Sustainability Courses
●African American Studies 101: Introduction to African American Studies
oA survey of ideas, issues and traditions related over time to the experiences of people of black American ancestry in the United States.
●Anthropology 123: Race, Class, and Gender in American Society
oThe intersections of race, ethnicity, gender and class, especially in terms of how these factors combine to shape one's identity and experience of American society. We will draw on a number of examples that highlight the diversity and complexity of our society and the many perspectives that differentiate people and/or draw them together.
●Anthropology 232: Introduction to Cultural Anthropology
oIn this course, we will look across cultural groups and societies worldwide to explore how people construct the rationales that motivate their behavior and the meanings through which they understand their world. We take these cross-cultural analyses to reflect on ourselves and our own societies, examine the consequences of cultural categories and practices, and solve problems in our lives and world.
●Anthropology 225: Celebrating Culture Through the Arts
oThis course will focus on community engagement with people of diverse ethnic groups. In particular, students will work with elementary age children involved in the Lighted Schoolhouse afterschool program at one of three Oshkosh schools: Emmeline Cook, Webster Stanley, or Washington School. In the course, students will examine how people of various cultural and ethnic backgrounds communicate through visual art, music, and dance about issues such as gender, family, identity, tradition, historical consciousness, ideology, experience, and more.
●Anthropology 368: Human Dimensions of Wildlife Conservation
oThis course focuses on the most central issue in the conservation of wildlife: people. This course will integrate perspectives from conservation biology and environmental anthropology, focusing particularly on the interaction between humans and the environment and how this influences the effectiveness and appropriateness of measures taken to preserve biodiversity. The course includes a discussion of perspectives on the value of biodiversity; a careful exploration of human-generated threats to biodiversity, including habitat destruction, overhunting, the wildlife trade, invasive species, and global warming; and an extensive overview and critique of conservation solutions, such as the creation of protected areas, community-based conservation, ecotourism, economic incentives programs, debt-for-nature swaps, and more. The effects of globalization on international conservation will be an integral part of this discussion.
●Art 101: Elements of Studio Art
oYou will view and make art as a means of exploring, critiquing and expressing ideas related to three important themes: identity, community and sustainability.
●Art 102: Drawing I
oEngaged in the discipline of drawing, students will examine cultural perspectives, rules, biases and interactions in order to develop proficient intercultural knowledge and competence. Coursework will emphasize development of visual literacy, cultivation of creative expression and acquisition of basic drawing skills.
●Art 106: Visual Communication Fundamentals
oThe technical experience of fundamental visual communication as a way of knowing, reporting, and problem solving.
●Art 236: Experience Mapping
oUsing a variety of media, we will make maps and information graphics that address the concept of Sustainability by illustrating connections between people and place, nature and the built environment, meaning and experience. The goal of this community experience is to develop a deeper sense of place for the location you’ve found yourself spending serious time in: Oshkosh and its environs. We will do this by interviewing and mapping the life experiences and memories of long-time Oshkosh-area residents at the Oshkosh Senior Center and Evergreen Retirement Home.
●Biology 104: Ecosphere in Crisis
oTreats humans as biological organisms that interact with the living and nonliving world. Emphasis is given to how humans affect, and are affected by, their environment. Topics covered include basic ecology, global change, renewable and nonrenewable energy sources, air and water quality, and biological diversity.
●Biology 117: The Right and Wrong of Healthcare Science
oDoctors (and other healthcare providers) are intimately involved in important decisions by nearly every person in the nation, even to life-or-death. Patients are often so mystified or intimidated by medical matters that they become frozen in indecision, or “just leave it up to the doctor” to decide. Some patients even reject medical care for “quack” remedies that do more harm than good. This course will examine how medical professionals know what they know, including ethical reasoning processes that apply to other kinds of decision making. We’ll also investigate why some patients reject scientific, medical knowledge for other avenues of treatment, and how advertising can be used to mislead the gullible among the public. You’ll discover that “a grain of salt” goes a long way, and it’s not “brain surgery”!
●Biology 260: Environment and Living Systems
oA study of environmental issues from a biological perspective, focusing on the scientific bases for: 1) physical, chemical, and biological influences on living organisms; 2) contacts between natural and perturbed ecosystems; and 3) historical, current, and predicted effects of human activities on local, regional and global scales.
●Business 150: A Community History of Business
oIn this course, students will review the historic role of business in many communities from the ancient Greeks and Romans through the industrial era of Great Britain and the U.S. Students will do extensive research on the civic engagement of business in a local community of their choosing.
●Business 275: Sustainability: The 21st Century Business Strategy
oThis course addresses sustainability with a focus on strategies for organizations, emphasizing the triple bottom line. This course shows how the strategy of an organization affects operations and employees, as well as the broader community, and ultimately, the planet. Students will partner with Growing Oshkosh, assessing their operations, their supplier and customer network.
●Business 741: Operations & Process Management
oThe operations (production) function of organizations is studied for both manufacturing and non-manufacturing systems (services). A primary focus is on the management of processes used to provide quality goods and services. Topics include: operations planning and scheduling; supply chain management; determining and classifying core processes; managing processes; material requirements planning (MRP) and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP); forecasting; inventory management; just-in-time (JIT); project management; product service and process design; quality improvement; manufacturing strategies; and location.
●Business 793: Business Environments: Law, Regulation & Ethics
oThis course involves a study of public laws, government regulations and the influence of ethics on business. A course objective is to prepare students to recognize problem areas and engage in legal and ethical analysis to manage risk. The course generally examines business ethics and social responsibility, dispute resolution, duties and liabilities of managers and their organizations to their stakeholders, administrative law, securities regulation, antitrust law, employment and diversity regulation, environmental regulation, products liability, consumer protection, and the regulation of international trade.
●Chemistry 103: Environmental Chemistry
oWhat is environmental chemistry? How do scientists think about sustainability as it relates to the environment? How can chemistry help prevent, diagnose and cure environmental problems? Why, more than 50 years after Rachel Carson published Silent Spring, do we still face environmental degradation problems? In this course we will explore these questions and more. In order to fully understand and start to answer these questions I will help you develop a “chemical toolbox” of concepts and competencies that you can use.
●Chemistry 104: Introduction to the Chemistry of Materials
oThe stuff that surrounds us – in our clothing, desks, and coffee cups – is made out of materials. In this course we will discuss the chemistry behind the materials that society depends on, metals, polymers and ceramics. Materials chemistry is an active area of scientific research and one with many practical applications.Chem 104 is a Quest II course for the University Studies Program [USP], UW Oshkosh's plan to provide you with a Liberal Education. This approach to learning develops skills and knowledge in a variety of disciplines to prepare you to deal with a complex, diverse and changing society. In this course we will consider the signature question "how do people understand and create a more sustainable world?" Sustainability is a way of living without compromising opportunities for future generations.Quest II courses also introduce ethical reasoning as a way to analyze and evaluate complex situations. Ethical reasoning, based on beliefs about values, answers the question "what is the right thing to do?" You will be prepared to define and explain ethical reasoning; recognize ethical issues and questions; recognize and understand the reasons for personal beliefs; identify and understand arguments that challenge those beliefs; and engage in difficult conversations with those who may or may not share your beliefs.This course fills a "Nature" requirement for the USP. You will gain knowledge of human cultures and of the physical and natural world. More specifically you will be able to:
• recognize the three major classes of materials;
• explain how the history of civilizations is tied to the development of materials and thesustainability of their practices;
• describe interrelationships among structure & composition, physical & chemicalproperties, processing, and performance for each class of materials;
• analyze the sustainability of materials processing and applications;
• compare ethical perspectives on access to natural resources and processed materials,processing methods, and fates of materials;
• use appropriate laboratory techniques to process materials, determine their properties, andminimize the creation of waste.
•Criminal Justice 375: Special Topics- Institutional Foundations of Violence
oA course on a topic not normally covered in the curriculum. Each time it is offered, the topic will be announced in the timetable.
●Communication 213: Intro to Interpersonal Communication
oDesigned to help you access, analyze, critique and communicate information in a way that is culturally sensitive to others. In addition to working on your own interpersonal communication skills, we will also examine the role of communication, both our own communication behaviors and the communication of others, in creating and transforming personal relationships.
●Communication 219: Introduction to Rhetoric and Public Advocacy
oWhat role does rhetoric play in civic life? How have people in the past and in the present engaged in community life and advocated for the common good? When some people hear the word “rhetoric” they think of spin, propaganda, or other undesirable labels. Introduction to Rhetoric and Public Advocacy provides students with a more accurate and complex understanding of rhetoric, showing the central role it plays in the development of democracy and civic life.
●Communication 254: Environmental Communication
oThis course focuses on the role that human communication plays in influencing the ways we engage the concept of sustainability and perceive the environment. It also explores how we construct environmental issues and decide what actions to take with regards to those issues.
●Communication 275: Arguing Sustainability
oThis course will focus on the foundations of building credible and persuasive arguments. Forms of reasoning, sources of evidence, testing of evidence and the opportunity to construct arguments in relationship to the concept of sustainability will be provided.
●Communication 280: Intro to Organizational Communication
oOrganizations, places or groups in which we come together to get things done are a critical part of each of our lives. We work in organizations, many of us play in organizations and we count on organizations for our health care, schooling, shopping and other needs. You will be given the opportunity to study the internal processes of an organization in which you actively participate as well as an opportunity to study some of the larger corporations that influence our society as a whole.
●Educational Leadership 201: Who is in Charge? Schools vs. Communities
oThis course is designed to be an exploration of the social and political communities which make up the public school institution and the relationships fostered in the struggle for power and control. Students will explore these relationships through schools within the Oshkosh area.
●Elementary/Secondary Education 110: Education Policy
oThe course will focus on three broad questions: (1) What is the purpose of schooling? (2) How can we educate “all” students? (3) What does it mean to be a teacher?
●Elementary/Secondary Education 111: Culture, Identity and Educational Journeys
oWe will focus on developing an understanding of culture in our lives, examine personal and group concepts of identity, and make connections to diverse culture groups — specifically those from refugee and immigrant backgrounds — through the process of creating narratives of educational journeys.
●Elementary Education 316: Teaching Science and Environmental Education in the Elementary/Middle School
oProvides the student with the knowledge of currently accepted goals of science and environmental education in the elementary/middle school. The examination, evaluation, and practice of techniques compatible with these goals are emphasized, and contemporary elementary/middle school curricula are examined and evaluated.
●English 151: British Literature to the 18th Century
oWe will read violent epics, sexual medieval romances, heartfelt sonnets, chaste Christian prayers and passionate plays all with the question of how sustainability influences the works and how the works influence sustainability. We will look at the saints and sinners, the violent and the lovers, of medieval and early modern English literature, contextualized through the lens of sustainability.
●English 153: American Literature Through Civil War
oAn introduction to American literature from its origins to the end of the nineteenth century, with a particular emphasis on sustainability. Throughout the term we’ll explore the richness and diversity of America’s literary heritage, and we’ll seek to understand the many complex ways in which American writers reflected, recorded, challenged and helped to shape American culture.
●English 154: Odyssey: American Roadtrip
oWe will read several non-fiction accounts by American writers of their trips across the United States by various means (car, camper, bicycle, walking) and of these writers’ experiences thinking, talking and learning about their country, their fellow citizens and themselves.
●English 161: Asian American Experiences
oIn this course, we will survey the spectrum of Asian American issues regarding gender, race and class, as well as their shared experience formed against and through the mainstream power structure in the United States.
●English 165: 20th Century British Literature
oA study of British literature written during the 20th century.
●English 168: Intro to American Multi-Ethnic Literatures
oAn introduction to the similarities and differences among themes, cultures, histories, and/or periods of development in a combination of U.S. racial and ethnic literacy traditions. This examination will include authors from racially marginalized groups, such as Asian Americans, Latinos, African Americans, and/or Native Americans.
●English 210: Classical and Medieval Literature
oThe classical texts of Western culture have shaped our identities and our communities in ways we often don’t even recognize—affecting our concepts of leadership, of law, of religion, and of love. This course will focus on works of literature, ranging from the classical Greek period to the medieval, that have shaped us as a people.
●English 211: British Literature I
oThe literature of the past gives us insight into who we are today and links us to a cultural inheritance. This course will look at a selection of literature from the classical/ancient period through the medieval—focusing on the tensions that exist between individuals and their communities, which spark ethical reflection. We will also examine how our present cultural values are influenced and shaped by these historical texts, such as Dante’s Divine Comedy and Sophocles’ Antigone.
●English 212: British Literature II
oA study of English literature from 1800 to present.
●English 226: Modern American Literature
oThis course evaluates how sustainability issues are visible or lacking in two contemporary American novels—The Hunger Games and State of Wonder—as well as several modern American short stories and poems. Can these science fiction novels truly help us study sustainability? Yes! All good science fiction has realistic themes and characters that teach us so much about our world WHEN we read to learn!
●English 227: Modern World Literature
oOne of the most engaging ways of entering the world outside our home and horizons is through literature. Literature takes us imaginatively into worlds unlike our own, and lets us walk in another’s shoes for a while. While we may not change the world this way, we change ourselves and through that, we can impact the world. We learn to see ourselves as products of a culture, traditions and beliefs, even as we learn to see similarity in others.
●English 247: Introduction to Shakespeare—A Quest for Ethics in Otherworlds of Play
oWhat can Shakespeare teach us about the ethical challenges that arise when the quest for personal fulfillment conflicts with shared efforts to create a more sustainable world? This Introduction to Shakespeare course is a journey into Shakespeare’s theatre and the millennial Otherworlds of the internet, movies, and games to discover the transformational power of Play.
●Environmental Studies 101: Seminar on Environmental Issues
oAn interdisciplinary course exploring the complex relationships between humans and ecosystems. Conservation biology, social science, and environmental ethics will be introduced to illuminate contemporary environmental issues (specific topics will vary). The course will facilitate critical questioning about the proper relationship between humans and the natural world, while providing an introduction to the field of environmental studies.
●Environmental Studies: 261: Environment & Society
oExamines relationship between social structure, culture and natural environments; compares different modes of production and cultural systems. Examines economic, political and ideological structures of industrial and industrializing societies. Analyzes the impact of these structures upon natural environments and analyzes the impact of natural environment upon these structures.