Content
The following 395H seminars are 3 credit hour classes. They are open to all University Honors Program students who have junior or senior class standing. Enrollment in these courses will follow regular University enrollment procedures and occur on a first-come, first-served basis in accordance with your assigned priority registration times.
Each course may meet additional degree requirements, such as ACE or college required hours. Specifics are noted with each course. If you think a course may be eligible to count towards hours in your major, please check with your major advisor about this possibility.
If this is your final semester and you have an unmet ACE need AND you have difficulties getting into a course section with that ACE, contact Dr. Tamy Burnett ASAP.
Previous semesters' courses
Spring 2027
UHON 395H (Art)
Beloved Companion: The Animal in Art and Society
Prof. Sandra Williams
TR 3:30-4:45pm | Richards
ACE TBA
Images of animals have evolved in parallel with depictions of humans, forming a visual dialogue that predates written language and chronicles the enduring relationship between humans and nonhuman animals. From Paleolithic cave paintings to Renaissance allegories, nonhuman animals have served as primary canvases for the projection and negotiation of human identity. The transition of pets from functional working roles to cherished family members reflects significant shifts in human psychology, the human-nature relationship, and the development of modern empathy. This close interspecies attachment broadens empathy, shifting perceptions of animals from utilitarian resources to sentient beings with emotional lives. The cultivation of daily care and emotional responsibility for pets bridges the psychological gap between humans and the natural world, fostering a more compassionate stewardship essential for planetary health.
UHON 395H (English; Interdisciplinary)
Community Impact Lab: Literacy Across Nebraska
Prof. Tamy Burnett
TR 2:00-3:15pm | Knoll
No ACE
In this unique UHON 395H, we will go beyond the classroom by working directly with a community partner on a semester-long service learning project. In cooperation with our nonprofit course partner, Linked2Literacy, we will explore the values and roles of literacy by engaging in a process of inquiry, application, and reflection. We will explore a wide variety of types of literacy important to a healthy society, such as financial, digital, environmental, and civic literacy. As a service learning course, we will engage deeply with our nonprofit partner, and our work in class will enhance students' learning and understanding of this topic, as well as advance the work of Linked2Literacy.
UHON 395H (English)
Race and Redemption in the Literature of the Civil War and Reconstruction
Prof. Ken Price
TR 11:00-12:15 | Knoll
ACE 9 | CAS CDR Humanities or CDR Human Diversity | Counts as 300-level course for English majors/minors; Fulfills recent Lit or concentration requirement for English majors
For American culture, the crisis of Civil War was crucial and remains a matter of current tension as monuments, meanings, and memory are debated anew. Class discussions will explore how various writers analyzed and contributed to fundamental transformations in U.S. society. We will examine how these writers reacted to the implications of a war that (for the North) changed as the war progressed— Abraham Lincoln’s crucial shift in emphasis from the preservation of the union to the liberation of three million people. As Lincoln noted, Southerners and Northerners “prayed to the same God” and invoked the same founding fathers, yet ultimately understood the meanings of freedom and democracy quite differently.
UHON 395H (Law; Interdisciplinary)
Space Odyssey: Surveying the Past, Present, and Future of Outer Space
Prof. Elsbeth Magilton
TR 12:30-1:45 | Knoll
ACE 8
Human exploration, and the monetization of outer space uses and resources, is a rapidly developing area. From SpaceX to Rocket Labs, Russia to China, and NASA to JAXA, the use and defense of space is a dynamic and complicated field of study. This course will explore three core phases of human space use: the history of space activities in the United States and abroad, the more recent growth of commercial space activities and the ethics of how we regulate them, and the future challenges on the horizon. Through this journey students will consider the ethics of modern space operations and how humans interact with, alter, and experience the space environment – in Earth orbit and beyond.
UHON 395H (Political Science)
To Boldly Go: International Relations and Science Fiction
Prof. Tyler White
TR 11:00-12:15pm | Knoll
ACE 9
This course uses science fiction—especially Star Trek—to explore international politics. Pairing classic episodes and films with key theories of international relations (IR), students will examine how societies navigate conflict, cooperation, identity, and visions of the future. Through readings, discussions, simulations, and film analysis, the course introduces IR fundamentals while using science fiction as an allegory to challenge conventional perspectives and to imagine new possibilities in our world and beyond.
UHON 395H (Political Science)
The Vietnam War: What Is It Good For?
Prof. Don Beahm
MWF 10:30-11:20am │ Knoll
ACE 6 │ CAS CDR Social Science
This course is an examination of the U.S. involvement politically, militarily, and historically in the Vietnam War. We will explore various conceptions of how the U.S. became engaged in the war, how politics played a major role in what foreign policy objectives were being pursued through the war, why the military fought the war with the strategies they developed, and what the historic and political ramifications were for the U.S., Vietnam, and the world in the aftermath of the war. Attention will be paid to how the lives of Americans were affected by the war.
