HISTORY DEPARTMENT
UNDERGRADUATE COURSE DESCRIPTIONS
Spring 2015
The following course descriptions are presented as a guide for students and academic advisors. Although major alterations are unlikely, instructors reserve the right to make changes in content and requirements.
Courses in US History
HIS 100 (7441) (3crs) American Political and Social History I
Barbagallo, Tricia ()
Mon, Wed, Fri 9:20am-10:15am
HU 123
This course surveys the exploration, discovery, colonization and development of the Americas. Emphasis in the course will be on the establishment and development of the United States of America up through the Civil War and Reconstruction. [US]
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HIS 100 (7969) (3crs) American Political and Social History I
McGraw, Sean Heather ()
Mon, Wed, Fri 8:15am-9:10am
ED 120
This course surveys the exploration, discovery, colonization and development of the Americas. Emphasis in the course will be on the establishment and development of the United States of America up through the Civil War and Reconstruction. [US]
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HIS 100 (8802) (3crs) American Political and Social History I
Kozakiewicz, Lauren ()
Mon, Wed, Fri 11:30am-12:25pm
ED 120
This course surveys the exploration, discovery, colonization and development of the Americas. Emphasis in the course will be on the establishment and development of the United States of America up through the Civil War and Reconstruction. We will look at the formation of the American political system, the emergence of an American cultural identity and the growing sectional division that ultimately led to war. Students will use primary and secondary sources to understand and analyze past events. [US]
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HIS 100 (9147) (3crs) American Political and Social History I
Pacelli, Sarah ()
Mon, Wed, Fri 8:15am-9:10am
ES 147
This course surveys the exploration, discovery, colonization and development of the Americas. Emphasis in the course will be on the establishment and development of the United States of America up through the Civil War and Reconstruction. [US]
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HIS 100 (9148) (3crs) American Political and Social History I
Lavieri, Bernardo ()
Mon, Wed, Fri 9:20am-10:15am
HU 0129
This course surveys the exploration, discovery, colonization and development of the Americas. Emphasis in the course will be on the establishment and development of the United States of America up through the Civil War and Reconstruction. [US]
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HIS 100 (10044) (3crs) American Political and Social History I
Wittern-Keller, Laura ()
Mon, Wed 10:25am-11:20am
LC 005
This introductory course covers the area now known as the United States progressing chronologically from colonial rule under the Dutch and the English empires, to the colonies’ break with England, establishment of the republic, sectional strife within the federal republic, and the Civil War. We will address the political, economic, and social developments of the new nation, paying particular attention to religion, racism, technology, and constitutional issues. We will also consider the tools of the historians’ trade and how the nation constructs its historical past.
*Note: Students registering for this course must FIRST register for one of the discussion sections below.
Discussion Sections for HIS 101 (10044)
Call # Day/Time Room Instructor
10043 Wed 11:30am-12:25pm ED 126 Wittern-Keller, Laura
10045 Fri 10:25am-11:20am SLOG 24 Wittern-Keller, Laura
10046 Fri 10:25am-11:20am BBB 003 Wittern-Keller, Laura
10047 Fri 11:30am-12:25pm SLOG 24 Wittern-Keller, Laura
10048 Fri 11:30am-12:25pm BBB 007 Wittern-Keller, Laura
10049 Fri 12:35pm-1:30pm SLOG 24 Wittern-Keller, Laura
10050 Fri 12:35pm-1:30pm BA 211 Wittern-Keller, Laura
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HIS 101 (8803) (3crs) American Political and Social History II
Bon Tempo, Carl ()
Mon, Wed 11:30am-12:25pm
LC 001
The goal of this course is to provide students with a basic understanding of United States history since the Civil War. Focusing on both the domestic scene and America’s changing place in world affairs, the class will return to a number of themes: America’s growing economic and military power in the world – and the limits of this power; the growth of a powerful economy and the efforts to distribute its munificence, to blunt its inequalities, and to maintain its prosperity; the struggle to win the rights of citizenship for all Americans, regardless of race, class, creed, or sex; and the efforts of America’s political leaders and the national government to manage and control the changing political, economic, cultural, and international situation. Readings likely will include a text, primary documents, and some short books. Students will take two exams – one “in-class” and one “take-home” – and a final exam. Students are required to attend weekly discussion sections, where students will have the opportunity to discuss the week’s readings and work on their writing skills in an exciting and collegial atmosphere.
*Note: Students registering for this course must FIRST register for one of the discussion sections below.
Discussion Sections for HIS 101 (8803)
Call # Day/Time Room Instructor
8804 Wed 12:35pm-1:30pm ED 126 Bon Tempo, Carl
8805 Fri 11:30am-12:25pm BBB 356 Bon Tempo, Carl
8806 Fri 11:30am-12:25pm ED 022 Bon Tempo, Carl
8807 Fri 10:25am-11:20am BBB 356 Bon Tempo, Carl
8808 Fri 10:25am-11:20am ED 022 Bon Tempo, Carl
8809 Fri 12:35pm-1:30pm BBB 356 Bon Tempo, Carl
8810 Fri 12:35pm-1:30pm BI 152 Bon Tempo, Carl
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HIS 101 (10051) (3crs) American Political and Social History II
Patterson, Sarah ()
Tues, Thurs 8:45am-10:05am
SS 256
Survey of American history from the Civil War to the present, with emphasis on the development of political, constitutional, economic, social and cultural institutions. Only one version of AHIS 101 may be taken for credit. [US]
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HIS 101 (10052) (3crs) American Political and Social History II
Beach, Bob ()
Mon, Wed, Fri 10:25am-11:20am
ES 241
Survey of American history from the Civil War to the present, with emphasis on the development of political, constitutional, economic, social and cultural institutions. Only one version of AHIS 101 may be taken for credit. [US]
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HIS 227 (8835) (3crs) Civil Rights: A Documentary Approach
Bernard, Sheila ()
Thu 5:45pm-8:35pm
LC 03B
*Cross-listed with ADOC 227 (8846)
This course looks at the intersection of history and media as it pertains to the American civil rights movement. Focusing on the landmark archival television series Eyes on the Prize and on other, more recent documentary programs, we’ll study not only the events depicted on screen but also the ways in which these events were documented (print, still and motion photography, music and more), archived, and later shaped into public media intended to entertain as well as inform. Students are expected to do a significant amount of reading and some writing in preparation for each week’s class.
Prerequisite(s): Successful completion of at least one UAlbany course in U.S. history strongly recommended.
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HIS 290 (8838) (3crs) Topics in American History: The Rights Revolution
Irwin, Ryan ()
Tues, Thurs 11:45am-1:05pm
HU 24
The rights revolution of the late twentieth century fundamentally changed thelingua franca of international affairs. This course explores social movements around the world after World War II, lingering on the way activists defined human rights and how governments responded to their demands. As we explain the global human rights movement, we will bounce from the halls of the United Nations and the city streets of southern Africa, with stops in Eastern Europe, Jim Crow America, and communist China. This is a research course, so you can expect to spend a lot of time working with primary sources and you will be asked to develop your own research project about some aspect of the human rights movement. There are no prerequisites, but knowledge of the twentieth century is essential.
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HIS 290 (10072) (3crs) Topics in American History: Manhood & Masculinity in America 1830-1980
Palella, John ()
Tues, Thurs 1:15pm-2:35pm
ES 242
This is a reading and discussion based course that asks the question, "what was it like to be a man (or better yet, how did men experience history differently)in the various eras of modernAmerican history?"We will examine, as a class, themeanings of manhood and the various constructions of masculine identity in the United Statesbetween the early 19th and late 20th centuries. We first proceed chronologically and then explore different periods thematically. Topics include the male body, bodybuilding/weightlifting, family, sexuality, race, war, fighting/brawling, Fraternities, sports, drinking, smoking, and notions of the self-made man. Students who enjoy class discussion and are searching for a course thatallows them to connect currentculturalfads to historical trends and trajectories should take this class.
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HIS 308 (7782) (3crs) Division and Reunion, 1848-1877
Ballard, Allen ()
Tues, Thurs 11:45am-1:05pm
FA 126
Causes of the American Civil War, the war on military and civilian fronts, and reconstruction and its aftermath. Only one version of A HIS 308 may be taken for credit. Prerequisite(s): junior or senior standing, or 3 credits in the history department.
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HIS 309 (10073) (3crs) The Gilded Age 1877-1900
Kozakiewicz, Lauren ()
Mon, Wed, Fri 12:35pm-1:30pm
SS 256
This course looks at the massive changes taking place in the United States in the last quarter of the 19th century as the United States became an industrial leader and took her place on the world stage. Elements of that change include the rise in power of the city, significant technological breakthroughs, a massive new wave of new immigration, struggles among workers and farmers to make their way in a new economy, the emergence of a consumer culture and a political system struggling to respond to it all.
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HIS 310 (7142) (3crs) History of Women in the United States
Lenart, Camelia ()
Mon, Wed, Fri 9:20am-10:15am
FA 126
As mothers, activists, laborers, institution builders, and reformers, women have pushed to eliminate gender inequality in U.S. laws and customs. Collectively, these efforts have resulted in dramatic changes in women’s lives. However, the advances made by some have created the conditions for greater inequality between women based on differences of class, status, race, ethnicity, and sexuality. This survey will consider the reasons for this seeming contradiction by exploring the nature of women’s involvement in U.S. political, social, economic, and cultural institutions from the 17th century to the present. Through the analysis of primary documents, scholarly journal articles, monographs, and popular media, students will investigate topics that expose the significance of work, reform movements, family life, education, and politics in determining a woman’s place in U.S. society.
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HIS 317 (10074) (3crs) History of the American City to 1860
Wittern-Keller, Laura ()
Tues, 4:15pm-7:05pm
BBB 10
This lecture based, reading-intensive course is a chronological survey of American urban development from colonial times through the second half of the nineteenth century. Similarities and differences among cities will become apparent times as the focus of the course moves geographically from the Eastern seaboard toward the Mississippi Valley and upper Midwest, skipping to the West Coast with the California gold rush. The course will pay special attention to the pivotal cities of Boston, Philadelphia, New York, Chicago, and San Francisco and will focus on three themes: how commercial and technological changes spurred urban development; how the cities functioned within themselves; and how they affected the broader American social, political, and cultural environment.
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HIS 328 (10075) (3crs) Lawyers in American Life, 1607-Present
L. Wittern-Keller ()
Mon, Wed 4:15pm-5:35pm
HU 133
This course examines the legal profession showing how law, through lawyers, has operated in American history. It is interdisciplinary in focus and utilizes a multimedia methodology. Topics to be covered include: legal education, lawyers as heroes, lawyers as reformers and radicals, as well as the development of the business of lawyering, and the emergence of women and minority lawyers. Only one version of A HIS 328 may be taken for credit.
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HIS 329 (10076) (3crs) American Environmental History
Pastore, Christopher ()
Tue, Thu 10:15am-11:35am
ES 241
This class examines the changing relationship between North Americans and nature from precolonial times to the present. Americans today inhabit a world with different flora and fauna, hold new ideas about nature and property, and worry about different environmental problems than their fifteenth century counterparts. Together, we will study how and why these vast transformations in human-environment relations took place in the United States, paying particular attention to the following questions: How have natural features, phenomena, and resources shaped human life in the United States? What consequences has human activity had on the natural world, particularly through their activities of production and consumption? How have the ways Americans think about nature changed over time? Students will learn to do environmental history, through research, speaking, and writing.