Honors Courses

Spring 2009 - Daytime Courses 

Honors English: Composition and Literature II (Ref# 5958), Wednesday, 1-3:40 pm.
Composition and Literature II introduces students to literary genres (short story, poetry, drama, novel). This course will present masterpieces in each of these forms which students will read, discuss and write about in their journals and in critical essays. Research will be required.
3 credits, Instructor: Prof. Elizabeth Gaffney

Honors English: Literature of New York (Ref# 5970), Wednesday, 1-3:45 pm.
Some people say that New York is so different from the rest of the U.S. that it is like its own separate country.  This course examines how New York is perhaps a truer embodiment of the ideals of America than the rest of what we call the “Heartland” or “Grassroots America.”  Readings will sample texts from a variety of fields and disciplines, including history, poetry, music, film, philosophy, and others.
3 credits, Instructor: Professor Richard Rodriguez 

Honors English: Reading in Human Rights (Ref# 5960), Tuesday, 1-3:40 pm.
This course studies significant literary, historical and other texts related to human rights. Students read works that address essential questions of social justice, individual conscience and human dignity. International in scope and interdisciplinary in approach, this course explores the role of writing in the concept and practice of human rights. Students complement their reading with independent projects and participation in human rights actions.
3 credits, Instructor: Prof. Alan Devenish

Honors Humanities: Seminar in Ethics (Ref# 5997), Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday 10-10:50 am.
Honors Seminar in Ethics focuses on excerpts written by Western philosophers from Plato to Sartre, put into dialogue with literary works whose protagonists struggle with moral dilemmas. Students also give presentations on a topic of their own choice (with instructor approval) in the field of ethics.  For example, in the past we have learned about Tao; Confucianism; Ethics in Christianity, Judaism, and Buddhism; West African religions; Animal Rights; etc.  Journal responses and essays are assigned that address every reading and the ethical questions which arise in those texts. Students are encouraged to engage in free and open discussions, to question, and to listen to others’ views with respect and interest.
3 credits, Instructor: Prof. James Werner

Honors Humanities: World Cinema (Ref# 5346), Monday, Tuesday, Thursday 1-1:50 pm.
This is an honors-level seminar on the movies as an art form and as an international multicultural phenomenon. Students will engage in a focused exploration of the technical and formal elements that make the movies a unique and powerful means of human expression, one that finds its definition in diverse cultural contexts. The course will provide students with a window onto the rich cultural landscape beyond their own, exposing them to cinematic accomplishments that extend beyond the conventional American model and their own experience and introducing them to the national cinemas of Africa, Asia, Europe, Central and South America, India and the Middle East, with their distinctive perspectives, attitudes, values and beliefs. The course will concern itself with culture and its impact on film as a work of art, with culture as shaper of both content and form. Methods include class discussion, oral and written reports, individual and group class presentations, readings, and critical viewing of selected films and videos.
3 credits, Instructor: Prof. John Cuniberti

Honors Behavioral Science: Introduction to Sociology (Ref# 2775), Monday, Tuesday, Thursday 12-12:50 pm.
This Honors course should appeal to students who are curious about the nature of the social world and who want to participate in a challenging academic environment that sharpens their analytical skills. Students will be introduced to the basic principles of sociology and the concept of culture, to important primary texts, and to the challenge of independent research on contemporary issues and problems.
3 credits, Instructor: Prof. Lori Maida

Honors Behavioral Science: General Psychology (Ref# 2584), Tuesday 3:30-6:10 pm.
As a foundation for all behavioral science courses, this course provides the student with an understanding of how psychologists view the world and apply scientific method to the study of behavior. The discipline of psychology is characterized by controversy and change, but has always been committed to objective inquiry to extend our knowledge of the complexity of behavior. Each student designs and carries out a personal research project in order to learn and experience the problems and pitfalls of doing behavioral research. Research methodology, biological foundations of behavior, learning, memory, perception, motivation and personality are topics of study.
3 credits, Instructor: Prof. Paul Siegel

Honors Social Science: Microeconomics  (Ref# 2265), Monday, Thursday 1-2:15 pm.
This course is meant for the student who is already familiar with economic analysis (having taken Macroeconomics, for example) and wants a challenging course to help develop his/her analytical skills in economics. The course should appeal to the student who wants to use the power of economic analysis in addressing various policy issues of the day.
3 credits , Instructor: Prof. Farhad Ameen 

Honors Social Science: Asia Today (Ref# 2291), Monday, Tuesday, Thursday 12-12:50 pm.  This is an introductory course designed for students who are interested in learning more about Asia; as such, it provides background information on Asia as a whole and an in-depth look at a few selected Asian countries such as India, China, and the Philippines. Current economic, political, and cultural events and their historical and geographical backgrounds are emphasized. In addition, the connections between Asia and the United States and their importance are stressed.
3 credits , Instructor: Prof. David Kummer 

Honors Social Science: U.S. Presidency (Ref# 2385), Monday, Tuesday, Thursday 12-12:50 pm.  “We give the President more work than a man can do, more responsibility than a man should take, more pressure than a man could bear…We wear him out, use him, eat him up….He is ours and we exercise the right to destroy him”  wrote John Steinbeck.  How has the presidency grown from a semi-ceremonial office to the most powerful in the nation?  HIS 223H will explore a number of themes in US presidential history such as its constitutional roots, its evolution over time as well as how Americans evaluate leadership. Through a series of case studies we will also examine the extent to which factors such as intellect, charisma, socio-economic background and even personal appearance can influence presidential leadership.
3 credits , Instructor: Prof. Gary Klein

Honors Mathematics: History of Math (Ref# 3939), Monday, 3-5:50 pm. 
A survey of the history of Mathematics from counting through Calculus. The Internet is the main reference tool to investigate the contributions of various cultures and individuals. A problem solving approach is used to study the Mathematical contributions of each culture.
3 credits, Instructor: Professor Jeannine Epps

Spring 2009 - Evening Courses

Honors Social Science: Topics in Global History (Ref# 2316), Tuesday, 5:30-8:10 pm.
This course is a survey of global history from earliest times to the present. It will explore themes constant throughout that period to find patterns of development of governmental institutions and economic systems emphasizing the non-western as well as western experience. The rise and decline of major civilizations, the transition from an agrarian to an urban industrial and now post-industrial society and the nature of warfare will be examined. Emphasis will be placed on discovering the historical roots of contemporary conflicts.
3 credits, Instructor: Prof. Anne D'Orazio

Honors Social Science: Great Trials (Ref# 2823), Thursday, 6-8:40 pm.
Great Trials exposes students to some of the greatest trials in the world. The exploration starts with the trial of Socrates, then the trial of Joan of Arc and Galileo Galilei. Manyother famous trials will be studied, which may include the following : Salem Witchcraft Trial, The Scopes Trials, The Nuremburg Trial, The Trial of Nelson Mandela, and The Tiananmen Square Dissidents Trial. 
3 Credits, Prof. Russell Ippolito

Honors English: Shakespeare (Ref# 5979), Monday, 5:30-8:20 pm. This honors level seminar in Shakespeare offers students the opportunity to read and to engage in intensive study and discussion of Shakespeare’s plays and sonnets—works of enduring influence that stand among the sources of our intellectual tradition and have shaped the development of Western culture. A special emphasis will be placed on  viewing and evaluating productions of the plays. In addition to discussing primary texts and productions,  the class will investigate the historical, contextual, and inter-textual backgrounds of these works. Complementing students’ own interpretations, a number of influential critical theories in Shakespeare Studies will be explored and challenged.
3 credits, Instructor: Prof. Frank Madden

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