Fall 2013 Courses

Registration for these courses will take place on iSIS and will begin at 9:00am on the first day of Fall classes, Tuesday, September 3, 2013. Registration will continue for open courses until 5:00pm on Tuesday, September 17, 2013. This page was last updated 5/20/13.

Please check back for call numbers, locations, and other updates, as we are still awaiting some approvals for courses to count toward program, major, or distribution credit. We will also post preliminary syllabi as we receive them from instructors.

View courses for:

• Courses open to all students
• Courses open only to designated students

Courses Open to All Students

EXP-0003-F: Performance Art, Podcasts, and Slams: Storytelling in Theory and Practice
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Tuesday, 6:30-9:00PM

Just as the slam scene infused life into poetry, such new forms as the widely heard Moth Radio Hour, the proliferation of podcasts, and the emergence of story slams have moved the timeless art of storytelling from a cultural backwater into the strong currents of the 21st century.

This course will engage students in various genres of the art of storytelling. We will examine and learn to tell stories while exploring our memory's life experience for material. Short reading on the neurology and social significance of oral narrative support our understanding of our innate human trait. We will focus on the skills, process and practice of oral story. Students will learn to create and tell their own personal stories as well as their original versions of a fable, tall tales, myths or legends as they engage in the living art of storytelling. This course offers an enjoyable way to improve public speaking skills, learn powerful prewriting strategies, and begin to practice the art of live performance.

Norah Dooley (A '76) is a master teacher and children's author. Norah has been a featured storyteller at conferences, festivals, elementary schools, and libraries throughout the country. She is the co-founder of massmouth.org and the Greater Boston story slam series, now in its fourth year. Her StoriesLive curriculum developed from her 20 years as a performing artist and educator has been embraced by a dozen high schools in the past 3 years. Norah has successfully adapted her engaging, interactive lessons for business, therapeutic uses, and entertainment purposes for storytellers of all ages.

EXP-0004-F: Personal Identity in Contemporary Jewish Life
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Tuesday, 6:30-9:00PM

How clear is my religious identity and personal understanding of God? How well do I know the Greater Boston Jewish community? By presenting models of religious engagement (the synagogue, independent prayer groups, alternative worship styles, the Jewish denominations), this course examines the relationship between the individual and community. Through discussion, dialogue and experiential learning, students focus on their own religious identities and consider how they may-or may not-fit into the broader context of the institutionalized religious community. Finally, this course will explore how these religious organizations and structures can help a person understand, develop, and support that identity.

This course is supported by the Goldner Family Fund, in conjunction with Judaic Studies and the Experimental College.

This course has been approved by the Judaic Studies program to count toward either major or minor credit.

Alan Teperow is the Executive Director of the Synagogue and Council of Masschusetts and the Managing Director of the Massachusetts Board of Rabbis. Alan graduated with a Masters of Arts from Brandeis University's Hornstein Program in Jewish Community Service, and he has written and spoken extensively on the synagogue, pluralism, and Jewish identity. Alan has worked or consulted in a variety of educational settings including synagogues, Jewish camps, Israel trips, youth groups, and summer programs, and has over 40 years of experience in the field.

EXP-0005-F: Harry Potter and Christian Thought
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Thursday, 6:30-9:00PM

Is Dumbledore a God-figure or is he Merlin re-created in our times? Or is he neither, because the Harry Potter books are just a children's series intended for entertainment rather than allusion to other literary works? Is the reading of theological archetypes into Rowling's series present or imposed upon the text? To start thinking about these questions, our class is going to look at a whole range of ideas from Christian theology that together create the underpinnings of what Christians think about God, and we will then look at them alongside the Harry Potter books. The central goal of this course is to ask whether the Harry Potter books espouse a Christian theological worldview, and if so, to what extent. Our study may show that they do. It may reveal that they do not. Regardless of the outcome, it will be our task to probe this question in detail.

In order to accomplish this goal of the class, we will look at voices from all sides of the debate, from Christians opposed to the books to those in favor of them to atheists who believe the series has nothing whatsoever to do with religion, never mind Christianity specifically. We will analyze their arguments before undertaking our own study of the theology of the books. We will discuss topics such as how an all-good, all-knowing, and all-powerful God can allow evil (theodicy), how sin relates to salvation (soteriology), and the significance of sacrifice. We will read theological sources on such topics while reading—or for many of us, re-reading—the Harry Potter books, so that we may bring these topics into direct discussion with Rowling's work. By the end of the course, we should be able to better analyze to what end Rowling uses topics from Christian theology throughout her writing.

Danielle Tumminio is ordained by the Episcopal Church and has been interviewed by international media outlets, including CNN, The Today Show in Australia, and Connect with Mark Kelly. She appeared on the television show Sister Wives as a commentator on religion and popular culture. She is the author of God and Harry Potter at Yale, writes regularly for The Guardian, The Huffington Post, and CNN.com, and is a licensed life and career coach. She holds a Ph.D. in practical theology from Boston University.

EXP-0019-F: Research for Success: Using the Library for Thesis and Capstone Projects
0.5 credit, Pass/Fail Grading
Wednesday, 5:00-7:30 PM

Are you thinking about writing an honors thesis your senior year? Would you like to get a head start or immediate help understanding the research process? Would you enjoy sharing what you learn as you become an expert in the subject area you are investigating? This course will introduce you to the major research tools and techniques at an intermediate-to-advanced level specific to your subject area. You will also develop a working bibliography of resources, as well as a plan for continuing your research.

Note: This is an 8-week course. The first meeting will be on 9/11.

Regina Raboin is the Science Reference Librarian and Reference Microforms/Current Periodicals Coordinator at Tisch Library.

Laurie Sabol is the Social Science Reference Librarian and Coordinator of Library Instruction at Tisch Library.

EXP-0022-F: Life on Earth and Beyond
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Monday, 6:30-9:00PM

What are origins of life on Earth? Is there life beyond Earth? What are the societal implications of detecting life outside of Earth? The course will cover diverse topics in biology, geology, astronomy, and chemistry, which comprise the field of astrobiology. We will start by studying the origins and evolution of life on Earth and will use this framework for how to search for life in our Solar System and beyond. Due to the wide range of scientific topics covered, the course will suitable for non-science majors as well as those in the sciences. A key component of the course will examine science as a "way of knowing" by looking at the scientific process, how scientific theories are developed and refuted, and discuss the burden of proof for extraordinary claims.

Sarah Rugheimer is an advanced Ph.D. student in Astronomy and Astrophysics at Harvard University. Her field of research is in the field of astrobiology, particularly in the detectability of biosignatures (chemical species which indicate life such as ozone or oxygen in the presence of methane) in the atmospheres of extrasolar planets (planets around stars other than our Sun).

EXP-0027-F: Human/Animal Studies
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Thursday, 6:00-8:30PM

How do humans and animals interact? How do we define and identify the ranges of complex human and animal relationships? An examination of these connections throughout history, literature, entertainment, medicine, and religion reveals that humans and animals have been interacting with each other for thousands of years. We hunt them, eat them, wear them, conduct tests on them, idolize them, work them, and study them. Some species appear as lovable characters in books, team mascots, cultural idols, and as children's toys while others we fear and even demonize. Included on the animal-human relationship spectrum is the presence of domesticated animals in our homes.Cats, dogs, and other species have joined our human families and are cared for with the same love and financial support that many people provide for their children. In this class we will examine the consistent presence and use of animals by humans throughout history, the advantages and disadvantages that these connections provide for both humans and animals, and many of the ethical dilemmas surrounding these dynamics.

Laura Cummings (A '00 and DVM '05) is an emergency veterinarian in a twenty-four hour critical care hospital. Laura has been intrigued with the ethical issues in veterinary medicine and surrounding topics for over a decade, and she has researched the topic thoroughly. Laura has worked in a zoo, a primate research facility, a kill-shelter, and a wildlife refuge to make an effort to understand the ethical controversies in these widely diverse environments.

EXP-0029-F: Forensic Behavioral Analysis
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Thursday, 6:00-8:30PM

Why do certain individuals perpetrate violent, predatory crimes? Can we predict with any certainty who will commit crimes of violence? This course is designed to allow students to examine the development of individual criminality and criminal careers, social group processes in criminal activity, varieties of criminal behavior including violent, sexual and predatory crime, mental disorders, psychopathy and crime, victims and victimization, offender profiling, and forensic criminal investigation. The course will also explore the contribution of psychology to our contemporary understanding of crime and the criminal justice processes through the application of psychological theory in investigation of crime and the efficacy of the criminal justice system.

Tom Nolan is a Senior Policy and Program Analyst at the Department of Homeland Security, Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties in Washington, DC. Tom was an Associate Professor of Criminal Justice at Boston University from 2004-2011 and in an earlier career was a Boston police officer for 27 years. He earned both a master's degree and a doctorate from Boston University.

EXP-0030-F: Neuroscience and Criminal Justice
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Tuesday, 6:30-9:00PM

What did the eyewitness really see? Is the defendant lying? Was he legally insane? Will he pose a danger to the community if released?

Every day, in courtrooms across the country, lawyers, judges, and juries confront these important questions. Exciting new developments in neuroscience and cognitive psychology offer the tantalizing possibility of scientifically-based answers. But they also create a risk of misleading juries and judges.

This course is a cross-disciplinary inquiry into the intersection of neuroscience and the criminal justice system. For each topic, we'll cover core concepts in molecular and cognitive neuroscience. We'll use that knowledge to inform our interpretation of relevant case law. Through this unique perspective, we will look at the uses and abuses of neuroscience in the courtroom and debate the complex policy choices that courts and legislatures will have to make in the years ahead.

Megan Krench is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Using Drosophila (fruit flies), she conducts molecular genetic research into a fatal neurogenerative disorder called Huntington's disease.

Joel Fleming is an associate at Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr. His practice primarily involves securities litigation on behalf of public companies and life insurers. He holds a J.D. from Harvard Law School.

EXP-0032-F: Personal Career Development
0.5 credit, Pass/Fail Grading
Monday, 6:00-7:30PM

Based on an examination of several major career development theories, student will apply key concepts to their own career development process, focusing on thoughtful self-reflection, major and career exploration, and the value of internships as a tool in the exploration and decision-making process. Through reading assignments, analysis, and writing, students will discover more about themselves and the world of work. This course is ideally suited to sophomores who are beginning the career planning and decision-making process.

Donna Esposito is the Senior Associate Director of the Tufts Career Center, overseeing all career counseling and programming for undergraduate and graduate students in the School of Arts and Sciences and the School of Engineering. With more than 25 years of experience in career development, she has worked for Tufts for 18 years and previously held positions at Harvard and Stonehill Colleges. She has a Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology, with a specialization in College Student Personnel Services/College Student Development from the University of California at Santa Barbara.

EXP-0033-F: Campus Community Emergency Response Team
0.5 credit, Pass/Fail Grading
Wednesday, 1:00-3:00 PM

The C-CERT course provides students with the skills required by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to serve as a Community Emergency Response Team member within their campus community. Completion of this training will provide the student with the basic skills they may need in the aftermath of a disaster or other emergency and the opportunity to assist the Tufts Community and the Department of Public Safety by joining Tufts C-CERT. By working together, C-CERT members can assist in saving lives and protecting property using the skills gained in this course. This course meets FEMA and Emergency Management Institute (EMI) requirements for CERT training.

Mark Roche is a member of the Tufts University Police Department and a certified CERT Instructor. He also serves as a CERT Team Leader and Operations Captain with a local Emergency Management agency. He is currently an instructor for the Experimental College teaching the Rape Aggression Defense for Women and Advanced Rape Aggression Defense courses.

EXP-0034-F: RAD for Men
0.5 credit, Pass/Fail Grading
Tuesday, 5:00-7:00 PM

This course provides responsible information for men regarding self defense. Multiple self defense options and tactics will be presented to students, as each encountered situation will be handled in a unique matter. Not only will this class act as a basic self defense physical training program for men, but also a method of distributing crime prevention information to reduce their risk of exposure to violence. Hands-on simulations during the course will allow students to apply their training to real-life situations.

Luis Santamaria is a member of the Tufts University Police Department. He has been teaching RAD for women over the last four years and RAD for men over the last two years. He has attended the certification for both programs and successfully completed the requirements. He holds an M.A. in Criminal Justice Administration from Western New England University.

EXP-0035-AF: Rape Aggression Defense
0.5 credit, Pass/Fail Grading
Wednesday, 4:30-6:30 PM

The Rape Aggression Defense System (RAD) is based on the philosophy of choices: "to develop and enhance the OPTIONS of self defense, so that they become more viable considerations for the woman who is attacked." While it is completely natural to resist, unless a woman is trained to do so the resistance she attempts may be futile. This course will try to strengthen innate survival techniques by making more options available. Preparation through education and training is usually the best way to survive an assault situation. Issues that will be addressed include awareness and prevention, sexual assault definitions, patterns of encounter, the decision to resist, basic principles of self-defense, and the defensive mindset. This course will end with realistic simulation training.

Mark Roche and Kerri Dervishian are members of the Tufts University Police Department and certified RAD instructors.

EXP-0035-BF: Rape Aggression Defense
0.5 credit, Pass/Fail Grading
Thursday, 4:30-6:30 PM

The Rape Aggression Defense System (RAD) is based on the philosophy of choices: "to develop and enhance the OPTIONS of self defense, so that they become more viable considerations for the woman who is attacked." While it is completely natural to resist, unless a woman is trained to do so the resistance she attempts may be futile. This course will try to strengthen innate survival techniques by making more options available. Preparation through education and training is usually the best way to survive an assault situation. Issues that will be addressed include awareness and prevention, sexual assault definitions, patterns of encounter, the decision to resist, basic principles of self-defense, and the defensive mindset. This course will end with realistic simulation training.

Darren Weisse is a member of the Tufts University Police Department and a certified RAD instructor.

EXP-0036-F: Advanced Rape Aggression Defense
0.5 credit, Pass/Fail Grading
Monday, 4:45-6:45PM

Advanced Rape Aggression Defense (Advanced RAD) is a continuation of the Basic program and answers a lot of the "what if" questions. The program will begin with a review of the basic program followed by simulation. This course is more hands on than the basic program and includes topics such as defending against multiple attackers and defense against weapons such as knives and guns. Throughout the course, the instructors will conduct realistic simulation training using impact targets and facilitate discussions on sexual assault, crime prevention and personal protection.

Mark Roche and Kerri Dervishian are members of the Tufts University Police Department and certified RAD instructors.

EXP-0037-F: Imagining the City
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Wednesday, 6:00-8:30PM

What role does the city play in our cultural imagination? How has the view of the city morphed over time? This course will map the different ways that people have imagined cities via artistic media, creating urban imaginaries of the past, of unfamiliar presents, and of the (near) future. We will investigate versions of Rome, Berlin, London, New York, Lagos, and fantastical counter-factual cities as presented in novels, art, film, philosophy, history, and autobiography. Students will develop their skills in textual analysis, visual analysis, critical thinking, and ways of integrating the three, in order to learn how to pursue comparative projects in the humanities.

Christina Svendsen is a Lecturer in Comparative Literature at Harvard University, and she received a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature from Harvard University. Her book manuscript, Stone, Steel, Glass: Constructions of Time in European Modernity, is currently under review at Fordham Press. In this book, she investigates how architectural models in modernist European literature reveal changing perceptions of time, and one's situation in time, in modernity.

EXP-0038-F: Cultural Politics: The Case of Professional Wrestling
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Monday, 6:30-9:00PM

How does wrestling reflect and respond to the cultural politics of the United States, Mexico, and other parts of the world? This course is an exploration into the versatility of professional wrestling as societal mediator. Following a brief overview on the history and development of wrestling, the course will be divided into a series of thematic units. Topics such as gender/sexuality, race/ethnicity, violence, and national identity will be explored using material drawn from a wide spectrum of academic disciplines (including cultural studies, psychology, performance studies, and anthropology). Students will learn to think critically about the construction of popular culture, specifically in regards to performance and cultural identity.

Patrick Bradley is a Ph.D. candidate in Drama and Dance at Tufts University, where he is currently writing his dissertation on the distortion of reality and performance in professional wrestling. He has presented on the topic of professional wrestling and performance at numerous academic conferences, including the Comparative Drama Conference, the Association for Theatre in Higher Education, the Popular Culture Association, and forthcoming at Performance Studies International.

EXP-0039-F: Imagining Children: A History of Childhood Studies
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Monday, 6:00-8:30PM

What does it mean to be an American child? How has being young in America changed over time and how have social constructions rooted in popular ideas about childhood and youth influenced shifts in how we understand the nation's youngest citizens? Although childhood is a biologically defined period of life, childhood and adolescence are also shaped by socially constructed definitions that shift over time.

In this seminar, students will consider the ways in which "The Child" has been defined and redefined in America across the twentieth century. Organized thematically, this seminar invites students to explore a broad range of scholarship within the overlapping fields that make up Childhood Studies. Beginning at the turn of the century with Progressive reformers, this class will take an interdisciplinary approach to the study of children's culture. We will look at images, objects, films, and television, as well as historical texts and sociological studies, to discuss what the American child has meant throughout our recent past. We will attempt to understand both the child's experience as well as the adult's, paying close attention to the affects of class, race, gender, and sexuality.

Maude Gates is a current Ph.D. candidate in American Studies at Harvard University, with a research focus in childhood studies, immigration, and American citizenship. Her dissertation examines the children's exodus of Operation Pedro Pan and the Cuban Children's Refugee Program in the 1960s to illuminate American ideals that were central to the Cold War Project.

EXP-0042-F: The Road to Equality: Same-Sex Marriage and the Law
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Tuesday, 6:30-9:00PM

What were the legal strategies and the common law and constitutional principles that enabled legal advocates of LGBTQ rights to move from a resounding defeat in 1986 in the Supreme Court to ultimate victory in several state and federal cases recognizing LGBTQ rights, including marriage equality? We will examine not only the major cases that mark this road from outlaws to formal legal equality in less than 30 years, but we will also take a look at the non-LGBTQ cases that seemed to point the way for the LGBTQ advocates who sought to use the law to effect societal change. In each seminar session, one key case will be the subject of extended Socratic discussion and analysis. At the conclusion of the course, the students in teams of four, will present mock oral appellate argument in a major LGBTQ case. No prior experience in legal analysis is required.

Richard Yurko is an experienced civil litigator and the founding shareholder of Yurko, Salvesen & Remz, P.C., a business litigation boutique firm in Boston. He has written extensively on a variety of legal topics and has taught at Boston University School of Law. He is on the Board and currently serves as the Treasurer of Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders (GLAD), the leading legal advocacy group for LGBTQ rights in New England. He holds a J.D. from Harvard Law School.

EXP-0043-F: A History of United States Health Policy
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Tuesday, 6:30-9:00PM

This course places contemporary health policy controversies into historical perspective. Drawing upon case studies from the era of the American Revolution to the 2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, weekly seminars highlight some of the major health-related issues that have drawn federal attention and intervention over the course of more than two centuries: medical care access; containing epidemics; rights to birth control; public health at the nation's borders, in cities and in workplaces; the institutionalization of scientific research and medical care; food and drug safety; and the definition and control of citizens' vices. Class readings and discussions focus on how social values and historical circumstance have influenced the creation and shape of a variety of American health policies throughout the nation's history.

Jessica Adler was a features reporter for the Paterson (NJ) Herald News and has written for the New York Times, the Christian Science Monitor, and the Village Voice. She has since decided to delve more deeply into issues she'd covered by returning to graduate school to study History. A Ph.D. candidate at Columbia University, she is currently completing her dissertation, "A 'Solemn Obligation': Soldiers, Veterans, and Health Policy, 1917-1924,” which shows how medical care came to be battled over and granted as a political right for a distinct group of U.S. citizens. Her study uncovers the roots of the U.S. veterans' hospital system, and looks more broadly at the development of an American welfare state that provides privileges to selected beneficiaries.

EXP-0045-F: Gender, Culture, and Human Rights
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Tuesday, 6:00-8:30PM

How are international human rights standards gendered? What is the difference between women's human rights and men's human rights? What role does culture play in our conception of human rights? This course examines past and current human rights issues that focus on gender, including changing conceptions of human rights. We will examine gendered human rights in contexts including human trafficking, property rights, economics and physical security, as well as several country-specific case studies (South Africa, Sweden, and the United States). Students in this class will develop a solid foundation in international issues grounded in gendered human rights concerns.

Jenna DiCocco is an attorney, teacher, and human rights advocate. She is a Visiting Scholar at Northeastern University's Women's Gender and Sexuality Studies Program where she is researching the gendered application of certain criminal law mitigation factors in spousal murder cases. She also writes and publishes the weekly Human Rights RoundUp, a news aggregation blog highlighting current global human rights issues.

EXP-0046-F: Environmental Action: Shifting from Saying to Doing
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Wednesday, 6:00-8:30 PM

This course is designed for students who want a refreshing way to examine the story behind the environmental concerns in the news. Through the lens of psychology, social marketing, and critical thinking, we will examine the current environmental issues impacting our world. As students become environmentally literate they will also be given tools to examine their and their peers' personal behavior and learn how to create behavior change. This course aims to empower students to find their voice as they become leaders in environmental action; learning practical skills in communication, social marketing campaigns, and event planning. Activities during the semester will include critical thinking research examining current environmental issues, personal challenges, campus social marketing group projects, and social psychology. By the end of the semester students will leave this class with a new perspective on themselves, society and the environment.

This course has been approved to count toward the Environmental Studies major. Learn more about which track on the Environmental Studies site.

Tina Woolston joined the Office of Sustainability in September of 2007 as the project coordinator focusing on outreach and education. She created the Eco-Ambassador program for staff and faculty and re-envisioned the existing Eco-Representative program as student-led. Prior to coming to Tufts, Tina directed the sustainability program at Earthwatch Institute and co-founded her town's climate action committee. She was one of the first 1,000 people to be trained by Al Gore to give the Inconvenient Truth slideshow as part of The Climate Reality Project. She holds a B.S. and M.S. in Animal Science and Ruminant Nutrition from Cornell University.

Maria Petrova is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Center for International Environment and Resource Policy of the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. Maria assesses U.S. climate and renewable energy policies, seeking to understand the human dimensions of technology introduction and its role for sustainability. Her current work focuses on understanding the success factors of community acceptance of wind energy facilities. Maria completed her Ph.D. in Environmental Science at Oregon State University, where she also earned certificates in Marine Resource Management and Global Information Systems.

EXP-0051-F: Narrative and Documentary Practice
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Friday, 9:30AM-12:00PM; Wednesday, 5:00-7:30PM

As we venture into an era where digitally delivered media and 24-hour news cycles bombard us with a deluge of facts, minutiae, perspective, and hyperbole, the role of narrative storytelling is increasingly useful as a means to present information that is immersive, substantive and accessible. Narrative storytelling elaborates beyond the reporting of facts; it can take something specific – an experience, a voice, a place – and use it to illuminate a larger societal issue.

This course serves as a foundation for preparing students, first, to seek out and understand important global, national and local issues and, then, to explain them in a compelling way using visual, written and oral narrative techniques. It will equip students with a broad practical and theoretical understanding of how to tell stories about the world in which we live – doing so through a variety of immersive exercises, technical workshops, class discussions, guest lectures, and group and individual critiques.

NOTE: This course is High Demand. You must attend the first class meeting to be considered for enrollment.

NOTE: Each student enrolled in this course is responsible for a materials fee of $100 (paid to the Experimental College before your third class). This fee helps defray such costs associated with making prints as ink, paper, and upkeep. If any individual accepted into the course feels that this fee represents a hardship, he or she should immediately contact Howard Woolf at howard.woolf@tufts.edu, x73384.

This course will count toward the Mass Communications and Media Studies Minor as a Media Practice elective and toward the Film Studies Minor as a Film Practice elective.

Samuel James is the Program Coordinator for the Program for Narrative and Documentary Practice, housed in the Tufts University Institute for Global Leadership.

EXP-0052-CF: Public Relations and Marketing: Unraveling the Spin
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Wednesday, 6:00-8:30PM

What is the formula for mind control? Take a little psychology, a pinch of sociology, a smidge of anthropology, some cognitive analysis, and add a healthy dash of strategic media manipulation. Give a good stir. It's all the ingredients you need to decide a Presidential election, repair the reputation of BP after the Gulf oil spill, make more people buy Hondas than Kias, or choose Coke over Pepsi.

Primarily using case studies, this course will look at the history of public relations and marketing in the US and how it evolved in parallel with our media environment. We will explore how the mechanics of this global mega industry create strategies that influence complex world affairs or simply the toothpaste we use.

Guest speakers from the industry will share their thoughts. Students will work in teams on a final project to solve a PR/marketing challenge by creating their own ads, messages and strategic plan.

Gail Bambrick is Senior Marketing Communications Writer at Tufts. She uses the written word and strategic planning to focus Tufts' identity and messaging in online, print and web communications. She has also been Director of Publications and Associate Director of Communications and Public Relations for the university as well as the News Media and Public Relations Manager for the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. She holds a Ph.D. from Tufts University in American Literature.

EXP-0053-CF: Producing Films for Social Change
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Tuesday and Thursday, 6:00-8:30PM

Are you ready for an intensive, hands-on course that allows you to produce your own news documentaries? Do you care about social issues such as poverty, education, the environment, health care, human rights, gender and race? Are you interested in covering community issues and using documentary film to help inform the public? This course will address the powerful role of video journalism as an advocacy tool to shape perceptions of policy and society. Students will learn the principles and techniques of documentary and TV news magazine journalism including directing, camera work, and editing. Special emphasis will be placed on the role of media ethics, First Amendment principles, and current news events. This course will also emphasize citizenship, active community leadership, and creative approaches to civic engagement. Class enrollment will be limited to sixteen students.

This course represents a partnership between the Tisch College of Citizenship and Public Service and the Communications and Media Studies program.

It will count toward the Mass Communications and Media Studies Minor as a Media Practice elective and toward the Film Studies Minor as a Film Practice elective.

Dacia Antunes has produced two award-winning documentary films and is committed to teaching documentary film and video production as a way for people to have a voice and document the untold stories in our world. She is currently the head of the Media Technology department at Cambridge Rindge & Latin School. She holds a M.F.A. from Boston University in Film Production.

EXP-0054-F: "Reel" Violence: Movies and Media in Post-Vietnam America
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Wednesday, 6:00-8:30PM

When does entertainment end and social awareness begin? How do contemporary social and political trends influence censorship policies, shape our media, and transform our ideas of what constitutes ‘entertainment'?

Now more than ever, the debate rages on about media violence and its impact on American society—particularly American youth. This course offers students the opportunity to engage with ongoing national (and international) discussions about film violence.

We will begin our exploration with films from the late 1960s, and the course brings us through to the ultra-violence of present-day Hollywood films (and their often even more explicit international counterparts). Students will study the subject from multiple perspectives, allowing students to consider not simply the aesthetic issues of violence in the media, but social, cognitive, and race and gender-related questions as well.

Garvan Giltinan has written material for graphic novels, including the Eagle Award-nominated Sancho: Carnivale of Curiosities and Sancho Twisted Tales of Terror. He is the author of two novellas , one novel, and has published over forty-five film reviews in the online-edited journals Nights and Weekends, Exploitation Retrospect, and The Harrow. Over the past decade he developed a series of courses in Film Studies and Screenwriting for Wootton High School in Rockville, Maryland (where he has taught since 2004).

EXP-0055-F: Music and Animation
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Thursday, 6:30-9:00 PM

What role does music play in American animation? How do technological advances and economics affect the relationship between the animated screen and the American audience? How are shifting American cultural ideas reflected in cartoons?

Students in this course will explore various film music styles that have influenced composers throughout the 20th and 21st centuries as well as how music makes a film communicate its ideas and emotions. Cartoons will be examined in order to better understand the socio-historic background attached to them. Students will be given the opportunity to create their own soundtrack. Through this course, students will learn the connections between music, media, and American culture and society.

This course will count toward the Mass Communications and Media Studies minor as a Humanities and the Arts elective.

Lisa Scoggin completed her Ph.D. in Musicology in December 2007 at Boston University. She has presented papers on various aspects of film and television music at several conferences, and she has published articles in Notes and through Salem Press. She is currently writing a book on the music of the cartoon show Animaniacs (Pendragon Press, forthcoming).

EXP-0057-F: Zombies, Freaks, and Pink Flamingos: The Phenomenon of Cult Movies
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Tuesday, 6:30-9:00PM

What are cult films? What is their appeal? Who makes up their audience? We will explore answers to these questions by looking at key works of camp, cult, and exploitation film from the 1930s to the present and discuss them within their historical and theoretical contexts. We will consider them in relation to what Max Horkheimer and Theodor Adorno call "the culture industry"—i.e mainstream cultural production, as represented by the Hollywood studio system—and think about the extent to which they are politically radical texts. Do these films address issues of race, class, gender, and sexuality in ways that mainstream films can't? Are they simply objects of cultural "trash," and, if so, why do they continue to attract cult followings?

This course will count toward the Mass Communications and Media Studies minor as a Humanities and the Arts elective.

Ian Todd is a Ph.D. candidate in the English Department at Tufts University, where his research interests include twentieth-century literature, film studies, modernism and postmodernism, and critical theory. He has published academic articles on Evelyn Waugh's Hollywood writings; homosexuality, Brokeback Mountain and the Hollywood Western; and gender and sexuality in the films of Alfred Hitchcock.

EXP-0058-CF: New Media Practices: Participatory Culture in Communication, Entertainment, and Society
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Monday, 6:30-9:00PM

TBA

This course will count toward the Mass Communications and Media Studies Minor as a Media Practice elective.

TBA

EXP-0062-F: Doing Middle Eastern Geography
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Monday, 6:00-8:30PM

Where is the Middle East? What is the Middle East? What holds it together as a region? Is it the desert? Is it oil? Is it conflict? Is it language or religion? Is there a "Middle East"? This course is a sustained inquiry into the use of geographical concept, the Middle East region. We will ask what actually doing Middle Eastern geography reveals about this region. We will explore enduring topics like aridity, pastoralism, and agriculture; water energy, and industrial infrastructure; and boundries, territories, and environmental conflict/diplomacy. There will be a strong emphasis on the nexus between the natural and built environment. We will ask questions about the pace and scale of urbanization in the Middle East. In doing so, we will consider themes of modernization, nation building, heritage conservation, regionalization, and the more contemporary question of environmental sustainability.

Mohamad A. Chakaki has been a development-practitioner and planner on environment and community development projects in the Northeast U.S. and the Arab Middle East. He is currently a Ph.D. student at MIT's School of Architecture and Planning. His research focuses on emerging urban landscapes in the Persian Gulf region. He holds a master's degree in Environmental Management from Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, with a focus on urban ecology and environmental design.

EXP-0066-F: Critical Perspectives on the Modern Global Slave Trade
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Thursday, 6:00-8:30PM

How can we define and identify slavery as it exists in our world today? What practical steps can be taken to combat such a troubling and pervasive social problem? Human trafficking is the largest international criminal industry in the world after illegal drugs and arms trafficking, and it is the fastest growing. There are an estimated 27 million people suffering slave-like conditions today. This course will critically examine modern day slavery and the contemporary abolition movement as a global human rights concern. We will explore how slavery ranging from forced or bonded labor, commercial sexual expoitation, to domestic servitude affects women, men, and children across the globe. The course will raise consciousness about human trafficking and commission enrolled students to educate others, actively seeking to address the pandemic exploitation and enslavement of humans. It will concentrate on the ways in which trafficking is manifested in hierarchical social relations and offer methods for deconstructing this inequality as it cuts across the categories of gender, ability, class, sexual identity, race, and age.

Leah Knowles focused her master's research on the issue of human trafficking. She recently transitioned from this research to her current position as a faculty assistant at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. In this role, Leah supplemented her theoretical knowledge of feminist pedagogical theory with practical experience in the course preparation and management.

EXP-0068-F: Immigration Law: Past, Present and Future
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Wednesday, 6:30-9:00PM

Comprehensive Immigration Reform (CIR) has been thrust to the top of the Obama Administration's political agenda for his second term. Republicans and Democrats are both eager to finally fix our badly broken immigration system. Using CIR as its focal point, this class will introduce students to America's immigration laws. From the early days of Ellis Island to our current problems with illegal immigration, we will explore how the laws have changed over time and why comprehensive reform is so badly needed. The course will allow students to view how the current system operates, through real case examples and open the floor for debate on the pros and cons of the various reform proposals being presented today.

Julio Vazquez (A '01) is the Senior Associate at the law firm of Perez Gardini LL.C. in Boston, MA. He has worked in immigration law in the Boston area for close to 10 years, representing clients before the Immigration Count as well as in state District Courts. He received a J.D. from Suffolk University Law School in 2004.

EXP-0074-F: Famous Trials in U.S. History
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Monday, 6:00-8:30PM

Famous trials act as a mirror held up to society, in which is reflected the social mores and cultural trends of the time. We can learn much about society, about the tacit assumptions and underlying realities that shaped and were reflected in the trials, through both conscious as well as unconscious testimony. Trials provide us with invaluable unconscious testimony: we can glean what issues are in contention; what things are tacitly agreed upon and therefore not verbalized; what aspects of culture are in flux. Famous trials in particular are useful for the purposes of analyzing an array of historical forces: legal, literary, sociological, psychological, cultural, economic, political, and an almost-infinite number of other potential connections and dependencies. This course does not assume a background in history, law, or any related discipline—you need only have a sense of intellectual curiosity and interest.

Ian C. Pilarczyk is the founding Director of the Executive LL.M. in International Business Law at Boston University School of Law. Prior to that, he served as the founding Associate Director of the LL.M. in International Law at the Fletcher School. He received his J.D. from Boston University, and his LL.M. and Doctor of Civil Law degrees from McGill University.

EXP-0076-F: Accused: The Gap Between Law and Justice
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Monday, 6:00-8:30PM

The law is all around us, but what about justice? What is justice? What kind of justice are we entitled to?

Together we will explore the concepts, framework, systems and practices which comprise what justice is, with an emphasis on the perspective of the wrongfully accused. Through the use of drama, film, case studies, media analysis and other sources, we will consider the factors which shape our personal views of what justice is, decide how much these views really matter, and examine the many factors that determine how systems of justice impact society on various levels.

Sonja Spears (J '86) is a retired elected judge with 12 years of service in the New Orleans judiciary. Despite her unblemished legal career, Sonja recently endured two years of intense scrutiny as the target of a federal criminal investigation. She was ultimately cleared without any charges being filed and the office in charge of her prosecution is currently facing questions of prosecutorial misconduct. Sonja received her J.D. from Tulane Law School.

EXP-0084-F: The Business of Sports: A Study of the NBA
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Monday, 6:00-8:30PM

Professional sports has evolved from the "mom and pop" environment of 30 years ago, to that of a sophisticated, high risk, high profile, "big business." Current events in pro sports are documented in virtually every major newspaper and periodical in the country. In our daily lives it's hard to avoid exposure to sports in some form or another, yet many off-field issues are confusing to the casual (and maybe not so casual) fan. This course is intended to make sense out of the confusion by providing an overview of the pro sports industry as a business. Subjects for inquiry will include the development of the National Basketball Association from the late 1960s through the present. Assigned readings will be principally from original N.B.A. operational documents, and will provide a fundamental understanding of the concepts, theories, and terms related to general sports business/legal issues, and the N.B.A. in particular.

Jan Volk currently serves as a consultant to a number of N.B.A. teams. After earning a J.D. from Columbia in 1971, he went to work for the Boston Celtics and, in 1984, was named General Manager, a position he held until May 1997. As G.M., he was responsible for the acquisition, contractual negotiation, re-negotiation, and ultimate signing of all Celtics players.

EXP-0088-F: Understanding The Stock Market: History, Structure, and Impact
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Wednesday, 6:30-9:00PM

Over the past three decades, the U.S. stock market has become completely entwined into our economic, political and social landscape. How Wall Street works, why it does certain things, what it represents (especially over the last five years) and how it has entrenched itself into the daily fabric of American life are the cornerstones of this course. With the assistance of technological advancements and the instant dissemination of financial data, the "stockmarketing of America" has moved into the many corners of our globalized society. This course addresses this omnipresence from the simplest stock market mechanisms to the far-reaching effects it has on our daily lives.

Timothy Stratford has had twenty years of experience as a financial services professional at brokerage houses such as Shearson Lehman Brothers and Smith Barney Harris and Upham.

EXP-0089-F: Organizations, Leadership, and the "Player-Coach"
1.0 credit, Pass/Fail Grading
Wednesday, 6:30-9:00PM

What will organizations demand of the Tufts graduates who join them tomorrow? What skills, attributes and dispositions will be required to effectively operate within them, to lead them? To borrow a sports metaphor, it's always been understood that key players rise to the top. However, going forward, being a key player won't be enough to earn the right to lead. Players who can coach others will draw the focus in the organization of tomorrow.

Students will learn how organizations are moving away from the traditional hierarchical model. With organizations depending on its members to dynamically respond to the world they serve, students will explore how the advent of social media and new communications processes affect the leadership roles within organizations. This course will draw from the social sciences, business, modern organization literature, philosophy, communications, linguistics, current events, and the evolving norms of coaching practice.

William Carroll (F '87) recently left his position as CEO of Lasermax Roll Systems Group. He is now fully engaged in the practice of executive coaching, chairing a practice of a CEO peer advisory group, as well as authoring and instructing. He recently delivered a talk entitled: "Achieving a Shared Understanding, the ultimate challenge for the international organization leader" at the Fletcher School Master's in Institute for Business in the Global Context.

EXP-0091-F: EPIIC: Middle East and North Africa
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
Tuesday and Thursday, 3:00-5:30PM

This course will provide a comprehensive, critical look at an extensive and volatile region, extending from Morocco to Iran, from Algiers to Sana'a. We will consider the implications of the fact that, while home to about 380 million people or about 6% of the world's population, MENA possesses 60% of the world's oil reserves and 45% of the world's natural gas reserves.

Special attention will be paid to the demographics of MENA, a highly diverse arena of intense geopolitical rivalry, one marked by inequality of resources and income where approximately 23 percent of its population lives on less than $2 a day, nearly one-fifth is between the ages of 15 and 24, and the unemployment rate of 25% far exceeds that of any other region in the world.

With these contexts in mind, we will attempt to understand the socio-economic and political challenges now facing the region including its strategic importance to Israel and the United States; the 2011 civil uprisings that originated in North Africa; the impact of information and communication technology on these actions; the demise of sclerotic authoritarian despots and their regimes; challenged elections; brutal, anarchic militia rule, political duress and severe repression; increasing threats to human and civil rights; and the highly uncertain and vulnerable status of women.

In pursuing our inquiry, we will engage experts from such organizations as the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, the International Crisis Group, the United States Institute for Peace, the Hague Institute for Global Justice, the Palestine Research Center, and the Jerusalem Center for International Affairs.

This course is High Demand. Interested students MUST attend the first class meeting.

Sherman Teichman is Director of the Institute for Global Leadership at Tufts, and the founding director of EPIIC (Education for Public Inquiry and International Citizenship). He holds an M.A. from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.

EXP-0091-AF: Inquiry Teaching Group
0.5 credit, Letter Grading
ARR

Inquiry is a global-issues simulation for high school students, and forms an integral part of the year's activities for EPIIC. Students in this course will help design and enact a simulation on the Middle East and North Africa, to be held during the Spring 2014 semester. In the process, students will mentor a high school delegation and prepare them for this simulation — helping them understand all the materials and issues involved.

Heather Barry is the Associate Director of the Institute for Global Leadership at Tufts.

Steven Cohen teaches in the Education Department at Tufts.

EXP-0096-F: Auditing for Breadth
0.5-1.0 credit, Pass/Fail Grading
ARR

This program is intended to provide students with an opportunity to broaden their education by attending courses in which they might not otherwise enroll. With the approval of the instructors in question, students may elect to audit any three full-credit university courses (or the equivalent) during their four years as an undergraduate. (One course credit is awarded upon completion of the three audits.) Please note: graduating seniors may audit two courses and receive one-half credit.

Robyn Gittleman is the Director of the Experimental College.

EXP-0097-BF: Quidnunc: The MOOC Revolution?
1.0 credit, Pass/Fail Grading
ARR

Have you ever heard of one single course enrolling 160,000 students from 190 countries? Welcome to the brave new world of higher education transformed into giant-sized online courses.

In a little more than a year, MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) have exploded onto the scene. To some, they have the potential to sweep away the university as we know it. To others, they smack of the latest, overhyped web fad.

This class, a quidnunc, or group independent study, will be a chance for students to come together and explore the MOOC phenomenon, firsthand.

Each member of the group will research the wide array of MOOCs available and then enroll in one of his or her own choosing. The class as a whole will meet weekly to share and assess experiences. Key figures in the online education movement will also be contacted and interviewed. And together, the members of the class will write a report on their engagement with MOOCs.

If you are interested in this Quidnunc or would like more information, please email kumar.ramanathan@tufts.edu

EXP-0099-CF: Media Internships
1.0 credit, Pass/Fail Grading
ARR

Supervised internship in communications and mass media. Student can intern at a newspaper, magazine, book publishing company, film production company, television or radio station, advertising or public relations firm, or other media outlet approved by instructor. Students must intern a minimum of 150 hours during the semester (usually 12-16 hours a week), fulfill written assignments, and meet regularly with the instructor. Registration by consent of instructor. Student should consult with instructor prior to researching and applying for internships, and must submit an Internship Agreement signed by the internship site supervisor prior to being allowed to register.

TBA

EXP-0101-CF: Advanced Filmmaking
0.5-1.0 credit, Letter Grading
ARR

Based on a directed study model, this course provides the means by which students who have completed EXP-0056-CS: Making Movies – or who are able to demonstrate equivalent competence – can continue their training as filmmakers. Students who initially qualify will present a business plan for their project and, if accepted, will receive credit, access to TuftsFilmWorks' production and editing equipment, and a supervised context within which to work. In return, they agree to watch a negotiated number of source films, keep a Producer's Log, and write a final assessment, taking into account both the process they went through to produce their film and their reaction to the film once it is done.

Please note: Enrollment is by consent only. For information on eligibility and registration, contact Howard Woolf, howard.woolf@tufts.edu, x73384.

Advanced Filmmaking is supported by the generosity of Lisa and Bruce Cohen (J'86 and A'83, respectively).

This course will count toward the Mass Communications and Media Studies Minor as a Media Practice elective and toward the Film Studies Minor as a Film Practice elective.

Howard Woolf is Associate Director of the Experimental College, as well as Director of Media Technology. He is the founder of TuftsFilmWorks (the ExCollege's filmmaking center), co-chairs the Multimedia Arts interdisciplinary minor, and is advisor to TUTV.

EXP-0102-CF: Advanced Electronic and Digital Media
0.5-1.0 credit, Letter Grading
ARR

Based on a directed study model, this course provides the means by which students who are able to demonstrate an appropriate degree of competence can continue their training in the multimedia arts.

Please note: Enrollment is by consent only. For information on eligibility and registration, contact Howard Woolf, howard.woolf@tufts.edu, x73384.

This course will count toward Media Practice credit for the Multimedia Arts minor and for the Mass Communications and Media Studies minor.

Howard Woolf is Associate Director of the Experimental College, as well as Director of Media Technology. He is the founder of TuftsFilmWorks (the ExCollege's filmmaking center), co-chairs the Multimedia Arts interdisciplinary minor, and is advisor to TUTV.

EXP-0192-F: Independent Study
0.5-1.0 credit, Letter Grading
ARR

By arrangement only. For more information, come by the Experimental College office, 95 Talbot Avenue, or call x73384.

Robyn Gittleman is Director of the Experimental College and Associate Dean of Undergraduate Education.

EXP-0192-PF: Independent Study
0.5-1.0 credit, Pass/Fail Grading
ARR

By arrangement only. For more information, come by the Experimental College office, 95 Talbot Avenue, or call x73384.

Robyn Gittleman is Director of the Experimental College and Associate Dean of Undergraduate Education.

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Courses Open Only to Designated Students

EXP-0007-F: Writing Fellowship Seminar
1.0 credit, Pass/Fail Grading
Wednesday, 6:00-8:30PM

This course has been the required training for all new undergraduate Writing Fellows since 1999. Most universities of a comparable size and caliber of Tufts require a training course for peer writing tutors, but this ExCollege course is unique in that new tutors take the course during their first semester as tutors. After an initial orientation held before the semester begins, the course provides a theoretical framework, practical skills, and a support group for new tutors while they are learning how to become good tutors. The purpose of holding the class during instead of or before the first semester of tutoring is to reinforce the importance of self-reflection as a necessary part of any teaching practice, especially peer tutoring. The class, then, becomes a community of writers: peers supporting peers as writers and novice writing tutors. Hence, the title of "writing fellow" emphasizes the "fellowship" that is an essential and unique aspect of Tufts' Writing Fellows Program.

This course is open only to students in the Writing Fellows program.

Kristina Aikens received her Ph.D. in English from Tufts in 2008 and taught expository writing at Tufts for four years. She has taught classes in expository writing, creative non-fiction writing, and literature at various local colleges. At Tufts, she tutored both as a Graduate Writing Consultant and as a Graduate Writing Fellow. Kristina joined the Acacemic Resource Center in January 2010.

EXP-0090-AF: Teaching Explorations
1.5 credits, Pass/Fail Grading
ARR

This course is designed to facilitate undergraduate team-teaching for those leading first-semester seminars for incoming first-year students. Weekly group meetings will be held, in which student teachers will be exposed to a range of teaching techniques and theories, asked to articulate their course goals, and given a forum for discussing the unique problems that new teachers often encounter. Students will be required to keep journals, and reflect upon the concerns and questions that arise over the course of the semester.

Robyn Gittleman is Director of the Experimental College and Associate Dean of Undergraduate Education.

EXP-0090-BF: Teaching Perspectives
1.5 credits, Pass/Fail Grading
Monday, 12:00 - 1:15PM

Similar to the Explorations Seminar, this course supports students teaching a Perspectives course, all of whom will work under the umbrella topic of movies as both art and industry.

Howard Woolf, Associate Director of the Experimental College, coordinates the Perspectives program.

EXP-0090-TF: Teaching Assistant Workshop
1.0 credit, Letter Grading
ARR

This course is designed to assist the undergraduates who are teaching assistants for courses in the Experimental College.

Robyn Gittleman is Director of the Experimental College and Associate Dean of Undergraduate Education.

EXP-0190-BF: CMS Senior Colloquium
0.5 credit, Pass/Fail Grading
Wednesday, 12:00-12:50PM

All C.M.S. seniors thinking about completing a Senior Project must register for one of the two sections of the C.M.S. Senior Colloquium. The colloquium aims to help seniors develop their ideas, provides them with a forum for sharing resources and work strategies, and trains them in the scheduling and time management procedures necessary for successful completion of projects.

Please note: Registration for this course will be done in person with CMS Director Julie Dobrow. Come to her office at 95 Talbot Ave on Tuesday, Sept. 3, between 9:00 am and 2:00 pm.

Leslie Goldberg (J '84) is the founder of Blue Sun Communications, a corporate communications consulting firm. She holds a M.S. in Mass Communication from Boston University.

EXP-0190-CF: CMS Senior Colloquium
0.5 credit, Pass/Fail Grading
Thursday, 9:30-10:20AM

All C.M.S. seniors thinking about completing a Senior Project must register for one of the two sections of the C.M.S. Senior Colloquium. The colloquium aims to help seniors develop their ideas, provides them with a forum for sharing resources and work str

Please note: Registration for this course will be done in person with CMS Director Julie Dobrow. Come to her office at 95 Talbot Ave on Tuesday, Sept. 3, between 9:00 am and 2:00 pm.

Julie Dobrow is Director of the Communications and Media Studies and the Media and Public Service programs at Tufts. She holds a PhD in Communications from the Annenberg School at the University of Pennsylvania.

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