2011-12 Undergraduate Index A-Z
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Freshmen
Title | Offering | Standing | Credits | Credits | When | F | W | S | Su | Description | Preparatory | Faculty | Days | Multiple Standings | Start Quarters | Open Quarters |
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Michael Vavrus
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Program | FR–SOFreshmen - Sophomore | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | This program will explore the origins and manifestations of the contested concept "race." We will investigate the broad question as to how considerations of one's race result in differential social, economic, and political treatment. To do this, we will analyze a racialized history of the United States in relation to dominant discourses of popular culture, science, psychology, health care, law, citizenship, education, and personal/public identity.By making historical connections between European colonialism and the expansion of U.S. political and military dominance in an era of globalization, students will have opportunities to investigate how the bodies of various populations have been racialized. Students will examine related contemporary concepts such as racism, prejudice, discrimination, gender, class, affirmative action, white privilege, and color blindness. Students will consider current research and racialized commentaries that surround debates on genetics vs. culture (i.e., nature vs. nurture).Students will engage race through readings, dialogue in seminars, films, and academic writing that integrate program materials. A goal of the program is for students to recognize contemporary expressions of race by what we hear, see, and read as well as absences and silences that we find. These expressions include contemporary news accounts and popular culture artifacts (e.g., music, television, cinema, magazines). As part of this inquiry, we will examine the presidential candidacy of Barack Obama in relation to discourses on race. As a learning community we will work together to make sense of these expressions and link them to their historical origins. We may also visit local museums to understand how issues of racial identity have been experienced in the Pacific Northwest.Students will also have an opportunity to examine the social formation of their own racial identities through their own personal narratives. Current approaches from social psychology will be foundational in this aspect of the program. Related to this is consideration as to what it can mean to be an anti-racist in a 21st century racialized society. | history, law, sociology, political economy, social work, education and psychology. | Michael Vavrus | Tue Wed Fri | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO | Spring | Spring | |||
Stephanie Coontz
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | In the second half of the program we discuss the origins of 20th-century marriage and parenting norms and explore the dramatic shifts that have occurred in family formation and relationship norms over the past 50 years. Students will also do individual projects that will culminate in presentations at the end of the quarter. These will cover topics such as the causes and consequences of divorce, the changing dynamics of cohabitation, singlehood and marriage, the emergence of new sexual norms, legal issues connected with changing family structures and practices, the rise of biracial and multiracial families, and debates over same-sex marriage and parenting. Many of our topics will be controversial. We seek not simple answers but intelligent questions to inform our study. Students are expected to consider several different points of view, to fairly evaluate arguments with which they disagree, and to explore the possible contradictions or exceptions to their own positions. You should expect to back up your position with concrete examples and logical argumentation, and be prepared to be challenged to defend your positions. We are not simply sharing feelings or exchanging points of view but rigorously testing different interpretations and theories against each other. Because this is a demanding and intensive program, student should not attempt to work more than 15 hours a week. | sociology, history, family studies, research, social work, teaching, family law and counseling. | Stephanie Coontz | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall | ||||
Stephanie Kozick and Leslie Flemmer
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | This is an inquiry-based program structured as a collaborative effort to engage authentic questions about the process of learning. What is an educated society and what does it mean to become educated within a society? Whose ways of knowing count in such educational pursuits assumed to ultimately achieve happiness and personal fulfillment? Can one be considered “educated” if one lacks educational credentials, cultural knowledge of the arts, political awareness, or social and economic connections? And, to what end and in what means must we even consider these questions? In this program, we will inquire about the role that educators, artists, authors, and the environment play in guiding us toward a more vibrant and holistic outlook. This comprehensive inquiry requires an interdisciplinary curriculum designed to employ dialogue and the arts in an examination of what is meant by the term “education.” The program will include student-centered learning activities of readings, discussions, talks, film, and expressive projects.Students who are curious about paths to knowledge, the field of education, social justice, and cultural and historical considerations can join us in a wide-ranging examination of our diverse society. Students can expect to work collaboratively to think, learn, and interpret how individuals form, interact in, and become participants in an educated society while engaging topics that include critical pedagogy, arts and humanities, and the construction of knowledge through social networks and cultural practices. Motivated, open-minded students willing to work with others in critical discussions of readings, to experiment with the arts and writing projects, and to closely observe the contributions of others will gain new perspectives about what matters when contemplating an educated society. At quarter’s end, students will be able to identify their own and others efforts to understand what it means to be educated. Some of the authors who will have contributed to that understanding are: Virginia Woolf, Paolo Freire, William Ayers, James Baldwin, John Dewey, Terry Tempest Williams, Sherman Alexi, Gerald Durrell, and Maxine Green. | Stephanie Kozick Leslie Flemmer | Mon Tue Wed Thu | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | ||||
Ruth Hayes, Kevin Francis and Amy Cook
Signature Required:
Winter
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | Humans have a complex, intricate, and paradoxical relationship with other species. We are animals and we define ourselves against them. We celebrate our kinship with animals and use them as laboratory specimens. We create animal characters and infuse them with human qualities. We befriend animals and we eat them. In this program, we will integrate perspectives from the arts, sciences and humanities to explore such seeming contradictions in our understanding, representation and treatment of animals. In fall quarter, we will study animal form, function and evolution. Students will practice observational approaches to learning about animals, including drawing, laboratory dissection and field study. They will also study animal morphology, comparative anatomy, and biomechanics as a foundation for animating the locomotion of different kinds of animals. Students will explore evolutionary biology as a framework for understanding the biological parallels between humans and animals. Finally, we will examine how artists and writers have represented animals in images, stories and films. In winter quarter, we will shift our focus to human and animal neurobiology, cognition, emotion, and behaviour. As we study these topics, we will investigate how scientists and artists anthropomorphize animals in their work and explore the implications of this practice. Consider the scientist who empathizes with a chimpanzee's elation or an elephant's sadness or a dog's pain. Does this empathy provide valuable insight into the experience of another species or simply reveal the ability to project one's own sentimental fancies onto another creature? And how do we test these intuitions? Or consider animators who create films populated with animal characters. Why do they select particular species to represent specific human qualities? And how do these fictional representations of animals affect how we treat real animals? In each of these cases, we risk putting ourselves in dialog with anthropomorphized versions of animals without recognizing the full extent of our own narcissism. During both quarters, students will participate in lectures, seminars, labs and writing workshops. They will learn how to analyze several types of media, including books and films, and will be expected to develop and improve their writing through a variety of assignments. This program will also encourage students to reflect on their own assumptions and attitudes about other species. During fall quarter, art workshops will emphasize the development of basic skills in drawing and animation. During winter quarter, students will continue developing these skills and will also explore their own scientific and/or creative approaches to representing animals. | art, animation, science and education. | Ruth Hayes Kevin Francis Amy Cook | Mon Wed Thu Fri | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter | ||
Ruth Hayes and Anne de Marcken (Forbes)
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | Images of animals are the oldest known artworks; they are also some of the first images that children in western culture see and learn to recognize. From 35,000 year old cave paintings to Disney animations, from the fables of Aesop to the many thousands of animal videos uploaded to and viewed on YouTube, images and stories of the animals with whom we have evolved weave in and through western culture. The images proliferate as our experiences with actual animals become increasingly rare.Students will study how we see, understand and represent animals in an effort to learn about human relationships with animals as “other” and as mirrors of ourselves. They will engage in analyzing and deconstructing a variety of visual and written representations of animals to discover what these images and texts communicate about humans and their cultures, about the relationships between human and animals, and about animals themselves. Through a series of creative and technical assignments, students will interrogate their own consumption and creation of animal imagery and their own relationships with individual animals. As they execute these assignments, students will build skills in observation, research, critical thinking, conceptual design, writing, drawing and animation. | Ruth Hayes Anne de Marcken (Forbes) | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | |||||
Evan Blackwell
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | This program will investigate the social impact of art and explore what it means to be a “successful” artist working in the 21st century. How does the artist respond to current events, politics, social structures, ecological issues and existing paradigms in order to create a healthier community? How can the artist conduct meaningful dialogue about our cultural model? How can artists create awareness, and how can art effect social change?Our focus will examine the development of post-1960’s visual, installation, video, performance and ecological art, and its effects on the art world and the broader culture. We will study a variety of artists intent on making a difference in the world. We will look beyond art galleries, museums and collectors' homes and investigate ways in which art and art practices are supported and integrated into public places. This program will research artist collaborations, collectives and communities in order to understand how artists accomplish projects beyond the fixed studio space. We will take a collaborative approach to many of the studio projects and workshops to create work that goes beyond what a single individual could normally accomplish.Constructing with readily available materials not limited to traditional "fine art" mediums, we will gain skills in 2-D and 3-D design and construction methods, and link art making processes and materials to our ideas. These projects might culminate in site-specific installations, actions, performances, or objects - or take a less material-based approach using digital means and the World Wide Web.Weekly writing assignments, lectures, seminars, studio visits, and studio workshops will build a broader understanding of what art is and what it can do for the world. Students must be as committed their reading, writing and research as they are to their own art-making. This program requires a strong work ethic and self-discipline, and students will be expected to work intensively in the studios on campus. | Evan Blackwell | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | |||||
Ariel Goldberger
Signature Required:
Spring
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day and Evening | S 12Spring | This program will immerse students in studying the intense and lively cultural life of New York City, the most active arts production center in the United States, and perhaps the world. Sessions will meet weekly in different cultural institutions to participate in art events as active audience members, to develop an educated and critical appreciation of the richness, complexity and current trends of artistic production in New York.We will spend two weeks on campus doing preparatory research in areas of each student's interest in order to create the structure for an individual project or practicum. Students may choose to create a project by engaging in artistic work, research, or both. Students will be responsible for making all necessary arrangements for room and board, as well as budgeting for individual event tickets. All students will be expected to present a final report of their experience and project.After the initial two weeks of research and preparation, participants in the program will fly to New York City for six or seven weeks, where they will engage in group and individual activities, depending on each student practicum or project. Students will attend some events as a group and some related to their own projects. We will attend events in a wide range of sites, from established world-renowned institutions to emergent art spaces.Depending on the season, performance events may include events in places such as PS 122, La MAMA, The Kitchen, HERE Art Center, off-off-Broadway small theaters, the Brooklyn Academy of Music, Broadway productions and Lincoln Center. Regular dance events may include modern dance performances, experimental works, festivals at the Joyce Theater, and more traditional ballet events in venues such as the New York City Ballet. Specific visual arts events may consist of trips to the gallery "scene" in Chelsea, PS1, MOMA, DIA Arts Center, The Met, under the radar spaces and other sites. We may attend poetry readings at places such as The Bowery Poetry Club, the Nuyorican Poets Cafe, The St. Marks Poetry Project, The Academy of American Poets and The New York Public Library. The class will also endeavor to attend other culturally relevant institutions such as the Japan Society, the Asia Society, The Jewish Museum, The Schomburg Center, The Dwyer Cultural Center and El Museo del Barrio to experience a wide range of cultural diversity. Most weekly group activities will be followed by a discussion or seminar.We will spend the final week of the quarter back on campus in Olympia, completing final report presentations for the whole class. | architecture, community studies, consciousness studies, cultural studies, dance, field studies, language studies, literature, media studies, moving image, music, queer studies, somatic studies, theater, visual arts, and writing. | Ariel Goldberger | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | ||||
Shaw Osha (Flores) and Trevor Speller
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | - Marlene Dumas (1984) In (1789; 1794), the English poet and painter William Blake famously presented his poems on pages surrounded by his own drawings. This kind of interrelationship of images and words is an artistic tradition that is still alive and well, in visual arts and book arts, from painting to graphic novels. This kind of work asks important questions of both literature and visual art, such as: This one-quarter, all-level program explores the relationships between visual art and the written word. Over the course of the program, we will be examining and producing singular works in which words and images each other - where one form does not privilege or illustrate the other. They both work in the service of art and aesthetics by framing and giving form to ideas. These hybrid works of language and art point to new and alternative ways of seeing, reading, and interpreting the world. We plan to take a look at the ways language has interacted with image: reading and seeing. The program work will be both creative and critical. In addition to reading and viewing artwork, criticism, and theory, students can expect to finish a small book of multi-, inter- or mixed medial writing and artwork by the end of the quarter that challenges and responds to the curriculum. The program includes lecture, seminar, and studio time.Of literary interest will be the traditions of concrete poetry, children's literature, graphic novels and book arts. Representative authors and artists may include William Blake, Lewis Carroll, Tom Phillips, John Cage, Alan Moore, Maurice Sendak, Barbara Lehman, Donald Crews, and others.Of artistic interest will be visual art that uses text and artists' books. Representative authors and artists may include Art Spiegelman, Cy Twombly, Philip Guston, Ed Ruscha, Ree Morton, Jenny Holzer, Raymond Pettibon, and others.In addition to primary works, students will be expected to read works of artistic and literary theory relating to issues germane to the program. Theorists such as Johanna Drucker, Roland Barthes, Edward R. Tufte, Roy Harris and Scott McCloud will help shape our understandings of the gaps between the image and the word. | visual art, writing, literature, and critical studies. | Shaw Osha (Flores) Trevor Speller | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | ||||
Patricia Krafcik, Marta Botikova, Robert Smurr and Zoltan Grossman
Signature Required:
Winter
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | Come with us on a virtual journey from the Baltics to the Balkans. The cobblestone streets of medieval Estonia, misty Carpathian and Transylvanian mountains, and sunny shores of the Adriatic Sea await our arrival as we traverse a magnificent territory stretching from the gates of Scandinavia through the mountains, plains and forests of Slavic, Hungarian and Romanian central Europe to the portals of the once-great empires of Macedonia and the Ottoman Turks.Our theme of “Blood” examines the ethnic and cultural identities prevalent in the region and how ethno-religious and cultural nationalisms have shaped and been shaped by constructed identities as well as by regional conflicts and invading distant powers since 1848. Indeed, some of the world’s most reviled rulers and dictators, including Dracula, Hitler and Stalin, left bloody and permanent marks on this entire region.Our theme of “Borders” explores how international and regional boundaries have been drawn and redrawn and how central Europe has served as a “borderland” between Christianity and Islam, Western and Eastern Christianity, the German, Austrian, Russian and Ottoman empires, NATO and the Soviet Union, and present-day Russia and the European Union. The revolution of 1989 and the demise of Communism, initiating a new chapter in the region’s history, will be a significant focus of our study. We will examine why the numerous ethnic, national, religious and political identities often “resolved” their differences by force and violence rather than by tolerance and acceptance.Historical, cultural, geographical, economic, gender, and environmental modes of analysis will enable us to examine both previous and contemporary issues in each country in this region. Such analysis will also permit us to offer regional angles that transcend state boundaries, a particularly exciting aspect of investigation since so many of the current nation-state borders have been drawn recently and, in many cases, artificially. Abundant literary works and films from each of the region's relevant countries will offer additional valuable insights.In fall quarter, we will examine the historical background chronologically, enhanced with a study of the geography and demography of this varied region. Winter quarter will focus on a variety of fascinating themes connecting the present to the past and the future. In both quarters, students will write papers and conduct research projects that link our themes over time and on a local, national and global scale. We will use lectures, images, readings, film critique, art, maps and literature as tools in our exploration. | international affairs, history, political science, geography, cultural anthropology and international business. | Patricia Krafcik Marta Botikova Robert Smurr Zoltan Grossman | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter | |||
Glenn Landram and David Shaw
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | This program focuses on contemporary business issues, as well as introductions to personal finance and managerial finance. It also includes basic undergraduate statistics, which will serve as a foundation for further work in advanced social sciences in any graduate program (e.g., an MBA or MPA) requiring statistics. But fear not; this material is not only useful and practical but also learnable. The program will provide the quantitative basics for the conduct and understanding of business domestically and abroad, as well as examine the tension faced by smaller businesses caught between the forces of globalization on the one hand and a desire for greater localism on the other. There will be workshops, lectures, films, guest speakers and student led sessions. Readings such as the ; the ; ; ; and will focus on increasing student familiarity with current business topics, and developing the skills to organize and analyze business and economic data. Strategies for effectively presenting quantitative information will also be emphasized. Students will compete in an advanced business simulation in teams. The simulation will require substantial student research, including analysis of quantitative and qualitative data. Students will emerge from the simulation with improved teamwork skills, as well as a greater understanding of financial statement analysis, competitive strategy, marketing, operations, and business economics. | social science, business, management, and public administration. | Glenn Landram David Shaw | Mon Wed Thu | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | |||
Frederica Bowcutt, Gaku Mitsumata and Jeff Antonelis-Lapp
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | As a learning community our central question will be: how can ordinary citizens assist in the important work of shifting society to more sustainable relations with the natural world? We will begin by examining what it means to be ecoliterate.In the fall we will focus on the natural history of the Puget Sound region and contrast that to eastern Washington’s high desert. In October the learning community will visit the sagebrush steppe of Sun Lakes State Park to gain field experience in linking plant and animal distribution patterns with environmental conditions. Through this work, students will learn how to read topographic and geologic maps, and basic mapmaking skills. Students will gain experience in conducting biodiversity assessments in the park and on campus, including vascular plants, birds, mammals and insects. The learning community will explore how ecoliterate citizens can serve as citizen scientists, for example, by helping to monitor plant and animal responses to climate change. To support their work in the field and lab, students will learn how to maintain a detailed and illustrated nature journal. In the winter we will examine the relationship between people and gardens through the disciplines of garden history, children’s literature, and environmental and place-based education. Special attention will be given to urban horticulture that fosters socially just communities and an ecoliterate citizenry. Students will learn how to link scientific knowledge about soils, plants and animals with the pragmatic realities of installing and maintaining educational gardens in public settings. Lectures and labs in soil science, botany, ecology and environmental/place-based education will support this learning. Students will learn to develop K-12 curriculum for the teaching gardens on campus, and pursue opportunities to lead activities in them and the surrounding woods with local school groups. During both quarters, a significant amount of time will be dedicated to honing our ability to write an expository paper. Credit may be awarded in natural history, environmental education, expository writing, children’s literature, horticulture, garden history and botany (with a lab). This program is appropriate not only for students with interest in the natural sciences, but also for students who would not normally select academic programs in the sciences. | K-12 teaching, environmental education, horticulture, natural history and ecology. | Frederica Bowcutt Gaku Mitsumata Jeff Antonelis-Lapp | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall | |||
Lori Blewett and Trevor Griffey
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | Persuasive efforts have shaped American history. The past is full of moments when individual women and men have been persuaded by others to act for a common cause, sometimes at great personal sacrifice. In this program, the ideological mechanism of persuasion, in both public and private discourse, will be the primary lens through which we analyze American history. What persuasive strategies were employed by historic social change advocates? Why were some strategies more successful than others? To help answer these questions, we will read texts that draw upon communication studies, American history, cultural studies, political economy, and social change theory. Students will also conduct their own investigations using a variety of analytical tools to examine primary historical documents including speeches, letters, news articles, advertisements, and other artifacts of persuasion. In order to foster students' capacity to engage in public debate and enhance their rhetorical skills, we will experiment with communicating in a variety of public media. In addition to writing traditional papers, students will report on their research in the form of group radio and television programs, oral presentations, and electronic news articles. Training in essential skills associated with these forms of communication will be spread throughout both quarters. In the winter, students will have the opportunity to conduct oral history interviews with contemporary social activists. Since rhetoric alone is rarely the impetus for social change, we will ground our investigations in the material history of competing social, economic, and political forces. We will study a wide range of social change efforts from across the political spectrum in order to better understand the evolution of U.S. history and its influence on current ideological conflicts and relations of power. We will give special attention to the role of the media in shaping public debate: from social movement broadsheets such as William Lloyd Garrison's to the work of muckraking journalists like Ida Tarbell, up through the present influence of corporate media and do-it-yourself blogs. Because of the media's ability to amplify, minimize, redirect, and even spark social activism, and because of the media's essential role in democratic decision-making, media history and political economy will be key elements in our investigations. | communication, history, politics, rhetoric, social movement studies, journalism, and social advocacy. | Lori Blewett Trevor Griffey | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter | |||
Neal Nelson, Sheryl Shulman and Richard Weiss
Signature Required:
Winter Spring
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | S 12Spring | The goal of this program is for students to learn the intellectual concepts and skills that are essential for advanced work in computer science. Students will have the opportunity to achieve a deeper understanding of increasingly complex computing systems by acquiring knowledge and skills in mathematical abstraction, problem solving, and the organization and analysis of hardware and software systems. The program covers material such as algorithms, data structures, computer organization and architecture, logic, discrete mathematics and programming in the context of the liberal arts and compatible with the model curriculum developed by the Liberal Arts Computer Science Consortium (LACS). In all quarters the program content will be organized around four interwoven themes. The theme covers concepts and structures of computing systems from digital logic to operating systems. The theme concentrates on learning how to design and code programs to solve problems. The theme helps develop mathematical reasoning, theoretical abstractions and problem solving skills needed for computer scientists. A theme explores social, historical or philosophical topics related to science and technology. | computer science, education and mathematics. | Neal Nelson Sheryl Shulman Richard Weiss | Mon Tue Wed Thu | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter Spring | |
Robert Esposito
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | W 12Winter | The central focus of this program is modern dance as a medium to explore the creative process. Students learn methods of conceiving and shaping original choreography. Studio workshops explore sensory, emotive, cognitive, and movement experience as motivations for kinetic design. The syllabus includes daily technique class, improvisation, weekly solo and group composition assignments, rehearsals and, text and media seminars. This program involves rigorous physical practice, intellectual engagement, reading, writing, and oral seminar. The syllabus integrates modern dance and several epistemological fields, including human development, somatic therapy, sociology, art history, and poetry.Progressively designed classes in the Nikolais/Louis technique support an active exploration of the theories of choreography. Each weekly premise builds upon preceding lessons. Full participation and consistent attendance is essential. Rigorous practice and kinesiological analysis become the theoretical ground for creative articulations of performance space, time, shape, and motion. In composition classes, students are encouraged to find and develop their own central movement patterns while exploring new creative pathways. Seminars are supported by multimedia work, including movement, drawing, poetry, and music. In seminar we engage each other in multifaceted analysis, situating texts, objects, and performance works in their historical and sociocultural contexts. The syllabus includes units on injury prevention, diet, conditioning, and somatic therapy. | Robert Esposito | Mon Mon Tue Tue Wed Wed Thu Thu Fri | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Winter | Winter | ||||
Anne de Marcken (Forbes) and Jennifer Calkins
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | W 12Winter | Participants in this quarter-long creative writing and literary studies program will study and practice writing across genres and movements. We will use a variety of critical frameworks to analyze, interpret, and create a diverse selection of American literature, interrogating the boundaries of nation, identity and genre. Program participants will learn about and practice the elements of narrative and lyrical discourse, developing a portfolio of short fiction, poetry, and hybrid forms. There will be an emphasis on the relationship between critical and creative thought and practice, as well as on development of a sustaining, independent creative writing practice.The program will have five major components: presentation, workshop, peer critique, seminar, and practice. Students, faculty and guest writers will gather for presentations and lectures on creative and critical texts and on ideas related to our area of inquiry. In hands-on workshops, students will develop creative and critical skills. Working in small groups, students will develop critical skills in support of one another's creative objectives. Students will gather in seminar to discuss critical and creative texts at depth in light of overarching program concerns. And finally, each student will define, develop, and maintain an independent creative writing practice to support his or her program goals. Possible texts include: Maggie Nelson's Elaine Scarry's Alice LaPlante’s , as well as works by American writers ranging from Emily Dickinson to Claudia Rankine, from Jean Toomer to Yi Yun Li. | Anne de Marcken (Forbes) Jennifer Calkins | Mon Mon Tue Tue Tue Thu Thu Thu | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Winter | Winter | ||||
Robert Esposito
Signature Required:
Spring
|
SOS | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day and Evening | S 12Spring | This is a full-time, one-quarter program for students ready for intermediate to advanced work in the theory and practice of dance. Student cohorts investigate a variety of dance and theatre forms around themes of cultural empowerment, freedom, belonging, and wellness. Students research the practice, history, and sociocultural forms and functions of their chosen genre, including (but not limited to) modern dance, world dance, ballet, dance theatre, Middle Eastern, Butoh, etc., and create contemporary dance theatre rituals to be shared on a regular basis in studio forums. The content of scholarly research, scores, papers, readings, critiques, and seminars is determined in collaboration between faculty and students. Students design the syllabus for their research topics and choreographic projects in an open, but structured, learning community. Activities include classes in technique, improvisation, composition, learning new and extant modern choreography, field trips, lectures, and multimedia presentations.Expect to work on program assignments 20-30 hours per week outside of scheduled class meetings. | Robert Esposito | Tue Wed Thu | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | ||||
Frances V. Rains and Rebecca Sunderman
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Program | FR–SOFreshmen - Sophomore | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | This program brings together a variety of climate and energy issues occurring on Native American homelands. Students will explore the science and ethics of energy production and consumption, the environmental impacts of energy, and topics in alternative energy. For example, we will investigate the impacts of hydro-power on Native communities and cultures, while learning the science associated with this energy source. Students will also examine contemporary Native American struggles to resist cultural and environmental devastation to their communities, and their efforts to affirm tribal sovereignty and Indigenous knowledge. A solid understanding of these issues requires background in both the science of energy and knowledge of Native American Tribal sovereignty. We will approach our learning through a variety of modes, including hands-on labs, lectures, workshops, field trips, group work, research papers, and weekly seminars on a variety of related topics. | chemistry, physics, Native American studies, environmentally-related fields and science education. | Frances V. Rains Rebecca Sunderman | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO | Spring | Spring | ||||
Lucia Harrison and Abir Biswas
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Program | FR–SOFreshmen - Sophomore | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | This program offers an introductory study of the Earth, through geology and art. What makes the earth a habitable planet? What forces have shaped the geology of the Pacific Northwest? These questions have fascinated people for centuries. Both scientists and artists rely heavily on skills of observation and description to understand the world, and to convey that understanding to others. Geologists use images, diagrams and figures to illustrate concepts and communicate research. Artists take scientific information to inform their work, and seek to communicate the implications of what science tells us about the world. They also draw on scientific concepts as metaphors for autobiographical artworks. In the fall, we will use science and art to study basic concepts in earth science such as geologic time, plate tectonics, earth materials and how they are formed, the hydrological cycle and stream ecology. Case studies in the Cascade Mountain Range and Nisqually Watershed will provide hands-on experience. In the winter, we further this study to include soil formation, nutrient cycling, ocean basin sand currents, and climate change. Field studies will include a trip to the Olympic Peninsula where we will observe coastal processes. Geologic time and evidence of the Earth's dynamic past are recorded in rocks on the landscape. Students will learn basic techniques in observational drawing and watercolor painting. They will learn the discipline of keeping illustrated field journals to inform their studies of geological processes. They will also develop finished artworks ranging from scientific illustration to personal expression. | geology, environmental studies, education and visual arts. | Lucia Harrison Abir Biswas | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO | Fall | Fall Winter | |||
Bob Haft
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Program | FR ONLYFreshmen Only | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | This is an entry-level arts program for freshmen who are interested in exploring what it means to make art and to be an artist. It is designed for those to whom art is entirely foreign--but who are, nonetheless, interested in learning what it's all about--as well as for those who have already taken art courses and feel a strong affinity for it. The program will have three components: studio art, art history and literature. The studio component of the program will cover basic drawing skills, both of still lives and the human figure. Art history will consist of an introduction to Western art, and will have connections with the literature that we read. Our books may include by Kurt Vonnegut, by Chaim Potok, by Wassily Kandinsky, by John Berger, by Margaret Atwood, and by Robert Irwin. | visual arts and the humanities. | Bob Haft | Tue Tue Wed Thu Fri | Freshmen FR | Spring | Spring | |||
Martha Rosemeyer and Donald Morisato
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | How do seeds form? How do plants develop from seeds? How do plants adapt to particular environmental conditions? The modification of plant evolution by human selection has played a major role in the history of agriculture. Ecological agriculture is based on an understanding of plant biology, either through the grazing of livestock or the growing of food crops. This program focuses on the science of crop botany and genetics as a basis for propagation, seed-saving and plant breeding. In one strand, the basic life cycle, plant physiology and reproductive botany of crop members of the plant families most important for agriculture will be explored. This systematic survey will make connections to their center of diversity and origin. In a second strand, the principles of plant breeding will be presented through an introduction to Mendelian and quantitative genetics. Some of the agricultural methods of plant reproduction, by both sexual and vegetative propagation, will be considered. Readings may include Ashworth's , Deppe's , and Nabhan's . The adaptation of crop plants to specific environments, especially in this era of climate change, becomes increasingly critical for the future of sustainable agriculture. Laboratory and field experiments, as well as field trips to local farms and plant breeding centers, will provide an applied context for our inquiry. | agriculture, biology and plant breeding. | Martha Rosemeyer Donald Morisato | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | ||||
Martha Rosemeyer, Thomas Johnson and David Muehleisen
Signature Required:
Winter
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | What is a food system? Why does it matter? A battle for the future of our food system is being waged between competing visions. On one side is the global, industrial-based system that provides large quantities of inexpensive food along with significant environmental and social impacts. The competing vision is a local, community-based system that produces higher quality, more expensive food while seeking to minimize environmental and social impacts. We will explore these competing visions from a critical perspective of social and ecological sustainability. Critical questions that will inform our inquiry include: Can a humane, socially just agricultural system that minimizes environmental degradation meet the food needs of the world? Can farmers be stewards of the soil, biodiversity and landscape? Can we grow high-quality food that is available to everyone? How did we get into this food system predicament anyway? Are local, sustainable food systems best?This program will provide a broad, interdisciplinary study of agriculture. We will emphasize developing "systems" thinking and skills associated with community work, expository writing, laboratory and library research, as well as quantitative reasoning skills. Lectures will focus on ecological principles applied to agroecosystems, soil science and fertility management, crop and livestock management, as well as local to global food system structure, socio-economic aspects of agriculture and agricultural history. Labs will provide a hands-on introduction to soil ecology and fertility. Students will identify needs, gather data and write a report of relevance to developing a sustainable local food system. Multi-day field trips will allow students to visit farms working toward sustainability, meet key players in food system change and attend meetings such as the Washington Tilth Producers conference and Eco-Farm conference in California. : The Agroecology portion of fall quarter will emphasize energy flow and biodiversity as applied to agricultural systems, using Steve Gliessman's textbook, second edition. A social science approach will focus on the role that ideas and institutions have played in shaping US agriculture. We will work toward assessing the needs of our local food system. Seminar books will support our inquiry. Field trips, as well as attending the Tilth Conference in Yakima are planned. : The agroecology portion will focus on soil science, soil ecology and nutrient cycling. We will work with civic engagement as a way to move us toward our vision. A policy workshop focusing both on local and national policy such as the 2012 Farm Bill is planned. Students will gather data and write a report on a particular aspect appropriate to developing a local food system in Thurston County. There will be an emphasis on lab exercises, critical analysis, library research and expository writing. Seminar books will again support our inquiry. A field trip to attend the Eco-Farm conference in California will be part of the curriculum. Students interested in continuing their studies of agriculture in spring quarter can continue with with Donald Morisato and Martha Rosemeyer or with Dave Muehleisen and Stephen Bramwell. | Farm, nursery and garden management; agriculture, food system and environmental consulting firms; state and county agricultural and natural resource agencies; and agricultural and food justice non-profit organizations. | Martha Rosemeyer Thomas Johnson David Muehleisen | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter | |||
Alison Styring, Steven Scheuerell and George Freeman
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Program | FR ONLYFreshmen Only | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | S 12Spring | The word environment encompasses multiple meanings, from the natural to the built, from the interiors of our minds to the spiritual. In each case there is a constant interface of environments with one another and with other creatures, each defining and circumscribing our experience of the world. Some of our essential questions revolve around how we define the environment and how we are shaped by as well as how we shape the environment, both natural and built. For example, does the concept of wilderness include humans? Is the ecological niche of a human essentially different from that of other living things? We will explore the habitats we occupy along with other creatures in those environments. We will explore dichotomies that foster dynamic tensions, such as the dichotomy between concepts of "natural" versus "human". We intend to investigate these tensions through our study of psychology, personal biography, biology, environmental studies, ornithology and cultural studies. In fall quarter we will develop the foundational skills in environmental studies and psychology needed to understand and critique the writings and current research in community ecology, animal behavior and conservation biology, and to examine the conscious and unconscious, and the theories of perception and cognition in psychology. We will examine parallels and linkages among disciplines in terms of methods, assumptions and prevailing theories. In winter we'll continue building on this foundation and move ourselves from theory to practice through an emphasis on methodologies, analyses, and their underlying assumptions. In spring quarter we'll implement the skills and knowledge we've developed through specific student-directed projects and our optional field trip. The faculty will foster creativity, experimentation and imaginative processes as means of discovering and bringing a new awareness to our extraordinary world. The students will respond to the themes of the program through individual and collaborative projects. To build our learning community we will use experiential collaboration activities such as Challenge and Experiential Education as a means to develop a sense of commitment and group citizenship. We will use multicultural discussion opportunities such as Critical Moments to explore the politics of identity and meaning. We will develop our observational skills via field workshops and field trips. We will have writing and quantitative reasoning workshops to further develop students' current skills and to develop advanced skills in these areas. Students completing this program will come to a stronger understanding of their personal lives as situated in a variety of contexts. They will develop strategies for engaging in a range of settings to promote social change, in-depth personal development, increased self-awareness, critical commentary and analyses, and practices that promote stewardship of our personal lives, our immediate environment and global communities. | psychology, behavioral sciences and environmental science. | Alison Styring Steven Scheuerell George Freeman | Mon Tue Thu Fri | Freshmen FR | Fall | Fall Winter | |
Walter Grodzik and Cynthia Kennedy
Signature Required:
Winter
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | This program will explore the interior spaces where performances begin and the exterior spaces where performances are realized. Students will begin with movement and theatre exercises that center and focus the mind and body in order to open oneself to creative possibilities and performance. Students will also study movement/dance and theatre as a means of physical and psychological focus and flexibility that enables them to more fully utilize their bodies and emotional selves in creating theatrical performance.Through the understanding and embodiment of somatic concepts such as awareness, intention, centering, authenticity, and the interplay of mind and body, students will have the opportunity to explore creative imagination as it expresses itself from their own life processes, rather than from externally imposed images, standards and expectations. How does imagination respond to the emotional self, the physiology of the body, and the psychology of the mind? How can we become more expressive and responsive to our inner selves? Students will be invited to explore and enjoy the dance already going on inside their bodies, to learn to perceive, interpret and trust the natural intelligence of intrinsic bodily sensations. The class will use experiential techniques derived from several traditions of somatic philosophy.In seminar, students will read a broad variety of texts about creativity, movement and dance history, and performance, performance history, and Western theatre history and dramatic literature. In particular, students will read Greek tragedy and comedy, the playwrights of the Elizabethan theater, such as Marlowe and Shakespeare, and the feminist comedies of the Restoration. The realism of the Nineteenth century will be seen through the plays of Ibsen and Chekhov and other realists, and students will study, discuss and perform the multicultural theatre of the Twentieth and Twenty-First century, including theatre, drama and performance art as found in the work of Thornton Wilder, David Mamet, Tony Kushner, Caryl Churchill, Henry David Hwang and Anna Devere Smith. The discussion of dramatic literature will be framed from many viewpoints, including structuralist, feminist, Marxist, post colonial and queer.The program will include weekly seminars, workshops in movement/dance and theatre, and film screenings of various dance and theatre productions. This is an all-level program that welcomes students of all abilities that bring their excitement, commitment, discipline and creativity to the performing arts. Regular on-time attendance is fundamental to students' development and continuance in the program. | teaching, theatre, expressive arts, dance and movement theory. | Walter Grodzik Cynthia Kennedy | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter | |||
John Filmer and Neil Delisanti
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Program | FR–SOFreshmen - Sophomore | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | Organizations, fail or succeed according to their ability to adapt to fluid legal, cultural, political and economic realities. Strong, competent management leads to strong successful organizations. This program will explore the essentials of for-profit and non-profit business development through the study of classical economics, economic development and basic business principles. Critical reasoning will be taught to facilitate an understanding of economics and its application to the business environment. You will be introduced to the tools, skills and concepts you need to develop strategies for navigating your organization in an ever-changing environment.Management is a highly interdisciplinary profession where generalized, connected knowledge plays a critical role. Knowledge of the liberal arts/humanities or of technological advances may be as vital as skill development in finance, law, organizational dynamics or the latest management theory. As an effective leader/manager you must develop the ability to read, comprehend, contextualize and interpret the flow of events impacting your organization. Communication skills, critical reasoning, quantitative analysis and the ability to research, sort out, comprehend and digest voluminous amounts of material separate the far-thinking and effective organizational leader/manager from the pedestrian administrator. Fall quarter will focus on these basic skills in preparation for projects and research during the winter. During winter quarter, you will engage in discussions with practitioners in businesses and various other private sector and government organizations. You will be actively involved in research and project work with some of these organizations and it will provide an opportunity to investigate and design exciting internships for the spring quarter. Class work both quarters will include lectures, book seminars, projects, case studies and field trips. Texts will include by Thomas Zimmerer by Thomas Sowell, by M. Neil Browne and Stuart Keeley, and by John A. Tracy. Evergreen's management graduates enjoy a reputation for integrity and for being bold and creative in their approaches to problem solving, mindful of the public interest and attentive to their responsibilities toward the environment and their employees, volunteers, customers, stockholders, stakeholders, and neighbors. Expect to read a lot, study hard and be challenged to think clearly, logically and often. Your competence as a manager is in the balance. | business, non-profit management, and economics. | John Filmer Neil Delisanti | Mon Wed Fri | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO | Fall | Fall | ||
Sean Williams, Heather Heying and Eric Stein
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | In addition to the landscape of the map, there are also landscapes of the mind. How humans conceptualize where and how they (and others) live is an elemental process that has started wars, led to new forms of cross-cultural communication, and given rise to hybridization of both populations and ideas. Our focus in this two-quarter program is to take a particular area of the world -- the equator -- and explore how various groups of people (local and foreign) have come to understand it over time. Through our work in science, the performing arts and anthropology, we will collectively engage the ways in which people connect to the natural world, the arts, and each other.Each quarter divides into sections in which we highlight a particular lens through which to view our work, or focus on ways in which our lenses overlap. For example, we will examine how anthropology and medicine have grappled with "The Tropics" as a space believed to be essentially different from "The West," raising questions about the construction of race, the body, and the category of the "primitive." We will also work with sound: playing and creating musical instruments, singing and listening to music. In an attempt to understand the relationship between humans and the world around them, we will investigate evolutionary processes that apply to plants and animals near the equator. While our studies are contextualized in regions such as Brazil and Indonesia and other equatorial locations, we will also work briefly with a few regions outside the equator by way of comparison.Weekly activities feature lectures, films and seminars. Other planned activities include field trips, workshops, collaborative presentations and guest lectures. Students are expected to focus on enhancing their college-level writing skills throughout the program; each quarter's major writing assignments will require students to revise their work and understand the process of revision. In fall quarter students will be introduced to important concepts about how to approach this material: issues of race, class and gender in a colonial context are important factors in deepening our understanding. As we move into winter quarter, students will have more chances to develop individual projects focusing on a particular area of interest. | anthropology, science and ethnomusicology. | Sean Williams Heather Heying Eric Stein | Mon Tue Wed Thu | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall | ||
Leslie Flemmer
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | The current system of public education is under profound national debate. What is at the heart of those debates? What creates such political, social and cultural differences? What should the future of education look like? Should education continue to be a universal good (free and open to all), a personal commodity (private and exclusive), or a hybrid of reforms? What is the role of teachers and students in this dynamic tension? Finally, what role does identity formation among students and teachers have to do with any of this? One common denominator among U.S. citizens is our access to and experience with free and compulsory K-12 public education that serves the wealthiest citizens to the poorest among us. And yet, that very system that has served so many for so long is frequently attacked by politicians, business leaders, the media, and even individuals like you and me. At the heart of our nation’s debate about public education and “effective” teaching practices are the ideological differences about its purpose and intent.In winter quarter, we will continue to ask questions: Who are our students? Why should they care about school? How do teachers create a culturally responsive, democratic learning community? What approaches do teachers take to create and implement student-centered curriculum and assessments? To answer these questions, we will build upon educational frameworks such as funds of knowledge, critical pedagogy, and constructivist teaching and include an examination of practical, historical inquiry-based methodology and curriculum. The first part of winter program will be designed to prepare students to research, teach and assess social studies content around inquiry-based approaches. Students will explore the State of Washington’s social science standards, the NCSS standards, and texts included (Levstik & Barton; 2005) and (Takaki; 2008).School field experience will continue winter quarter with site visits to local public schools. These classroom experiences will serve to help inform students’ thinking as they engage in the culminating project that will involve reading, research and participation in Problem Based Learning (PBL). Ultimately, this approach will contrast teacher-centered, top/down, high stakes testing and content standards with learning and knowledge construction that comes from purposeful, active student inquiry. | Leslie Flemmer | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter | ||||
Liza Rognas
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | W 12Winter | Democracy assumes individual inclusion as critical components of its success as a structure of government. This program examines the tension between social, political and economic exclusion in American history and the inclusive assumptions but exclusive realities of democratic processes. Students will investigate the historical origins of exclusion in contemporary society as part of individual and group research projects.The program offers opportunities for meaningful intellectual engagement in social and institutional histories explored through program texts, informed seminar discussions, films, lecture and field trips. Student research topics may include contemporary issues related to ethnicity and race; gender and sexuality; religion; immigration and citizenship; labor and work. By integrating program materials and information with independent research, students will learn to recognize current political and social processes of exclusion and their historical roots. A specific focus on issues of justice will engage students in learning about current groups and political processes that address exclusionary policies with progressive ideas and practices. Books will include ; and . | Liza Rognas | Mon Tue Wed | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Winter | Winter | ||||
Dylan Fischer and Clarissa Dirks
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | The southwestern U.S. is unique in the diversity of habitats that can occur along with dramatic temperature and moisture gradients. Major advances in ecology have been made in these extreme environments, and important work in global change biology is currently being conducted in these systems. This program will use field sites in the Desert Southwest as living laboratories for investigating patterns in ecology, biology, microbiology and evolution. Students will learn about arid environments, plant ecology, field biology, and gain specialized training in microbiology or plant molecular genetics. Students will co-design field projects exploring ecological and co-evolutionary relationships at organism and molecular scales.We will use detailed studies of southwestern cottonwood trees and tardigrades (water-bears) as examples that will let us dive deeply into laboratory and field experiments. We will pair those investigations with broader exploration of southwestern environments to learn about multiple ecosystems and organisms. Early in the program, students will learn to conduct DNS analyses on plants and microscope-based identification of microscopic animals called tardigrades (water-bears). All students will participate in a mandatory two-week field ecology module where they will participate in a major research project examining the effects of desert-tree genetic diversity on ecosystems, learn to identify plant species of the Southwest, keep detailed field journals, conduct research projects, and survey isolated canyons for patterns related to evolutionary history. Along the way, we will visit environmental and culturally significant sites in the Southwest, from cactus forests to canyons and mountain peaks. Finally, at the end of the quarter all students will reconvene for a program conference where students will present their research over the quarter.Our reading list will include major natural history texts related to the Southwest and evolutionary relationships for the organisms we find there. We will emphasize active participation in the scientific process and communication skills. Because of the field component of this program, students should be prepared for extensive time living and working in the field, and should be committed to working through conflicts in group dynamics. | ecology, biology, botany, zoology, microbial ecology and environmental science. | Dylan Fischer Clarissa Dirks | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | ||||
Marianne Bailey, Olivier Soustelle, Judith Gabriele, Steven Hendricks and Stacey Davis
Signature Required:
Spring
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | S 12Spring | ...man is struck dumb...or he will speak only in forbidden metaphors... Friedrich Nietzsche, "On Truth and Lies in a Nonmoral Sense" Nietzsche's critique of traditional Western values--dismantling absolutes of God, Truth, Self and Language--opened up an abyss. "Only as an aesthetic phenomenon," Nietzsche argued, would "human life and existence be eternally justified." Meaning and Self would be individually crafted, as the artist crafts a work, in the space of a human existence. Life, as Rimbaud wrote, must be remade.Inspired by this notion of remaking life along aesthetic lines, we will study literature and creative writing, critical theory and philosophy, art history and music as well as French language. Students will participate in lectures, films and workshops, and choose between seminar groups in literature and critical theory or history. Each will develop a substantive individual (or group) project, and will be able to study French language at the Beginning, Intermediate or Advanced level.To better understand Modernist and Postmodernist avant-garde, we will focus on outsider works of art and ideas in 20th century France and the post-colonial world. Like the Decadents and Symbolists, modernist artists go in quest of a pure artistic language "in which mute things speak to me," as Hofmannsthal wrote, beyond concepts and representation, privileging passion over reason. This quest is influenced by worldviews and works from the broader French-speaking world, which refocuses art on its ritual origins, and on its magical potential. "Art", in the words of Martinican poet and playwright Césaire, "is a miraculous weapon."In fall and winter, we will study aesthetic theories and works from Primitivism and Surrealism to Absurdist Drama, Haitian Marvelous and Oulipo; and writers such as Mallarmé, Jabès, Artaud, Beckett, Blanchot, Derrida, Sartre, Irigaray and Foucault. We will look at historical and cultural change from WWI through the student riots of 1968 and the multi-cultural French-speaking world of today.Key themes will include: memory and the way in which it shapes, and is shaped by, identity; concepts of time and place; and the challenges and opportunities for French identity brought by immigration. We will focus on French social, cultural and intellectual history from the 1930's to the present, exploring the myths and realities of French Resistance and the Vichy Regime during World War II; the legacy of revolutionary concepts of "universal" liberty, equality and fraternity as France re-envisioned its role in Europe and the world from the 1950s to the present, including uprisings from 1968 through today; and the impact of the Franco-Algerian war on contemporary France and the post-colonial Francophone world.In spring, students have two options. They can travel to France, where they will participate in intensive language study, perform cultural and art historical fieldwork, and pursue personal research on a "quest" of their own. Alternatively, students may remain on campus to undertake a major personal project, springing from ideas, writers and artists in prior quarters. This is an excellent opportunity to complete a substantive body of creative or research oriented work, with guidance from faculty and peer critique. | Marianne Bailey Olivier Soustelle Judith Gabriele Steven Hendricks Stacey Davis | Mon Wed Thu | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter Spring | ||
Jeanne Hahn
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | history, political economy, political science, secondary education, graduate school, and informed citizenship. | Jeanne Hahn | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | |||||
Benjamin Simon, Glenn Landram and Lydia McKinstry
Signature Required:
Winter Spring
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | S 12Spring | This year-long, laboratory-based program will offer students a conceptual and methodological introduction to biology and chemistry with a focus on health and medicine. We will use organizing themes that link the science of human health with the economic, financial, ethical and legal issues associated with the demand and cost of medical research and public health care. Over the course of three quarters, we will study portions of general chemistry, organic chemistry, biochemistry, general biology, microbiology, anatomy and physiology, nutrition, statistics, economics and management, and human behavior. Students will use scientific processes, quantitative reasoning and hands-on experiences to develop problem-solving skills directed at understanding these subjects in the context of human health. This program is primarily designed for students contemplating work in medicine and allied health fields, including nursing, physical therapy, midwifery, athletic training, nutrition and others. This program is also appropriate for students interested in public health or public policy who want a solid foundation in biology and chemistry or students who wish to study rigorous science as part of a liberal arts education. Program activities will include lectures, laboratories, small-group problem-solving workshops, homework, field trips and seminars. Our readings and discussions will be concerned with the economic, ethical and scientific aspects of human health as they relate to the global community as well as individuals. Students will undertake assignments focused on interpreting and integrating the topics covered. During spring quarter, students will participate in small-group collaboration on a scientific investigation relevant to the program content. Project topics will be developed under the direction of the faculty and students will describe the results of this research through formal writing and public presentation. All program work will emphasize quantitative reasoning, critical thinking and development of proficiency in scientific writing and speaking skills. Upon completion of this program students will have gained some of the prerequisites necessary for careers in the allied health fields and public health administration. Students will also be prepared for further studies in upper division science. Students who master the biology and chemistry work in this program will be prepared to enroll in the Molecule to Organism program. Students preparing for medical school will likely need further coursework in inorganic or general chemistry to fulfill prerequisites for medical school. Overall, we expect students to end the program in the spring with a working knowledge of scientific, social and economic principles relating to human health and public health care. We also expect that they will have gained an ability to apply these principles to solving real world problems relating to natural science, disease and human health. | medicine and allied health fields, and public health administration. | Benjamin Simon Glenn Landram Lydia McKinstry | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter Spring | ||
Abir Biswas and Christopher Coughenour
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | What are the origins of the Earth? What processes have shaped the planet’s structure over the past 4.6 billion years? Through lab and lecture, students will become familiar with how fundamental Earth materials (minerals and rocks) form and are altered by the persistent physical, chemical, and biological processes at work on our planet's surface. In this program students will study the mechanisms of changes in terrestrial and marine Earth systems and interpret geologic evidence in order to understand Earth system processes. Our approach will integrate topics in chemistry, physics, and evolutionary biology with in-depth studies of physical and historical geology. Quantitative skill development will be fundamental to this approach.After a period of on-campus skill and content building, students will participate in approximately two weeks of rigorous field work. Some students will embark on a 16-day river trip through the Grand Canyon, giving those students the opportunity to visit one of the geologic wonders of the world, access to over 1 billion years of geologic history, and study the processes currently shaping the Canyon. Other students will participate in multiple hands-on field excursions across the Pacific Northwest, studying some of the incredibly diverse landscapes and applying their knowledge about Earth system process in the field.This field-based program requires significant commitment from students, given the cost, rigors, and time away from campus. All students in the program will participate in field work though only approximately 14 students will be able to participate in the Grand Canyon river trip. The program will integrate physical geology, historical geology, quantitative skills for the earth sciences, and a field project. Students who successfully complete this program will gain a solid scientific basis for future work in all aspects of earth sciences and environmental studies. | Abir Biswas Christopher Coughenour | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | |||||
Steve Blakeslee and Tom Maddox
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | In the past decade, graphic novels have become recognized as an important new form of storytelling, shaping contemporary culture even as they are shaped by it. These book-length, comic-art narratives and compilations employ a complex and iconic visual language. Combining and expanding on elements associated with literature, 2-D visual art, and cinema, the medium offers unique opportunities for reader immersion, emotional involvement, and even imaginative co-creation. We will study sequential narratives that represent diverse periods, perspectives, styles, and subject matter--from the “high art” woodcut novels of the 1930s (e.g., Lynd Ward’s ) to Art Spiegelman’s groundbreaking Holocaust memoir, , to the bizarre but entrancing alternate universe of Jim Woodring’s . While many of these works include humor, they frequently center on serious topics, including war, religious oppression, social and economic inequality, and dilemmas of ethnic and sexual identity. We will carefully examine each text at multiple levels of composition, from single frames to the work as a whole, and read selected theory, criticism, and commentary, including Scott McCloud’s and Matt Madden’s . More generally, we will work with a widely-employed model of storytelling—based on act structure, character arc, and protagonist-focused narrative—to explore the ways that stories can migrate across media and find new modes of expression. As writers, students will develop and articulate their new understandings by means of response papers, visual analyses, background research, fictional and nonfictional narratives, reflective journals, and other activities as assigned. Our studies will conclude with group projects focused on particular artists, works, and themes, or on the creation of original graphic narratives. Finally, while this is not a studio art course, we will experiment with drawing throughout the quarter as a way to develop an artist’s-eye view of comic art. Our goal is to develop an informed and critical perspective on this powerful medium.The faculty do not assume any previous experience with comic art in general or graphic narratives in particular. Fans, skeptics, artists, and the generally curious are all welcome, provided they are ready for sustained and serious work. | Steve Blakeslee Tom Maddox | Mon Tue Fri | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | ||||
Tom Maddox
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | W 12Winter | Storytelling has changed in extraordinary ways during the thousands of years separating preliterate tellers and singers of tales from contemporary novelists, graphic artists, or filmmakers. However, in all their work we can recognize the elements and structures of . This program is for students who want to understand these elements in order to make better stories, and who want to develop a deep, practical understanding of the structures that govern forms such as film, television, and the short story. Primarily, they will learn the grammar and practice of storywriting by examining the works of masters and attempt to apply this knowledge in their own work. Students who want to tell stories are welcome, whatever their chosen expressive mode--prose, poetry, graphics, film, television, videogame script, or any other genre or mix of media. Movies and television are media that pose unique challenges and opportunities regarding story and dramatization; they are also the dominant media of our time. They are inherently collaborative and demand specialized talents and skills from a writer, who must work within limits imposed by time, space, money, and the myriad complexities of production, as well as the formulaic expectations that have come to govern the 50-minute television drama or 22-minute comedy and the 120-minute film. Thus we will spend considerable time examining how screenplays work and discovering the conventions governing them.We will also pay attention to short stories, perhaps the most demanding story form, in order to learn from its masters how to combine economy of expression with great power. Authors will most likely include Anton Chekhov, William Faulkner, Eudora Welty, Flannery O'Connor, Alice Munro, and Raymond Carver.Students will begin the quarter by describing a storytelling project they want to complete; then, in consultation with the faculty, they will write a project proposal detailing their goals. The projects will be the core and driving force of student work. As the quarter progresses, students also submit work in progress for ongoing critique and guidance. At the end of the quarter, they will present their finished project for group review and response.Every week students will read stories and view films or television episodes. They will also participate in weekly film and story seminars, where they will respond to the week's viewing and reading. In weekly story workshops, they will submit their work for group critique and do a series of workshop exercises. Finally, every week will end with meetings of the SIGs (special interest groups). These small groups will be defined, organized, and run by the students. This is the part of the program where students are free to define their own topic and pursue it according to their own needs. As examples, these might include short fiction, situation comedies, hard-boiled detective fiction, or graphic novels. | writing, screenplay writing, American film, theory of fiction, and literary studies. | Tom Maddox | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Winter | Winter | ||||
Susan Aurand and Evan Blackwell
Signature Required:
Winter
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | Throughout history, art has given physical form to our beliefs about our origins and nature, and to our efforts to correctly position ourselves in the cosmos. This program will examine how art embodies our cultural and individual myths, rituals and stories. We will study this historical function of art and explore it in our own lives through intensive studio work in painting and ceramics. In the fall, students will develop technical skills in painting (using watercolor, acrylics and oils), in sculptural ceramics, and in mixed media sculpture. Students will be introduced to a variety of ceramic construction processes, clay and glaze materials, firing processes, and use of studio equipment. The class will consider the characteristics and allusions of clay in all its states as a sculptural and expressive medium. Students will advance their technical skills through weekly skill workshops and assignments. In addition, each student will create a series of two-dimensional and/or three-dimensional artworks exploring a personal theme related to myth, ritual or story. In winter, the class will further develop and build on much of the work we started in the fall. We will continue to study myths, rituals and stories and examine how cultural context affects meaning in different forms of expression. Students will expand the conceptual basis of their work as they continue to explore and build skills in both painting and ceramics. Nonconventional approaches and methods of manufacture and installation in both painting and ceramic sculpture will be encouraged. Winter quarter will culminate with individual theme projects and presentation of student work. Students entering the program must have a solid background in representational drawing (including perspective, shading, and preferably some prior experience in figure drawing), but no prior experience in ceramics or painting is required. The program is designed for students who have a strong work ethic and self-discipline. The program will function as a working community of artists. Students will be expected to work intensively in the campus studios and to be engaged and supportive of their peers. | studio arts, arts education, art history, arts management, and writing for the arts. | Susan Aurand Evan Blackwell | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter | |||
Lisa Sweet, Andrew Reece and Rita Pougiales
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | Making meaning of our lives and the world we inhabit is the essence of being human. Through knowledge, stories and images, we manifest what it is we hold most sacred and essential in our lives. Religion, through its liturgy, music and imagery, reflects what a people hold to be essentially human. Our work will address questions like the following: What are the fundamental mysteries humans address through religious practice and expression? What are the stories being told through artistic and written material? What is the experience of the artist creating sacred images? What are the meanings that have endured over centuries? How is it that sacred images and texts provide direction for us? Our inquiry into meaning-making will center on Christianity, one religious tradition that has been a wellspring for expressions of spiritual and moral meaning, as well as a source of insight and understanding that has inspired magnificent artistic creations and sacred texts. In fall and winter, we focus on the first thirteen centuries of the tradition, from the life of Christ to the end of the Medieval period, during which the story of Christ's life, death and resurrection helped transform the Roman Empire into Europe and "the West." During this time, Christians, like Muslims and Jews a "people of the Book," gave the world some of its most inspired, and inspiring, books: the New Testament, the works of Anselm and Augustine, Dante's , and others, which will form part of our curriculum. The role of images in religious practice will form another part of our study. We'll consider the functions of icons, reliquaries, church architecture and devotional images, created solely to express and link us to the sacred. We'll consider the strategies image-makers employed to interpret scripture and early theology, as well as the anxieties and iconoclasms provoked by images that attempt to depict God. Through readings, seminars and lectures, we'll explore the history of images and objects made before the the concept of "Art" as we understand it today was established.In spring, the focus on the history and culture of Christianity through the 14th century will be directed toward more focused topics addressing meaning-making and Christianity. Students will have the option of continuing in the program in one of the following focused, full-time disciplines or themes: recent developments in theology and philosophy (Andrew), communities of faith (Rita), or studio-practice in printmaking (Lisa). Spring components of the program will be open to both continuing and newly enrolled students. | medieval history, religious studies, art history and community studies. | Lisa Sweet Andrew Reece Rita Pougiales | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall | |||
Rita Pougiales
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | “Communities of faith” are those groups of people who are dedicated to one another and to seeking the good. We will approach “faith” as a commitment to a good that can be illusive and hard to grasp, yet represents what Paul Tillich describes as an “ultimate concern.” Faith, as such, is a matter of trust in the process of seeking that ultimate concern. Faith, understood in this way, cuts across all dimensions of our society including those committed to political, environmental, educational, and spiritual ends.We are particularly interested in the means by which members of religious communities embody their faith and beliefs. Our study will be largely ethnographic, looking in depth at the rituals, devotions, and practices of faith communities. In particular, we will focus on those practices that depend on the body for expression, movement and sound. Such practices are not only reflections of faith, they also expand its experience and meaning. We will look at the cultural practices, experiences and shared expectations of members of communities of faith, and attempt to understand what is meaningful for them. We will be guided in our study of “faith” by Tillich’s and additional readings by authors Karen Armstrong and Richard Niebuhr. We will delve into the nature of communities through ethnographic and historical case studies including a medieval religious community led by Hildegard of Bingen, Orthodox fire-walking communities in rural Greece and Maine, and a contemporary Catholic convent in Mexico. In addition to these studies, each student will conduct her or his own research on a particular community of faith. | religious studies and community studies. | Rita Pougiales | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | ||||
Lisa Sweet
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | This program continues work from fall and winter. This quarter we will examine the production and function of printed images in early modern Christian religious culture through readings, seminars, and developing skills with basic woodcut printmaking techniques. Linking theory to our artistic practice, we’ll address issues including, iconoclasm, the relationship between text and images in religious practice, image makers’ roles as translators and interpreters of scripture and religious tradition, the human desire for and anxiety about religious imagery, and we’ll explore the paradox of visually depicting that which is invisible and inexpressible. Students should expect to spend about 70% of their time working in the printmaking studio on assignments, and 30% of their time studying assigned texts. The program will include a significant writing component synthesizing and integrating ideas covered in . Because this program is a continuation of the fall and winter themes addressed in , . New students are welcome, but should have some existing familiarity with academic studies of Christian theology, history and/or medieval art appreciation in order to thrive in the program. | Lisa Sweet | Mon Tue Thu Fri | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | ||||
Andrew Reece
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | Can we know God? Or, for that matter, does such a being exist, and, if so, how do we relate to it (or Her, or Him)? What is the distinction between faith and reason? Between philosophy and theology? Morality and religion? How can one live a life of intellectual and moral integrity and a life of faith? Do the two imply one another, or are they in conflict? These are the central questions of this program, and in our inquiry we will raise many more, about belief, dogma, doubt, divinity, language, ritual, and meaning-making. Our ability to raise, refine, and resolve these questions will be strengthened by our study of classic texts in the philosophy of religion from authors including Anselm, Aquinas, Descartes, Spinoza, Kant, Hegel, Kierkegaard, Martin Buber, and Paul Tillich. This program was originally planned as the third quarter of the program, which was a study of the Christian movement from its origins in Judaism and Greco-Roman culture to the time of Dante. Partly for that reason, the authors selected are Christian and Jewish; however, this is a study not of apologetic theology but of philosophy of religion. That is, the theories we will encounter do not necessarily defend a particular religious perspective, nor do they demand from readers extensive familiarity with scripture. The points of view they share are not limited to those who share their faiths. Reading, discussion, and writing will be our sole modes of inquiry, and we will go about them with a level of seriousness and intensity that cannot be understated. Students will participate in book seminars and writing seminars on every text, and they will respond to every text in essays. Peer review and revision will also be a significant component of our work together. | Andrew Reece | Mon Tue Thu Fri | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | ||||
Robert Knapp, Suzanne Simons and Helena Meyer-Knapp
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 12, 16 | 12 16 | Day, Evening and Weekend | S 12Spring | This program will explore the idea and the experience of beauty. Our thesis is that the sense of beauty has many facets, which different cultures recognize and value differently. Individual preferences also differ, always under the influence of powerful, shared traditions of beauty. We will dramatize and investigate this by paying extensive attention to three traditions in which the faculty have professional expertise—Iran, Japan and Britain. Significant differences between these traditions and between individual student and faculty experiences in the American context will be a major occasion of collaborative and individual learning.Most class meetings will put students in the presence of beautiful art, writing, film, architecture or music; readings and seminars in criticism and cultural history and analytical and expressive writing assignments will help students develop authentic ways to articulate their descriptions and judgments. The work will lead to a major concluding project on an individually chosen instance of beauty. Students will acquire both a fuller understanding of the variety of ways one can encounter beauty, and of ways to document, appreciate and evaluate the experiences of beauty that occur.The program has two levels of enrollment: all students will meet one night per week and every Saturday for a coordinated program of lectures, seminars, films and workshops. 16-unit students will also prepare for and take two two-day visits to cultural cultural resources in Northwest cities, to be in the immediate presence of beautiful things which can come only second-hand to campus. | design, art history, cultural studies, education, world history, architecture and visual arts. | Robert Knapp Suzanne Simons Helena Meyer-Knapp | Wed Sat | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | |||
Harumi Moruzzi
Signature Required:
Spring
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Contract | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 12, 16 | 12 16 | Day | S 12Spring | This Individual Study offers opportunities for students who are interested in creating their own courses of study and research, including internship and study abroad. Possible areas of study are Japanese studies, cultural studies, literature, art and film. Interested students should first contact the faculty via e-mail (moruzzih@evergreen.edu) before the Academic Fair for spring quarter. | Japanese studies, cultural studies, international studies, literature and film studies. | Harumi Moruzzi | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | ||||
Ariel Goldberger
Signature Required:
Spring
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Contract | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | Individual study offers students the opportunity to develop self-direction, to learn how to manage a personal project, to focus on unique combinations of subjects, and to pursue original interdisciplinary projects without the constraints of an external structure. Students interested in a self-directed project, research or internship in the humanities, consciousness studies, or projects that include arts, travel or interdisciplinary pursuits are invited to present a proposal to Ariel Goldberger.Students with a lively sense of self-direction, discipline, and intellectual curiosity are strongly encouraged to apply. | Ariel Goldberger | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | |||||
EJ Zita and Mark Harrison
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | What motivates and facilitates creativity, discovery, and invention, in arts and in sciences? To what extent do scientists and artists work within traditional practices or bodies of knowledge, and how do they move beyond and expand standard models or forms to achieve true innovation?What are the roles of community, genius, luck, plain hard work, and being in the right place in the right time in history? Are certain resources prerequisite, or is creativity truly democratic? Can any patterns be discerned in revolutions in science? In art? What qualifies as a revolution or innovation? We will explore questions such as these by reading (and sometimes staging) plays, fiction, philosophy, and nonfiction about arts and sciences. We will learn about the advent and development of the moving image. Students may, individually or in teams, explore and present special cases of particular interest to them, as research projects. Students will write short, thoughtful essays and responses to peers’ essays. We will learn some classical and modern physics (from dynamics to quantum mechanics and/or cosmology) using mostly conceptual methods. | physics, performing and visual arts, teaching, sciences, and philosophy of science. | EJ Zita Mark Harrison | Mon Thu | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | |||
Diego de Acosta
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | This two-quarter program explores the fascinating world of languages. What do you know when you know a language? How do you get that knowledge? Are there properties that all languages share? How do languages change over time? Why are half of the world's languages now under threat of extinction? How are communities held together or torn apart by the languages they speak? How does the way we classify the world through words circumscribe our relationships with others? We will consider these questions and others through the lens of linguistics. Topics to be examined include: phonetics and phonology, language change, the history of English and English dialects, language and gender, orality and literacy, wordplay, and swearing. We will look at well-known languages and lesser-known languages and discover why they matter in our lives today. Through the course of the program students will learn a variety of conceptual and empirical techniques, from analyzing speech sounds to interpreting the rationale behind current language policy. This program will be an intensive examination of topics requiring a significant amount of reading as well as regular problem sets and essays. You will be expected to spend at least 40 hours per week on the program. | linguistics, communication, and education. | Diego de Acosta | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall | |||
Diego de Acosta
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | What do you know when you know a language, and how do you get that knowledge? Are there properties that all languages share? How do languages change over time? Why are half of the world’s languages now under threat of extinction? How are communities held together or torn apart by the languages they speak?This one-quarter program explores the fascinating world of languages through the lens of linguistics. Topics for the quarter include: the structure of languages (phonology, morphology, and syntax); the history of English and English dialects; language attitudes and language policy in monolingual and multilingual communities; and methods for documenting languages. We will look at well-known languages and lesser-known languages and discover why they matter in our lives today. Through the course of the program, we will develop a variety of conceptual and empirical techniques, from analyzing speech sounds to interpreting the rationale behind current language legislation. This program will be an intensive examination of topics requiring a significant amount of reading as well as regular problem sets and essays. Students who took in fall-winter may not enroll in this program. | Diego de Acosta | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | |||||
Robert Smurr and Ted Whitesell
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | This is a place-based program centered on the Salish Sea and the major watersheds of Washington State. Students will learn about our region of North America through the lenses of environmental history and cultural geography, examining changing human/environment relations over time. We will study aspects of Native culture, non-Native settlement, and modern challenges to sustainability and justice throughout the region. Particular attention will be paid to exploring our local corner of the Salish Sea region, so that students can understand their place at Evergreen within the context of broad, historical changes and the possibilities for constructing sustainable communities for the future. Multiple field trips will develop firsthand knowledge of the region's people and environments, where rivers and seas are surrounded by such diverse ecosystems as rain forests, arid basins, high mountain ranges, and wetlands. Field trips will include a canoe trip on the Columbia River, a visit to the largest dam removal project in history (in-progress on the Olympic Peninsula), and visits to inspiring restoration projects along both rural and urban shorelines and rivers. Students will be challenged to identify unifying features as well as variations in our region's environmental history and geography. | Robert Smurr Ted Whitesell | Tue Tue Wed Fri Fri | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | ||||
Laura Citrin and Anne de Marcken (Forbes)
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | Jean-Paul Sartre (1948) What are emotions, sentiments, and feelings? From whence do emotions come? What functions do they serve, both for the individual and for society? In this full-time psychology program, we will examine the ways that emotions -emotional experience and expression- are connected with cultural ideologies and assumptions. We'll cover the "big five" emotions: anger, sadness, happiness, disgust, and fear, as well as the socio-moral emotions like embarrassment, contempt, shame, and pride. We will also discuss the field of positive psychology and its analysis of the positive emotions (e.g., joy, hope, interest, love) and the role they play in what positive psychologists refer to as "the good life." We will study the ways emotions are expressed, avoided, embraced, and rejected according to complex display rules that vary across culture and within culture based on gendered, raced, and classed social norms. Underlying all of this discussion will be an analysis of the ways that power operates on and through us to get under our skin and into what feels like our most personal possessions -our emotions. The interrogation of emotions in this program will occur via readings, lectures, films, workshops, and twice-weekly, student-led seminars. Students will also engage in the process of primary data collection for a research project centered on an emotion that is of particular interest to them. Conducting research will enable students to participate first-hand in knowledge production within the interdisciplinary domain of affect studies. Readings will be selected to provoke thought and incite debate and discussion. Possible texts include Larissa Tiedens & Colin Leach (Eds.), ; Melissa Gregg & Gregory Seigworth (Eds.), ; Sara Ahmed, ; William Miller, Tom Lutz, ; and Barbara Fredrickson, | psychology, sociology, mental health, and cultural studies. | Laura Citrin Anne de Marcken (Forbes) | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall | ||||
Martin Beagle and Erin Martin
Signature Required:
Winter
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | This program offers an integrated study of biology and chemistry that serves as an introduction to the concepts, theories, and structures which underlie all the natural sciences. Students in this program will develop foundational scientific skills and an appreciation for the human dimensions of science. Emphasis will be placed on developing ways of thinking and methods of analysis. Further details about specific themes and topics will be added in the coming weeks. In fall quarter, we will structure our weekly learning around coordinated sequences of core modules that include lectures, workshops, laboratory and/or field work, and seminar. Much of the time will be spent in workshops where students are expected to collaborate in small groups, solving problems and discussing concepts to acquire confidence in their knowledge and real facility with scientific principles. Laboratory work that closely parallels and amplifies the core material will be an integral part of the program. Seminar will enable us to apply our growing understanding of scientific principles and methodology to societal issues, such as the impact of geoduck aquaculture on water quality and aquatic communities; the debate over unpasteurized dairy products for public consumption; and the commercial pursuit of genetically modified organisms. We will emphasize analysis of the issues through reading, discussion, and writing. All students are expected to take part in all of these core activities, but students may participate more intensively in areas of special interest through additional lab work or readings. We will continue with this format in winter quarter. In addition, students will work in small groups on a research project that allows them to pursue questions sparked by their curiosity about the natural world and provides hands-on experience in scientific method. Students who successfully complete the program will have a solid background in general biology and general chemistry. They will have also practical experience in scientific method and improved abilities to reason critically. Students who successfully complete this program will be prepared for more advanced study in science programs such as Molecule to Organism or Environmental Analysis. The main prerequisite is an eagerness to work hard and to explore the “real life” applications of the scientific method. Students should also be competent in high school algebra. | biology, chemistry, environmental studies, geology, and health professions. | Martin Beagle Erin Martin | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter | |||
Harumi Moruzzi and Tomoko Hirai Ulmer
Signature Required:
Winter
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day and Evening | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | Japan is a vital, energetic and dynamic society that is constantly reinventing itself even while struggling to maintain a semblance of cultural and social continuity from the long lost past. Meanwhile, the conception and image of Japan, both in Japan and the West, has varied widely over time mostly due to Japan’s changing political and economic situation in the world. In the late 19th century when Japan re-emerged into Western consciousness, Lafcadio Hearn, the Greek-Irish-American writer who later became a Japanese citizen, thought of Japanese society and its people as quaintly charming and adorable, whereas Americans in the 1940s viewed Japan as frighteningly militaristic and irrational. While the French semiotician Roland Barthes was bewitched and liberated by Japan’s charmingly mystifying otherness during his visit to Japan in 1966, when Japan began to show its first sign of recovery from the devastation of WWII, the Dutch journalist Karel Van Wolferen was disturbed by the intractable and irresponsible system of Japanese power in 1989, when Japanese economic power was viewed as threatening to existing international power relations. As is clear from these examples of how Japan was viewed by Westerners in the past, the idea and image of Japan is highly dependant on the point of view that an observer assumes. This is a full-time interdisciplinary program devoted to understanding contemporary Japan, its culture and its people, from a balanced point of view. This program combines the study of Japanese history, literature, cinema, culture and society through lectures, books, films, seminars and workshops, with a study of Japanese language, which is embedded in the program. Three levels of language study (1st, 2nd, and 3rd-year Japanese) will be offered for 4 credits each during the fall and winter quarters. The language component is offered by Tomoko Ulmer in the evening. In fall quarter we will study Japan up to the end of American occupation. We will emphasize cultural legacies of the historical past. In winter quarter, we will examine Japan after 1952. Special emphasis will be placed on the examination of contemporary Japanese popular culture and its influence on globalization. Although this program ends officially at the end of winter quarter, students who are interested in experiencing Japan in person can take Japanese language classes in Tokyo through Harumi Moruzzi’s Individual Study: Japanese Culture, Literature, Film, Society and Study Abroad in spring quarter. | Japanese literature and culture, film studies, cultural studies and international relations. | Harumi Moruzzi Tomoko Hirai Ulmer | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter | |||
Richard Benton
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | In this all-level program, we will ask the following questions: How have writing and interpretation determined and reflected what Jews and Judaism(s) are? What makes someone Jewish? What is Judaism? Is there just one, or are there multiple Judaisms? How have Jews interacted with polytheists? Christians? Muslims? How has traditional Jewish thought answered persistent questions about the existence and nature of G-d and the existence of evil? What do the traditional texts tell us in the face of new ethical challenges?For three thousand years, Jews have witnessed history through writing. Life under and alongside the empires of Egyptians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Muslims, and Northern Europeans provided the context for Jews’ deep and consistent written reflections over the nature of G-d and of humans, and the relationship between the two.Jewish writings connect ethics with literature, religion, and historical reality. They constantly interpret historical experience through the lens of G-d and Torah (Hebrew Bible), bringing ancient literature to bear on current ethical and philosophical problems, as well as on the problem of how to live everyday life.We will read and interpret the Hebrew Bible to develop literary and philosophical sensitivities that shed light on interpretations of historical experience. The Bible lies at the basis of all classical Jewish thought. Knowledge of and ability to interpret the Bible will provide the foundation for interpreting later writings. We will also read a range of Jewish commentaries, which will develop students’ abilities to follow arguments and understand writers’ presuppositions. We will explore the major genres of Jewish works—Midrash (biblical interpretation), Talmud (legal texts), Maimonides (medieval philosopher), and (medieval mysticism)—and learn the idiosyncrasies of each genre. We will examine how individuals have understood their historical circumstances with reference to Jewish writing and look at Jewish life in a number of historical contexts. Each student will develop a research project on a topic that involves Jewish culture and writing.Previous work in history, literature, ethics, religion, and/or other related fields is suggested. | history, literature, sociology, community organizing, education, and law. | Richard Benton | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall | ||||
Yvonne Peterson, Bill Arney and David Rutledge
Signature Required:
Winter Spring
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | S 12Spring | This program is for learners who have a research topic with a major focus on justice and community in mind, as well as for those who would like to learn how to do research in a learner-centered environment. Learners will be exposed to research methods, ethnographic research, interviewing techniques, writing workshops, computer literacy, library workshops, historical and cultural timelines, educational technology, and the educational philosophy that supports this program. The faculty team will offer a special series of workshops to support the particular academic needs of first and second year participants.Individual research will pay special attention to the relationship of reciprocal respect required in justice themes. Student researchers will pay special attention to the value of human relationships to the land, to work, to others and to the unknown. Research will be concentrated in cultural studies, human resource development, and ethnographic studies to include historical and political implications of encounters, cross-cultural communication, and to definitive themes of justice. We shall explore Native American perspectives and look at issues that are particularly relevant to indigenous people of the Americas.In this program, learners' individual projects will examine what it means to live in a pluralistic society at the beginning of the 21st century. Through each learner's area of interest, we will look at a variety of cultural and historical perspectives and use them to help address issues connected to the program theme. The faculty are interested in providing an environment of collaboration where faculty and learners will identify topics of mutual interest and act as partners in the exploration of those topics.Yvonne Peterson will facilitate a joint Theory to Praxis workshop for with students from Laws/Policies of Indian Education and Indian Child Welfare to allow for common conversation, presentations, speakers, community service and outreach to Indian communities, student presentation of academic projects, and to build a shared academic community.In fall quarter, participants will state research questions. In late fall and winter, individually and in small study groups, learners and faculty will develop the historical background for their chosen questions and do the integrative review of the literature and data collection. Ongoing workshops will allow participants to learn the skills for completing their projects. Late winter and into spring quarter, students will write conclusions, wrap up print/non-print projects, and prepare for a public presentation. The last part of spring will be entirely dedicated to presentations.In keeping with Evergreen's transfer policy, credit will not be awarded in physical education activities that are not accompanied by an academic component. | education, social sciences, multicultural studies, social work, public administration, human services and the humanities. | Yvonne Peterson Bill Arney David Rutledge | Tue Thu Sat | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter Spring | |
Kevin Francis, David Paulsen and Rachel Hastings
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | What does our ability to speak and understand language reveal about the human mind? How much of our knowledge of language can be attributed to an innate language capacity and how much is dependent on individual experience? How are children able to develop a detailed and abstract understanding of their native language at a very young age? And how did human language evolve in the first place? In this program we will study theories of cognition, brain structure, and consciousness as they relate to the complex phenomena of language evolution, acquisition and use.We will explore diverse kinds of evidence that shed light on the evolution of language, including recent work in evolutionary biology, animal behavior, neurobiology, cognitive neuroscience, and the evolutionary genetics of language. To understand the nature of linguistic processing we will look at the structure of language and ask what capacities must be present within human cognition in order for us to produce and understand human languages. We will study the ideas of Noam Chomsky and others who argue for a "universal grammar" as an explanation of rapid language acquisition and similarity among languages. We will also examine the parallels between human language and communication in other animals. Finally, we will reflect on the strategies adopted by scientists to reconstruct events in the deep past.Program activities will include seminar, lectures and workshops. We will devote significant time to providing background material in linguistics, evolutionary biology, and cognitive neuroscience that pertains to the evolution of language. We will read scientific and philosophical material that addresses fundamental questions about consciousness, the relationship between mind and brain, and the relation between cognition and the human capacity for language. As part of this program, students should expect to participate actively in seminar, write several essays, and complete a final research project. | biology, cognitive science, linguistics, philosophy and psychology. | Kevin Francis David Paulsen Rachel Hastings | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | ||||
Yvonne Peterson and Gary Peterson
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | S 12Spring | This program will prepare learners to work effectively in institutions that have historically viewed Indians and their cultures as deficient and tried to force them into the mainstream. Learners will research the laws and policies of Indian Education and Indian Child Welfare from treaty time to present and select a topic for in depth coverage. Learners will learn techniques of "River of Culture Moments" to apply to documentary and interactive timelines. The learner-centered environment will provide an opportunity for students to be exposed to research methods, ethnographic research and interviewing techniques, writing workshops, computer literacy, library workshops, educational technology, and to learn how to develop inquiry-based curriculum. Individual research projects will pay special attention to "storymaking" by looking at Indian individuals attempting to make a difference in times of political encounters with laws meant to destroy Indian culture. Ethnographic studies will include historical and political implications of encounters, and cross-cultural communication. Learners will explore Native American perspectives and look at issues that are particularly relevant to Indigenous people of the United States. Learners will meet and learn from Indian educators and social workers, attend thematic conferences on the topic, and may travel to several Indian reservations. They will explore personal culture and identity through writing and recording their own cultural framework. Spring quarter will include an option for an in-program internship. Transferable cross-cultural and identity skills will be emphasized. Students will examine their own identity, values and life histories as a basis for understanding what they bring to a cross-cultural encounter and how it affects their practice as social workers and educators. | social work, K-12 education, tribal administration, social sicences, multicultural studies and human services. | Yvonne Peterson Gary Peterson | Mon Thu Fri Sat | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter Spring | |
Karen Gaul and Anthony Tindill
Signature Required:
Winter
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | S 12Spring | The lessons we need for sustainable and just living already exist among many indigenous, rural and urban peoples around the world. How people construct the structure and feeling of home, or shape and contain that which is significant in their lives varies from culture to culture. In this program we will explore practices of current and past cultures in terms of construction, energy use, technological development, subsistence practices, and equity to understand how people have lived relatively sustainably in various environments. We will consider the impact of increased technological complexity, resource extraction, production and waste streams of the industrial revolution. We will also investigate ways contemporary cultures around the world are responding by resuming, reclaiming or reinventing low-tech lifeways of the past, and/or embracing high-tech solutions of the future.The program will offer hands-on projects and theoretical perspectives in sustainable design in order to apply sustainable solutions in real-world situations. Students will have an opportunity to work with local communities to help meet design needs. Project possibilities may involve sustainable solutions on campus or in the greater South Sound community. Design projects will be developed within a context of community-defined needs. Through intensive studio time, students will learn drawing and design techniques, fundamentals of building, and skills in using a variety of tools.We will read ethnographic accounts of various cultures to understand the sustainability and justice implications of their practices. Students will have the opportunity to conduct their own ethnographic studies. An introduction to ethnographic research methods and an inquiry into critical questions in the field will help equip students to shape their own field research (in local or distant communities).Fall quarter will include the beginning of an anthropological journey to study various cultural expressions of sustainable and just living. We will learn ethnographic methods and begin to set up ethnographic projects exploring examples of sustainable solutions locally and in more distant settings. Basic approaches to sustainable design will be introduced, and projects will be formulated. Winter quarter will include implementation of design projects and community projects, and launching of ethnographic research. Spring quarter will be a period of data analysis in ethnographic projects, and completion of design projects. The program will also include experiments in sustainable living on a variety of levels. | sustainable design, anthropology and community development. | Karen Gaul Anthony Tindill | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter | ||
Ted Whitesell and Frances V. Rains
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | W 12Winter | Modern development controls and reshapes landscapes and their natural communities in many ways. Our natural shorelines have been covered with asphalt and buildings, our rivers have been dammed, our forests have been turned into timber plantations, our wetlands have been drained, our arid basins are endless fields of intensive agribusiness, and our scenic areas have turned into tourist meccas full of roads, buildings, and fun seekers. Is there a future for at least some landscapes where humans would behave as respectful members of diverse natural communities; where we would listen to what the land is telling us? Many Native Americans and non-Natives have been fighting for generations to promote the wellbeing of places that are special to them, and to recover many areas that have been "developed." This program will look at important approaches to this challenge, allowing students to discover what a sustainable and just landscape looks like -- particularly in the places that we know and love -- and how, exactly, we can help some places remain free of "progress," as commonly defined. We will approach this topic by looking at the tensions behind the major approaches to interacting with and protecting the land by Native and non-Native peoples, investigating practices that have been called "conservation," "wilderness preservation," and "stewardship," and examining the different meanings associated with these terms. We will look at both historic and contemporary efforts to mitigate the tensions between different approaches and competing interests and viewpoints, including interests and viewpoints grounded in race, class, gender, and culture. A number of regional case studies of Native and non-Native practices will be used to ground our work, showing how some lands have been safeguarded, some ecosystems have been restored, and some cultural practices might be evolving in both Native and non-Native communities, leading toward sustainability, justice, and the autonomy of natural systems. It is essential for any society that intends to be sustainable to foresee the consequences of its treatment of the natural communities where they live. Therefore, a central concern will be that students learn from past experience how to foster a future society characterized by humility, respect, and reverence toward natural communities.Learning will take place through writing, readings, seminars, lectures, and films. Students will improve their research skills through document review, landscape observations, critical analysis, and written assignments. Each student will research and report on one on-going case that represents a hopeful path forward toward autonomous and just landscapes. | Ted Whitesell Frances V. Rains | Mon Wed Thu | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Winter | Winter | ||||
Eddy Brown and Marilyn Freeman
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | How do you distill the essence of a great story? How do you convey that essence across media boundaries? Is an adaptation a process of translation or creative destruction? How is a work rendered with an audience in mind? This two-quarter program will explore these questions by using 'adaptation' as a portal into creative writing, and literary and film analyses. Students will examine, analyze and critique a range of written works, both fiction and nonfiction, that have been adapted for the screen. We will study a variety of literary genres and art forms including: the short story, novel, biography, memoir, essay, screenplay, and film. We will follow each selected literary work from original text through screen adaptation in order to decipher and appreciate its singularity as a work of art and as a representative of its respective genre, its transformation into a cinematic production, and its relatedness to other narrations of the human experience. We will study the genesis, creative process, and presentation of each story on both the page and screen, including the consideration of its hypothetical, intended, and ideal audiences, and socio-cultural representations. In fall quarter, students will be introduced to fundamental aspects of narrative, to the principles of classical story design, and to exemplars of narrative adaptations across media. Skills will be developed in literary and film analyses through lectures, readings, screenings, seminars and critical writing assignments. Students will begin to build creative writing skills through a sequence of short-form assignments in fiction, creative nonfiction, and screenwriting, and through the practice of critiques and peer reviews. The quarter will conclude with collaborative student presentations of critiques of literary texts and their corresponding adapted films. In winter quarter studies will deepen in literary and film art and analyses in order to more fully understand the process of adapting the screenplay and the role of the screenwriter. Students will originate their own short-format projects in literary fiction or nonfiction, and develop adaptations through a series of progressive story design and writing assignments: controlling ideas, character bios, primary outlines, treatments, step-outlines, preliminary screenplays, revisions, synopses, loglines, and story reports. Students will conclude the program with staged readings of screenplay adaptations. This program is focused on literature, film, and creative writing. Students may be required to attend off-campus film screenings. Students are expected to participate fully in all program activities, and to work about 40 hours per week including class time. | literature, film, writing, and visual arts. | Eddy Brown Marilyn Freeman | Tue Tue Wed Thu | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter | ||
Tom Womeldorff, Alice Nelson and Jean Mandeberg
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | A tourist travels from the United States to a folk festival in the Andean highlands and decides to buy a tapestry from an indigenous woman. What, exactly, is being bought and sold? From the buyer's perspective, perhaps the object serves as a memento of the trip or offers functionality as décor back home, or perhaps it represents something else: a sense of connection with the "other" a way to "help" a person in need, an "authentic" representation of a seemingly timeless culture. From the seller's perspective, the object may well express a craft tradition, often adapted to the demands of the tourist market, a way to make a living or to serve some other purpose. Whatever the case, both the buyer and the seller are enmeshed in contexts larger than themselves as individuals: cultural belief systems shaping their viewpoints and values (moral, political, and aesthetic), global capitalist pressures, and the legacies of colonialism. We will explore the intersections of cultural studies, economics, and the arts, focusing on various cases of craft production, their connections to systems of power, and the ways competing notions of "authenticity" are expressed in them. We will examine the factors shaping artistic production in each case: who or what decides the form a given craft may take, its relationship to "tradition" and who profits from its sales. We will look at the larger economic contexts shaping arts and crafts globally, such as the rise of mass-produced craft replicas and the lack of access to alternative forms of development. We will explore the links between craft and story, including the ways that literary and film representations raise pointed questions about cultural expectations and intercultural exchange. During the quarter, we will undertake two or three small projects connecting the theory and practice of aesthetic design to marketing within specific cultural contexts. Ultimately, we will ask: given all the challenges, how might specific groups use art and craftsmanship to improve their own lives? | the arts, business, cultural studies, economics and international studies. | Tom Womeldorff Alice Nelson Jean Mandeberg | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | ||||
David McAvity and Rebecca Sunderman
Signature Required:
Winter Spring
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | S 12Spring | Careful observation of the natural world reveals an underlying order, which scientists try to understand and explain through model building and experimentation. Physical scientists seek to reveal the fundamental nature of matter, its composition, and its interactions. This program lays the foundation for doing this work. Students will study a full year of general chemistry, calculus and calculus-based physics through lectures, small group workshops, labs, seminars and field trips. The material will be closely integrated thematically. In fall the focus will be on motion and energetics. In winter we'll explore the interactions of science, technology and society. Spring quarter will further delve into topics in modern physics and mathematical modeling. | chemistry, engineering, mathematics, medical fields, physics and teaching. | David McAvity Rebecca Sunderman | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter Spring | ||
Terry Setter
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | Su 12Summer Full | This program provides instruction in the use of digital and analog recording studio equipment, microphone design and placement techniques, mixing console design, signal flow, monitoring techniques, room acoustics, and signal processing. There will be written assignments based upon readings in Huber's , and students will present research on topics related to audio production. Students will do at least 40 hours of recording and familiarization work in teams of two in addition to the in-class activities. We will record local musicians and produce finished mixes of the sessions. | Terry Setter | Tue Wed Thu | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Summer | Summer | ||||
Lara Evans and Sarah Williams
Signature Required:
Winter Spring
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | S 12Spring | Do museums transform living, changing cultural objects into fixed, preserved, inviolate collections? What stories do museums tell? What stories do objects embody? And what stories do we, visitors, tell ourselves? How do objects housed in museums affect our sense of self-identity? What does it take to become aware of how stories we tell both frame and are framed by objects? Is it possible to heal culture and the self through the interactions of narratives and objects? What happens to historical ideas about human consciousness when we explore the mausoleum-like exhibitions of what this consciousness has exhibited as other? What happens to consciousness when it is framed by neuroscience or to the self when it encounters thinking as an evolutionary internalization of movement?We'll explore the power of narrative objects in a variety of exhibition spaces: museums, galleries, shopping malls, book/web pages. We'll identify curiosities about the relationship between art objects and self-representation, particularly shifts in cultural influences and identities as they relate to shifts between the museological and mausoleum-like aspects of exhibition spaces. A triptych is a narrative object that uses three pictorial panels to convey movement in time, space, and states of being. A triptych, of sorts, is the focus of our fall quarter work and the model for our winter field studies. Consider our left panel: in the lives and other virtual realities of William Gibson's , the effects of narrative objects range from creative to preservative to destructive. Equally significant is how these effects are framed in movements between exhibition spaces experienced as "bird-cages of the muses" and those encountered in computer generated Joseph Cornell-like bird boxes. In the center panel is the narrative power of an artwork in Sheri Tepper's science fiction novel, . Here, alien races experience the consequences when a fresco at the heart of their cultural identity has been violently misinterpreted for a millennium. Now, the right panel. Here, in Catherine Malabou's texts the shifting movement or adaptability of self is called neuroplasticity. Her analysis of Claude Levi-Strauss' fascination with two sides--graphic and plastic--of masks illustrates her definition of neuroplasticity. We'll read this post-Derridean theory of self and do fieldwork with masks available for viewing in collections in this region. During winter quarter faculty and students will explore narrative objects and self-representation through six weeks of fieldwork in museums of their choice. Museums can be exhibitions of art, history or science; even zoos and botanical gardens can be considered museums. Students will document their research on their museum and will return to compile a multi-media presentation of their research project. In studios and workshops during fall and winter quarters students can expect to learn audio recording, digital photography, drawing with color pastels, ethnographic fieldwork, mindfulness practices (yoga, meditation), creative non-fiction writing, blogging and public speaking. During spring quarter students will have the opportunity to integrate individual and peer-group projects into a core all-program curriculum. That is, in addition to the 8-credit all-program activities of seminar, lecture, visiting artists' lecture and film series, a retreat week, and related assignments (e.g., weekly seminar response essays, a theory as evocative object chapter, a mindmap and 3D triptych, and mid-term and final reflective and evaluative writing), each student will design an in-program individual or peer group project for 8 credits. These projects may include (but are not limited to) the curation and/or installation of an exhibition or collection, an internship, a studio-based artistic or technical practice, community-based learning in support of Paddle to Squaxin 2012 ( ; ), or a field-based museum-related study. Partially funded by TESC's Noosphere Award, week 7 retreat week activities will include a range of contemplative practices: 5 rhythm dance; yoga nidra; lectures with Seattle University philosopher and Zen priest, Dr. Jason Wirth; and a retreat day at SU's St. Ignatius Chapel. Students will document their individual or peer-based learning and create a multi-media presentation for week 10. | art history, art, cultural studies, writing, anthropology, feminist theory and contemplative education. | Lara Evans Sarah Williams | Mon Tue Tue Tue Wed Wed Wed Thu Fri | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter Spring | |
Leonard Schwartz, Martine Bellen and Trevor Speller
Signature Required:
Winter
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | This two-quarter program will examine the ways in which poetry and music are influenced by philosophy, and the other way around. The concentration is on a poetry devoted to the idea of myth, where myth can transform, or impeach, or pass into hoax; indeed, the subject of literary hoax and its relationship to fiction will be crucial. Some of the pairings of poets and philosophers that might be included are Fenellosa and Pound, Hobbes and Rochester, Locke and Defoe, Coleridge and Schelling, George Eliot and Ludwig Feuerbach, Walter Pater and Wilde and Swinburne, The Black Mountain Poets and Jed Rasula’s ideas on Ecopoetics, the Afro-Caribbean poet Kamau Brathwaite’s writing and thinking, Schopenhauer, the Symbolists and Richard Wagner, as well as Nietzsche's . In fall quarter we will embark on a viewing/listening of Wagner's , while winter quarter will feature a study of the Russian Futurists and their influence by, and struggle with, Marxist theory. Theories of myth to be considered include Roland Barthes , Edward Said’s , Kamau Brathwaite’s , and Nathaniel Mackey’s . The program will contain both a critical and creative component, which means we will both study texts and incorporate a poetry writing workshop into the program for those inclined to explore the language of poetry through constraint based writing exercises. There will be frequent guest speakers. | literature, writing and publishing. | Leonard Schwartz Martine Bellen Trevor Speller | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter | |||
Jennifer Gerend and Kristina Ackley
Signature Required:
Spring
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | S 12Spring | How have indigenous homelands been eroded by development and how have they endured? In what ways do Native people make urban places their own? Our program will explore the linkages between American cities and Native Americans, framing our discussion around themes of environmental and economic sustainability, social justice and education, and popular culture. Diverse concepts of "native" will be examined involving not only people but also native landscapes and species.We will consider the perceptions, realities, and shared experiences of Native, non-Native, and recent immigrants in American cities, using the lens of history, urban studies, public policy and cultural studies. We will look at alliances in areas such as environmental restoration projects, contemporary art, economic development and local governance.During the fall and winter quarters we will examine the forces that formed the cities of Seattle, Chicago and New York - and how Native life and landscapes changed as a result. Attention will be paid to both immediately apparent and curiously intertwined events and periods in history, such as Native displacement, industrialization, World's Fairs, the rise of urban planning, tourism, and the arts. Changes in the political life of Native groups will be addressed through a study of legislation and legal cases, tribal casinos, land development, environmental justice, and contemporary art. We will question how Native people are portrayed in museum environments, case studies, films, and texts.From mid-winter to mid-spring, the program will continue to deepen its exploration of these issues. Students will engage in their own qualitative work by utilizing case study methodology to carry out a project on an urban area of their choice. Workshops will develop skills in GIS (Geographic Information Systems), demographic analysis using the U.S. census, community development, policy research, film critique, interviewing and oral history. Students will use these skills to become stronger writers and researchers, and importantly, community members. We will require extensive reading and writing on these topics and students will assist in the facilitation of weekly seminars. Guest presenters, documentary films, museum exhibits, and field trips to tribal museums and urban community organizations will support our analysis throughout the year. | the humanities, land use planning, government, community development, law, environmental policy, elementary and secondary education and mass media. | Jennifer Gerend Kristina Ackley | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter Spring | ||
Matthew Smith
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | As we move into the second decade of the 21st century, environmental issues are in the mainstream. Everything from the food we eat to climate change, from the philosophy of nature to the nature of our communities, from economic policy to our understanding of earth and human history, is being rethought. It wasn't always so. Fifty years ago one would search hard to find mention of these issues in the daily press. Thirty years ago, environmental issues were not understood as demanding systemic economic, philosophical, technological and social transformation. Today that has changed. This program examines that change by looking at nature writing, environmental history and the concept of place. Our goal will be to develop through our conversation, reading and writing a complex understanding of current environmental issues and the forces that will significantly impinge upon our lives in the coming decades.Nature writing deals with the big popular questions such as: what do we mean by nature? How can and should we value nature? How should we organize ourselves in relation to preservation and restoration of the natural world? We will investigate serious, but popular, writers who are using essays, fictions, and creative nonfiction forms to help shape a broad reflection on humans' place in nature. In the first two weeks we will take a quick look backward to Emerson, Thoreau, and Aldo Leopold. Then we will jump forward to read texts and essays by such authors as William Cronon, Donald Worster, T.C. Boyle, Terry Tempest Williams, Patty Limerick, Seamus McGraw, Louis Warren, Michael Pollan, David Abram, David Sackman, John Vaillant and others. Our work together is to explore these authors and others to see how they understand critical issues around place, around human and animal interaction, around the growing recognition of human-driven environmental forces--most notably with respect to water and climate change. Throughout the quarter we will share in leading presentation of materials to the program. We will develop short research essays (8-12 pages) that will draw upon our readings, essays, and library work. We will use two shorter essays to help develop our thoughts about specific aspects of the author's work.Environmental history has established itself as a legitimate piece of the history profession, a significant element in the debate over environmental policy, and a major factor in the simultaneously growing recognition of globalism, regionalism and localism as critical dimensions for understanding environmental phenomena. As environmental history has become more complex, it has challenged history based fundamentally on political units and created a map that provides important underpinning of contemporary popular discussions of place-based work and action, and global concern and policy. We will explore place as a concept that brings together the complexity of the intersection of diverse factors to produce lived experience in human and natural communities.The program offers opportunities for serious conversation, focused research, and reflection on personal and collective understandings of environmental ethics and action. Each student should anticipate becoming the resident expert in the work of at least one of our authors or one major issue. | social sciences and environmental history, literature, public policy and management. | Matthew Smith | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | ||||
Heather Heying
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Program | FR ONLYFreshmen Only | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | The natural world exists with or without humanity’s interpretation of it. As observers and users of symbols, it is easy to mistake ourselves for the creators and masters of what we are trying to explain. In this program, we will learn through direct experience of nature: we will learn to trust our own senses. Knowledge and interpretation will also come through writing about nature, and measuring and analyzing aspects of it. We will spend two weeks of the ten on class field trips, and individuals will develop a sense of place by finding and revisiting the same natural site every week throughout the quarter. We will focus on observation as central to a careful, critical and creative understanding of our world. We will learn the disappearing art of unitasking, of clear undivided focus. Readings will come from science, literature, and the philosophy of science; evolutionary explanations for nature’s complexity will be prominent. Students will write every week, both scientific and creative prose. If you are already a skilled writer who loves to write, you will find an outlet here. If you do not enjoy writing, or would like to further develop some basic skills, you will also find this useful, and hopefully pleasant. Similarly, we will do some math in this program. If you find numbers and their manipulation exciting, you will have fun with this. If you are a math-phobe, we will try to reveal some of its beauty and wisdom to you. Words and numbers are symbolic representations of our world; if we do not understand them, they have undue power over us. As we learn to use them as tools that we can master, they allow us to further our own understanding, experience and representation of the world. | biology, communications and field research. | Heather Heying | Freshmen FR | Spring | Spring | ||||
Richard Benton
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | W 12Winter | For two thousand years Jews and Christians agree on some issues and disagree on others. For 1300 years, Muslims have entered into this discussion. What issues do these monotheistic religions agree on? What do they differ about? How do they identify the “orthodox” believer of their own faith, in contrast to the “unbeliever” of another faith? In this program, we will ask the following questions: What makes someone Jewish? Christian? Muslim? How have they interacted? Often these religions ask the same questions; their answers separate them from each other.Each religion depends on writing as the divine expression of belief. Jews depend on Written Torah and Oral Torah. Christians hold the Written Torah, or Old Testament, as inspired, as well as the New Testament. Muslims proclaim the superior status of the Qur’an, while the Bible (Torah and Gospel) lie subordinate to it. Yet all of these writings refer to the other works. Moreover, each religion has produced a body of interpretation. Jews read Midrash, Christians, commentaries, and Muslims, the Hadith. These interpretations further develop the lines that distinguish the community of “true believers” from the “unbelievers” or “apostates.”We will read and interpret the above sacred texts and their interpretations to develop literary and philosophical sensitivities. These texts lie at the basis of all the religious thought of these groups. Knowledge of and ability to interpret sacred texts provide the foundation of grasping the interactions of later periods. Students will also acquire knowledge and develop appreciation for how individuals understand their historical circumstances. We will read secondary literature that describes religious life in various historical contexts. Each student will develop a research project in which they learn how to interpret a religious text from the inside—from the point of view of the text—and learn how to distinguish text from personal interpretation. | Richard Benton | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Winter | Winter | |||||
Richard Benton
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | This is a repeat of the winter quarter program; students who took in winter may not enroll in this program.For two thousand years Jews and Christians agree on some issues and disagree on others. For 1300 years, Muslims have entered into this discussion. What issues do these monotheistic religions agree on? What do they differ about? How do they identify the “orthodox” believer of their own faith, in contrast to the “unbeliever” of another faith? In this program, we will ask the following questions: What makes someone Jewish? Christian? Muslim? How have they interacted? Often these religions ask the same questions; their answers separate them from each other.Each religion depends on writing as the divine expression of belief. Jews depend on Written Torah and Oral Torah. Christians hold the Written Torah, or Old Testament, as inspired, as well as the New Testament. Muslims proclaim the superior status of the Qur’an, while the Bible (Torah and Gospel) lie subordinate to it. Yet all of these writings refer to the other works. Moreover, each religion has produced a body of interpretation. Jews read Midrash, Christians, commentaries, and Muslims, the Hadith. These interpretations further develop the lines that distinguish the community of “true believers” from the “unbelievers” or “apostates.”We will read and interpret the above sacred texts and their interpretations to develop literary and philosophical sensitivities. These texts lie at the basis of all the religious thought of these groups. Knowledge of and ability to interpret sacred texts provide the foundation of grasping the interactions of later periods. Students will also acquire knowledge and develop appreciation for how individuals understand their historical circumstances. We will read secondary literature that describes religious life in various historical contexts. Each student will develop a research project in which they learn how to interpret a religious text from the inside—from the point of view of the text—and learn how to distinguish text from personal interpretation. | Richard Benton | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | |||||
Andrea Gullickson
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | Martha Graham What role do performances play for the performer? For the audience?Performances are often structured as culminating events to an intensive period of study with a primary purpose of offering an opportunity for individuals or groups to publicly demonstrate skills developed and knowledge attained. This program is designed to provide students an opportunity to challenge the notion of performance being solely a public display of skill and knowledge. We will explore the role of performance as part of the learning process. We will consider the many opportunities for personal growth as well as the possibilities for significant social impact that performance opportunities provide.Performances types to be explored will include speeches, presentations and stage productions of all kinds but our main focus will be on music recitals and concerts. We will examine the process of performance from its preparatory stages to its aftermath, and will address the psychological and physiological components that are present. We will consider the paradoxical role of ego throughout the process, the importance of mastery of craft, the physical and mental stamina demands, and the critical role of intentionality. We will also examine performance as a powerful tool for social change as well as personal growth. As a central component to our work, students will be asked to regularly consider and deconstruct the social pressures and human tendencies to seek qualities and find measures for the purpose of identifying ourselves or our group as superior to others. We will contrast this perspective with an examination of powerful performances that emphasize connections across perceived boundaries. We will explore how these performances communicated ideas that significantly impacted the direction of social and political movements throughout the 20 and into the 21 century. Our work throughout the quarter will include exploration of a variety of learning theories, skill building workshops, academic/reflective/reflexive writing activities, examination of approaches to physical and mental conditioning, ensemble coaching and performance workshops. Regular performance opportunities throughout the program will give students the opportunity to experience all of this from the inside as we continue to emphasize the value of considering each performance as an important step in the learning process rather than as the end game. Through each of the course activities as well as course readings, students will be offered the opportunity to (further) develop their awareness of the possibilities for personal growth through regular and thoughtful consideration of what connects us as humans. | Andrea Gullickson | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | |||||
Amy Gould
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | Harold Lasswell stated, "politics is about who gets what, when, where, and how." Therefore, we need leaders who can access the underpinnings of politics and the consequences of political ideologies. In the fall, students will learn to be actively engaged in politics by first understanding where politics come from and the myriad of ideologies in practice globally. In the winter, students will focus on how they can hone their own leadership style. We will explore how engagement in politics can test our character regularly. To this end, Bill George stated, "successful leadership takes conscious development and requires being true to your life story." Throughout both quarters, as members of a learning community and society, we will endeavor to excavate the nature of leadership and the relational space of politics via classic and contemporary readings, guest speakers, seminar, debate, lecture, workshops and local field trips. We will seek to understand the dynamics of politics by applying leadership techniques for decision-making through program analyses, policy briefs, and legislative testimony. We will also pursue an understanding of philosophical foundations of Western political thought, the history of the U.S. Constitution and Constitutions of regional Tribal Nations, and concepts of political "otherness." In this pursuit we will define multiple political ideologies internationally and assess the nexus of leadership and politics. Students will have the opportunity to develop leadership skills of active listening, analytical thinking, scholarly dialog, effective communication, and writing for public administrators. | public administration, public service, non-profit management or political office. | Amy Gould | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter | |||
Lawrence Mosqueda
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | This program focuses on the issue of power in American society. In the analysis we will investigate the nature of economic, political, social, military, ideological and interpersonal power. The interrelationship of these dimensions will be a primary area of study. We will explore these themes through lectures, films, seminars, a journal and short papers. The analysis will be guided by the following questions, as well as others that may emerge from the discussions: What is meant by the term "power"? Are there different kinds of power and how are they interrelated? Who has power in American society? Who is relatively powerless? Why? How is power accumulated? What resources are involved? How is power utilized and with what impact on various sectors of the population? What characterizes the struggle for power? How does domestic power relate to international power? How is international power used? How are people affected by the current power structure? What responsibilities do citizens have to alter the structure of power? What alternative structures are possible, probable, necessary or desirable? In this time of war and economic, social and political crisis, a good deal of the program will focus on international relations in a systematic and intellectual manner. This is a serious class for serious people. Please be prepared to work hard and to challenge your and others' previous thinking. | social sciences, law and education. | Lawrence Mosqueda | Tue Wed Thu | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall | |||
Stephen Bramwell
Signature Required:
Fall
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | The schedule for The Practice of Sustainable Agriculture has been shifted to the agricultural calendar. This is the third quarter of a three-quarter sequence that started in last spring quarter. This program integrates theoretical and practical aspects of small-scale organic farming in the Pacific Northwest and requires serious commitment from students—we start at 8 AM Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and all students will work on the farm, which may include early mornings before class. Each week of the program there will be eight hours of classroom instruction and twenty hours of practicum work at Evergreen's Organic Farm.The program's academic classroom portion will cover a variety of topics related to practical farm management, including annual and perennial plant propagation, entomology and pest management, plant pathology and disease management, weed biology and management, soil quality and soil management, crop botany, animal husbandry/physiology, polycultures, integration of crops and livestock, orchard management, appropriate technology, weather forecasting, and climatology. As part of their training, students will be required to develop and write farm management and business plans. On a weekly basis, students can expect to complete seminar readings and reflective writings, work through assigned textbooks, and write technical reports to demonstrate an integration of theoretical concepts and practice gained through the farm practicum.The academic practicum on Evergreen's organic farm will include hands-on instruction on a range of farm-related topics including greenhouse management and season extension techniques, farm-scale composting and vermiculture, seed saving, irrigation systems, mushroom cultivation, farm recordkeeping, tool use and care, farm equipment operation and maintenance, and techniques for adding value to farm and garden products. Students will also have the opportunity to explore their personal interests related to agriculture, homesteading, and developing communal farms/ecovillages through research projects. Each quarter we will visit farms that represent the ecological, social and economic diversity of agriculture in the Pacific Northwest. Students will also attend and participate in key sustainable and organic farming conferences within the region. After completing this program, students will have an understanding of a holistic approach to managing a small-scale sustainable farm operation in the Pacific Northwest. | agriculture, farm and garden management, and applied horticulture. | Stephen Bramwell | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall | ||||
Donald Foran and Marilyn Freeman
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | “Awareness of the divine begins with wonder. It is the result of what man does with his higher incomprehension. The greatest hindrance to such awareness is our adjustment to conventional notions, to mental clichés. Wonder or radical amazement, the state of maladjustment to words and notions, is therefore a prerequisite for an authentic awareness of that which is.” From Abraham Heschel’s How do we cultivate a disciplined sense of wonder?We invest a lot of personal energy in certainty—being certain of what we know, of how we feel, of what we think, and, of course, of what others think of us. Heschel’s quote suggests that there are many ways to enter into not knowing, to be surprised anew, to experience wonder and amazement. In order to challenge conventional notions productively we might need to cultivate a healthy maladjustment. But, it’s difficult to subvert the dominant paradigm.How might we as writers and media artists use poetry and video essay to intensify our awareness of everyday experience, to explore our experience, and to express our findings artfully while keeping an audience in mind?The purpose of this program is to heighten our curiosity and to foster the possibility for amazement in the everyday by developing interrogative strategies rooted in the creative practices of writing poetry and personal essays, and of crafting video essays.The program will include creative writing intensives in poetry and creative nonfiction as well as a series of electronic media workshops in which students will gain basic competencies in alternative audio/visual scriptwriting, audio recording and editing, photography, and multimedia editing. Lectures, screenings, and guest writers and artists will address or engage formal, historical, and conceptual concerns in poetry, creative nonfiction literature, film and video essay, and will relate to issues of dominant paradigms, heresy, imagination, reflexivity, the everyday, representations of the self and other, auteur theory, and collaboration. Through weekly seminar papers and discussions students will reflect in more depth on the program’s themes, issues, activities, and texts.A rigorous collaborative midterm electronic media project will require students to interrogate everyday experience in a shared way while negotiating issues of authorship, voice, collectivism, project management, and accountability. Students will exercise creative writing skills and electronic media competencies in this comprehensive midterm assignment, blending their literary works with audio and images in video essays that are crafted collaboratively.Finally, each student will individually craft a video essay that demonstrates a disciplined sense of wonder by drawing on the program’s creative practices and that takes up our thematic concern with radical amazement. The quarter will conclude with student presentations of final projects. | Donald Foran Marilyn Freeman | Tue Wed Thu | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | ||||
Laura Citrin and Carolyn Prouty
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | W 12Winter | Why is the rate of caesarian section births rising? What are the ethical implications when parents choose for certain traits in embryo selection? How do our ideas of masculinity and femininity shape male and female reproductive health? How is infertility, abortion, and maternal mortality experienced differently across race and class? This program will explore the sociological, psychological, historical, political, and ethical issues related to reproduction and childbirth, mainly in the US, but we look at the global manifestations of these issues as well. We will learn basic female and male reproductive anatomy and physiology in humans, including the physical processes involved in birth.Through lecture, seminar, film, reading and discussion stimulated by multiple guest speakers from the community, students will examine such topics as conception, pregnancy, birth and the postpartum period; ethical issues in fertility (including infertility) and obstetrics; power and hierarchy in reproductive health care; and breakthroughs in the technologies of reproduction. Students can expect to read and analyze primary scientific and social science literature, academic and popular texts, and to learn to recognize and think critically about their own evolving perspectives surrounding reproduction and birth. | Laura Citrin Carolyn Prouty | Mon Wed Thu | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Winter | Winter | ||||
Elizabeth Williamson and Grace Huerta
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | Why is it important to consider African American and Latina/o literature in the 21st century? What is the value of studying works based on the identity of their authors, and how can we account for the lasting effects of history, cultural loss, and oppression as represented in these texts without succumbing to the limitations of a "politically correct" politics of identity? How can these authors both fuel and complicate our struggle against all the various forms of oppression we face today?In this program, we address such questions by examining the treatment of hegemony, identity, and gender in the works of authors such as Julia Alvarez, Gayl Jones, Christina Garcia, and Nella Larsen. Together, these authors present culture through the conditions of power relations and its historic aftermath: colonization, slavery, and marginalization. We will focus on writers whose works cross both cultural and national borders and forcefully contest the identity politics of race, gender, class and language.Throughout this quarter, we will also examine social and political change, particularly noting how activism is conceptualized in the literature we read. In addition, we will consider the important role of anticolonial aesthetics by developing our own skills in literary analysis through experimental critical writing. It is through such writing that we will generate even more questions to consider, for example: how do other literary genres and media challenge conventional notions of national belonging for African Americans? How are the cultural borders between the United States and Mexico, or the United States and Cuba, more fluid than the existing political borders? We will strive to get beyond politicized literary analysis, moving instead toward collective cultural reflection and understanding.Our shared concepts and questions will be explored through seminars, workshops, group discussions, and multi-media presentations. Students will co-facilitate seminars and complete critical writing activities, including the use of peer feedback. | Elizabeth Williamson Grace Huerta | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | |||||
Lucia Harrison
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | The study of stream ecology and visual art will provide the framework and tools to examine, observe, record, and know a place. We will explore the role of art and science in helping people develop a deep and reciprocal relationship with a watershed. Designed for beginning students in art and ecology, we will study the characteristics of local streams and make drawings that are inspired by a connection to a specific stream. The Nisqually River Watershed will be the focus for our collective work while the numerous local streams will serve as individual focal points for student projects throughout the quarter.Through reading, lectures and field study, students will learn the history of the watershed, study concepts in stream ecology, learn to identify native plants in the watershed and learn about current conservation efforts. They will develop beginning drawing skills and practice techniques for keeping an illustrated field journal. Students will work in charcoal, chalk pastel, watercolor, and colored pencil. Students will explore strategies for using notes and sketches to inspire more finished artworks. Students will study artists whose work is inspired by their deep connection to a place. Each student will visit a local stream regularly, keep a field journal, and in the second half of the quarter, students will create a series of artworks or an environmental education project that gives something back to their watershed. | Lucia Harrison | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | |||||
Andrew Buchman, Wenhong Wang, Rose Jang and Mingxia Li
Signature Required:
Winter
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | S 12Spring | We'll study Chinese history, poetry, visual art, theatre and music in fall and winter, then spend an optional month at the National Academy of Chinese Theatre Arts in Beijing in the spring. Extra financial aid is available for this study abroad program for qualified students. We'll study Chinese civilization from ancient to contemporary times, comparing it with Western cultural models. As Ai Weiwei's case demonstrates, artists continue to be agents of social change in Chinese society today. We'll look at artists' lives as well as their work throughout China's history. To appreciate the central Chinese artistic tradition of depictions of and meditations on nature, we'll study the natural history of China, a country the size of the U.S. with remaining wilderness, despite its large population and burgeoning economy.Workshops on mythology, poetry, folk songs, martial arts, theatrical movement, ritual and secular music, and calligraphy will bring cultural legacies alive for us. In lively, interactive Chinese language lessons, students will create new works of poetry, music, and theatre inspired by Chinese model. We will study Chinese language in order to approach the Chinese world, since, as Heidegger put it, it is from language that "we receive the soundness of our roots" – that is, become intimate with the linguistic idioms, shapes, and sounds that color Chinese culture. Students will study language at their own levels and their own pace, as part of a holistic, supportive, inspiring curriculum.Although there are no prerequisites in performance, arts, Chinese language or aesthetics, interests or previous study in any of these fields will be useful. Expect plenty of reading and writing, creative workshops featuring small group work, and independent research and creative projects that will increase in size as the year progresses. Students will have ample opportunities to develop their individual artistic and academic interests.During fall quarter, we will survey the poetry and art of pre-modern China, from ancient texts and excavated musical instruments to recurrent images in Chinese folklore. We'll address the mythological and philosophical subtexts of these works as well, such as aspect of gender and class. We'll focus on works that continue to be enacted and reinterpreted by contemporary poets, performers and artists. We'll examine vital controversies around competing approaches to the tradition.Winter quarter will take us into the modern era. We will study important writers, poets, musicians, performers, visual artists and filmmakers from the late 19th and 20th centuries, including some from the Chinese global diaspora who helped to create and shape a new vision of China as a republic. We will analyze how processes of cultural transformation and modernization within the last century are reflected in departures, in content and form, from classical models and traditions. Students will finish a research paper and teach the rest of the program what they've learned through individual or group presentations.In spring quarter, we'll get to know some prominent contemporary Chinese artists and literary figures, and explore the blossoming artistic scenes in many Chinese cities. During the second half of the quarter, interested students will have the opportunity to go to Beijing to study Chinese language and culture first-hand. These students will also study and practice the beauty of Chinese theatre arts with professional teachers in small, intimate workshops. Students who elect not to study abroad will pursue a major research project, and/or ethnographic fieldwork in an Asian community in the United States, and/or pursue internship opportunities. Update on Scholarships for Study in China: Students who receive the Federal Pell Grant should apply for a Gilman Scholarship by the October 4, 2011 deadline. For more information, go to "http://www.iie.org/en/Programs/Gilman-Scholarship-Program", or contact Michael Clifthorne on campus at 360-867-6421. | Chinese-American joint ventures, arts-related fields, English teaching in Asia, travel and tourism, and cultural studies. | Andrew Buchman Wenhong Wang Rose Jang Mingxia Li | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter | ||
Nancy Anderson, Frances V. Rains and John Baldridge
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 8, 12, 16 | 08 12 16 | Day and Evening | F 11 Fall | How much do you really know about the Salish Sea/Puget Sound region, its peoples, its landscapes, and its natural inhabitants? Come join us as we explore the intersection of place, culture, and health and how these factors reflect inequity in access to—and degradation of—resources in and around the Salish Sea. Central elements of this thematically based program will include the history of colonization and decolonization of Native peoples of the Salish Sea that accompanied European settlement, Indigenous rights, a critique of current policies and practices that have not promoted the achievement of social or health equity, the effect of industrialization on the health of the Salish Sea and non-human life forms, and the public health policies that may intervene to improve overall health and wellness in the surrounding communities. Both quarters will examine these themes through multiple lenses including political ecology, political economy, public health, and Native Studies. Our readings will include current case studies, empirical research, and counter-narratives.The learning community will work on understanding the consequences of privilege on an individual basis—how our individual behavior contributes to environmental degradation and social injustice, specifically the attempted genocide of Native Peoples. Students will learn about the fundamental relationships between our focus themes, as well as strategies that may more successfully address social justice and environmental issues. Learning will take place through writing, readings, seminars, lectures, films, art, and guest speakers. Students will improve their research skills through document review, observations, critical analysis, and written assignments. Oral speaking skills will be improved through small group and whole class seminar discussions and through individual final project presentations. Options for the final project will be discussed in the syllabus and in class with proposals that aim to improve community health, the sustainability of the Salish Sea, and for Native Communities many of whom have lived at its edge for thousands of years before European settlement.This program is a combined offering of Evening and Weekend Studies and the full-time, daytime curriculum. All students will meet in the evenings on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Students registering for 12 credits will complete a 4-credit in-program internship (10 hours per week). Students registering for 16 credits will meet in both the afternoons and evenings on Tuesdays and Thursdays. | Nancy Anderson Frances V. Rains John Baldridge | Tue Thu | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall | ||||
Paula Schofield and Andrew Brabban
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Program | FR ONLYFreshmen Only | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | Are you curious about the world around you? Would you like to really understand "buzz terms" the media uses such as sustainability, green materials, climate change, the water crisis, the energy debate, genetic engineering, DNA fingerprinting and cloning? How can we believe what we are being told? What is the evidence? How is scientific data actually collected, and what analytical methods and instrumentation are being used? Are the correct conclusions being drawn? As responsible citizens we should know the answers to these questions.In this two-quarter program we will use various themes to demystify the hype surrounding popular myths, critically examine the data, and use scientific reasoning and experimental design to come to our own conclusions. In fall quarter we will study "water" and "energy" as themes to examine our environment, considering local, nationwide and global water issues. We will also examine current energy use and demand, critically assessing various sources of energy: fossil fuels, nuclear, hydropower, etc. We will begin the program on , one week before the regularly scheduled start of fall quarter (during Orientation Week). This will enable us to prepare for an extended field trip the following week by beginning our study of energy, and to establish our learning community. The field trip, to Eastern Washington, will be a unique opportunity to visit Hanford Nuclear Facilty and Grand Coulee Dam. Personalized tours at each will include the B-Reactor at Hanford, the world's first full-scale nuclear reactor which produced the plutonium used in the "Fat Man" bomb dropped over Nagasaki, Japan, in August of 1945, and at Grand Coulee, the largest hydropower producer in the United States. On this trip we will also learn key field science techniques: how to take measurements in the field, collect samples for laboratory analysis, and identify and precisely determine the concentrations of nutrients and pollutants. In winter quarter we will use "natural and synthetic materials" as a theme to study petrochemical plastics, biodegradable plastics and other sustainable materials, biomedical polymers, as well as key biological materials such as proteins and DNA. We will carefully examine the properties of these materials in the laboratory and study their role in the real world. "Forensics" will be our final theme, learning techniques such as DNA fingerprinting, blood spatter analysis and ballistics, as well as other modern forensic procedures. We will gather our own data from mock crime scenes to practice these techniques. Winter quarter will culminate in a student-originated and designed research project.In this field- and lab-based program, scientific analysis—rather than conjecture or gut-feeling—will be the foundation of our work. Throughout our studies we will use and apply state-of-the-art scientific instrumentation. Other class activities will include small group problem-solving workshops, seminars and lectures. | environmental and laboratory sciences, the liberal arts and education. | Paula Schofield Andrew Brabban | Mon Tue Wed Thu | Freshmen FR | Fall | Fall Winter | ||
Joseph Tougas and Ulrike Krotscheck
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Program | FR–SOFreshmen - Sophomore | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | In this full-time lower-division program, we will investigate how and why humans, throughout history, have taken to the sea to explore the limits of their known world. What were the motives and the consequences of these, often dangerous, ventures? We will focus on some specific case studies (the ancient Mediterranean, the Pacific Northwest, the Chinese empire, the Polynesian islanders, and the Atlantic during the age of sail), and learn about some theories of economic and cultural exchange over long distances. Some of the questions we’ll be addressing include: How did humans figure out the navigational and boatbuilding technologies needed for overseas exploration? What were the prime motivators for overseas exploration? What new kinds of knowledge were gained through this travel, and what is the relationship between the material goods and the ideas and ideologies that were traded? How do modern archaeologists and historians go about piecing together answers to questions like these? We will read texts on archaeology, ancient history and philosophy, anthropology, and marine studies. In addition to historical and scientific accounts, we’ll read works of literature, seeking an understanding of the age-old connections between human cultures and the sea. We will consider the religious, philosophical, and scientific practices that grew out of those connections—practices that are the common heritage of coast-dwelling peoples around the globe. We will also work on reading, writing, and critical thinking skills which will facilitate students' transition into advanced college-level work. In order to test our theories in practice, we will have opportunities to become familiar with the local coastal environment and its rich cultural history. This will take the form of a three-day field trip to the Makah Museum and other sites of historical and archaeological interest on the Washington coast. | history, archaeology, philosophy, and the humanities. | Joseph Tougas Ulrike Krotscheck | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO | Fall | Fall Winter | |||
Sean Williams and Patricia Krafcik
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | This program will explore the folklore of the Slavic and Celtic peoples from epic times to the present in a cross-cultural study of two of Eurasia's oldest ethnic groups. Both groups are dispersed: the Slavic regions across eastern and southeastern Europe and into Eurasia, and the Celtic regions across the islands and peninsulas of the West. Both are renowned for their abundant folklore traditions, which have deep roots in a remote past and have served as a valuable source of inspiration for writers, composers and dramatists from the 19th century through the present. What characteristics do both traditions share? What distinguishes the two cultural traditions? What essential historical, linguistic and spiritual elements permeate the hearts and minds of local people in these regions? What do their folklore practices reveal?We begin the quarter with regional epic narratives and explore the histories and belief systems of the two regions. We follow this foundational work with an exploration of folklore practices (customs, rituals, beliefs), examine 19th-century cultural nationalist movements in music and literature, and conclude with how it all plays out in contemporary life, both rural and urban. This program may serve as a springboard for further study of the Celtic and Slavic peoples, of folklore, and of the material elements of culture.Each week includes lectures, films, seminars, and possible workshops, collaborative presentations, and guest performers or presenters. Students will be expected to write short essays, as requested, and to complete a significant essay at the end of the quarter that examines the role, use and appropriation of folklore materials in a particular Slavic or Celtic region. | folklore, anthropology, ethnomusicology, history and literature. | Sean Williams Patricia Krafcik | Mon Tue Wed | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | |||
Carrie Margolin
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | Students will investigate theories and practices of psychologists to enhance their understanding of counseling, social services and the science of psychology. We will cover history and systems of psychology. Students will read original source literature from the major divisions of the field, including both classic and contemporary journal articles and books by well-known psychologists. Students will explore careers in psychology and the academic preparations necessary for these career choices. We will cover the typical activities of psychologists who work in academia, schools, counseling and clinical settings, social work agencies and applied research settings. Among our studies will be ethical quandaries in psychology, including the ethics of human and animal experimentation. Library research skills, in particular the use of PsycInfo and Science and Social Science Citation Indexes, will be emphasized. Students will gain expertise in the technical writing style of the American Psychological Association (APA). The class format will include lectures, guest speakers, workshops, discussions, films and an optional field trip. There's no better way to explore the range of activities and topics that psychology offers, and to learn of cutting edge research in the field, than to attend and participate in a convention of psychology professionals and students. To that end, students have the option of attending the annual convention of the Western Psychological Association, which is the western regional arm of the APA. This year's convention will be held in San Francisco (Burlingame), California on April 26-29, 2012. | psychology, education and social work. | Carrie Margolin | Mon Wed Thu | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | |||
Laura Citrin
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | Eliot Aronson, , 2012 In this full-time program, we will explore the fundamentals of social psychology, the field that bridges psychology and sociology, to examine how people think, feel, and behave because of the real (or imagined) presence of social others. This program starts with the premise that human beings are inherently beings informed, influenced, and constituted by the social world. Using this perspective as a launching off point, we will investigate everyday life--from the mundane to the extraordinary--as it is lived and experienced by individuals involved in an intricate web of social relationships. This social psychological view of the self explores the ways that individuals are enmeshed and embodied within the social context both in the moment and the long-term, ever constructing who we are, how we present ourselves to the world, and how we are perceived by others. Through lecture, workshop, twice-weekly seminar, film, reading, writing and research assignments, we will cover most of the fundamental topics within the field including: conformity, emotions and sentiments, persuasion and propaganda, obedience to authority, social cognition, attitudes, aggression, attraction, and desire. We will also discuss epistemology (the branch of philosophy concerned with how we know what we know) as we learn about and practice social psychological research methods. A final project will be to conduct primary and secondary research on a social psychological phenomenon of students’ own interest, and to use one’s findings to create a segment for a podcast in a style similar to NPR’s “This American Life” radio show. | Laura Citrin | Mon Wed Thu | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | ||||
Elizabeth Williamson, Andrea Gullickson and Krishna Chowdary
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Program | FR–SOFreshmen - Sophomore | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | If you are interested in either art or science and are curious to find out what happens when art and science meet, this introductory program is for you. We will work to become familiar with the methods used by artists and scientists and see if these methods can help us make sense of, and live better in, an increasingly complicated world.We will trace developments in art (primarily theater and music) and science (primarily physics) during two time periods: the Renaissance and the early 20th century. We will explore three major questions:Our study of the Renaissance will focus on major revolutionaries, including Galileo and Shakespeare. Galileo's scientific conclusions about the natural world conflicted with some deeply held church teachings. Similarly, Shakespeare's plays highlighted and challenged social conventions and their impact on the day-to-day lives of his audience. We will examine the roles of science and art in challenging commonly held beliefs and explore how society can be transformed through the new perspectives and insights they offer.Our study of the early 20th century will focus on major revolutions in physics, theater, and music. Relativity and quantum mechanics challenged the idea that natural phenomena could be studied without taking into account the role of the observer in shaping those phenomena. In the arts, the observers were seen to play a central role in the artistic product. Brecht and Schoenberg, among others, challenged the notion that art should hold "a mirror up to nature," arguing that art should prompt us to take action rather than merely acclimating us to the way things are. Our studies of art and science will come together as we work with plays that draw on science for subject matter and are experimental in structure, staging, and purpose. Together we will examine and critique the aesthetics and accuracy of plays that merge science and theatricality, such as Brecht's , Stoppard's and Frayn's . Weekly activities will include workshops designed to develop skills critical to success in college and beyond. Collaborative workshops will emphasize improving your written and oral communication skills as well as your analytical and creative thinking. Hands-on activities will provide you with supportive opportunities to apply math and physics and develop scientific reasoning. Together we will approach the art and science content in a manner that is accessible to students with little background in these areas, while still challenging those with prior experience. As a final collaborative project, program members will produce creative interventions dramatizing a science topic. | literature, science, education and theater arts. | Elizabeth Williamson Andrea Gullickson Krishna Chowdary | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO | Fall | Fall Winter | |||
Stephanie Kozick
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SOS | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | W 12Winter | This SOS is intended for: individual students who have designed a learning project focused on community development; groups of students interested in working together on a community based project; and students who have an interest in working as an intern in a community agency, organization, or school setting. Interested students should attend the Academic Fair on to meet the faculty, Stephanie Kozick and the Director of the Center of Community Based Learning and Action, Ellen Shortt Sanchez. Stephanie Kozick can also be contacted through her e-mail ( ). Project proposal form can be obtained at the Academic Fair, or an electronic copy found at . Student Originated Studies (S.O.S.): Community Based Learning and Action is a component of Evergreen's Center for Community Based Learning and Action (CCBLA), which supports learning about, engaging with, and contributing to community life in the region. As such, this S.O.S. offers the opportunity for goal oriented, responsible, and self-motivated students to design a project, research study, or community internship or apprenticeship that furthers their understanding of the concept of “community.” The range of academic and community work in the program includes: working with one or several community members to learn about a special line of work or skill that enriches the community as a whole— elders, mentors , artists, teachers, skilled laborers, community organizers all contribute uniquely to the broader community; working in an official capacity as an intern with defined duties at a community agency, organization, or school; or designing a community action plan aimed at problem solving particular community needs. Prior to the beginning of winter quarter, interested students or student groups must have a draft plan in place. Projects will then be further developed with input from the faculty. Students will meet in a weekly seminar setting to share progress reports, discuss the larger context of their projects in terms of community asset building and wellbeing, and discuss readings selected by program students that illuminate the essence of their projects. Small interest groups will meet with the faculty to discuss issues related to their group projects. | Stephanie Kozick | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Winter | Winter | |||||
Leonard Schwartz
Signature Required:
Spring
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SOS | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | Poetics involves language as creative functions (writing, poetry, fiction), language as performance, language as image, and language as a tool of thought (philosophy, criticism). Our work will be to calibrate these various activities.Students are invited to join this learning community of culture workers interested in language as a medium of artistic production. This SOS is designed for students who share similar skills and common interests in doing advanced work that may have grown out of previous academic projects and/or programs. Students will work with faculty throughout the quarter; we will design small study groups, collaborative projects and critique groups that will allow students to support one another's work. | literature, publishing, writing, and academics. | Leonard Schwartz | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | ||||
Sarah Ryan and Nancy Parkes
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 8, 12, 16 | 08 12 16 | Evening and Weekend | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | Is the United States a “suburban nation?” Why do we have a unique pattern of urban/suburban development that contrasts with that of other nations? What do we need to know, and what do we need to do, in order to create more sustainable, equitable, and livable communities? This program will look critically at historical, sociological, and environmental aspects of suburbs, including the role of the federal government and financial institutions in structuring our landscape and living environments. Our work during both quarters will be centered in the historical study of suburbanization. During fall, we will look at the critique New Urbanists make of the configuration of suburban space and evaluate local areas as examples of problems or solutions. We will also acquaint ourselves with quantitative analysis through evaluating the story that census data tells. During winter, our focus will move toward the way suburbia is reflected in literature and film, and how this shapes us individually and collectively. During both quarters, students will continually have opportunities to consider proposed solutions as suburbs shift and change that will better meet challenges for housing, social equality, and both social and ecological sustainability. Our goals include an immersion in the historical roots of policies that resulted in suburbanization and an examination of the economics, class, race, and gender systems that underlie many urban/suburban problems. We will strive to understand how current suburban configurations shape popular culture, political power bases, transportation policies, ecological consequences, families, and educational opportunities. We will investigate successful alternatives to current suburban developmental norms and consider obstacles that inhibit individuals and communities from adopting more sustainable and socially just practices. We will examine whether suburbs establish islands of privilege that reject urban complexity and diversity and whether the laws and policies encouraging home ownership still meet the needs of individuals and communities. Our program will include a rich mixture of readings, interactive workshops, and lectures by both faculty and guests as well as opportunities to explore suburbanization in our own and nearby communities. Students will also have opportunities to strengthen their research, collaborative, and writing skills. Students registering for 12 credits will take on an individual project, connected to a group study of a specific suburban community, that will involve substantial historical, sociological, or geographical research, writing, and an interactive presentation. 12-credit students should expect to spend an additional 10 hours per week on this work. Students registered for 12 credits will also meet Mondays from 6-8 p.m.Students registering for 16 credits must have at least 20 daytime hours per week available to devote to an internship in land use planning or community development, in addition to the 20 hours per week for required for class and study time. The faculty have arranged some internships with local municipal government bodies that require references, referrals, and conferences with sponsors. Students are also welcome to arrange their own 20-hour internships in planning and community development in collaboration with faculty. Faculty signature is required for this registration option; please contact the faculty if you are interested or would like more information. | history, literature, environmental studies, planning, government, public policy | Sarah Ryan Nancy Parkes | Mon Wed Sat | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter | ||
Bob Haft and Donald Morisato
Signature Required:
Winter
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | Both science and art take things apart. In some instances--like the evisceration of a frog or an overly-analytical critique of a poem --the process can result in the loss of the vital force. In the best scenario, carefully isolating and understanding individual parts actually reconstitutes the original object of study, bringing appreciation for the whole that is greater than the parts. Sometimes taking things apart results in a paradigm shift: suddenly, the ordinary becomes extraordinary.In one strand of this program, we will use a biologist's tool kit to explore how living organisms function. We will learn how biology takes apart and studies life in different ways. In fall, we will focus on visual perception, beginning with anatomy, proceeding onto the logic of visual processing, and concluding with an examination of the specialized neurons and molecules involved in phototransduction. In winter quarter, we will play with the idea of mutation, exploring how genetics can be used to dissect complex processes, in addition to providing an entry point for the molecular understanding of inheritance at the level of DNA.Another strand takes visual art as its point of departure. Here, we will combine what we learn about the anatomy and physiology of the eye with a study of how to use sight to apprehend and appreciate the world around us. We will work with different tools--charcoal pencils and camera, for example--both to take things apart, and to construct new things. During fall quarter, we will learn the basics of drawing. In winter, we will switch to using black-and-white photography as a means of studying life at a more macroscopic level than in the biology lab. Ultimately, our goal here is the same as that of the scientist: to reconstitute and reanimate the world around us.There are ideas for which literature provides a more sophisticated and satisfying approach than either science or the visual arts. Thus, in a third strand, we will examine how literature depicts and takes apart the emotional and behavioral interactions that we call "love." Authors that we may read include Shakespeare, Stendhal, Henry James, Virginia Woolf, James Baldwin, John Berger, Haruki Murakami and Louise Gluck.Our goal is to weave these strands together, to produce an understanding about the world that is informed by both cognition and intuition. Throughout our inquiry, we will be investigating the philosophical issue of objectivity. This is a rigorous program that will involve lectures, workshops, seminars, studio art and laboratory science work. Student learning will be assessed by weekly seminar writing assignments, lab reports, art portfolios and exams. | biology, visual arts, sciences and the humanities. | Bob Haft Donald Morisato | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter | |||
Bill Bruner and Walter Grodzik
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | Many playwrights have produced works about business -- Arthur Miller's , Eugene O'Neill's , Henrik Ibsen's and more recently Caryl Churchill's and Lucy Prebble's are just a few examples. These plays tell us something about business and how business is viewed by playwrights and probably by much of society. At the same time, theater is business; it employs the techniques of business management to raise revenues to support its productions. This introductory one-quarter program is designed to creatively integrate theater performance and arts management. We will read and perform plays about business and business-related topics. We will examine these plays for what they tell us about business and how they relate to introductory business theories, concepts and practices. The program will include lectures, seminars, reading and analysis, viewing plays and films, writing and performance workshops. Workshops will include the study of theatre games, acting, directing, design, and puppet and shadow theatre. We will also consider arts management as a means of supporting theater performances. In lectures and workshops we will cover such topics as writing vision and mission statements, setting goals and objectives, organizing, legal forms of organization, governance structures including boards of directors, and preparing budgets for both productions and for the theater organization as a whole. Students will prepare comprehensive management plans for theater companies and select an entire season of plays. | performing arts, theater, business and management. | Bill Bruner Walter Grodzik | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | ||||
Gilda Sheppard and Carl Waluconis
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 8, 16 | 08 16 | Day and Evening | Su 12Summer Full | The course explores the role that movement, visual art, music, writing, and media play in problem-solving and the resolution of internalized fear, conflicts, or blocks. Through hands-on activities, field trips, readings films/video, writing, and guest speakers, students discover sources of imagery as tools to awaken creative problem solving from two perspectives: creator and viewer. Students interested in human services, media, and education will find this course engaging. There are no prerequisite art classes or training required, and students can enroll in the course a second time. (Equivalencies and content will be enhanced for returning students.)Students may attend either day or evening sessions. 40137 (16 credits, full session), 40138 (8 credits, first session), 40139 (8 credits, second session) 40140 (16 credits, full session), 40141 (8 credits, first session), 40142 (8 credits, second session) | Gilda Sheppard Carl Waluconis | Mon Tue Wed Thu | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Summer | Summer | ||||
Donald Foran and Patt Blue
Signature Required:
Winter
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | How do universal themes inform our actions and our work as writers and photographers? As artists, photographers, and writers become better at capturing the unique particularities they discover in life through their craft, they increasingly articulate common themes. The combined study of universal themes, literature and photography provides an opportunity to explore the differences, similarities, and intersections. Throughout this rigorous program, we will examine universal themes expressed in classic literature through reading, writing, and discussion. Literary texts in fall quarter include by Herman Melville, by Joseph Conrad, several Raymond Carver stories. Guest writers include Paul Lindholdt and Carolyne Wright. Analytic and creative writing assignments run through the quarter Photography readings include by Roland Barthes, and by James Agee and Walker Evans. Slides and videos of artists Duane Michals, Richard Avedon, Robert Frank, Diane Arbus, Shelby Lee Adams and others will be shown and discussed in conjunction with visual assignments. In winter, individual photography and writing projects will be a major emphasis. Our focus is to equip participants with the visual literacy to develop a signature style and analytical and creative writing skills. To this end, we’ll read stories, poems, one play, , and one novel, . After analysis we will write our own stories, poems, and possibly dramatic scenes. In photography, we’ll be exposed to the work of Dave Heath, Nan Goldin, Clarissa Sligh, Christian Boltanski, Sophie Calle, and David Wojnarowicz. Program participants will journey to Seattle for exhibitions at the Northwest Photography Center and other galleries.It is challenging to chart the intersection of art and life, but this program goes a long way toward doing so. | visual arts, education, literary arts, and all fields which benefit from careful analysis and effective communication. | Donald Foran Patt Blue | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter | |||
Steven Niva
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Program | FR ONLYFreshmen Only | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | This intensive spring quarter program will examine debates over the nature and causes of terrorism, particularly against the United States from the Middle East, and the contending policy options concerning how best to respond to it. The program will focus primarily on debates in the United States since the terror attacks of 9/11 by exploring different theories of terrorism, political violence and counter-terrorism offered by various scholars and military strategists. The program will examine the strategies adopted in the current "war on terror" and in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the history of U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East, the rise of Al-Qaida and Jihadist terrorism and the changing nature of warfare in the 21 st century. To meet the learning goals of this program, students will have to obtain a thorough knowledge of current events; develop a thorough understanding of the history of United States foreign policy in the Middle East; learn how to assess and compare competing theories of terrorism and counter-terrorism strategies; understand the diversity of political, cultural and religious beliefs within the Middle East; engage in critical thinking; and develop informed opinions regarding all of these topics.The program will be organized around a series of texts, exercises and assignments, including several in-class presentations, role-plays and several analytical papers. We will watch films and documentaries to supplement our learning. A serious commitment by students to all of the work within the program is necessary. | politics and public policy, international politics, and Middle East studies. | Steven Niva | Freshmen FR | Spring | Spring | ||||
Robert Knapp and Clarissa Dirks
Signature Required:
Winter
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | More than two billion people in the world lack access to clean water and sanitation, but each person in the United States uses an average of 80 gallons of clean water daily. Scientific innovations have led to the development of vaccines, yet in developing countries the lack of good refrigeration makes it difficult to deliver heat-intolerant vaccines to many of the people who need them. Clean water and electricity for refrigeration are only two examples of how our societal infrastructure provides U.S. citizens with services that are not available in many other places.This program will examine the scientific, technical, and political issues behind these problems and explore potential avenues toward a healthier and more sustainable world. To explore these broader themes, we will focus on everyday issues such as drinking water, waste water, infectious disease and household energy. We will investigate the definition of needs, the development of techniques, and the building of effective organizations for spreading information and solutions for topics such as bioremediation, rainwater catchment, vaccine delivery and efficient stoves.In the fall we will examine several case studies relevant both to western Washington and to other regions of the world, such as sustainable treatment of human waste at a personal level and as a problem of community infrastructure, climate impacts of household energy use for cooking, or equitable mechanisms for distributing vaccines or other measures against infectious disease. We will study techniques and behaviors that work at the individual level, and we will investigate ways that social networks, markets, and private and public organizations allow scaling up from demonstrations to widely effective programs. Students will learn concepts from molecular biology, microbiology, ecology, mechanical and civil engineering, and organizational theory, as well exploring key questions of ethics and values. In the winter, students will continue to build their background knowledge and apply their learning to develop well-researched project plans which can be executed, at least as a proof of principle, within the constraints of our program.Students will read books and articles, write short papers that reflect on the case studies and academic topics we investigate, take active part in workshops, laboratory sessions and field trips, and acquire presentation skills. Students can expect both individual and collaborative work, including the possibility of significant interaction with local sustainability workers. The winter project will lead up to a presentation to the entire class at the end of the program. | biology, health, civil engineering, mechanical engineering, community service, development studies, and organizational sociology. | Robert Knapp Clarissa Dirks | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter | |||
Lester Krupp, Steve Cifka and Sonja Wiedenhaupt
Signature Required:
Winter
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | With public education increasingly under attack, it is imperative that we persistently ask: What is education for? What qualities and abilities does a just society need in its citizens? In this program we will focus on several dimensions of K-12 education in today's society. We will consider questions such as: What makes an effective teacher? In what ways should curriculum be structured to serve learning, development, and citizenship? How effective are current policies in education such as No Child Left Behind and Race to the Top?To help inform these questions, we will study how people learn from cognitive, neuropsychological, interpersonal, and socio-cultural perspectives. We will explore ways in which school structures and teaching practices can facilitate or impede learning. We will also study theories of cognitive, moral, and social development because of their power to illuminate our histories as students and teachers, and for their value in understanding the practice of teaching and the process of becoming a teacher.To critically engage with academic perspectives, we will both write reflectively about our individual past and present learning experiences, and analyze children's and adolescent literature. We will also work directly with younger students (pre-K through high school) in order to learn about ourselves as teachers and to apply concepts to understand another's learning and development. Our work will involve critical reading of texts, writing, visual representation, public presentation, collaborative group work, as well as any other practices that we discover are necessary to support our learning. This all-level program will support both first-year students and advanced students with an interest in broader issues of child and adolescent development and education, and will be particularly useful for anyone considering education or psychology as a profession. It will also be a useful program for those who are wondering about how to nurture and maximize their learning as students. | education and psychology. | Lester Krupp Steve Cifka Sonja Wiedenhaupt | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter | |||
Cynthia Kennedy
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | The body, a vital component in teaching and learning, has often been neglected in higher education. A possible reason for this neglect lies in the enduring influence of the writings of Rene Descartes who, in the 17th century, wrote "I think therefore I am." He stated that each of us has a mental realm within us that is separate from the sensual nature of the body. This separate realm of the mind was seen as "higher" than the faculties of the body. This way of thinking influences much of education today, as the intellect is seen as the location of rational thought, and therefore, more reliable than the body and its emotions. There is much evidence, however, that Descartes was wrong. This program is devoted to exploring the marriage between the mind and body with an emphasis on the body. We will investigate the central role of the body in many aspects of our lives including decision-making and leadership, creativity, emotional intelligence, health and self-image. Our guiding question will be, "What is the role the body plays in our development as whole human beings?" The approach to answering this question is enjoyable! Students will have an opportunity to learn in many ways using many modalities and multiple intelligences. We will integrate somatic (body-based) learning practices into our study including weekly yoga and dance workshops (no prior experience necessary). Our inquiry will ask us all to attune ourselves to the wisdom that is available and present in our own body awareness. We will participate in community readings, rigorous writing assignments, and critical study of important texts. In addition to the core work for everyone in the program, students will also design their own learning experiences. These can include field studies, research papers, or exploration of body-based practices. | leadership positions, education, movement and expressive arts. | Cynthia Kennedy | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | ||||
Samuel Schrager, Chico Herbison and Nancy Koppelman
Signature Required:
Winter
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | S 12Spring | These words of Ralph Ellison's are the starting point for our inquiry. This program will explore diversity and unity in the United States through outstanding narratives by artists and scholars who, like Ellison, capture distinctive characteristics of the hybridity endemic to American experience. Students will use these studies to take their own fresh looks at American life and to become adept practitioners of the writer's craft.The program involves close reading of literary, historical, and anthropological-sociological texts, and attention to traditions of story, music, film and humor. We will consider a range of group experiences-African American, Asian American, Jewish, working-class, place-based, queer, female, youth, differently-abled, and others. We will focus on understanding dynamics between historical pressures and legacies, and present realities and aspirations. How, we will ask, have race relations, immigrant experiences, and family life both expressed and extended democratic ideals, and both embodied and challenged a wide range of power hierarchies? What are the most compelling stories that this unpredictable culture has produced, and how have they nourished and articulated community? What will be the impact of emergent technologies on the increasingly permeable boundaries between human and machine, "real" and virtual, self and other, particularly for the making of democracy?Fall and the first half of winter will feature intensive practice of writing in non-fiction, imaginative and essay forms. Research methods will also be emphasized: ethnographic fieldwork (ways of listening, looking, and documenting evidence to make truthful stories), and library-based scholarship in history, social science and the arts. From mid-winter to mid-spring, students will undertake a full-time writing and research project on a cultural topic or group in a genre of their choice, locally or elsewhere. These projects are akin to the kinds that students pursue with Individual Learning Contracts; students in Writing American Cultures will undertake them in community, with strong faculty support. The project is an excellent context for senior theses. In the final weeks of spring, students will polish and present their writing in a professional format. Throughout the program, dialogue about our common and individual work will be prized. Among the fiction writers we may read are William Faulkner, Maxine Hong Kingston, Herman Melville, Toni Morrison and Ishmael Reed; essayists Gerald Early, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Albert Murray, Cynthia Ozick and Mark Twain; ethnographers Joan Didion, Zora Neale Hurston, Joseph Mitchell and Ronald Takaki; historians John Hope Franklin, Oscar Handlin and C. Vann Woodward. Films may include , , and Music we'll hear may be by Louis Armstrong, John Coltrane, Bob Dylan, Jimi Hendrix, Billie Holiday, Janis Joplin, and Tupac Shakur. Humor/comedy will be provided by Lenny Bruce, Margaret Cho, Richard Pryor, and others. Students who are serious about becoming capable writers are warmly invited to be part of this program. Those who give their time and energies generously will be rewarded by increasing their mastery as writers, critics and students of American culture and society. | the humanities and social sciences, community service, journalism, law, media and education. | Samuel Schrager Chico Herbison Nancy Koppelman | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter | ||
Thomas Foote
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | W 12Winter | Writers have come to realize that the genre of nonfiction writing can be as colorful and gripping as any piece of fiction. The difference is that nonfiction writers are not burdened with inventing characters, dialogue, plot and description because everything they write about actually happened. Creative Nonfiction writers assemble the facts and events and array them artistically and stylistically, using the descriptive techniques of the fiction writer. They immerse themselves in a venue, set about gathering their facts while demonstrating scrupulous accuracy, and then write an account of what happened in their own voice. The Greyhound Bus Company advertised “getting there is half the fun.” In the genre of Creative Nonfiction, because the reader already knows how the piece ends before it begins. Students will become proficient with the form through intensive fieldwork, research and writing. We will begin by studying field research methodology in preparation for observational studies in the field designed to teach the difference between truly seeing and simply looking. Students can’t write and describe something they can’t see clearly.Students will conduct field research to learn to pay attention to detail, read and discuss representative examples of the form, and meet weekly in regularly scheduled writing workshop. Following a period of redrafting and corrections, students will present their final piece to the group in the last week of the quarter. We will read and discuss the following Creative Nonfiction books: by Jon Franklin, ed. by Sims & Kramer, by Jon Krakauer, by Barbara Myerhoff, by John Berendt, by Mitch Albom, by Robert Kurson, and by Truman Capote. | Thomas Foote | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Winter | Winter |