SOC 4355 - Urban and Community Studies Service Colloquium

Credits: 4
Urban Studies is a broad multi-disciplinary examination of the environmental, political, economic, socio-cultural and aesthetic factors affecting cities, urban life and culture. The colloquium/ independent study is a culminating experience in a series of courses which students take to fulfill their minor in Urban and Community Studies. It will enable students to understand the dynamics of urban opportunities and challenges, and the processes that make cities vibrant as they adjust and reinvent themselves in the ever-changing urban environments. Students will spend one third of the semester in the classroom (meetings with professor, presentations of experiential work and workshops) while the rest of the time will be spent on an independent study or individually designed and supervised field work in agencies of state and local government, community service organizations, programs and non-profit associations in Westminster, Baltimore, Washington DC and other surrounding areas. For those students not able to do service work, an independent study option is available that will enable them conduct an in-depth study and analysis of an issue related to their major within the realm of Urban Studies. Each student will therefore apply theories from the prerequisite Urban Sociology course and their major to the project that they will undertake as it relates to the urban process. For example, an art major might examine the issue of graffiti and alternative sports in urban areas and parks, while an Environmental Studies major will look at recycling and growing consumerism in urban enclaves. On the other hand, a Sociology major might focus on crime in urban areas, or the issue of jobs, food deserts, suburbanization
and education and their impacts.
Prerequisites SOC-3303 and SOC-1103, SOC-1104 or FYS-1104
McDaniel Plan: Experiential