Fall 2013 Honors Courses

 Honors Core Seminars

At the Skokie Campus:

Ethics in World Politics:

PHL 106 0H1 (CRN 31974) Honors: Ethics                                            3 credit hours

Monday & Wednesday, 11:00 am – 12:15 pm, RHC Room C114      Instructor: Thomas Bowen

PSC 202 0H1 (CRN 31400) Honors: International Relations                 3 credit hours

Monday & Wednesday, 12:30 pm – 01:45 pm, RHC Room C114         Instructor: George Lungu

Virtually all the pressing moral or ethical issues that confront us today as individuals, communities, and nations have essential international dimensions. We see this clearly, for example, when considering issues of climate change and the environment in general, the prevalence of violence and armed conflict throughout much of the world, the migration (voluntary and involuntary) of large numbers of people across borders, and the moral and ethical implications of our nation’s foreign policy choices—in particular in relation to the use of force in trying to shape the international arena. The impact of the global economy on local markets allows some to raise moral questions about the international implications of our consumer choices (“should I purchase a sweater made in an Indonesian ‘sweat-shop’?”). Thinking critically and carefully about these issues requires a careful appreciation of the fields of ethics and international politics.

Reinhold Niebuhr once remarked that: “politics will, in the end of history, be an arena where conscience and power meet, where the ethical and coercive factors of human life will interpenetrate and work out their tentative and uneasy compromises.” In offering this learning community, we seek to challenge our students to think ethically and critically about the defining issues of contemporary world politics and develop their own ‘uneasy compromises’ as individuals, as members of national communities, and ultimately as members of the global community.

These courses have IAI certification, fulfill general education requirements, and are transferable to other colleges and universities.

Thomas Bowen holds an M.A. in Philosophy from Loyola University in Chicago and is co-director of the Honors Program at Oakton Community College.
George Lungu holds an M.A. in International Relations from the University of Chicago and is co-director of the Honors Program at Oakton Community College.

At the Des Plaines Campus:

ANT 204 0H1 (CRN 31969) Honors: Introduction To Physical Anthropology              3 credit hours

Monday & Wednesday, 09:30 am – 10:45 am, DP Room 2735         Instructor: Victoria Giambrone

BIO 104 0H1: (CRN 31970) Honors: Human Genetics (non-laboratory course)          3 credit hours

Monday & Wednesday, 11:00 am – 12:15 pm, DP Room 2735         Instructor: Carol Ward

This learning community is designed to introduce students to basic genetic principles and applications in human populations, in both the present and the past. Particular attention will be given to understanding the biological, social and cultural aspects of human existence and evolution. This course combines the basic principles from biology, including cell biology and the transmission of human traits, with the anthropological approach to studying man’s biological relationship to other primates and its focus on human evolution. Both courses have a basis in teaching about evolutionary theory and principles of inheritance.

Students will read a variety of scientific text that covers the anthropological and biological basics of evolutionary theory, natural selection, inheritance and genetic principles such as mutations and chromosomal abnormalities. In addition, case studies will shed specific light on the inheritance of multifactorial traits such as human behavior, which is the basis for understanding the development of culture in man’s evolution. Students should leave this course with a greater understanding of the role of genetics in human evolution, man’s biological relationship to other primates, and the prevention, diagnosis and management of human diseases. They should also have an understanding of biotechnology and its role in the future of human existence on this planet.

These courses have IAI certification, fulfill general education requirements, and are transferable to other colleges and universities.

Victoria Giambrone holds an MA in Anthropology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Carol Ward holds a Ph.D. in Biology from the University of Florida-Gainsville.

EGL 226 0H1 (CRN 31972) Honors: African-American Literature      3 credit hours

Tuesday & Thursday, 09:30 am – 10:45 am, DP Room 2735     Instructor: Will Crawford

HUM 122 0H1 (CRN 31973) Honors: Contemporary Culture and the Arts            3 credit hours

Tuesday & Thursday, 11:00 am – 12:15 pm, DP Room 2735          Instructor: Madhuri Deshmukh

The African-American literary and artistic traditions raise some of the most fundamental questions about politics, art and identity in the modern world. This tandem will introduce students to the rich diversity of African-American cultural and artistic expression from the eighteenth to the twenty-first centuries, especially as it emerged in the various struggles for social justice in the New World. We will explore the connections between different forms of cultural expression, such as poetry, music, fiction, autobiography and film. In addition to reading the great works of the literary tradition, we will view and analyze documentary and feature films, such as Barack & Curtis, Sisters in Cinema, and Do the Right Thing; we will listen to music selections from Sam Cooke, Nina Simone, John Coltrane, Tupac Shakur, Christian Scott, Jean Grae, and others. We will explore the complex realities reflected in and the questions raised by black expressivity. How did writers, artists, musicians, filmmakers and black intellectuals respond to violence and injustice in America?  What is or should be the relationship between art and politics? By exploring these and other questions, this course will draw out the international and global dimensions of black American creativity in the context of the ongoing struggles for social justice.

These courses have IAI certification, fulfill general education requirements, and are transferable to other colleges and universities.

Will Crawford holds an MA in English from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Madhuri Deshmukh holds a Ph.D. in English from Loyola University, Chicago.

Single-Section Honors Courses

EGL 101 0H1 (CRN 31389) Honors: Composition I                              3 credit hours

Monday & Wednesday, 12:30 pm – 1:45 pm, DP Room 2735            Instructor: Brent Mix

Whether you are writing about your personal experiences or responding to the writing of others, writing is a form of self-definition. In this course, we will explore the concept of the "self" by reading important reflections on the topic by diverse writers. We will explore the importance of ethics, politics, culture, race, religion and history to the making of diverse concepts of selfhood. As we read and discuss professional writers, you will be working on writing the story of your own "self" in essays about your personal experiences, observations, memories, and responses to the readings.

This course has IAI certification, fulfills a general education requirement, and is transferable to other colleges and universities.

Brent Mix is finishing his Ph.D. dissertation in English at Northwestern University.

PHL 205 0H1 (CRN 32044) Honors: World Religions                             3 credit hours

Tuesday & Thursday 12:30 – 1:45; DP Room 2735                          Instructor: Mohamed Mehdi

In this course, we will be exploring both some of the fundamental ethical and spiritual beliefs of a range of religious movements, and some aspects of lived religious experience. We will pay close attention to the internal diversity within any religious group, as well as the dynamic, evolving and contested nature of religious practices and beliefs. We will also be interested in exploring ways in which religions have both been oppressive to members and others, and crucial parts of struggles for liberation.

We will be looking at traditions and approaches from around the world, and will work collectively to decide which religions to focus on (including new religious movements, and regional, indigenous and creole religions), and in which national and historical contexts to focus on them.
The course materials will include popular literature and journalism, primary texts and scriptures, as well as film and music. Students will be asked to play a significant role in selecting and presenting some of these materials.

This course has IAI certification, fulfills a general education requirement, and is transferable to other colleges and universities.

Mohamed Mehdi holds a Ph.D. in Philosophy from McGill University.

Honors: Interdisciplinary Undergraduate Laboratory Research        2 total credit hours

BIO 240 0H1 (CRN 31220)                                                             Instructor: Team of Science Faculty

Lecture: Monday 12:30 pm - 1:45 pm; Lab: Friday 12:30 pm - 3:15 pm; DP Room 2222

CHM 240 0H1 (CRN 30729)                                                             Instructor: Team of Science Faculty

Lab: Monday 12:30 pm - 1:45 pm; Lecture: Friday 12:30 pm - 3:15 pm; DP Room 2222

Developed by members of the science faculty, this Research Lab experience offers a hands-on approach to learning science while doing science. Team-taught by faculty from several disciplines, this is a challenging interdisciplinary course that follows guideline for inquiry-based learning. Content includes active participation in a research experience that involves performing experiments, collecting data, analyzing results interacting with other students and professors in their research, reading and critiquing research articles in the same research area, and presenting at the end of the semester.                

HIS 226 0H1 (CRN 31617) Honors: History of Islamic Middle East in Modern Times (Co-listed with HIS 226 001)  3 credit hours

Friday, 9:30 am – 12:20 pm, RHC Room C114                                      Instructor: George Lungu

What are the historical roots of the “Arab Awakening?” Is there a “Clash of Civilizations” that underpins the relations between the West and the Muslim world? What place do such Western concepts as secularization, nationalism, and democratization occupy in modern Middle Eastern history?

In addressing these and many other questions, this course will investigate the development of political institutions, as well as social trends and important cultural and religious developments in modern and contemporary Middle Eastern history

The ultimate goal is to illuminate the historical roots of present-day events in order to better understand their impact on Middle Eastern societies and their relations with the rest of the world.

This course has IAI certification, fulfills a general education requirement, and is transferable to other colleges and universities.

George Lungu holds an M.A. in International Relations from the University of Chicago and is co-director of the Honors Program at Oakton Community College.