The following 298H seminars are 3 credit hour classes. ACE credit is noted by each course. 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, unless otherwise noted For example: if there is a study abroad component, you will need to apply through MyWorld.
Summer 2021
Environmental Studies
Science, Systems, Environment, & Sustainability: Global Sustainability through Local Impacts
Course description ►
| 8-week session, May 17-July 9 | ENVR 201, Section 401 | 11:00-1:30pm, Tu/Th |
| Knoll 257 | Profs. Hillary Mason & Prabhakar Shrestha | ACE 8; substitutes for UHON 298H requirement |
This course engages students in developing and facilitating experiential learning activities in local afterschool and summer programs. Activities will focus on sustainability and will take place in an outdoor setting. This course will prepare students to organize and participate in community engagement around environmental and sustainability-related issues. As part of this course, students will:
- Explain the concept of sustainability as a principle for linking the environmental, economic, and human dimensions of environmental challenges.
- Evaluate our individual roles as citizens, and the role of countries and governments in advancing sustainability.
- As a member of a team, use oral and written communication skills to effectively present an analysis of a local environmental challenge or dilemma.
Modern Languages
Searching for Freedom, Belonging and Hope: Lessons from Central Europe to the Heartland of America
Course description ►
| First 5-week session, June 7-July 9 | Section 501 | 9:30-12:30p, MWF |
| Knoll 257 | Dr. Hana Waisserova | ACE 9 |
Nebraska has a rich history of immigration from central Europe, and this seminar will draw comparisons between that location and the central US to identify similarities and lessons that can be learned from them. Citizens and immigrants in these two seemingly disparate regions of the world share much in common, and we will explore how a common search for freedom, belonging, and hope characterizes peoples’ experiences in both locations. This course promotes dialogue as the best way to support the values of democracy and respect for human rights. Students will:
- Engage in field trips in Nebraska to experience some of the cultures and issues discussed first-hand
- Examine the culture, politics, and institutions of Central Europe and the US Heartland, and learn through merging local and global perspectives
- Explore, share, and communicate current concerns with educated cultural empathy, and identify possible solutions to the pressing global issues
- Role play global leaders, thinkers, and courageous professionals to openly debate and share current critical issues in the US Heartland and the Heart of Europe.
Fall 2021
English/Interdisciplinary
Harry Potter and Social Activism
Course description ►
| No.: **** | Section 002 | 10:30-11:20am MWF |
| Knoll 257 | Tamy Burnett | ACE 2 & 5; CAS CDR C; Counts as 200-level credit for the English major/minor |
While our "muggle" world is thankfully lacking in unforgivable curses, fearsome dementors, and evil wizards, we do unfortunately frequently see or experience the darkest of dark arts—hatred, bigotry, fear—used to perpetuate systemic social inequalities. In this course, we will analyze the Harry Potter series for themes related to social activism and lessons for combating these dark forces, through the lens of literary analysis, studying similar historical social movements, and examining real-world activism grounded in fan culture. We will then learn about and practice communication skills throughout the semester by engaging in team-based social activism service-learning projects. Harry Potter fandom stands out among other popular fandoms for its focus on success with social activism centered around and inspired by the series. For example, the Harry Potter Alliance is a global fan activism community that offers significant examples of how one might turn enjoyment of a popular narrative into individual and/or collective action. Are you ready to stand against the darkness?
English/Interdisciplinary
Global Anti-Racism Movements from the Civil Rights Era to Now
Course description ►
| No.: **** | Section 003 | 12:30-1:45pm, Tu/Th |
| Knoll 257 | Dr. Ng’ang’a Muchiri | ACE 9; Fulfills multi-ethnic, African and African American Studies, Latino and Latin American Studies, or Native American Studies requirement for Ethnic Studies majors/minors (with a grade of C or higher); counts as 200-level credit for the English major/minor; Fulfills Ethnic Studies or Diversity/Global Awareness requirement for English majors |
Focusing on global anti-racism movements, this honors course investigates the extent to which anti-racism activism in one part of the world borrows from, and is informed by, similar resistance elsewhere. Students are invited to consider civil rights activism from the 60s onwards, in spaces as diverse as Chicago, the American South, Kenya, South Africa, and Tanzania. Aside from intellectual thought leaders such as James Baldwin, the course will also discuss the political philosophies of various African nationalists including Haile Selassie (Ethiopia), Steve Biko (South Africa), and Julius Nyerere (Tanzania). The last third of the course will consider how contemporary activism as manifested by Michelle Alexander, Ava DuVernay, Janae Bonsu, and Andrea Ritchie re-invents older practices of community organizing and political mobilizing.
Modern Languages/Interdisciplinary
Becoming American: How Immigrant Identities are Created and Re-Created
Course description ►
| No.: **** | Section 004 | 11:30-12:20pm, MWF |
| Knoll 257 | Prof. Alex Claussen | ACE 9 |
This interactive Honors seminar will allow students to reflect on the process, experience, and impact for immigrants “becoming American” and explore the tension that sometimes exists between embracing diversity and cultivating a shared American identity and culture. Using Lincoln and Nebraska as case studies, the class addresses a central global challenge: as people move across the world, how do their identities change – and how do they remain the same? Students will:
- Examine the inequities that exist for members of immigrant communities, and consider solutions that allow new Americans to contribute more meaningfully to community/economic vitality
- Study Lincoln’s past, present and future to better understand how these challenges arose, grapple with their implications for us today, evaluate current attempts to address them, and develop creative solutions for how we might solve them.
- Participate in experiential learning, including field trips in/around Lincoln, guest speakers, and other community engagement, while learning about internships and other work-based learning.