New Courses

Spring 2025   

Monday Wednesday Friday 1:00 p.m. - 1:50 p.m. 

Prerequisite: ANSOC.105 or FS.100

This course introduces the sociology of food, examining how food practices shape and are shaped by social structures, institutions, and cultural norms. Students will explore the relationships between food, identity, power, and inequality in both local and global contexts. Key topics include the social organization of food production and consumption, food and identity, food access, the role of food in social movements, and the impacts of globalization on food systems. The course also delves into how food practices reflect broader issues related to class, ethnicity, and gender. Through a combination of academic readings, films, class discussions, and a final project, students will develop a sociological lens to analyze the social world of food.

3 Credits. Fulfills an elective requirement for Anthropology+Sociology Major/Minor or Food Studies Minor. For more information, contact Jason Patch, jpatch@rwu.edu.

Summer 2025 

This course immerses students in the concept of the Blue Economy, which focuses on sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods, and ocean ecosystem health. Through field visits and hands-on learning, students will study diverse marine ecosystems, aquaculture operations, and conservation efforts in Bali, Indonesia. This program offers exposure to tropical marine biodiversity, sustainable aquaculture systems (shrimp, milkfish, lobster, and seaweed farming), and local environmental management practices. Students will engage in practical research, examining the interplay between marine resource management and economic development, contributing to solutions for sustainability challenges in coastal ecosystems.  

4 Credits. Fulfills an elective requirement for the B.S. and minor in Marine Biology, Aquaculture and Aquarium Science, and Environmental Science. For more information, contact Hisham Abdelrahman, habdelrahman@rwu.edu.

Spring 2025 

Thursday 8:00 a.m. - 10:50 a.m.

Prerequisite: Junior or Senior classification

What makes our planet habitable? This seminar invites you to explore the processes that shape life-sustaining environments—from the origins of the universe to today’s most pressing environmental challenges. Together, we’ll dive into topics like geology, climate, ecosystems, environmental justice, and policy, discovering how they all connect.

3 credits.  Fulfills the requirement for a Senior Seminar.  For more information, contact Jessica Thomas, jthomas@rwu.edu.

Spring 2025

Tues. Thurs. 12:30 p.m. - 1:50 p.m.

West African Dance introduces students to traditional dances and rhythms from the Mande culture. Throughout the semester, students will deeply explore the language, two traditional rhythms, songs, dances, and engage in cultural customs. The course primarily relies on embodied learning methods, including discussion, community engagement, and hands-on practice.

3 credits.  Fulfills the Global Perspectives requirement for general education and is an elective for the Dance major and minor.  For more information, contact Assitan Coulibaly, acoulibaly@rwu.edu.

Spring 2025

Mon. Wed. Fri. 10:00 a.m. - 10:50 a.m.

Prerequisite: HIST 100 and HIST 283

Explore the birth of the literature genre in Latin America. Magical Realism was a coping response to the amount of violence and instability in Latin American countries. This was an outlet of making the impossible possible. 

3 credits.  Fulfills a requirement in the B.A. and minor in History and the minor in Latin American and Latino Studies.  For more information, contact Autumn Quezada-Grant, aquezada-grant@rwu.edu.

Spring 2025

Tues. Fri. 2:00 p.m. - 3:20 p.m.

Taste the traditions of ancient Greece and Rome, and explore classical cuisine and the meals that sustained these civilizations. Students will examine ancient cooking techniques and ingredients, drawing from sources like Apicius, the famed Roman cookbook author, and archaeological finds from Pompeii and the British Museum. From Roman moretum — a cheese and herb spread with garlic, cilantro, and olive oil — to Greek maza, a barley-based dish often seasoned with honey or cheese, students will gain insights into the daily diets of ancients like the Caesars and Greek philosophers. The course offers a unique perspective on how ancient and modern tastes intersect, deepening our connection to the past through food.

3 credits.  For more information, contact Anthony Hollingsworth, ahollingsworth@rwu.edu.

Spring 2025

Monday 2:00 p.m. - 4:50 p.m.

Prerequisite/co-requisite: PSYCH 211 or EDU 202 or permission of the instructor. 

How can we make the lives of children and families better?  In this 3-credit seminar-style course, students will analyze public policies and programs related to children and families while engaging in a semester-long community-driven service project.   Topics will include alleviating poverty and food insecurity, childcare, school readiness, children’s health, and more.  Readings, class discussions, and assignments will focus on the connections between students’ experiences in the community, the science of child development, and public policy related to children and families.   In addition to our regular class meetings, students in this class will volunteer each week in a community setting, one that focuses on facets of child development.

3 credits. Fulfills an elective in the Psychology major or minor. For more information, contact Laura Turner, lturner@rwu.edu.

Spring 2025

Monday 2:00 p.m. - 5:50 p.m. or Tuesday 2:00 p.m. - 5:50 p.m.

An introduction to the design and creation of jewelry, wearable art and light metal sculpture. Combining technical skills with creative and conceptual thinking, students will fabricate works that explore their individual voice. We will examine, converse about and explore contemporary practice, historic precedents, innovative design practices, materials (new and old) and new technologies. This course challenges conceptual thinking, broadens design knowledge, and presents new means of creating through making, artist visits, demonstrations and lectures.

3 credits. Fulfills an elective requirement for the B.A., B.F.A. and minor in Visual Arts.  For more information, contact Elizabeth Duffy, eduffy@rwu.edu.

Spring 2025

Wednesday 9:00 a.m. - 12:50 p.m.

Prerequisite: Any VARTS foundations class

Experiment with new materials and new media. This course brings together technical skills development with deep engagements with textile processes, materials, techniques and  histories. Topics may include construction of  basic garments, weaving, textile construction, print, dye, collage, paper making, sewing, quilting, felting, knitting, embellishment, sculpture, installation, and performative approaches. We will consider political, cultural, and formal themes and issues that impact the field of fiber.

3 credits. Fulfills an elective requirement for the B.A., B.F.A. and minor in Visual Arts.  For more information, contact Elizabeth Duffy, eduffy@rwu.edu.

Spring 2025

Tuesday 2:00 p.m. -4:50 p.m.

Prerequisite: Any VARTS foundations class

Advance the boundaries of painting, printing and photography in your art practice. How can you begin to find visual expression of ideas that is not confined by the lines of media but also explores the textural and technical potentials of painting and the graphic and accidental opportunities of printmaking? Bring your ideas, all materials in your store and be ready to explore your artwork more personally and more deeply in this course. 

3 credits. Fulfills an elective requirement for the B.A., B.F.A. and minor in Visual Arts. For more information, contact Anne Tait, atait@rwu.edu.