Topically, our courses cover issues central to our contemporary global society: questions of race class and gender; power and violence; cross-cultural constructions of masculinity and femininity; environmental injustice; global inequality; migration and identity; and advocacy and activism. Geographically, we specialize in the Caribbean, Latin America, and Latinos in the U.S.

Below you will find a list of our current or recent offerings. See the course catalog for descriptions and updated information.

  • 35-104 Introduction to Cultural Anthropology
    This course provides a critical understanding of the similarities and differences in cultures and peoples through time and space, and of the application of anthropological knowledge to contemporary global issues. Topics covered may include the history of anthropology; human evolution; ; gender; kinship; political organization; economies; race and social inequality; religion and spiritualities; language; ethnographic methods and ethics. Contributes to International Studies. (Each semester) (ScS) (SJ)
  • 35-234 Anthropology of Whiteness
    The study of whiteness begins in the early twentieth century when W.E.B. Du Bois asserts that White Americans benefit from the wages of whiteness. This course explores the White Trash School of Thought; Whiteness in Education; ethnographies of White Womanhood; White Abolitionists; African Diaspora Anthropology; and Critical Whiteness Studies. Contributes to Race and Ethnicity Studies/Concepts Course. Prerequisite: Anthropology 35-104 or permission of the instructor. (ScS)
  • 35-244 Race, Class and Gender in the Caribbean
    This course critically examines how the constructs of race, class and gender shape everyday life in the Caribbean. The course will cover history, human-environmental relations, the global circulations that continue to create the Caribbean (e.g. migration, tourism and development), spiritualities, language, music, and Carnival. Contributes to Feminist Studies, International Studies, Latin American and Border Studies, and Race and Ethnicity Studies/Group-Themed Course. Prerequisite: Anthropology 35-104, Feminist Studies 04-104, or permission of the instructor. (ScS) (SJ)
  • 35-274 Cultural Hrtg Crim Just Race Amer South
    This course will explore how predominantly White cities in the American South commemorate historical Black servitude and thus construct local notions of race. Through a survey of various cultural heritage projects (museums, monuments, history classes, and others) students will examine the relationship between racial ideology, place making, and identity. Contributes to Race and Ethnicity Studies/Group-Themed Course. Prerequisite: Anthropology 35-104 or permission of the instructor. (ScS)
  • 35-301 Selected Topics
    These are courses that fall out of our typical range of anthropology courses. Offered infrequently. May be repeated with change in content.
  • 35-334 Global Environmental Justice
    An exploration of global environmental issues from a perspective that foregrounds questions of social inequality (differences in socioeconomic status, race, gender, indigeneity, national identity, etc.). The course includes an overview of the U.S. environmental justice movement, a consideration of global inequality, and social theories of nature and culture. Topics addressed may include global climate change, consumerism, pollution and toxic substances, resource extraction, bio-diversity conservation, food production systems, natural disasters, and water scarcity. Contributes to Animal Studies, Environmental Studies, Feminist Studies, Health Studies, International Studies, and Race and Ethnicity Studies/Allied Course. Prerequisite: Anthropology 35-104, Environmental Studies 49-104, or Feminist Studies 04-104. (ScS) (SJ)
  • 35-424 Theory & Method in Cultural Anthropology
    This course introduces students to different kinds of assumptions and questions that have informed anthropological inquiry in the past, and that currently orient research and writing in cultural anthropology. The course simultaneously explores the methods for gathering data that are necessarily intertwined with these assumptions and questions. Students will practice employing different methods (including participant observation and interviewing techniques) and applying different theoretical approaches. This course prepares students to conduct the ethnographic research project required for the senior seminar. Prerequisite: Anthropology 35-104. Restricted to Majors. (Fall)
  • 35-524 Southwestern Univ Racial History Project
    This course introduces students to the Southwestern Racial History Project, where critical exploration of the university's racial underpinnings is taking place. Students will be exposed to historical and archival material that has already been collected and will contribute to an on-going archive that will be housed on campus and digitally. Contributes to Race and Ethnicity Studies/Group-Themed Course. Prerequisite: Anthropology 35-104 or permission of the instructor. (ScS).
  • 35-964 Senior Seminar
    The anthropology capstone requires students to develop a major paper in which they contextualize the data generated from their ethnographic research project in relevant scholarly literature. Students will work with each other and their professor throughout the capstone in an intellectual community of knowledge producers. Students will present their paper to campus at the end of the course and will be encouraged to present at national or regional conferences and the Southwestern Undergraduate Works Symposium. Prerequisite: Permission of instructor. (Spring) (WA) (ScS)

Our Sociology courses focus on topics germane to our current global society and issues of race/class/gender across the curriculum. Below you will find a list of our current or recent offerings. See the course catalog for descriptions and updated information.

  • 34-114 Introduction to Sociology
    This course serves as an introduction to the discipline of sociology that uses sociological theories, empirical research, and the sociological imagination to explore features of contemporary American life. Particular attention will be paid to the ways in which characteristics such as race, class, and gender are socially constructed in the American context and influence people's worldviews and life chances (Each semester) (ScS) (SJ)
  • 34-124 Social Problems
    This course focuses on the sociological imagination and fosters an understanding of how individuals' lives are shaped by larger social and historical forces through an examination of specific social problems that may include welfare policy, crime and delinquency, and stratification by race, class, gender and sexual orientation. Some time will also be devoted to constructive solutions that have been advanced. (Each semester) (ScS) (SJ)
  • 34-214 Criminology
    This course examines the sociological foundations of crime including factors such as residential segregation, economic inequality, and masculinity. Some attention will also be devoted to American and international perspectives on criminal justice. (ScS) (SJ)
  • 34-234 The Sociology of Gender
    This course examines the social construction of gender. Specifically, what are the processes and consequences of having some gender categories constructed as normative and others deemed to be deviant? How are these patterns affected by cultural, biographical, and historical contexts? Particular attention is paid to the ways that power, race, ethnicity, and class influence these patterns. Contributes to Feminist Studies, and Race and Ethnicity Studies/Allied Course. Prerequisite: Sociology 34-114 or 34-124, or Feminist Studies 04-104. (ScS) (SJ)
  • 34-264 Race and Ethnicity
    This course examines how race and ethnicity are constructed, maintained and challenged in the United States at the individual, interactional, and institutional levels. Some time will also be devoted to the ways that American citizenship as well as life chances are influenced by ethnic and racial group membership. Contributes to Feminist Studies, and Race and Ethnicity Studies/Concepts Course. Prerequisite: Sociology 34-114 or 34-124. (ScS) (SJ)
  • 34-314 Research Methods
    This course acquaints majors and minors in sociology with the procedures for gathering and analyzing sociological data. Students are required to participate in lab sessions as a part of the course. Prerequisite: Sociology 34-114 or 34-124, Mathematics 52-114 and sociology major. (Fall) (WA) (ScS)
  • 34-344 Sociological Theory
    Contributions made to sociological theory beginning in the mid-19th century to the present. This course will survey select classical sociological theorists and contemporary sociological theorists with an emphasis on how their theories can be applied to understanding human behavior through a sociological lens. Prerequisites: Sociology 34-114 or 34-124 and sociology major. (Spring) (ScS)
  • 34-394 Sociological Research Practicum
    The first class in a two-course sequence about designing and conducting qualitative or mixed methods sociological research. Students will collect data for their individual capstone research projects within an intellectual community of their peers. Students are expected to design a research project grounded in sociological literature, apply for IRB approval, and collect their data for the sociology capstone seminar. Prerequisite: Sociology 34-314, 34-344 and sociology major. (Spring)
  • 34-964 Sociology Capstone Seminar
    The second class in a two-course sequence about designing and conducting qualitative or mixed methods sociological research. Students will analyze data they collected in the Sociological Research Practicum, apply sociological literature to their findings, develop a research paper, and present their findings to the campus community. Students will constructively critique one another's work. Peer review is a core component of this course. Prerequisites: Sociology 34-314, 34-344, 34-394 and sociology major. (Fall) (WA) (ScS)