Text and Language and Scientific Inquiry.

History of Marriage and the Family in America
Spring/Group Contract
Faculty: Stephanie Coontz
Enrollment: 45
Prerequisites: Sophomore standing.
Faculty Signature: No
Special Expenses: No
Internship Possibilities: No
Travel Component: None


This half-time program in the social sciences and humanities will examine the history of family life, marriage, and parent-child relations in the United States, from colonial times until the present. Students will learn about the variability and diversity of past family life, as well as the overall patterns of change. Along the way, we will discover that many cherished beliefs about traditional families are either false or far more complicated than conventional wisdom makes them out to be. We will examine the origins of many contemporary family dilemmas and debates, assessing the gains, losses, and trade-offs that have occurred for different families and individuals in various economic, racial, and ethnic groups. We will also discuss the changing role of men in families and the changing role of women in the economy. Finally, we will look at how the experience of childhood has changed over time. Total: 8 credits.

“How Can You Tell an American?”

Fall, Winter, Spring/Coordinated Study
Faculty: Charles Pailthorp, José Gómez, Arun Chandra
Enrollment: 75
Prerequisites: None - All level
Faculty Signature: No
Special Expenses: No
Internship Possibilities: No
Travel Component: None

Are we all “Americans” in the same way? Who counts as an “American” has changed rapidly in United States culture, particularly since the U.S. emerged as a world power following the Great War of 1914–18. We have had different varieties of Americans, including hyphenated Americans (Italian-American, African-American . . .) and we have to wonder: What are the qualities that determine who is a “real American” and what does that status ensure? Answers to this complex question must include discussions of gender, ethnic identity, sexual orientation and age. It also must include the real or mythical histories of how one’s “people” came to be in this region of North America. How have these processes of identifying and classifying “Americans” developed? How are they proceeding today? Where are they headed? Most importantly, what bearing do they have on our central values of liberty, freedom and equality? Can we still share the ideal of all being “Americans” in a just society?

American identity has been expressed in law, literature, music and image. The law and the arts have had a particular, powerful role in shaping our image of who we are, and of who counts as “we.” In this program we will examine instances and critical developments in the law and the arts, and we will examine their important intersection in the tensions which surround the phrase “freedom of expression.” Our scrutiny of the arts will include visual art and emphasize music (particularly jazz and musical theater). This work will be a critical analysis based on visual and aural study rather than on the actual creation of music or art.

Students in the program will become members of a community of writers, each writing to her or his peers as an intended audience. In addition to writing essays on a regular basis, students will write critiques of one another’s work.

Reading, writing, small group discussion and close study of music and images will be the principal activities of these three quarters. There will be two periods of evaluation: the first midway through winter quarter, the second at the end of the program.

  • Credit awarded in writing, jurisprudence, social psychology, sociology, philosophy, history of art, American studies, history of music and social and cultural history.
  • Total: 16 credits each quarter.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in the humanities, American studies, history of the arts and social sciences.
  • This program is also listed in Culture, Text and Language.

Indigenous Peoples: Identities and Social Transformation

Fall, Winter, Spring/Coordinated Study
Faculty: Carol Minugh, Angela Gilliam, Kristina Ackley
Enrollment: 75
Prerequisites: Sophomore standing. All students participating in community service at a detention facility for juveniles must have a police clearance.
Faculty Signature: Yes. Students must submit a one-page letter of interest and goals to Carol Minugh, TESC, Lab I, Olympia, WA 98505. A list of accepted students will be posted on Carol’s office door, Lab I 1023, after the Academic Fair, May 10, 2000, or students can call Carol for confirmation, (360) 866-6000, ext. 6025.
Special Expenses: Travel expenses to community service project sites and potential overnight field trips.
Internship Possibilities: Yes, spring quarter with faculty signature.
Travel Component: Overnight field trips.

This program is designed for students interested in learning about the cultural, social and political struggles of Native Americans and other indigenous people. The curriculum will focus on identity: “How are these people identified, by themselves and by others?” and “What does it mean to be identified as indigenous to insiders and outsiders?” The program will address the myriad of other social and political issues related to identity and social change experienced by people who have been invaded and colonized. Contemporary issues surrounding indigenous peoples will be addressed along with the economic/political ramifications of colonialism. The linguistic and cultural genocide experienced and the resulting cultural changes will be highlighted throughout the year. Students will be given the opportunity to share what they are learning about other cultures with incarcerated youth.

In addition to the academic program, some students will participate in community service working with incarcerated youth. A major focus of this service will be providing cultural classes, assisting in the “Gateways for Incarcerated Youth” project. Students will take a leading role in identifying opportunities to build on what the youth want to learn as well as strengthen individuals and community through learning about culture and heritage and the stresses between races. One of the project’s goals is to bridge the gap between incarceration and college. Students must pass a police clearance to participate.

  • Credit awarded in Native American studies, cultural anthropology, indigenous studies, modern colonialism and practicum in juvenile justice.
  • Total: 16 credits each quarter.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in social work, community organizing, juvenile justice, politics, anthropology and cultural studies.
  • This program is also listed in Environmental Studies, Native American and World Indigenous Peoples Studies and Culture, Text and Language.

Learning From The
Twentieth Century
 (NEW! Not in printed catalog)

Spring/Group contract
Faculty: Jeanne Hahn, Niels Skov
Prerequisites: Sophomore and above
Enrollment limit: 50
16 credits, no part-time options

On the cusp of the new Millennium, what can we learn from the 20th century that will enable us to be better equipped to deal with the challenges of the 21st. What is the essence of this past century of crisis and poverty as well as enormous material and personal advance?

Understanding the past is difficult: too often we confuse current events with historical trends, losing sight of significant historical change. This program will investigate some of the trends of the 20th century that shape our history, political economy, and material conditions. For instance, we will study the social forces underlying the two world wars and the world-wide depression; the uneven development imposed by capitalism; the rise of mass, egalitarian politics and the retreat from that same politics, as well as the rise of right-wing authoritarian populism; "third-world" movements for self-determination; and movements for equality and inclusion by women and minorities on the one side and fundamentalist separatist movements on the other. Our investigations will draw on historical analysis, primary source material, personal memoir, fiction, and documentary film footage.

Students will sharpen their skills of oral and written expression, and each will engage in a collaborative research project. This program is designed to provide an understanding of the trajectory of 20th century history rather than an exhaustive study of its detail. Students will develop the ability to learn from the past in order to deal with the future.

Multicultural Counseling: A New Way to Integrate and Innovate Psychological Theory and Practice

Fall, Winter, Spring/Group Contract
Faculty: Heesoon Jun
Enrollment: 25
Prerequisites: (1) Senior standing.
(2) Students who have spent at least two quarters at Evergreen with 95 percent attendance records.
(3) Programs or classes covering general principles in psychology, human biology, research methods and statistics, as well as issues of diversity and inclusiveness. Students should have a well-rounded, liberal arts education through the study of multiple disciplines prior to entering the program as the program is a senior-level capstone to their education.
Faculty Signature: Yes. Obtain an application packet for the program from the Program Secretary, Lab II. The application and related materials must be submitted by May 1, 2000. Students will be notified of acceptance by mail beginning May 15, 2000.
Special Expenses: Travel to and from internship site.
Internship Possibilities: 15 to 16 hours per week required for winter and spring quarters.
Travel Component: None

This is a senior-level program involving internships in psychological counseling. Its basic purpose is to allow students to make and test a commitment to work in counseling ethnically and culturally diverse clientele. The goals of the program are: (1) to incorporate multicultural awareness with psychological theories, intervention, assessment, treatment, research interpretation and ethical guidelines and (2) to increase multicultural counseling competency in psychological counseling.

Objectives
1. The effectiveness of existing psychological counseling theories and techniques with individuals of multicultural backgrounds will be examined.
2. Students will explore their own self-knowledge from the standpoint that self-awareness is a prerequisite to any particular technique or skill.
3. Psychological counseling skill-building with cultural empathy will be accomplished through operationalization of conceptual understanding of psychological counseling theories, counseling practice with peers, and
videotaping.
4. Students will learn basic techniques of how to interpret research articles and how to incorporate research findings into counseling practice.
5. Ethics in a multicultural setting will be explored through examining “Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct” by the American Psychological Association, “Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice” by the American Counseling Association, “The Law Relating to Psychologists” and “The Law Relating to Counselors” by the Washington State Department of Health.

Internship Requirement
Internships will entail a minimum of 15 to 16 hours per week for six months. They will require:
(1) supervision by a qualified professional,
(2) experience with psychological development, mental health, and counseling, (3) direct contact with an ethnically diverse clientele,
(4) working in an area in which the student has not had previous significant experience and (5) obtaining placement in an internship is a prerequisite for continuing in the program winter and spring quarters.
Instructional Strategies
Lectures, hands-on workshops, films, seminars, role-playing, group discussions, videotaping, field trips, guest speakers, internship case studies, paper and pencil tests, etc.

Application Process
1. Students must submit a complete portfolio including all Evergreen evaluations (both faculty and self), all college transcripts and two major papers.
2. Students must submit a typed, double-spaced, maximum-of-five-page-essay describing motivation for wanting to enroll and ability to be on time (attendance, weekly assignments and final papers)
3. Submit a completed questionnaire that is attached to a program expectation letter from the faculty.

  • Credit will be awarded in multicultural counseling theories and culture-bound assessment, multicultural psychological counseling skill-building, advanced abnormal psychology (including use of DSM-IV), advanced life-span developmental psychology, personality theories, ethnic studies, sexual orientation and adoption, studies of “isms” (ageism, classism, racism, sexism), psychological research interpretation, ethics in the helping professions, group process and internship.
  • Total: 16 credits each quarter.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in psychological counseling, clinical psychology, social work, school counseling, cross-cultural studies, research psychology, class, race, gender and ethnicity studies.

The New Insecurity: Prosperity’s Child

Fall, Winter/Coordinated Study
Faculty: Priscilla Bowerman, Alan Nasser
Enrollment: 50
Prerequisites: Sophomore standing.
Faculty Signature: No
Special Expenses: No
Internship Possibilities: No
Travel Component: None

This program focuses on transformations that have emerged in the United States since World War II, with particular emphasis on changes since 1975. Today’s media commonly acclaims our current “unprecedented period of prosperity.” Reportedly, we are enjoying the longest period of economic prosperity in the history of our country. Yet, born of this expansion is a growing insecurity for many people. This program is built on the premise that the expansion and the insecurity are integrally linked: the expansion has been achieved by means that have reduced the circumstances and prospects of many people. The effects have not been merely economic; they have also affected interpersonal relations, family relations, morality and even the ways people experience and see themselves as individuals. In this program students will learn about two kinds of things: (1) what changes in the political economic structure have been fueling this unprecedented period of economic prosperity and (2) what changes have been wrought in our personal and social lives and our prospects.

In order to provide students with a common historical background and with a common vocabulary, we will spend several weeks of the fall term on an introduction to the origins and development of capitalism. Then, we will move directly to studying how changes in American culture over the past 50 years have been affected by changes in the political economy. We will examine conservative, liberal and radical interpretations of these changes.

We will explore changes in social relations within the family and in the workplace. We will study how our sense of time and of space has been altered by the media and information industries. We will explore the new Puritanism which promotes ever-increasing restrictions on personal choice. We will ask how we have come to experience ourselves as vulnerable, victimized, beset by risk and danger. And we will explore how these developments are linked to globalization; to the rising dominance of finance over the production of goods; to changes in corporations that have led to the elimination of many jobs and the alleged gap between the skills people have and available jobs; to the growing inequality of income in the United States and welfare reform; and to changes in U.S. health care policy.

Students who enter the program should have good reading, writing and thinking skills and welcome close study of texts and arguments from philosophy, ethics and social and political theory. They should be eager to entertain and rigorously examine conflicting views on issues.

  • Credit awarded in sociology, social history, contemporary American history, political economy: contemporary economic problems and political philosophy.
  • Total: 16 credits each quarter.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in sociology, government and social services.

Political Economy and Social Change: From Colonization to Globalization

Fall, Winter/Coordinated Study
Faculty: Larry Mosqueda, Peter Dorman, Jeanne Hahn
Enrollment: 75
Prerequisites: Sophomore standing or above.
Faculty Signature: No
Special Expenses: No
Internship Possibilities: No
Travel Component: None

This program will examine the nature, development and concrete workings of modern capitalism with the U.S. experience as a central focus. We will also examine the transitions from feudalism in Europe and elsewhere, the foundations of the U.S. political economy and the development of the globalized economy. As such, we will analyze the political and economic relations between the United States and the rest of the world. Other recurring themes will be the relationship between oppression, exploitation and resistance, both nationally and internationally, and how we have understood the interrelationship of democracy and capitalism in the past and how we understand it in the globalized economy.
Specific issues that may be explored include the transatlantic slave trade, the development of markets (e.g., supply and demand), consumption theories and production (theories of the firm and market studies). We will also examine the connections between war, economics and revolution. In examining the modern era, we will examine the role of the corporation, domestically and internationally, and comparative capitalism in Asia and Europe (e.g., the rise and fall of social democracies). As we examine the linkage between the economic core of capitalism to political systems and social structures, we will study the role of such institutions as the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and other institutions and alliances. In winter quarter, students will engage in a major research project.

  • Credit awarded in political economy, history, economics and political theory.
  • Total: 16 credits each quarter.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in political science, economics, history, law, education and government.

Reinhabitation

Fall, Winter, Spring/Coordinated Study
Faculty: Brian Price, Sonja Wiedenhaupt
Enrollment: 48
Prerequisites: None
Faculty Signature: No
Special Expenses: Students can expect to spend approximately $800–$1,000 for six overnight field trips, binoculars, waterproof clothing and footwear and art materials.
Internship Possibilities: Yes, four credits required each quarter.
Travel Component: In-state, overnight trips.

Observing, sensing and perceiving are not simple activities. As we grow up, our experiences are increasingly mediated by the internalization of our cultures and our imbibing of knowledge organized and codified by some one other than ourselves. As a result, our curiosity and creativity, particularly in regard to the specific, concrete places in which we live, are often hijacked, or at least mislaid. Through seminars, workshops, experiments and writing we will examine the complex functions of, and interactions between, seeing and perceiving with the intention of becoming self-reflective about how our curiosity and creativity happen.

Our intention in this program is to gradually move together from being mere residents in our places and in ourselves, to genuine inhabitants of both. We will bring seeing and perceiving, curiosity and creativity outdoors with us, spending significant time in urban, rural and disturbed settings around campus, Olympia and Thurston County, as well as undertaking two, weeklong field trips each quarter. Further, all students will undertake four-credit internships with local organizations within Thurston County with the overt aim of making contributions to the people and places to which they are responsible by virtue of the fact that they live here.

We will read natural history, psychology, nature writing, cultural history and studies of living in place, while developing skills in bird and plant identification, nature writing, cultural analysis and drawing.

Our program will take 12 hours or more per week of program time, at least 10 hours per week of internship time, and at least 40 hours per week of study and preparation. In addition, neither rain, nor hail nor snow will prevent our outdoor work. We expect all students at the outset to seriously commit to the full duration of the program.

  • Credit awarded in individualized internships, environmental studies, literature, cultural history, natural history, psychology, writing and drawing.
  • Total: 16 credits each quarter.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in advanced work and careers in environmental studies, psychology, cultural studies and art.
  • This program is also listed in First-Year Programs and Environmental Studies.

Strategic Business Policies for the 21st Century

Fall, Winter, Spring/Coordinated Study
Faculty: Cynthia Kennedy, Brian McMorrow, Masahiro Arima (FW) Kobe Exchange Faculty
Enrollment: 50
Prerequisites: Junior or senior standing.
Faculty Signature: No
Special Expenses: Approximately $40 each quarter for fall and spring Challenge course and field trip fees.
Internship Possibilities: Yes, spring quarter with faculty signature.
Travel Component: Two overnight retreats.

This program seeks to identify the social, political, economic and environmental issues shaping business policy as we enter the 21st century. It is guided by the belief that liberal arts graduates bring a special talent to the study and practice of business management. They are “big picture” thinkers, skilled at framing the larger issues that often drive strategic thinking in public and private organizations. Evergreen graduates, in particular, learn collaborative processes that enable them to span and build on differences between theory and application, ethnicity, gender and discipline. Liberal arts graduates become strong critical thinkers and active listeners. They communicate ideas clearly and reason about ethical principles and moral outcomes. They know enough about finance, marketing, organizational behavior and other disciplines to know how to get specialized expertise when needed, but will not devote the bulk of their education to one area. Their talent is putting elements together into a comprehensive strategic plan that will be competitively successful and ethically consistent with their sense of what is right, just and fair.

This program aims to make meaningful progress toward these learning objectives: (1) writing clear and well-structured essays and reports, (2) listening actively and reading effectively, (3) expressing ideas clearly and supporting argumentation, (4) developing strategic planning skills, (5) refining small-group interaction skills and (6) defining ethical parameters for business policy-makers.

Fall quarter topics will focus on domestic issues while winter quarter will expand into the international arena. Spring work will emerge from a computer model: student groups will simulate strategic planning and implementation in a competitive industry with operations in several countries. Workshops will focus on reading financial statements and budgets, understanding economic data, interpreting organizational behavior patterns and effective writing. Weekly activities include two seminars, a lecture and discussion period and two workshops. Weekly seminar papers and periodic workshop submittals are required. A research paper is required each quarter (individual submittals in fall and spring quarters and group submittals in winter quarter). Two overnight retreats, one in fall and one in spring, will incorporate the Challenge course’s experiential-based activities as a way of developing leadership skills.

  • Credit awarded in financial management*, international business*, organizational behavior*, strategic planning*, business and society* and business policy*.
  • Total: 16 credits each quarter.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in business management and nonprofit organizations.

Student Originated Studies: Community Development

Fall, Winter, Spring/Group Contract
Faculty: Russ Fox
Enrollment: 25
Prerequisites: Junior or senior standing.
Faculty Signature: Yes, see application details below.
Special Expenses: Depends on the nature of student projects.
Internship Possibilities: Yes
Travel Component: Depends on the nature of student projects.

Advanced students from across the curriculum are invited to form study and project teams of four to eight students to integrate and apply their learning in community-based work. Possibilities include, but are not limited to, research and projects involving community organizations as partners or clients, research and organizing that results in community presentations, research on community issues that leads to professional publication, or collaboration among separate but related internships or research projects. Most projects involving significant community collaboration will require a commitment of more than one quarter. A weekly seminar involving all SOS groups in the program will explore emerging issues in community development and provide for additional critique of each group’s work.

Before being accepted into the program, each group must submit a proposal that includes the following: 1) a program description with learning goals, 2) strategies for gaining an in-depth academic perspective of the issues being addressed, developing group process and community research skills, and working with community groups or organizations, 3) a week-by-week syllabus with suggested readings, speakers, field trips, etc., 4) a strategy for documentation and critical reflection, 5) a proposed process of self- and peer evaluation and a 6) draft covenant describing responsibilities and commitments to each other.

SOS group proposals along with questionnaires (available from the faculty or Academic Advising) and recent self and faculty evaluations from each student must be submitted to Russ Fox in Lab I at least three weeks prior to registration. Students are strongly encouraged to begin planning SOS studies a full quarter ahead.
The faculty has taught community development for many years at Evergreen and is actively involved in the local community, working with groups and organizations addressing issues of affordable housing, community-based economics, land use planning, preservation of local agriculture, environmental education and conservation, community-based social services, lifelong learning, and the empowerment of ethnic communities. Student proposals involving other issues are also welcome, but they may necessitate subcontractors to assist with evaluation.

  • Credit awarded in the area of student work.
  • Total: 12 or 16 credits each quarter.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in planning, community development, public service, environmental studies and social sciences.
  • This program is also listed in Environmental Studies.

Working in Development: Learning From the Past, Creating the Future

Fall, Winter/Coordinated Study
Faculty: Tom Womeldorff, Pat Labine
Enrollment: 50
Prerequisites: Junior or senior standing; previous academic work in environmental studies or political economy.
Faculty Signature: No
Special Expenses: Approximately $100 for two overnight, in-state program retreats. Fees due prior to departure.
Internship Possibilities: No
Travel Component: Two overnight, in-state field trips.

This is an upper-division program for students interested in working for development, either at home or abroad. The program will have both a theoretical and practical focus. In lectures and seminars, we will explore the meanings and history of “development,” examine the forces that shape relationships between the North and South and the rich and poor, and consider prospects for sustainability and progressive change in the 21st century. We will make extensive use of case studies material, as well as fiction and nonfiction narratives. Case studies will reflect faculty interest in rural development, agricultural improvement, community and international economics, the urban informal sector and grassroots social change movements.

Workshops will develop skills to help students function with sensitivity in culturally diverse settings and to assist in self-directed community development. Student work will involve critical reading, expository writing and collaborative research projects.

  • Credit awarded in sustainable development*, agriculture and rural development*, international and community economics* and participatory research methods*.
  • Total: 16 credits each quarter. Students may enroll in a four-credit language course with faculty signature.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in development work, economics, international studies and community planning.
  • This program is also listed in Environmental Studies.

The Good Life in the Good Society: Moral, Social and Political Philosophy From Machiavelli to Marx

Spring/Group Contract
Faculty: Alan Nasser
Enrollment: 25
Prerequisites: Junior or senior standing.
Faculty Signature: Yes. The faculty will conduct an interview at the Academic Fair, March 7, 2001. During the fair interested students must submit a writing sample and past faculty evaluations. Acceptance decisions will be made at the Academic Fair, based on the interview and application materials. Transfer students must be junior standing.
Special Expenses: No
Internship Possibilities: No
Travel Component: None

This program is an examination and assessment of classical modern moral, social and political philosophy. It will include the work of Niccolo Machiavelli, Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, John Stuart Mill, G. W. F. Hegel and Karl Marx. We will examine the work of these philosophers in their historical and cultural contexts. Particular attention will be paid to concepts, theories and practices specific to modernity that serve to distinguish life and thought in the modern world from pre-modern (traditional) ways of living and thinking.

We will examine in detail the concepts of the individual, individual natural rights, private property, liberty and freedom, the modern state, the decline of moral thinking based in the notion of character, and the rise of moral philosophies based on rules and principles, among others. We will pay particular attention to the influence of these philosophers on the contemporary neoliberal orthodoxy.

This is an advanced, demanding, bookish program with an exclusive focus on the careful analytical examination of challenging readings. It will require a considerable degree of motivation and self-discipline of students.

  • Credit awarded in ethics, political philosophy and social philosophy.
  • Total: 16 credits.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in social science, philosophy, political philosophy and ethics.

Marxist Theory

Spring/Group Contract
Faculty: Larry Mosqueda
Enrollment: 25
Prerequisites: Junior or senior standing; equivalent of Political Economy and Social Change program or one year of political science, sociology or history.
Faculty Signature: Yes. Faculty will assess student ability to write at the college level. Students must submit a past social science research paper and set up an interview appointment between February 5 and 28, 2001. Dr. Mosqueda will notify students of acceptance into the program by March 8, 2001.
Special Expenses: No
Internship Possibilities: No
Travel Component: None

I am not a Marxist — Karl Marx

Sit down and read. Educate yourself for the coming conflicts — Mary Harris “Mother Jones”

If one believes the current mass media, one would believe that Marxism is dead and that the “end of history” is upon us. As Mark Twain is reported to have said upon news account of his demise, “The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated.” The same, of course, is true for Marxist Theory.

Few Americans have read more than The Communist Manifesto, if that. Very few “educated” people have a clear understanding of Marx’s concept of alienation, the dialectic historical materialism, his analysis of labor and revolutionary change.

In this course we will examine the development of Marx’s thought and Marxist Theory. We will read and discuss some of Marx’s early and later writings as well as writings of Lenin and others. We will also explore concrete examples of how “dialectics” and “materialism” can be applied to race and gender issues. At the end of the program, students should have a solid foundation for the further study of Marxist analysis.

  • Credit awarded in Marxist theory* and theories of social and political change*.
  • Total: 16 credits.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in political science, history and education.

*indicates upper-division credit