Cazenovia College Fall 2010 First Year Seminars
First Year Seminars generally earn program-specific, general education, or elective credit. Please note that any First Year Seminar may be taken as an open elective. See the “Equivalent Course” column for additional information ona specific seminar. Check with your advisor or Dr. McLaughlin, Dean of the First Year Program, if you have further questions.
Instructor/Course
/ Seminar Title / Equivalent Course / Brief Course DescriptionKarin Bump
EQ/HG 101F
Capacity: 20 / Horse Power! / EQ or HG elective / The power of the horse has long captured the attention and the ‘whimsy’ of the American public. Students in this course will embark on a historical journey to discover and document the power of the horse and its ability to impact on everything from transportation to various forms of art. Students will engage in creative projects that will be used to educate the public on the power of the horse – most notably these projects will be incorporated into a large international horse show held in Syracuse New York the first week of November. If you have a fascination with horses and the ways in which they influence society and youwould enjoy being involved in a fast-paced international horse show event… this course is for you!
Christine Geyer
EN 101
Capacity: 18 / Financial Literacy / EN 101 Academic Writing I / Suitable for students in all disciplines, this course draws from a variety of texts, film, and current media to demystify financial markets and processes. Financial terms and market functions will be discussed in everyday terms with practical examples. Students create an oral presentation on a key figure or event in the history of financial markets, as well as write formal response papers, analytical essays and a researched argument paper based on current financial topics. The course meets the requirements for EN 101 Academic Writing I.
Robert Greene
HG 101C
Capacity: 20
/ “Freedom for the Thought We Hate”: A History of the First Amendment / HG or Arts and Sciences electiveFulfills one requirement forPre-Law Minor / The title of this course is taken from Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes’s famous 1929 defense of freedom of speech in U.S. v. Schwimmer, one of the court cases, laws, and public debates we will be discussing as we evaluate the limits—and expectations—of First Amendment rights in our political society. The history of the evolution of the “Four Freedoms” will be discussed, as will 21st Century applications of these debates. Readings will include court opinions, constitutional treatises, and articles; students will present their ideas in the seminar, short papers and exams, and an all-seminar Moot Court, debating the ideas we have discussed.
Peter Howe
HG101J
Capacity: 20 / Economics and Justice / HG 131 Macroeconomics / The role of economics in promoting justice in society is both valid and important. From Adam Smith to Amartya Sen, the history of economic thought on the topic of justice is rich and relevant to the current times and events. This seminar will explore this history and also the trends and current state of the national and world economies.
Instructor/Course
/ Seminar Title / Equivalent Course / Brief Course DescriptionScott Jensen
VC 101A
Capacity: 18 / Cartooning and Humorous Illustration / VC elective / This course will provide an introduction to the practice of cartooning and humorous illustration. Students will begin with a brief overview of the humorous cartoon’s history in this country. Then they will learn techniques, tools and practices for the primary forms of cartoon, including strip, panel, editorial, greeting card, caricature and general humorous illustration. “Gag” or humorous copywriting will also be covered. Previous drawing experience is not required. The class will be enhanced with guest lectures/workshops by visiting professional cartoonists. At the end of the course, students will have created a collection of original cartoons and humorous illustrations.
John Livermore
SM 101M
Capacity: 20 / Mathematical Mysteries / Gen Ed: Quantitative Literacy / Archimedes said that if we gave him a large enough lever and a place to stand he could move the world. In fact, he helped develop the real lever, mathematics. This course will be a fun look at the history and development of mathematics from Archimedes and his lever through Cantor and his infinities and beyond. Topics will include the development of counting with the Natural numbers. The addition of zero and other strange numbers, algebra, geometry, modern mathematics and also the men and women who helped us to know what we know!
Don McCrimmon
SM 101A
Capacity: 20 / Cosmos: “We are a way for the Cosmos to know itself.” / Gen Ed: Scientific Literacy / Astronomer and philosopher Carl Sagan wrote, “Who are we? We find that we live on an insignificant planet of a humdrum star lost in a galaxy tucked away in some forgotten corner of a universe in which there are far more galaxies than people. “Further, “We live in a society exquisitely dependent on science and technology, in which hardly anyone knows anything about science and technology.” This seminar will explore the Cosmos and humankind’s role in it from the perspective of perhaps the greatest popularizer of the sciences, who reached arguably billions of people through a variety of media, especially television, motion pictures and the best-selling science book ever published, which will be our text. With Sagan as our guide star,our subject matter will be vast, our journey epic. At its end, we will come to understand what Sagan meant when he said, “The Cosmos is all that is, or ever was, or ever will be.”
Instructor/Course
/ Seminar Title / Equivalent Course / Brief Course DescriptionTim McLaughlin
SB 101J
(Living-learning community)
Capacity: 20 / The Lion King and His Descendants: Interpreting African Cultures / SB 110 Introduction to Anthropology
Gen Ed: Diversity and Social Consciousnessfor non-Social Science majors. / The story of Sundiata, the Lion King, founder of the ancient Empire of Mali, teaches West African childrenabout becoming a proper adult. Beginning with this saga, the course explores representative African cultures from an anthropological perspective. In Mali, an anthropologist studies the lives of children whose gaunt appearance remind her of dancing skeletons. An anthropologist becomes Queen Mother in a small Ghanaian village to learn about traditional leaders in the modern world. Swahili traders still sail their dhows across the Indian Ocean. In South Africa, a troubled young man fights his illness with the help of a Zulu inyanga (a traditional healer). This course introduces students to selected African cultures with the purpose of better understanding the people of this often misrepresented continent.
Andrew O’Baoill
CM 101A
(Living-learning community)
Capacity: 20 / Be the Media / CM 211 Introduction to Broadcasting / New technologies mean media production is no longer just for full-time professionals. This class will teach students how to use a range of tools, and craft effective content, useful for those considering careers in media, but also those interested in producing audio and video content for any personal or professional project. Students will produce for campus station WITC, as well as on stand-alone projects, learn how to edit video and audio, and examine inspiring examples of media collage and viral video.
Jen Pepper
SA101N
Capacity: 18 / Chromaphilia / SA elective / As a First Year Seminar course Chromaphilia introduces incoming students to the campus community in a most colorful way! Students will be introduced to color, its power and expression through explorations in fiber and soft sculpture. Assignments are designed for experimentation of forms and ideas promoting individual growth, artistic integrity, development of visual thinking and critical analysis skills in an inquisitive and supported forum. Both traditional and innovative textile practices will illustrate the many intersections that textiles and fibers have served throughout time and around the globe. The course will focus on learning and applying essential design principles and skills for independent dynamic art works to emerge while investigating art’s language, its purpose and its cultural impact.
Instructor/Course
/ Seminar Title / Equivalent Course / Brief Course DescriptionChristine Richardson
BU 101E
Capacity: 20 / Career Quest: Road Trip Nation / BU elective / What do you want to do with your life? Consider traditional and non-traditional career paths of successful business leaders, entrepreneurs, entertainers, politicians, artists and musicians. Through taped interviews we will hear from the Chairman of Starbucks Coffee Co., the Co-Founder of Cranium Games, CEO of the Gibson Guitar Corp, the NYPD Police Commissioner and many others. Students will identify local and regional leaders and conduct interviews to learn their secrets to success. As a final project, students will present their findings from interviews, in-class presentations, research and self-assessment.
Amy E. Sherrick-von Schiller
EQ101G
Capacity: 20 / Current Hot Topics in the Horse Industry / EQ elective / The purpose of this course is to increase the student’s awareness and understanding of issues that are currently affecting the horse industry; and to examine the place that these issues hold in the external social, economic, ethical and legal environments. Subject matter may include equine health issues & their place in the agricultural environment; United States Equestrian Federation concerns and their impact on sports and society in the United States; matters affecting the equine competition arena and how they are perceived by the public; employment issues in the horse industry and immigration concerns; and other relevant topics that are being addressed in the media. Students will be required to research current issues in the horse industry and the course will facilitate discussion and possible debate of these issues.
Roxy Spano
HU 101I
(Living-learning community: open to women only)
Capacity: 20 / Mothers and Daughters in American Literature / Gen Ed: Diversity and Social Consciousness / The required readings for the course will include Beloved by Toni Morrison, Women’s Diaries of the Westward Journey by Lillian Schlissel, Bastard out of Carolina by Dorothy Allison, The Vagina Monologues by Eve Ensler, and perhaps others. I like to involve the first year seminar class with the fall production. Presently I am considering a stage version of the book, The Body Project by Joan Jacobs Brumberg. I will take the students on field trips that would expose them to local historical sites such as the Women’s Rights National Historical Park in Seneca Falls, NY and the Shagowi Cultural Center, just south of Oneida, NY, the latter trip in conjunction with the bookSisters in Spirit: Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Influence on Early American Feminists by Sally Roesch Wagner. I will present a selection of materials thatportray the mother-daughter experience from a variety of ethnic and socio-economicperspectives.
Instructor/Course
/ Seminar Title / Equivalent Course / Brief Course DescriptionKim Waale
SA 101L
Capacity: 14 / Kiln-formed Glass / SA elective / One of the most popular subjects in studio glass is kiln-formed glass. Kiln forming, or glass casting, is melting cut or crushed glass together in a kiln until it becomes a single piece shaped by the mold. Students will learn fundamental kiln-forming and glass working techniques and explore the creative possibilities of fused and slumped glass. This course focuses on working with glass and translating it into 3-D forms (ranging from jewelry and functional items to beautiful sculptural forms) that emphasize experimentation and personal expression. The primary goal is using glass for individual creative expression.
Ron Waite
BU 101J
Capacity: 20 /
Microsoft Office Applicationpalooza
/ IM 121, IM 122, IM 123 / Microsoft Office has empowered the world with some valuable software applications. Microsoft Word, Excel and Access are invaluable tools to college students and the world. In this hands-on course, you will explore the features of these exciting programs along with some other useful programs to expand one's marketable computer skills. An emphasis will be placed on applying computer skills in a variety of situations and subject areas. The course will include a weekly discussion of business ethics. The course will also include discussions of topics important to freshmen. The supplemental book to read over summer is Winners Never Cheat –Even in Difficult Time by Jon M. Huntsman, Wharton School Publishing, 2009, ISBN 0-13-700903-8.Anita Welych
SA 101I
Capacity: 18 /
Papermaking and Book Arts
/ SA elective / Perhaps you’ve thought about writing a book. Perhaps you’ve thought about illustrating a book. But have you ever thought about making a book? In this hands-on course, you’ll create unique books from start to finish. Together we’ll explore all facets of book-making, including: creation of the very paper you’ll use from cloth and other fibers; ways to create sequence and narrative; the use of traditional and novel materials; the integration of text and image; a variety of book-binding techniques; and an exploration of formats and subject matter. Above all, you will become ever more conscious of the conceptual, expressive and perceptual qualities of your aesthetic decisions, so you can more effectively communicate visually.Thad Yorks
SM101G
Capacity: 16 / Life In and On the Lake / SM lab science
Gen Ed: Scientific Literacy for non-Environmental Science majors.
Fulfills one requirement forBiology Minor. / We will study organisms that live in, on, and around local lakes in relationship to their environment and in the context of lake watershed stewardship. These organisms will include fish, invertebrates, plants, and waterfowl. Students will gain hands-on experience evaluating abiotic water quality (e.g., temperature, dissolved oxygen, nutrient concentrations). Three lectures and one laboratory (usually outdoors) every week. Fulfills the lab science requirement.This course isgeared toward students interested in the environmental studies program, but any student interested in biology or needing a science course with a lab component should be interested. This course is not recommended for students who are uncomfortable with outdoor exercise, fresh air, water, mud, and/or slimy things.
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