Courses

All the courses below were taught at LaGuardia Community College during the first phase of the CUNY Humanities Alliance. The graduate fellows, most of whom were experienced teachers already, worked with LaGuardia faculty and their peers to develop their syllabi for the following Humanities courses. General course descriptions listed are from the LaGuardia course catalogue for the semester(s) the courses were taught.

Art

HUA101 Introduction to Art

This course is designed to develop the students’ ability “to see,” while it examines the fundamental nature, meaning, and human- istic value of art. Attention will be given to an examination of the creative process and to the role of the spectator as an active participant in the understanding of art. Relevant readings will be discussed in relation to specific works of art. The function of basic compositional elements will be examined. Museum visits are required.

Patrick Tomaszewski
Spring 2019: Introduction to Art
Fall 2018: Introduction to Art
Spring 2018: Introduction to Art

Professor Jessica Boehman (Faculty Mentor)
Fall 2017: Introduction to Art

Communication

HUC101 Fundamentals of Speech Communication

This is a survey course that covers a broad understanding of the field of Communication Studies. Students will learn basic principles of communication: listening, verbal/nonverbal and group dynamics in interpersonal, group, public, and intercultural contexts. The First Year Seminar component of this course will help students transition to campus culture, develop a better understanding of learning processes and acquire the skills essential to the study and practice in a professional capacity.

Hansol Oh
Spring 2019: Fundamentals of Speech Communication
Fall 2018: Fundamentals of Speech Communication
Spring 2018: Fundamentals of Speech Communication

Professor Joni Schwartz (Faculty Mentor)
Fall 2017: Fundamentals of Speech Communication

HUC106 Public Speaking

DescriptionThis course is designed to provide the student with a critical understanding of, and increased skill in, formal public speaking. In addition to examining oral rhetoric theory, students learn and practice skills in topic selection, research, organization, delivery, and criticism of speeches.

Alison Walls
Spring 2019: Public Speaking
Fall 2018: Public Speaking
Spring 2018: Public Speaking: Ideas and Voices

English

ENG101 Composition I: An Introduction to Composition and Research

In this course students write coherent essays in varied academic formats, both in and out of class, responding to culturally diverse materials and using appropriate technology. Students focus on critical and analytical skills through reading and listening and study aspects of argumentation including formulating theses; researching and identifying sources; evaluating and documenting sources; and communicating persuasively across contexts, purposes, and media. Admission is based on college placement test scores. The course meets in four scheduled classroom hours per week.

Professor Demetrios Kapetanakos (Faculty Mentor)
Fall 2016 Syllabus for ENG 101

ENG102 Composition II: Writing Through Literature

This course extends and intensifies the work of Composition I, requiring students to write critically and analytically about culturally-diverse works of literature. Students are introduced to poetry, drama, and fiction, employing close-reading techniques and other methods of literary criticism. Writing assignments follow a variety of academic formats, including the critical research essay, using research methods and documentation procedures.

Francine Almash
Spring 2020: Writing through Literature
Fall 2019: Writing through Literature
Spring 2019: Writing through Literature

Mara Valderama
Fall II 2020-2021: Writing through Literature
Spring 2019: Writing through Literature

Kahdeidra Martin
Spring 2019: Writing through Literature
Fall 2018: Writing Through Literature
Spring 2018: Multilingual Voices

Mikey Rumore
Spring 2019: Writing through Literature
Fall 2018: Visualizing Identity
Spring 2018: Visualizing Identity

Rojo Robles Mejías
Spring 2018: Power Fuerza: Writing through Literature

Professor Jacqueline Jones (Faculty Mentor)
Fall 2017: Composition II: Writing Through Literature

J. Alex Polish
Spring 2018: Writing through Literature
Fall 2017: Write Now
Spring 2017: Breathing Through Writing

Makeba Lavan
Spring 2017: State of the Union

ENG103 Writing the Research Paper

Students write coherent essays in varied academic formats, by using appropriate library research and writing a staged, formal essay. Students learn how to choose an appropriate academic research topic, pose research questions, outline, organize and integrate source material into essays without plagiarizing. Students find and evaluate both print and online sources and practice note-taking, summarizing, paraphrasing, and quoting using in text citations and learn to create a Works Cited page.

Kitana Ananda (Postdoctoral Fellow)
Fall 2017: Writing the Research Paper

History

SSH102: Themes in American History Since 1865

This course will examine American history since 1865. Such topics as industrialization, labor unions, immigration, organization, political parties, reform movements, foreign policy, and the rise of the U.S. as the major force in the world will be covered in this course.

Emily Brooks
Spring 2017: U.S. History

Professor Karen Miller (Faculty Mentor)
Fall 2016: Syllabus for SSH 102

SSH151: Women and Gender in US History

This course is a survey of women’s history in the United States. It also examines the changing meanings of gender in American history. In other words, the course will explore women’s experiences at the same time that it will examine how ideas about femininity, masculinity, families, sexuality, sex, and other pertinent categories of identification have changed over time.

Emily Brooks
Spring 2018: History of New York City
Fall 2017: Women and Gender in U.S. History

ELL101 Introduction to Language

An introduction to the nature, structure and history of language, this course surveys the scientific study of language and answers the question of what it means to “know” a language. Areas covered include phonology, word structure, sentence structure, how language is acquired, how languages change through time, language in society and writing systems.

Oliver Sage
Spring 2020: Introduction to Language
Fall 2019: Introduction to Language
Spring 2019: Introduction to Language

Chaya Nove
Spring 2019: Introduction to Language
Fall 2018: Introduction to Language
Spring 2018: Introduction to Language

Inés Vañó García
Spring 2019: Introduction to Language
Fall 2018: Problematizing Language
Spring 2018: Introduction to Language

Professor Leigh Garrison-Fletcher (Faculty Mentor)
Fall 2017: Introduction to Language

Latin American Literature

ELS200 Latin American Literature I

This course deals with an introduction to Latin American literature and its relationship to the dynamics of social change. The course also traces the influence of European, North American, African and pre-Columbian elements on Latin American literacy movements. Topics include pre-Columbian literatures, colonization and exploration, the wars of independence and abolition. This class is entirely taught in Spanish.

Professor Ana Maria Hernandez (Faculty Mentor)
Fall 2016: Syllabus for ELS 200

ELA201 Latin American Literature II

Luis Henao Uribe
Spring 2018: Nuestra Tierra 2018
Fall 2017: Nuestra Tierra
Spring 2017: Literatura Latinoamericana del Siglo XX Y XXI

Rojo Robles Mejías
Fall 2017: Textualidades
Spring 2017: Textualidades

Philosophy

HUP102 Critical Thinking

The goal of this course is to help students become thoughtful and effective critical thinkers, applying the intellectual abilities and specialized reasoning skills to themselves and their society. Students will also learn to identify, evaluate, and solve problems on an individual and societal scale. They will gain self-awareness and a deeper knowledge of the ways in which they interact, change, and are changed by society in order to analyze their role as responsible citizens in a globalized world.

Davide Colasanto
Spring 2020: Critical Thinking
Fall 2019: Critical Thinking
Spring 2019: Critical Thinking

Jadele McPherson
Spring 2020: Critical Thinking
Fall 2019: Critical Thinking
Spring 2019: Critical Thinking

Jonathan Kwan
Spring 2019: Critical Thinking
Fall 2018: Critical Politics
Spring 2018: Critical Thinking: Think Democracy!

Jacob Sachs-Mishalanie
Spring 2019: Critical Thinking
Fall 2018: Making a Podcast
Spring 2018: Critical Thinking

Professor Cheri Carr (Faculty Mentor)
Fall 2017: Critical Thinking

Anton Kociolek
Fall 2017: Facts and Fictions
Spring 2017: Facts and Fictions

José Alfredo Menjivar
Spring 2017: (re)Envisioning How We See and Understand Ourselves and the World

Professor Emmanuel Nartey (Faculty Mentor)
Fall 2016: Syllabus for HUP 102

Psychology

SSY101 General Psychology

This course is an introduction to some of the major fields and theories in the science of psychology, covering a range of topics such as biological foundations, learning, cognition, emotion, perception, theories of personality, psychological disorders and their treatment and the research methods of psychology.

Arita Balaram
Spring 2019: General Psychology

Michael Rifino
Spring 2019: General Psychology

Deshonay Dozier
Spring 2017: Debates in Psychology

Professor Eduardo Vianna (Faculty Mentor)
Fall 2016: Syllabus for SSY 101

First Year Seminar

Michael Rifino
Spring 2020: First Year Seminar
Fall 2019: First Year Seminar

SSN280: Black Urban Psychology

This course introduces students to psychological theories and issues relating to blacks in America. Emphasizing the shift from rural to urban environments, it examines the impact of slavery and racism on blacks. With special reference to New York City, the course investigates the relationship between black personality and family, education, work, culture and mental health. There will be field trips to Harlem and to a community mental health center.

Deshonay Dozier
Spring 2018: Black Urban Psychology
Fall 2017: Black Urban Psychology

Sociology

SSS100 Introduction to Sociology

Tanzeem Ajmiri
Spring 2020: Introduction to Sociology
Fall 2019: Introduction to Sociology
Spring 2019: Introduction to Sociology

Lynne Turner
Spring 2020: Introduction to Sociology
Fall 2019: Introduction to Sociology
Spring 2019: Introduction to Sociology

Professor Alex Ward (Faculty Mentor)
Fall 2018: Introduction to Sociology

Past Courses Taught (2016-2020)