Social Justice Major

Professors Biser, Butcher, Chisebe, Colvin, Comorau, Dean, Durst, Edwards, Franklin, Gitter, Hildebrand, Kang, Kim, Mack, Nestor, Rahman, Schrock, Stone-Mediatore, and Terzian

The social justice major aims to cultivate in students the knowledge and skills needed to analyze social injustices and work toward positive social change. Through this interdisciplinary major, students will develop the knowledge and skills to reflect critically on the meaning of social justice at both the local and global levels, examine the dynamics of societal conflicts and struggles for social justice within and among various groups and institutions, and apply interdisciplinary perspecitive at multiple levels of analysis. Students will be required to supplement their classwork with a more experientially-oriented activist project, and will be encouraged to further participate in a travel-learning course, theory-to-practice grant, and other service learning projects. These practical components of the major will provide opportunities for students to develop career-related skills, such as community organizing, working with and mediating diverse social groups, presenting ideas in professional forums, and managing real-world projects.

Major Requirements

Required Courses (12 courses):

Awareness and Understanding:
- SJ 110 Introduction to Social Justice
- EDUC 115 Teaching for Equity and Social Justice
Structural Inequality - 1 required - choose from among:
Cultural Expressions - 1 required - choose from among:
Theorizing Social Justice - 1 required - choose from among:
- PHIL 354 Social and Political Philosophy
- SOAN 358 Society, Politics, and Social Movements
- WGS 499 D Contemporary Feminist Theory
Research Skills
- SOAN 279 Methods of Social Research
Mentored Activism
- SJ 390 Mentored Activism
Interdisciplinary Integration
- SJ 499 Social Justice Capstone
Up to 4 other electives (at least 2 must be numbered 250 or above) from the following:

If double-majoring in SJ and SOAN, then students can have no more than 3 courses overlapping with SJ and SOAN.

Minor Requirements

Required courses (3 courses):

Awareness and Understanding - 1 required
- SJ 110 Introduction to Social Justice
Theories and Methods of Social Justice - 1 required - choose from among
- PHIL 354 Social and Political Philosophy
- SOAN 279 Methods of Social Research
- SOAN 358 Society, Politics, and Social Movements
- WGS Contemporary Feminist Theory
Mentored Activism - 1 required
- SJ 390 Mentored Activism
Electives Courses (3 courses)
- 3 other courses (at least 2 must be numbered 250 or above) from the above list of SJ-approved courses

Note(s):

Knowledge of a foreign language and training in statistics are strongly recommended for all majors. Mastery of these skills is especially important for students who are planning on graduate study or government service.

Independent study and apprenticeships are vital parts of the major. Every effort is made to tailor programs to individual student needs and to maintain flexibility within a framework of rigorous scholarship. All apprenticeships are graded credit/no entry. No other course counting for credit in the major may be taken credit/no entry.