Spring 2022 Courses

CAS AA 112 Black Power in the Classroom: The History of Black Studies: Centers Black experiences, cultures, knowledge production and identity formation in the United States and in the African Diaspora across time and space. Examines and traces the genealogies of Black Studies as a discipline: its political, ideological, and practical foundations on college campuses and in communities. Also explores earlier traditions and contemporary work in Black radical thought and activism that lay the groundwork for and build on the founding principles of Black Studies by mobilizing an intersectional and diasporic lens. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Historical Consciousness, Social Inquiry I, Research and Information Literacy.

CAS AA 207 Sociology of Race and Ethnicity: This course examines the fundamental theoretical and empirical approaches regarding race/ethnicity and the current state of race relations in the U.S. that explore both contemporary social problems and the deep historical roots of those problems through a sociological lens. Carries social science divisional credit in CAS. Also offered as CAS SO 207. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Historical Consciousness, The Individual in Community, Research and Information Literacy.

CAS AA 215 Arts of Africa and Its Diaspora: Exploration of a diversity of visual and performing arts from Africa, including royal regalia, masquerades, and contemporary painting. Examines how the dispersal of Africans, due to the transatlantic slave trade and immigration, contributed to the cultural richness of the Americas. Carries humanities divisional credit in CAS. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Aesthetic Exploration, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Critical Thinking.

CAS AA 234 African Americans in Global Perspective: Slavery and the Creation of Race Formation: A study of how chattel slavery in the Americas led to racialization as a primary tool in the creation of American society and New World capitalism. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Ethical Reasoning, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Critical Thinking.

CAS AA 335 Sociology of Race, Class & Gender: No one of us is one thing, one identity, nor motivated by one singular interest, nor privileged or subjugated by one singular form of power, but how do those multiple forms of ourselves affect how we are advantaged, disadvantaged, viewed, and understood by the social world? Our social world, is, by default, a vast web of social intersections between and across groups with shared, overlapping, and conflicting identities. Race, class and gender affect nearly all of our lived experiences and greatly complicate and nuance concepts of diversity and difference. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Digital/Multimedia Expression , The Individual in Community, Historical Consciousness. Prereq: At least one prior 100- or 200-level sociology course, or CAS WS 101/102.

CAS AA 382 History of Religion in Pre-Colonial Africa: The study of the development of religious traditions in Africa during the period prior to European colonialism. An emphasis on both indigenous religions and the growth and spread of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam in the continent as a whole. Also offered as CAS HI 349 and CAS RN 382. Effective Spring 2021, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Historical Consciousness.

CAS AA 385 Atlantic History: Examines the various interactions that shaped the Atlantic World, connecting Europe, Africa, and the Americas between 1400 and 1820. Begins by defining the political interaction, then emphasizes cultural exchange, religious conversion, and the revolutionary era.

CAS AA 395: Power, Leadership, and Governance in Africa and the Caribbean: Haitian Revolution; British Caribbean, leadership, governance, and power in Africa during the period of legitimate trade; visionaries, dictators, and nationalist politics in the Caribbean; chiefs, western elites, and nationalism in colonial Africa; road to governance in post-colonial Caribbean and Africa. Also offered as HI 352 and IR 394.

CAS AA 408 Seminar: Ethnic, Race, and Minority Relations: Formation and position of ethnic minorities in the United States, including cross-group comparisons from England, Africa, and other parts of the world. Readings and field experience. Also offered as CAS SO 408. Prereq: CASAA207, CASSO207 or consent of instructor.

CAS AA 489 The African Diaspora in the Americas: History of peoples of African descent in the Americas after end of slavery from an international framework. Examines development of racial categories, emergence of national identities in wake of the wars of independence, diverse Black communities in the twentieth century. Also offered as CAS HI 489.

CAS AA 490 Blacks and Asians: Encounters Through Time and Space: Exploration of historical encounters between Africans and people of African descent, and Asians and people of Asian descent. How such people imagined themselves, interacted with each other, viewed each other, influenced each other, and borrowed from each other. Also offered as CAS HI 490.

African Studies Center

CAS ID 116 Africa Today: The Beat of Popular Culture: Provides an interdisciplinary introduction to the dynamics of contemporary Africa. Examines Western preconceptions, then turns to contemporary literature, film, television, music, dance, and the visual arts from across the continent as a means of listening to diverse African voices. Core course in the African Studies minor. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, The Individual in Community, Research and Information Literacy.

CAS LW 116 Akan Twi 2: Second-semester four-skill Akan Twi course leading to proficiency in oral expression, listening comprehension, reading, writing, and cultural understanding. Course combines face-to-face classes with internet instruction. Students require a computer with microphone, webcam, and a reliable Internet connection. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: The Individual in Community.

CAS LW 216 Akan Twi 4: Fourth-semester four-skill Akan Twi course continues emphasis on oral expression, listening, reading and writing skills, focusing on the culture and day-to-day life of both urban and rural Akan people. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub areas: The Individual in Community, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.

CAS LW494 Directed Study: Directed study in Akan Twi.

CAS LD 112 Amharic 2: This second semester four-skill Amharic course leads toward proficiency in oral expression, listening comprehension, reading, cultural understanding, and writing using the Amharic alphabet. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: The Individual in Community.

CAS LD 212 Amharic 4: This fourth-semester four-skill Amharic course develops competence and confidence in use of Amharic in reading, writing, speaking and listening in culturally acceptable ways. Students learn to communicate at an intermediate high level of proficiency. Satisfactory completion of LD 212 fulfills the CAS language requirement. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub areas: The Individual in Community, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.

 CAS LD 312 Amharic 6: Sixth semester four-skills Igbo course leading to proficiency in speaking, listening comprehension, reading and writing. Study of contemporary Igbo social and cultural issues explored through the reading of advanced traditional and contemporary Igbo literary texts.

CAS LY 112-492 Modern Arabic: Details on Modern Standard Arabic courses are available on the Arabic program website.

CAS LD 120 Igbo 2: Second-semester four-skills Igbo course leading to proficiency in oral expression, listening comprehension, reading, writing, and cultural understanding. This course builds on the first semester, expanding students’ ability to communicate in everyday contexts. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: The Individual in Community.

CAS LD 220 Igbo 4: This fourth semester four-skills Igbo course develops communicative competence and confidence in the use of Igbo in reading, writing, speaking, and listening in culturally acceptable ways. Students learn to communicate at an intermediate high-level of proficiency. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub areas: The Individual in Community, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.

CAS LD 320 Igbo 6: Sixth semester four-skills Igbo course leading to proficiency in speaking, listening comprehension, reading and writing. Study of contemporary Igbo social and cultural issues explored through the reading of advanced traditional and contemporary Igbo literary texts.

CAS LD 420 Igbo 8: A continuation of CAS LD 419, Igbo 7, leading to an advanced-mid level of proficiency based on ACTFL standards in oral expression, listening comprehension, reading, and writing. Also strengthens students’ knowledge of Igbo grammar and culture.

CAS LD 114 Mandinka 2: Introduction to the language as spoken in Mali. Sounds, greetings, and basic nonverbal sentence types. Emphasis on spoken competence. Introduction to the aspect system. Lab required.

 CAS LD 214 Mandinka 4: Intermediate study of Mandinka/Bambara. Intensive conversational practice with continued study of grammatical structures, morphology, and tone. Readings and discussions centering on traditional Mandinka/Bambara literature. Lab required. Satisfactory completion of CAS LD 214 fulfills the CAS language requirement.

CAS LE 112 Swahili 2: This four-skill African langauge course in second-semester Kiswahili leads toward proficiency in oral expression, listening comprehension, reading, cultural understanding, and writing. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: The Individual in Community.

CAS LE 212 Swahili 4: This four-skill African language course in fourth-semester Kiswahili emphasizes oral communication skills and the development of reading and writing skills. It exposes students to all compound tenses of the language, and develops students’ reading skills in traditional Kiswahili literature. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub areas: The Individual in Community, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.

CAS LE 312 Swahili 6: Discussions and compositions relating to East African themes and based in readings from traditional literature, political treatises from Kenya and Tanzania, and a modern novel. Advanced grammatical analysis.

CAS LE 412 Swahili 8: This course is designed to take students to advanced-high level proficiency in Kiswahili. It emphasizes high-level reading comprehension and leads to the development of communication skills for extended formal and informal discourse.

CAS LE 452 Swahili 10: A continuation of CAS LE 451, Swahili 9, leading to a superior level of proficiency (based on ACTFL standards), where the student’s linguistic and cultural competence approximates that of native speakers.

CAS LE 492 Directed Study: Swahili: Directed study in a topic in Swahili (Kiswahili). Special Topic for Fall 2016, Section H1: Swahili with a Health Focus 2. (Pre-requisite: CAS LE 491 H1) Relevant for students interested in health-related research in East Africa. This four-skill Kiswahili course leads toward proficiency in oral expression, listening comprehension, reading, cultural understanding, and writing.

CAS LE 530 Swahili with a Health Focus 2: Building on CAS LE 529, this course continues to develop a student’s conversational Swahili skills in global health settings. Second course in sequence designed for public health students who intend to work internationally or have an interest in a cross-cultural understanding of health.

CAS LW 112 Wolof 2: This four-skill African language course in second-semester Wolof leads toward proficiency in oral expression, listening comprehension, reading, cultural understanding, and writing (using both the Latin alphabet and the Arabic-based script known as Wolofal or Ajami). Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: The Individual in Community.

CAS LW 212 Wolof 4: This third semester four-skills Wolof course develops communicative competence and confidence in the use of Wolof in speaking, reading, writing, and listening in culturally appropriate ways. Students learn to communicate with native speakers at an intermediate mid level of proficiency. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: The Individual in Community.

CAS LW 312 Wolof 6: Study and discussion of various contemporary issues in Wolof society and culture, including traditional and contemporary Wolof literature (folk tales, stories, proverbs, etc.) written in both Latin and Ajami scripts.

CAS LW 412 Wolof 8: Continues to develop students’ proficiency at the advanced-high level in oral expression, listening comprehension, reading, and writing in both Ajami and Latin scripts, and enables students to apply their language skills to professional fields, the humanities, and social sciences.

CAS LW 492 Directed Study: Wolof: Continues to develop students’ proficiency at the advanced-high level in oral expression, listening comprehension, reading, and writing in both Ajami and Latin scripts, and enables students to apply their language skills to professional fields, the humanities, and social sciences.

CAS LM 112 Second-Semester isiXhosa: This four-skill African Language course in second-semester IsiXhosa leads toward proficiency in oral expression, second-semester listening comprehension, reading, cultural understanding, and writing. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: The Individual in Community.

CAS LM 212 Fourth-Semester isiXhosa: This fourth semester four-skills IsiXhosa course develops communicative competence and confidence in the use of IsiXhosa in speaking, reading, writing, and listening in culturally acceptable ways. Students learn to communicate at an intermediate high level of proficiency. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub areas: The Individual in Community, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.

CAS LD 116 Zulu 2: Second-semester four-skill Zulu course leading to proficiency in oral expression, listening comprehension, reading, writing, and cultural understanding. Course combines face-to-face classes with internet instruction. Students require a computer with microphone, webcam, and a reliable Internet connection. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: The Individual in Community.

CAS LD 216 Zulu 4: This four-skills African language course in fourth-semester isiZulu develops communicative competence and confidence in the use of isiZulu in reading, writing, speaking and listening in culturally acceptable ways. Students learn to communicate at an intermediate high level of proficiency. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub areas: The Individual in Community, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy.

CAS LD 316 Zulu 6: This sixth-semester course builds on Zulu 5, helping students to develop their proficiency in the language at the advanced level. Continuing study of various language and cultural issues pertaining to Zulu society.

CAS LD 416 Zulu 8: Fourth-year course develops fluency in all language skill areas, builds vocabulary and idiomatic knowledge. Weekly presentations focus on themes linked to students’ research interests. Recorded dialogues, television news, dramas and comedies strengthen listening skills and cultural appreciation.

Art History

CAS AH 215 Arts of Africa and Its Diaspora: Exploration of a diversity of visual and performing arts from Africa, including royal regalia, masquerades, and contemporary painting. Examines how the dispersal of Africans, due to the transatlantic slave trade and immigration, contributed to the cultural richness of the Americas. Carries humanities divisional credit in CAS. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Aesthetic Exploration, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Critical Thinking.

Anthropology 

CAS AN 240 Legal Anthropology: An introduction to the anthropologist’s approaches to law. Investigates the relationship among society, culture, and law focuses on how different societies generate and structure competition and conflict. Examines the range of social and symbolic mechanisms for regulating dispute. Carries social science divisional credit in CAS. (Counts towards African Studies minor.) Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Social Inquiry I, Ethical Reasoning.

CAS AN 524: Seminar: Language and Culture Contacts in Contemporary Africa: Focuses on language variation and change in Africa. Provides students with a foundation in the scholarship on contact linguistics, language variation and change, and the relationships between language variation and gender, ethnicity, religion, and youth culture.

CAS AN 594: Seminar: Topics in Cultural Anthropology A1: Selected issues and debates in current anthropology. Topic for Spring 2022: Anthropology of Empires. Covers the political, economic, and social structures of empires in Eurasia and North Africa from an anthropological perspective. Examines how they became and remained the world’s largest polities for 2500 years only to all vanish in the early 20th century.

Archaeology

CAS AR 206 Ancient Technology: Introduction to the emergence of culture and the reconstruction of early lifeways from archaeological evidence. Topics include early humans in Africa, Asia, and Europe; Neanderthals; the first Americans; and the prelude to agriculture. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Historical Consciousness, Teamwork/Collaboration.

Earth and Environment 

CAS EE 201 World Regional Geography: Overview of the special combination of environmental, historical, economic, and organizational qualities of the regions of the Old World, including Western and Eastern Europe, the former Soviet Union, East and South Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. Emphasis on current issues of regional and global development. Carries social science divisional credit in CAS. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Historical Consciousness, Social Inquiry I, Research and Information Literacy.

CAS EE 349 Environmental History of Africa: Focus on the African environment and ecological systems over the past 150 years. Topics include climate change, hydrography, agriculture, deforestation, soil erosion, disease, conservation, famine, and the role of colonialism and government policy in environmental change. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Scientific Inquiry II, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Research and Information Literacy.

English

MET EN 201 A1 – Intermediate Composition: “Contemporary Fiction’s Otherworldly Glow” In this course, our reading will take us to Africa, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and Latin America, regions more culturally different than some might imagine. Our close reading, however, will reinforce the universality of the human condition as we examine issues of race, class, gender, and ethnicity. We will encounter colonialism, war, love, and political intrigue in four twenty- first century novels: Taiye Selasi’s Ghana Must Go, Hala Alyan’s Salt Houses, Kiran Desai’s The Inheritance of Loss, and Luis Alberto Urrea’s The House of Broken Angels.

French: Language, Literature, Linguistics, Culture

CAS LF 309 French in the World: Advanced study of French through the analysis of images, short stories, excerpts of novels and films that explore topics pertaining to the Francophone World. Specific regions vary by semester, but can include Africa, the Caribbean or North America. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Oral and/or Signed Communication. Prereq: CAS LF 212; or equivalent; or placement test results.

History

CAS HI 349 History of Religion in Pre-Colonial Africa: The study of the development of religious traditions in Africa during the period prior to European colonialism. An emphasis on both indigenous religions and the growth and spread of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam in the continent as a whole. Also offered as CAS HI 349 and CAS RN 382. Effective Spring 2021, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Historical Consciousness.

CAS HI 350 Atlantic History: Examines the various interactions that shaped the Atlantic World, connecting Europe, Africa, and the Americas between 1400 and 1820. Begins by defining the political interaction, then emphasizes cultural exchange, religious conversion, and the revolutionary era.

CAS HI 351 Environmental History of Africa: Focus on the African environment and ecological systems over the past 150 years. Topics include climate change, hydrography, agriculture, deforestation, soil erosion, disease, conservation, famine, and the role of colonialism and government policy in environmental change. Effective Fall 2018, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Scientific Inquiry II, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Research and Information Literacy.

CAS HI 352 Power, Leadership, and Governance in Africa and the Caribbean: Haitian Revolution; British Caribbean, leadership, governance, and power in Africa during the period of legitimate trade; visionaries, dictators, and nationalist politics in the Caribbean; chiefs, western elites, and nationalism in colonial Africa; road to governance in post-colonial Caribbean and Africa. Also offered as AA 395 and IR 394.

CAS HI 489 The African Diaspora in the Americas:History of peoples of African descent in the Americas after end of slavery from an international framework. Examines development of racial categories, emergence of national identities in wake of the wars of independence, diverse Black communities in the twentieth century. Also offered as CAS HI 489.

CAS HI 490 Blacks and Asians: Encounters Through Time and Space: Exploration of historical encounters between Africans and people of African descent, and Asians and people of Asian descent. How such people imagined themselves, interacted with each other, viewed each other, influenced each other, and borrowed from each other. Also offered as CAS HI 490.

International Relations

CAS IR 312 Comparative Development in the Middle East: This course surveys pertinent topics relating to the socio-economic and political development of the Middle East and North African throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Students will explore and critical analyze themes relating to colonialism and state formation and statebuilding, regime types, oil and rentierism, civil society, authoritarianism and democratization, military spending, gender relations, Islamist movements, elections, revolutions and social movements, territorial disputes, foreign intervention, and sectarianism and identity politics. Effective Spring 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Social Inquiry I, Oral and/or Signed Communication, Critical Thinking.

CAS IR 343 African Politics Today: (Meets with CAS PO 373.) An introduction to the issues dominating African political life today. Core course debates revolve around recent trends in African economic growth, democratic governance, and armed conflict, in addition to several other issues of contemporary concern.

CAS IR 352 International Human Rights: Applying Human Rights in Africa: Studies the growing international influence on politics of human rights principles, documents, and organizations, drawing especially on African cases such as Congo, Zimbabwe, and Sudan. The class explores the relationship between civil and political rights and economic, social, and culture rights. We consider debates over claims of universality vs. cultural relativism, individual vs. group rights, and ways to improve human rights enforcement well respecting local cultures. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Ethical Reasoning, Teamwork/Collaboration.

CAS IR 394 Power, Leadership, and Governance in Africa and the Caribbean: Haitian Revolution; British Caribbean, leadership, governance, and power in Africa during the period of legitimate trade; visionaries, dictators, and nationalist politics in the Caribbean; chiefs, western elites, and nationalism in colonial Africa; road to governance in post-colonial Caribbean and Africa. Also offered as HI 352 and IR 394.

CAS IR 500 Topics in International Relations B1: The Ballot or the Bullet: The Global Struggle for Justice: How do people attain justice for issues with deep historical roots, such as colonialism, segregation, indigenous land rights, reparations, gender/race-based violence, and religious persecution? Explores the role of violence both in policing global morality and in popular responses to imposed universalist ideas.

Linguistics

CAS LX 391 Linguistic Field Methods: A team-based in-depth investigation of the phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, and lexicon of an African or other non-Indo-European language. Bi-weekly sessions with language consultant. Weekly trainings on methodology, ethics, analysis, and presentation of results. Effective Spring 2021, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Ethical Reasoning, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Teamwork/Collaboration. Prereq: CAS LX 250; or consent of instructor.

Political Science

CAS PO 328 North-South Relations: Employs a multidisciplinary approach to analyze the relations between the industrialized nations of the “North” and the developing nations of the “South.” Addresses historical and current issues in North-South relations, including trade, investment, migration, regional economic integration, and the environment.

CAS PO 330 W1 Urban Citizenship and Governance: The majority of the world’s population now lives in cities. Course considers how conceptions of citizenship, the state, and claims to basic rights have been challenged by the histories and politics of urban life. Focuses primarily on the global south.

CAS PO 373 African Politics Today: An introduction to the issues dominating African political life today. Core course debates revolve around recent trends in African economic growth, democratic governance, and armed conflict, in addition to several other issues of contemporary concern.

CAS PO 378 International Human Rights: Applying Human Rights in Africa: Studies the growing international influence on politics of human rights principles, documents, and organizations, drawing especially on African cases such as Congo, Zimbabwe, and Sudan. The class explores the relationship between civil and political rights and economic, social, and culture rights. We consider debates over claims of universality vs. cultural relativism, individual vs. group rights, and ways to improve human rights enforcement well respecting local cultures. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Ethical Reasoning, Teamwork/Collaboration.

CAS PO 530 W1 Readings in Comparative Politics: Decolonization and Democracy. Looks at comparative legacies of colonialism, race, and decolonization in North and Sub-Saharan Africa and their implications for democracy and inequality today. Focus on incorporating African scholars and voices in addressing comparative social science questions.

Religion 

CAS RN 105 Introduction to the World’s Religions: Explores the symbols, beliefs, stories, and practices of the world’s religions with attention to both ancient history and contemporary practices, including spiritual autobiographies and online communities. Possible traditions include: Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, and African/African diaspora religions. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Digital/Multimedia Expression, Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Creativity/Innovation.

CAS RN 382 History of Religion in Pre-Colonial Africa: The study of the development of religious traditions in Africa during the period prior to European colonialism. An emphasis on both indigenous religions and the growth and spread of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam in the continent as a whole. Also offered as CAS AA 382 and CAS HI 349. Effective Spring 2021, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Historical Consciousness.

CAS RN 383 African Diaspora Religions: An introduction to religions of the African Diaspora, with a specific focus on the Caribbean and the Americas. In this course, students engage diverse traditions such as Africanized Christianity, Cuban Santeria, Haitian Vodou, Brazilian Candomble, and African American Spiritualism.

Sociology

CAS SO 207 Sociology of Race and Ethnicity: This course examines the fundamental theoretical and empirical approaches regarding race/ethnicity and the current state of race relations in the U.S. that explore both contemporary social problems and the deep historical roots of those problems through a sociological lens. Carries social science divisional credit in CAS. Also offered as CAS AA 207. Effective Fall 2019, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Historical Consciousness, The Individual in Community, Research and Information Literacy.

CAS SO 408 Seminar: Ethnic, Race, and Minority Relations: Formation and position of ethnic minorities in the United States, including cross-group comparisons from England, Africa, and other parts of the world. Readings and field experience. Also offered as CAS AA 408. Prereq: CASAA207, CASSO207 or consent of instructor.

GRS AA 882 History of Religion in Pre-Colonial Africa: The study of the development of religious traditions in Africa during the period prior to European colonialism. An emphasis on both indigenous religions and the growth and spread of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam in the continent as a whole. Also offered as CAS HI 349 and CAS RN 382. Effective Spring 2021, this course fulfills a single unit in each of the following BU Hub areas: Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy, Historical Consciousness.

GRS AA 885 Atlantic History: Examines the various interactions that shaped the Atlantic World, connecting Europe, Africa, and the Americas between 1400 and 1820. Begins by defining the political interaction, then emphasizes cultural exchange, religious conversion, and the revolutionary era.

International Relations

GRS IR 700 Topics in International Relations A1: Global Health Diplomacy: This course will examine how diplomatic action has addressed global health challenges, the strengths and weaknesses of these efforts, including in the COVID pandemic, and how global health has emerged as a field for competition among states and other stakeholders. 

GRS IR 700 Topics in International Relations A1: Global Health Diplomacy: This course will examine how diplomatic action has addressed global health challenges, the strengths and weaknesses of these efforts, including in the COVID pandemic, and how global health has emerged as a field for competition among states and other stakeholders. 

GRS IR 825 Seminar: Women and Social Change in the Developing World: Studies women in nonindustrial countries of Asia, Africa, and Latin America, stressing empirical research, theory, and methodology. Comparisons between regions and with industrial countries. Focus on sex segregation, female labor force participation, migration, fertility, family roles, and women and political power. Meets with GRS SO 820. 

CFA AR 565 Art, Access, and Inclusion: The class is designed to help prepare pre-service art educators to work with all students by addressing some of the individual needs that those students may bring to the classroom: neurological, cognitive, physical, emotional, and linguistic. It specifically addresses the needs of learners that are related to a disability, mental health history, and/or English language skills. The course focuses on the social model of disability and students investigate the complexity of individual students’ lives, strengths, and challenges, through an intersectional lens. Effective Fall 2020, this course fulfills a single unit in the following BU Hub area: Ethical Reasoning. Email instructor to register.

CFA AR 600 Contemporary Issues in Art Education : With an arts-research approach, this course allows students to explore and respond to contemporary issues while developing their own craft and building a creative learning community. The course surveys the roots of contemporary art and pedagogy and the shift to postmodernism, including influential figures, theories, and trends and their impact on art education. A deep-dive investigation into masks as universal but complex, culturally-embedded phenomena provides students in the course with a unique lens. Students investigate the popularity of masks in global contemporary art and the roots of these masks that speak to culture, identity, privacy, and other issues of the moment. Responding to course content by creating art, students stretch and expand their knowledge of the mask form and use it as a tool to examine pressing issues in the contemporary art classroom. The in-depth focus enriches the background, ideas, and approaches teachers can bring to mask making, a valuable but often challenging project, but also use as a model. Through e-portfolio and online discussions, students create a community of learners. A culminating project, such as a unit plan or autoethnography, synthesizes traditional research methods with arts-research insights and tackles the complexities that arise in a multi-cultural curriculum, such as appropriation, transnationalism, and ahistoricism. Online course.

Music