Sociology studies the social world and human social behavior. Sociologists use systematic methods, including survey research, statistical analysis of data, documents, and field research, to uncover social patterns and understand the way society works both on the level on individuals and in society as a whole. In a sociology class, students learn about social structure and institutions, social change, and the ways in which external social factors influence people’s lives. The study of sociology can help students enter a wide range of fields, such as investment banking, law, medicine, education, political activism, and the non-profit sector.
Sociology
- This course studies the social world and how it has evolved over time, as well as how individuals are influenced and structured by social interactions in small groups and by larger social forces. The course covers major sociological theories and research methods, and key concepts such as culture, socialization, social class, race/ethnicity, gender, technology, social inequality, and social change.
- This course examines the barriers to the completion of high school by urban high school students and presents the "mentor model" as one way to support and help students achieve in the school environment. Students taking this course will spend a minimum of 20 hours serving as a mentor to a student from a nearby high school. Prerequisite: Permission of department
- This is a problem-centered and task-oriented course that integrates the humanities and the theories and practices of science and social sciences into the leading public issues of technological society. By emphasizing the close connections between science and technology, social institutions, and cultural values, students will learn how social institutions directly affect technological development and professional careers. The course also analyzes today's "global village," the changing relations between East and West and the Third World, and worldwide development and environmental issues.
- This course surveys the long history of cross-racial and inter-ethnic interactions among immigrants, migrants, people of color and working people in the United States and the wider world from the era of mercantile capitalism in the sixteenth century to the present. By making inroads into the dynamic worlds that indigenous people, people of African and Latin American descent, European Americans, and Asian Americans made and remade, the course aims to reach across borders of all kinds, including national boundaries, to cultivate global, transnational and comparative perspectives on race and ethnicity. In particular, it places emphasis on relationships and conflicts between these diverse groups, especially how they were treated and defined in relation to each other. Broadly, this course is concerned with how these groups struggle to stake out their place in a highly unequal world.
- The effects of economic and social factors on socialization, status, and levels of achievement among Black men are analyzed. The impact of institutional racism and underachievement on urbanized populations is explored in terms of access, social status, and economic differentials.
- This course studies the varied experiences of Latinos in the United States of America. Through readings, lectures, discussions and fieldwork, students will become familiar with the group and its diverse components from North, Central and South America as well as the Caribbean, while covering representative nationalities such as Mexicans, Salvadorians, Cubans, Colombians, Ecuadorians, Puerto Ricans and Dominicans. The course will survey the history and evolution of Latinos at the same time that it explores issues of culture and identity. Other topics include family, race relations, religion, education, economic incorporation and political participation. Key issues of contemporary interest will also be explored, such as Latinos and immigration, and the impact they have on local, state and nationwide elective office.
- This course studies the peculiar characteristics of the Puerto Rican migration to the U.S. It analyzes the processes of assimilation and adaptation to the American society as opposed to the identity and preservation of Puerto Rican cultural values. The problems of education, housing, health services, family and community, employment, and economic development are given special attention as they relate to the unique experience of the Puerto Rican in the U.S.A.
- Current theories of socialization, cultural transformation, and poverty are assessed. Field visits to recognized agencies and institutions are arranged under supervision of the instructor. Prerequisite: SOC 100 or ANT 100
- This course analyzes the relationships between economic and social factors, and the delivery of health care services in urban communities. Attention is given to community needs related to HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, mortality rates, prevention, and education. Guest lecturers and workshops are presented. Prerequisite: SOC 100 or ANT 100
- A close relationship exists between the social problems and the values and structures regarded by society as normal and stable. In this course, students apply sociological principles, theory, methods, and research toward an understanding of social problems. Prerequisite: SOC 100
- This course examines the role of gender in society, with a focus on gender as a social construction and a system of inequality that shapes contemporary society and its institutions. Topics may include the relationship of biology and gender, gender and sexuality, feminist theory, the influence of gender on institutions such as the family, schools, workplace, media, politics, etc., gender and violence, and the intersection of gender, race and ethnicity, and class. Prerequisite: SOC 100
- This course examines the role of arts and culture in society, with an emphasis on the social meanings, interpretation and impact of art, arts institutions, and art worlds. The roles of the artist and art world will be considered in relation to race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, and social class. Questions of the politics, policy, and labor involved in arts and culture will be addressed. Prerequisite: Any 100-level social science course
- This course focuses on sociological approaches to the study of racial and ethnic relations and their impact on social life. The relations between racial and ethnic groups in the United States will be examined from a social-structural and social-Psychological perspective. This course will examine historical and contemporary constructions of identity, assimilation stratification and interaction between majority and minority groups.
Prerequisite: SOC 100 - This course studies the Puerto Rican family as the primary unit of Puerto Rican society, reflecting the patterns and dynamics of that society. It examines the variations in family structure that have evolved from the Taino, Spanish and African cultures. The historical and economic changes that have transformed Puerto Rican society are analyzed with emphasis on their effect on the family structure. The experience of migration and its impact on the Puerto Rican family are considered. Attention is given to the problems facing the family as the unit of migration. Prerequisite: SOC 100 or ANT 100.
- This course involves a sociological analysis of the modern city and the urban way of life. Among the topics discussed are: the growth and decline of urban neighborhoods; social forces responsible for the modern urban community; urban ecology; urban blight and shifts in the residential distribution of racial, ethnic, and income groups; plans and policies for urban development; and the future of the central city. Prerequisite: SOC 100
- This course examines the basic functions of the family in contemporary society. The social processes involved in courtship, marriage, parenthood, alternative family models, the roles of family members, and the relationship between the various models and the community will be examined. Prerequisite: SOC 100 or ANT 100
- The Black family in current urban/suburban settings and the effects of changing value systems, the single-parent family, crises in education, and economic stability are examined. Field visits to selected agencies and institutions are required. Prerequisite: SOC 100 or ANT 100
- Health intersects with every aspect of our daily lives as well as institutions and larger social structures. This course examines the social construction of health and medicine, with a focus on political, cultural, and economic forces that shape meaning of health, as well as medical institutions and other responses to illness. Topics may include sociological perspectives of health and illness; inequality produced through social factors including sex/gender, race/ethnicity, and socioeconomic status; medicalization and social control; issues related to an aging society; and the health care system. Prerequisite: SOC 100
- This Sociology Capstone will focus on special topics within the field and expertise of the instructor. It will provide a culminating experience for students by allowing them to explore a topic in-depth, engage in independent research, develop their analytic abilities and critical thinking skills, and apply concepts and theories to new cases. The capstone course will introduce students to the major theoretical perspectives, the basic research methodologies and research design issues, and the central analytical models in Sociology. Over the course of the semester, each student will engage in independent research that culminates in a research paper or project and a presentation to the class. Prerequisite: [ENG 100.5 or ENG 101] and SOC 100 and two (2) SOC major electives of which one (1) must be a 200-level course
