| Class | Name/Description | Instructor |
|---|---|---|
| 102-01 | Food, Glorious Food!
Everyone needs to eat to live. Many of us have complicated relationships with food, yet many of us are also unaware of what goes into our food and the land and animals it comes from. This section uses common and individual resources, including readings, movies, and websites, to learn about the history of agriculture, and explore and argue about various aspects of the food industry as it exists today. You will cook one of your favorite foods and report to the class, as well as make a specific recommendation to improve some aspect of this important industry. Course#: FYW 102-01 |
Janet Hubbard |
| 102-02 | Beyond the Empty Sky - The 911 Terror Attacks 20 years later
Since more than 20 years have passed since the 9/11 terror attacks, it is important to look back and examine its continuing impact on our lives, particularly as residents of New Jersey, among the hardest-hit regions. Within the framework of academic argumentation, we will focus on media reactions to the event, including the Pulitzer-prizewinning New York Times series, “Portraits of Grief.” We will study several key documentaries, including “The Falling Man,” and “Boatlift:An Untold Tale of 9/11 Resilience.” In addition, we will examine music inspired by the incident, particularly “The Rising,” Bruce Springsteen’s 2002 critically-acclaimed album. Course#: FYW 102-02 |
Janet Mazur |
| 102-03 | People and Plants: Food, Medicine, Nature, & Wilderness
Although we live in a built environment of technology and concrete, humans rely on the natural world for the most basic of needs. As people, we interact with the natural world for food, medicine, beauty, and fulfillment. In this course, we will evaluate articles, visual media, and concepts that help us examine our relationship and dependence on plants and nature. We will discuss questions like: where does our food come from and is the system sustainable? How do big businesses capitalize on humans’ dependence on plants? What is the human fascination with wilderness? Why are we so drawn to and reliant on nature? How does our current environmental crisis jeopardize our ability to rely on nature? Course#: FYW 103-03 |
Lindsay Knapp |
| 102-04 | Creativity & Rhetoric
In this section, we will explore a variety of different artistic outlets, such as fiction, poetry, film, visual art, television, and music, to see how creative minds use their medium for rhetorical purposes. Rather than simply entertain us, these artists ask us to consider complex, sometimes controversial ideas while reflecting on the world around us. For example, the novel `Fight Club’ explores issues of masculinity, consumerism, materialism, sexuality, psychology, and cultism, while The Who’s `Quadrophenia” acts as a musical sibling to Green Day’s `American Idiot,’ as both concept albums house statements about disenfranchised, rebellious male youths. We will examine materialism, conformity, causes of violence, sexuality, and racism, through the works of many iconic figures–some of whom may include Langston Hughes, Chuck Palahniuk, Kurt Vonnegut, Flannery O’Connor, Pink Floyd, Ben Folds, Paul Simon, Childish Gambino, Joni Mitchell, Darren Aronofsky, Spike Lee, Norman Lear, and Alan Ball–to see how these creative minds express social commentary through stimulating (and sometimes entertaining) forms. Course#: FYW 102-04 |
Jordan Blum |
| 102-05 | Race to Justice
This course examines the country's current climate around race. Students will engage in weekly class discussions based upon personal experiences, timely readings, films, documentaries, and visual media highlighting current events related to issues of social injustice and systemic racism. Rhetorical claim approaches such as definition, causal, and evaluative, as a way of fostering an understanding of and writing about these pertinent issues will be utilized in this course. Students will gain a greater understanding of the elements of an expository essay by engaging in the writing process both independently and collaboratively, as well as participating in peer editing and one-on-one conferencing with the instructor. Due to the sensitive topics discussed and explored, this course will be taught with two sections of the class running concurrently." Course#: FYW 102-05 |
Stefanie Marchetti |
| 102-06 | How to Disappear: Escape and Reinvention
We all like to think it's easy to start over, but what challenges do we face when we decide to escape? Some choose to lose themselves in the forest. Some decide to shed their identities and create new ones. And for some, a simple weekend outing is enough to "escape" their lives. In this section, we will examine this topic in literature, film, and television: Is it possible to ever fully escape our past and change who we are? Course#: FYW 102-06 |
Randy Schmidt |
| 102-07 | Masculinity and American Culture
What does it mean to be a “man” of the 21st century? How do we define manliness in our world? How have the definitions of masculinity changed from previous centuries? What roles do class, race, sexuality, and religion play in the creation of masculine identity? In this course, we will address these questions and the complex issue of masculine identity through our study of writings by Ernest Hemingway, and films such as Superbad and Moonlight, and selected readings on college hookups and hazing and what each has to say about masculinity. Course#: FYW 102-07 |
Shawn Layton |
| 102-08 | Reading and Writing Pop Culture
This course will focus on a semiotic approach to analyzing several different aspects of popular culture. Through the study of academic articles, television shows, and film, the course will allow students to examine how a collective, cultural consciousness is developed by the ways we read and interact with media and pop culture. The class will include a variety of semiotic analyses applied to individual units including Advertising, Television, Print Media/News, Film, and Social Media. Each unit will include readings that analyze and evaluate individual mediums of popular culture, and students will then apply these ideas to real-life examples. Each unit will culminate with a student essay that synthesizes academic analysis with the everyday examples that surround us in the 21st century. Course#: FYW 102-08 |
Paige Costantino |
| 102-09 | Social Justice and Privilege
In “Social Justice and Privilege,” students will explore narratives of silenced voices, particularly those who have been marginalized for reasons including race, socioeconomic status, gender, sexuality, and other aspects in today’s world. Some questions that will be considered are: Why are these voices silenced, and what makes these groups marginalized? Who has the power to silence voices, and how do we give voice back to the marginalized? Focusing on the binary of voice/silence, we will explore these issues as played out in a documentary, Young Adult novels, and current events. Course#: FYW 102-09 |
Kristen Luettchau |
| 102-10 | Race to Justice
This course examines the country's current climate around race. Students will engage in weekly class discussions based upon personal experiences, timely readings, films, documentaries, and visual media highlighting current events related to issues of social injustice and systemic racism. Rhetorical claim approaches such as definition, causal, and evaluative, as a way of fostering an understanding of and writing about these pertinent issues will be utilized in this course. Students will gain a greater understanding of the elements of an expository essay by engaging in the writing process both independently and collaboratively, as well as participating in peer editing and one-on-one conferencing with the instructor. Due to the sensitive topics discussed and explored, this course will be taught with two sections of the class running concurrently." Course#: FYW 102-10 |
Asmaa Kabel |
| 102-11 | Higher Education Behind the Wall
Disadvantaged groups remain the focus of conversation in higher education. Often these groups are identified within certain social constructs including race and ethnicity, gender and sexual orientation, and socioeconomic status. However, incarceration has been another topic of conversation. In this course, we will use selected articles and various media forms to discuss opportunities for postsecondary education for incarcerated individuals with a focus on access. We will review arguments around providing access to college study for students incarcerated or “behind the wall.” Course#: FYW 102-11 |
Amanda Simpson |
| 102-12 | Scarcities And Indulgences The course will engage students in modern political issues such as income disparities, food availability, and corporate responsibilities. Students will explore journalistic and academic writings and learn to become thoughtful consumers of modern political discourse. Course#: FYW 102-12 |
Melanie Frances |
| 102-13 | Head To Pen: Refine your career goals on the road to creating a better YOU”
When the head, heart, mind and soul intertwine, what will you allow your pen to capture? During this course, students will learn how to write from their “inner core,” the place where truth dwells. These sessions will be designed for students to view writing through the lens of their personal development and self-discovery process. We will focus on choice of major, intention on choosing that major and the undeclared major. These interactive class discussions and mapping exercises will encourage students to create a life full of endless possibilities. Along the journey, the students will gain essential concepts on writing with intention, trusting the process and the art of pausing and thinking. Gain valuable tips through thought-provoking articles, journaling, podcasts, and YouTube videos. Course#: FYW 102-13 |
Yolanda Whidbee |
| 102-14 | Dissemination of Disinformation
In this course, we will be actively analyzing misinformation and disinformation surrounding current hot-button issues. As such, we will be working towards information literacy skills while developing our ability to critically read, analyze, and discuss the topic(s) at hand. Course#: FYW 102-14 |
Michael Boldizar |
| 102-15 | Misfits and Monsters: How We Demonize People With Mental Illness
The course will examine how the stigmatization of people with mental illness is created through literary and media forms. Students will explore how mental illness is portrayed through various representations of it in literature, poetry, film and in our modern political discourse (op-eds). By discussing how authors, filmmakers and politicians portray people with mental illness, the course seeks to dispel many of the belief systems that create and maintain their demonization. Among the questions to be considered: What is the quality of life for people who are directly or indirectly affected by the portrayals that are created to instill fear and shunning of people with mental illnesses? Why do we find these characters so compelling? Why and how are the authors and filmmakers so successful in creating terror and fright out of characters who appear to be mentally ill? Do we perpetuate fear and apathy with regard to people with mental illness? Course#: FYW 102-15 |
Mary Bonard |
| 102-16 | Poor students @ Elite Institutions
This course will examine the many details that are not acknowledged regarding a poor student attending elite institutions. Students will observe how wealth and class play a vital role in student success. Special attention will be given to how the lack of wealth constricts the performance of a poor student at an elite institution. Course#: FYW 102-16 |
Todd McCrary |
| 102-17 | Cinderella: Timeless or Tired?
Cinderella is arguably the most well-known and retold fairy tale. Hundreds of versions exist, transcending time and culture. The story continues to be remixed and reimagined, offering endless possibilities for interpretation. This course explores and evaluates the pervasive influence of the Cinderella story in literature and pop culture. We will trace its evolution, from oral tradition to print, media, and stage, and analyze stories through various lenses. Through critical reading of traditional and modern versions, film analysis, classroom discussions, academic readings, and in-class exercises, we will examine how this story has shaped our personal perceptions, delve into its social implications, and investigate why it remains timeless and continues to be remade. Course#: FYW 102-17 |
Ellen Farr |
| 102-18 | Once Upon an Adaptation: Retellings of Fairy Tales and Myths
Fairy tales and myths are extremely prevalent in pop culture. Think about it: we see these classic stories in movies, TV shows, books, poetry, music videos, theatrical performances, and advertisements today. In "Once Upon an Adaptation: Retellings of Fairy Tales and Myths" students will engage in the act of comparative analysis to study how a variety of global fairy tales and myths have been shaped via the oral tradition as well as in writing, animations, live action films, and theatrical performances to convey ideological beliefs. Course#: FYW 102-18 |
Robyn Gold |
| 102-19 | Reboots & Remakes
From Star Wars to Spider-Man, sitcoms to dramas, "reboots" abound in modern pop culture, but the concept is nothing new. What makes a successful retelling of an old story? Does past influence enhance or stifle creativity? Using historical and contemporary examples, we will analyze and evaluate how stories are reimagined and why. We will learn to distinguish between adaptations, archetypes, rewrites, sequels, and other means of influence; we will consider artistic, commercial, and cultural issues related to "rebooting." Students will have the opportunity to propose a fresh reimagining of a creative work of their choice, arguing their rationale for doing so. Course#: FYW 102-19 |
Nathaniel Drenner |
| 102-20 | The Start-Up of You!
The Start-up of you is a transformational course specifically designed with Gen Z's in mind! The classroom approach is a fusing of an academic class, masterclass, mini MBA, coaching session and a space for community and personal reflection. The course strengthens writing, critical thinking skills, explores the power of "words" and using your voice through writing to influence your field of discipline, specific contexts, and/or domains students are passionate about. Students learn how to transfer writing beyond FYW 102 to be an agent of change! The class empowers students through writing, investigation, design thinking, exploring growth mindset, and being reflective within the context of community. Course#: FYW 102-20 |
Tammie Brown |
