Behavioral and Social Science Requirement

ANT 101. Introduction to Biological Anthropology. 3 Credits.

Fundamentals of human biological variation and evolution, including evolutionary theory and processes, human genetics, the nature of human biological diversity, adaptation, primate biology and behavior, the human fossil record, the evolution of disease, and population processes.
Gen Ed Attribute: Behavioral and Social Science Distributive.
Typically offered in Fall & Spring.

ANT 102. Introduction to Cultural Anthropology. 3 Credits.

This course introduces students to the fundamental concepts and methods in cultural anthropology--the study of humanity in all of its diversity. Focusing on how culture makes us think and act, organize ourselves, and understand the surrounding world the way we do, the course explores social and cultural diversity through a range of topics including race and ethnicity, sex and gender, kinship and families, religion, economic and political organization, and globalization.
Gen Ed Attribute: Behavioral and Social Science Distributive.
Typically offered in Fall, Spring & Summer.

ANT 103. Introduction to Archaeology. 3 Credits.

This course provides an overview of methods and strategies involved in archaeological research and the interpretation of culture through the analysis of archaeological remains.
Gen Ed Attribute: Behavioral and Social Science Distributive.
Typically offered in Fall & Spring.

ECO 111. Principles of Economics (Macro). 3 Credits.

National income and its measurement. The determination of price levels, output, and employment. Money and credit, expenditures, and economic stability. Government fiscal and monetary policy.
Gen Ed Attribute: Behavioral and Social Science Distributive.
Distance education offering may be available.
Typically offered in Fall, Spring, Summer, Winter.

ECO 112. Principles of Economics (Micro). 3 Credits.

Principles underlying use and allocation of scarce productive resources. Consumption and production activities. Value, price, and income distribution. Considerations of economic efficiency and welfare.
Gen Ed Attribute: Behavioral and Social Science Distributive.
Distance education offering may be available.
Typically offered in Fall, Spring & Summer.

ECO 200. Personal Economics and Financial Planning. 3 Credits.

Students will acquire an understanding of the nature and scope of the economy and how it affects one's life plans and goals. Topics covered include supply and demand, financial planning, personal taxes, retirement planning, investing in stocks and bonds, portfolio management, the time value of money, managing credit cards and debt, and insurance planning.
Gen Ed Attribute: Behavioral and Social Science Distributive.
Distance education offering may be available.
Typically offered in Fall, Spring, Summer, Winter.

GEO 101. World Geography. 3 Credits.

The scope of geography and understanding of the world's regions generated by it. Human society is examined in a frame of spatial, environmental, and resource factors. Map skills and other 'tools' of geography are introduced.
Gen Ed Attribute: Behavioral and Social Science Distributive.
Distance education offering may be available.
Typically offered in Fall, Spring & Summer.

GEO 103. Human Geography. 3 Credits.

An inquiry into the theoretical and applied approaches to the study of human spatial behavior and the distribution of social problems.
Gen Ed Attribute: Behavioral and Social Science Distributive.
Distance education offering may be available.
Typically offered in Spring & Summer.

GEO 200. Global Cities. 3 Credits.

This course introduces students to historical and current spatial patterns within global cities. This class will discuss the major concepts of urban development and growth, globalization, and city systems using lectures, class discussion, and videos. The goal of the course is to provide the students with an understanding of the basic principles of geography and apply those principles to the study of cities across the globe. The course emphasizes the environmental and human characteristics that make cities distinctive collectively and individually.
Gen Ed Attribute: Behavioral and Social Science Distributive.
Distance education offering may be available.
Typically offered in Spring & Summer.

GEO 205. Geography of Agriculture, Food & Sustainability. 3 Credits.

Human beings eat food daily and this necessity has led to conversion of half of the Earth's land surface to agricultural use. This course introduces students to the spatial patterns of agricultural systems on the planet, the physical geography related to them. Students will investigate the impacts of modern agriculture on the environment, and human culture and health. This will be followed by an introduction to sustainable alternatives including local small scale organic agriculture, urban gardening, and resilient diverse food cropping systems. Students will choose a region of the world to study sustainable agricultural systems and prepare a regional food dish to share with the class.
Gen Ed Attribute: Behavioral and Social Science Distributive.
Typically offered in Fall.

GEO 230. Environmental Conservation and Sustainability. 3 Credits.

An inquiry into the problems of resources protection, management and sustainability. Emphasis is placed on the United States.
Gen Ed Attribute: Behavioral and Social Science Distributive.
Distance education offering may be available.
Typically offered in Fall, Spring & Summer.

HEA 276. Achieving Health Equity. 3 Credits.

At the core of the interdisciplinary field of public health is a desire to achieve health equity and end preventable differences in the burden of disease known as health disparities. This is done through focusing on the conditions under which human beings are born, grow, live, work, and age, a concept broadly referred to as the social determinants of health. Guided by the social determinants of health framework, students in this class will learn how social factors, such as: economic stability, neighborhoods and the built environment, and social and community context shape health and health disparities. Given the focus on social factors, a sociological perspective will be employed. Topics covered include education, income, housing, incarceration, and racism. Students will learn about interventions and policies to address these social determinants of health and how to advocate for a health issue of interest.
Gen Ed Attribute: Behavioral and Social Science Distributive.
Distance education offering may be available.
Typically offered in Fall, Spring & Summer.

HON 312. Educational Systems and Social Influence. 3 Credits.

An introduction to philosophy, history, and sociology of American education. The evolution of the school as an institution in a democratic society; its relationships to issues dealing with race, class, gender and ethnicity; the geographical implications the school has for the community and vice versa; the degree to which school should and/or can serve as agents for social change.
Gen Ed Attribute: Behavioral and Social Science Distributive, Diversity Requirement.
Typically offered in Fall.

HON 313. American Government, Democracy and Public Opinion. 3 Credits.

Influence of the role of public opinion in a democracy by examination of how individuals form their opinions and how those opinions influence government and public policy making. Such areas as government structure, political thought, and sociologic and geographic influences will be covered.
Gen Ed Attribute: Behavioral and Social Science Distributive.
Typically offered in Fall.

HON 322. Developing Leadership with ELLs in the Classroom & Community. 3 Credits.

The study of issues, leadership challenges and strategies for the effective teaching of English Language Learners (ELLs) and for effective communicating with ELLs in the community. Along with globalization come multi-cultural and multi-lingual challenges and opportunities for leaders in communities, classrooms, school administration, and the private sector. In particular, this course focuses on the gifts brought and challenges faced by a rapidly growing population of English Language Learners (ELLs) as they seek integration into the larger community. Research in linguistics draws from multiple disciplines and the course will take advantage of various intellectual approaches from areas such as educational psychology, cultural anthropology, literacy studies, intercultural communication, sociology, and political science in their contributions to building community in cross-cultural contexts.
Gen Ed Attribute: Behavioral and Social Science Distributive, Diversity Requirement.
Typically offered in Fall.

NTD 325. The Food Chain. 3 Credits.

Students use ecological and systems-based theory to increase understandings of contemporary food systems, food landscapes, and nutrition challenges using the framework of sustainability. The course examines the chain of food production (supply chain), distribution, and consumption in complex conventional food systems, targeting post-harvest aspects of the food system, historical, and socio-cultural factors that drive human nutrition and food behavior. Students explore multiple levels of local and global food systems, including globalization and labor markets with a focus on practices that promote health, food security, and environmental sustainability within community food systems. Students also investigate alternatives to conventional food systems such as food cooperatives, community supported agriculture, agroecology, artisan farms, and organic food in the context of food management. Students will reflect and deepen their understanding of the role of businesses, consumers, and food and nutrition professionals in contemporary food systems, and apply what they learn to food, nutrition, and environmental challenges.
Gen Ed Attribute: Behavioral and Social Science Distributive.
Distance education offering may be available.
Typically offered in Spring.

PLN 214. Introduction to Planning. 3 Credits.

The methods of analyzing problems of urban and regional planning. Emphasis is placed on systems of housing, recreation, transportation, industry, and commerce.
Gen Ed Attribute: Behavioral and Social Science Distributive.
Distance education offering may be available.
Typically offered in Fall.

PSC 100. United States Government and Politics. 3 Credits.

This course is an introduction to the foundations and workings of the American political system. The main focus of the course is on the institutions and activities of the national government. The assignments and lectures in this course are designed to enhance your ability to think critically about politics, political choices, and political institutions. The course covers four main topics: the foundation of American politics, Civil Liberties and Civil Rights in the United States, American political institutions, and citizen participation in the political process.
Gen Ed Attribute: Behavioral and Social Science Distributive.
Distance education offering may be available.
Typically offered in Fall, Spring & Summer.

PSC 201. Politics of Diversity in the U.S.. 3 Credits.

This course examines American government by analyzing how historically underrepresented and marginalized groups have been represented by the American political system and its institutions. It analyzes how different theoretical approaches such as pluralism, elitism, socialism, and liberalism define concepts such as equality and liberty and how social movements have contributed to social change. By focusing on elements of political culture and social experiences of underrepresented groups, it also considers how historical and cultural contexts have shaped the differential experiences of individuals and how race, class, gender, and sexual orientation influence an individual's role in the political system. Lectures and discussions are embedded in a political science ethics framework. Questions about ethical leadership, the "character" of elected officials, and the "morality" of political decision making and resulting public policies will be examined by using ethical dilemmas and case studies.
Gen Ed Attribute: Behavioral and Social Science Distributive, Diversity Requirement, Ethics Requirement.
Distance education offering may be available.
Typically offered in Fall, Spring & Summer.

PSC 213. International Relations. 3 Credits.

Politics among nations, including politics carried on through international organizations. Examines power politics, techniques of diplomacy, and methods of current international organizations. Special attention to U.S. interests and policies.
Gen Ed Attribute: Behavioral and Social Science Distributive.
Distance education offering may be available.
Typically offered in Fall, Spring, and Winter.

PSY 100. Introduction to Psychology. 3 Credits.

Psychology is the scientific study of behavior and its causes and the goal of psychology is to describe, explain, predict, and change behavior. Behavior is defined broadly to include mental and physiological processes, as well as observable behavior. This course provides tools to analyze why people behave the way they do, and these tools can be valuable to students across a number of different settings (e.g., work, school, family, peer, and romantic relationships). The course introduces the major concepts and findings in psychology, and it addresses topics relevant to students from diverse majors, including kinesiology, education, nursing, and marketing, to name a few. The course also introduces ethical concepts and their application in both psychology-related settings and in everyday situations.
Gen Ed Attribute: Behavioral and Social Science Distributive, Ethics Requirement.
Distance education offering may be available.
Typically offered in Fall, Spring & Summer.

SOC 100. Introduction to Sociology. 3 Credits.

This course introduces students to the sociological study of society. Sociology focuses on the systematic understanding of social interaction, social organization, social institutions, and social change.
Gen Ed Attribute: Behavioral and Social Science Distributive.
Distance education offering may be available.
Typically offered in Fall, Spring & Summer.

SOC 240. Sociology of the Family. 3 Credits.

This course will help students to understand the family as a social institution that is a product of social forces. Family forms are not fixed but are socially constructed and historically changing. Families vary by economic, political, and cultural conditions that shape people's lives, behaviors, and family patterns.
Gen Ed Attribute: Behavioral and Social Science Distributive.
Distance education offering may be available.
Typically offered in Fall.

SOC 245. Environmental Sociology. 3 Credits.

Human society is currently threatening the environmental resources necessary to maintain life on Earth. This course unravels the deeper roots of our environmental crises and investigates potential ethical solutions from a domestic and global perspective. Through lecture, films, and discussion we will focus on the interplay between social theories, social structure, social institutions, social inequality, social stratification, and the environment. Themes in this course will emphasize how culture shapes environmental processes and everyday life; articulate demographic theoretical perspectives of population growth; examine the social structure of society to better understand the social dynamics of sustainability; analyze environmental inequality along the bases of social class, gender, and race/ethnicity; and explore ethical, sustainability-related decision-making within a societal context. This course is an introduction to the field, suitable for both majors and non-majors with interest in sustainability and society.
Gen Ed Attribute: Behavioral and Social Science Distributive.
Typically offered in Fall & Spring.