Online Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Studies
Online Course Schedule for Fall 2024

Sex and Power in Mythology

Focusing primarily on Greco-Roman mythologies, this class explores the metamorphoses, societal transitions, and political upheavals found in mythology, which always depend on shifting relationships between sex and power. We will read Greco-Roman texts in conversation with other mythologies, pop culture, and contemporary discussions of how sex and power shape civilizations. Note: Contains graphic sexual and violent material, please read syllabus prior to joining course

Note: Core Areas: Culture, Humanities, Writing.

Sex and Power in Mythology

Focusing primarily on Greco-Roman mythologies, this class explores the metamorphoses, societal transitions, and political upheavals found in mythology, which always depend on shifting relationships between sex and power. We will read Greco-Roman texts in conversation with other mythologies, pop culture, and contemporary discussions of how sex and power shape civilizations. Note: Contains graphic sexual and violent material, please read syllabus prior to joining course

Note: Core Area: Humanities or Writing. Concentration: MCH.

Artificial Intelligence

Note: Concentration: CAT

Comparative Political Systems

This course offers a broad introduction to comparative politics, the subfield of political science concerned mainly with political ideas, institutions, and behavior within states. The course examines such themes as the origins and functions of states, formal institutions such as legislatures and executives, the variety and impact of electoral systems, the nature of democracy and autocracy, internal and external challenges to political order, and the impact of international and domestic factors on state performance. Discussions of theoretical and cross-regional issues will be accompanied by the treatment of individual countries and contexts. This course counts for the Comparative Government distribution requirement. The course is taught by Dr. Manuel, a research fellow at the Berkley Center and an affiliated professor in both the Department of Government and the McCourt School of Public Policy. Manuel has published twelve books and numerous peer reviewed articles. His scholarship has contributed to democratization literature in Portugal, with a focus on religion and politics.

Note: Concentration: PIR

Female Rulers - Antiq to Today

Female rulers have existed since antiquity, and many have left lasting legacies that have been kept alive through iconic television series and films. While at times they may have done little to advance female rights, they nevertheless pushed the boundaries of what was socially acceptable for women at their time, all while navigating complex power dynamics, obstacles, and salacious scandals. In this course, we will explore what female leadership looks like, what challenges these rulers faced, and how they navigated a social, political, and military landscape dominated by men. We will analyze why we remain fascinated by their reigns today, and how their legacies still impact our modern world.

Note: Core Area: Humanities or Science. Concentration: MCH

Global Competitive Intel

Course Description: In today's rapidly evolving business landscape, the ability to gather, analyze, and act upon competitive intelligence (CI) is crucial for maintaining a strategic edge. The "Global Competitive Intelligence" course is designed to equip students with the foundational knowledge, ethical considerations, research methodologies, analytical skills, and communication strategies necessary to conduct successful competitive intelligence. This course delves into the art and science of transforming information into actionable intelligence, enabling organizations to make informed strategic decisions.

Note: Concentration: CAT

Intro International Relations

This course provides students with a basic framework for understanding the nature of contemporary international relations. The first part covers the intellectual traditions and classical theories used for examining the international system (realism, liberalism, radicalism, behavioralism). The second part looks at enduring issues in global security; great power competition, globalization, the problem of war, terrorism, and the emerging crises of environmental change and natural resource depletion. Throughout the course, we will take time to discuss the ethical dilemmas we confront when theory meets real world developments. Upon completion, students should be able to identify key concepts, actors, and issues in the modern interstate system and be prepared for advanced coursework in the field of international relations.

Note: Core Area: Science. Concentration: PIR

Intro to Pol & Social Justice

Introduction to Politics and Social Justice explores the political, theoretical, and activist approaches to social justice while considering representations and the larger impact of social justice struggles in the United States and around the world. Through an analysis of colonialism, imperialism, globalization, and social privileges, to name a few, students will learn the importance of applying knowledge from a variety of theoretical and political standpoints. The approach to this course will pay particular attention to issues of power, privilege, and “freedom.”

Note: Core Area: Science, Humanities, Writing. Concentration: PIR

Introduction to Public Policy

Public policy-- that is, all the laws, regulations, and guidelines, along with judicial decisions, executive actions, and funding priorities-- shape every aspect of our lives. This introductory course explores this mosaic of rules through the lens of real people trying to make real changes through public policy. Using personally relevant examples, students will analyze how public policy is created, modified, implemented, and evaluated. We will explore 1) the federal and state governments’ overlapping policy responsibilities, 2) the legal system’s checks and balances on the policymaking process, and 3) the role of advocacy, including grassroots activism and nonprofit and philanthropic organizations, in shaping public policy. This course also provides experiential learning of public policy. Students will learn about policymaking in their own communities, observe and analyze policy-making in their own communities and practice creating and communicating evidence-based policy recommendations. Students will also analyze existing advocacy organizations to learn best practices and evaluate real-world strategies for changing public policies. There are no prerequisites for this class; everyone is warmly welcome

Note: Core Areas: Science, Writing. Concentration: PIR

Law and Society

Law & Society focuses on detailed examination of some of contemporary society’s most salient legal issues. Students learn legal history, socio-political influences, and Supreme Court decisions on issues including abortion, affirmative action, discrimination against same-sex couples, federal elections, gun rights/regulations, and voting rights, among others. Students read primary sources and journal articles, watch documentaries, and keep up with current events. Of particular interest are cases before the Supreme Court currently whose decisions are announced every summer.

Operations Management

This course provides a general introduction to operations management. Operations management is the science and art of designing and controlling business processes to support an organization’s delivery of goods and services. It is a primary organization function along with marketing and finance. Operations encompass the entire organization including, design, productions, operations, marketing, sales, and customer support. This course seeks to (A) familiarize you with the primary operational challenges and issues that managers encounter, and (B) provide you with terminology, concepts, practices, and tools to address these challenges in order to gain competitive advantage through operations. This course will interest people seeking a career in managing and enhancing business processes. The course should also be of interest to people who manage interfaces between operations and other business functions such as finance, marketing, and human resources. A working knowledge of operations is critical for general managers and entrepreneurs. The course will examine how different business strategies necessitate different business processes, and vice versa, how different operational capabilities support different strategies to achieve competitive advantage. A process view of operations will be used to analyze different key operational dimensions such as quality management, resource management, and supply chain management.

Note: Concentration: BE

Strategy & Strategic Mindset

This course is an introduction to strategy and the strategic mindset for business. We will learn the basics of strategic management, which provides tools to help a business answer the following two questions: Where should we compete? How should we compete? At the same time, we will focus on the fundamentals of game theory, which provides mathematical tools for analyzing strategic environments so as to determine the best strategies. In addition, students will consider strategy from a philosophical point of view, and investigate the epistemology and ethics of competing in strategic environments.

Note: Concentration: BE

The Human Condition

What makes us human? How much of this is a part of our “nature” (e.g., biological hardware, chemistry, and physiological changes) and how much of it is due to how we are nurtured (our socialization, cultures, and social interactions)? This course explores some of the most central aspects of the human condition and asks, “What makes us tick?” The class explores competing paradigms derived from a combination of studies and research from biology, medicine, psychology, sociology, economics, anthropology, archaeology, and historical observation. The structure of the course is inspired by the concept of a “hierarchy of needs”—beginning with essential “lower order” aspects of the human condition moving up toward the problems and issues that are more often the focus of life once the essentials of life have been obtained. The course challenges the notion that 21st century human beings are all that different from those that existed in 100, 1,000, or even 10,000 years ago. It also seeks to understand how human behavior can vary so much across cultures now. Reading material for the course also includes a combination of original source excerpts from the world’s religious and legal texts, and philosophers and scientists such as John Locke, René Descartes, B.F. Skinner, John Watson, Sigmund Freud, Karl Marx, Charles Darwin, Adam Smith, Sun Tzu, Niccolò Machiavelli, Edward O. Wilson. Lecture and the course readings are supplemented with suggested journal articles including current research as well as multimedia excerpts on each week’s topics.

Note: Core Areas: Culture, Social Sciences, Humanities.