Fall 2009 Learning Communities
Please note: While some of the experiential opportunities with each learning community will be mandatory, others may require both permission forms and a small fee. Those opting out of extracurricular activities that require additional fees or because of extenuating circumstances will be given alternative activities to meet the learning objectives.
#1. The Art and Science of Community - has filled
Dr. Tom MacLennan – Themes in Literature (ENG 290) 3 hours – Literature TR 8:00-9:15 Dr. Glen Harris – American History from 1865 to Present (HST 202) 3 hours - History
TR 9:30 - 10:45
Mr. Larry Wray - Integrative Seminar (UNI 105) 2 hours W 3:00 - 4:40
This learning community will expose students to a deeper cultivation of both cognitive and affective awareness of the concept of community. Within the Themes in Literature course (ENG 290) and the American History course (HST 202), students will critically evaluate their role in their communities. We will use several themes to investigate the past, including arts, law, war, technology, the American drive for improvement (both personal and communal) and the struggle to cope with a multicultural society. This learning community will guide students in considering their own thought process and responses within the context of their time in history. Taking a historical perspective, students will gain an understanding of both their own selves and others, which is critical to functioning as an effective citizen in today’s world. (Because of the strict nursing requirements, this is one of the most appropriate learning communities for students planning on majoring in nursing, as long as they are not bringing in credits for one of the represented courses.)
#2. The Explorers: Cultural Anthropology and Global Citizenship - has filled
Dr. Barbara Michael – Human Societies (ANT 205) 3 hours – Social and Behavioral Sciences TR 3:30 – 4:45
Ms. Michelle Manning – Themes in Literature (ENG 290) 3 hours – Literature TR 2:00 – 3:15
Ms. Jenny Adams – Integrative Seminar (UNI 105) 2 hours MW 1:00 – 1:50
Join us as we explore different cultures through film, documentaries, theInternet, textbooks and literature. Using the classroom as a portal, students will investigate the diversity of different ethnicities, cultures, and societies and explore how societies create their own social, cultural, and political norms. Through this knowledge, students will be challenged to also confront their own cultural bias and will be asked to consider their roles as global citizens. Students will be encouraged to explore other societies in order to also enhance their understanding of their own cultures and personal identity. Students will participate in a low ropes challenge course, at least one field trip, service learning projects, and have the opportunity to learn from several guest speakers. The course will culminate in the creation of a visual ethnography project. Tour the major continents, such as South America, Asia, and the United States, as well as experience the multicultural diversity of Wilmington and the surrounding area. We will begin our journey inAfrica, using the UNCW common reading, A Long Way Gone.
#3. Green Wave: The Global Generation - has filled
Dr. Anthony Snider – Introduction to Environmental Studies (EVS 195) 3 hours – Life Science MW 11:00 – 12:15
Ms. Michelle Manning – College Writing and Reading (ENG 101) 3 hours – Freshmen Composition TR 12:30 – 1:45
Mr. Sean Ahlum – Integrative Seminar (UNI 105) 2 hours MW 10:00 - 10:50
Faced with global warming, declining access to clean water, increasing population growth, and a host of other environmental issues, the world is experiencing challenges unknown to our parents and grandparents. In order to be able to address these challenges effectively, students need to both understand the basic science underpinning the issues and be able to communicate their ideas about them. Modern Americans, as global citizens, also need the skills to discern when environmental controversies are utilizing science correctly. These skills are best developed in a collaborative fashion, with the science being compared to the rhetoric of the media on environmental issues. Using diverse texts, field observation, guest speakers, experiments and other unique activities, the conjunction of EVS 195 and ENG 101 provides the perfect platform to accomplish this development.
#4. I Want To Help People: Academic and Personal Development in Preparation for Health Professions - has filled
Dr. Charles Ward – General Chemistry (CHM 101) 4 hours – Physical Science w/ Lab MWF 11:00 – 11:50, T 2:00 – 4:50
Dr. Alison Taylor – Principles of Biology: Cells (BIO 201) 4 hours – Life Science w/ Lab TR 8:00 – 9:15, R 12:00 – 2:50
Ms. Jamie Brenner – Integrative Seminar (UNI 105) 2 hours F 9:00 – 10:40
Many students who desire to pursue health professions want to help people. They hope to make a tangible impact on patients’ lives. This learning community offers students the opportunity to begin their intensive study of the sciences as well as their personal preparation for a career in health care from the first moments of their college experience. This community will focus on the professions of Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy, Physician Assistant, and Pharmacy, specifically. It is not for nursing majors. Being uniquely qualified for entrance into graduate health sciences programs in these fields includes having both an outstanding academic profile as well as refined personal qualities and skills in the realms of communication, teamwork, social awareness, humanitarianism, and leadership. Members of this learning community will begin preparation for their desired professional paths immediately by building their foundational scientific understanding, participating in the UNCW and Wilmington communities, and growing their individual skills through self-reflection, critical thinking, and investigation of career opportunities. Participation in a speaker series, co-sponsored by the Southeast Area Health Education Center (SEAHEC), helps students gain valuable information and insights about health care professions through interaction with practicing healthcare providers. To continue development beyond the Cornerstone experience, students will construct and begin utilization of an internet-base Admissions e-Portfolio that functions as the repository of information required for preparing successful graduate school applications. For this learning community, students will be in regular, larger sized CHM and BIO lectures but their labs and their UNI 105 course will only have their learning community classmates in them. The CHM and BIO courses and labs will be taught in the regular academic buildings and the seminar course will be taught in Cornerstone.
#5. Lights! Camera! Optics! - has filled
Dr. Kemille Moore – History of Photography (ARH 205) 3 hours – Fine Arts MWF 11:00 – 11:50
Dr. Fred Bingham – Introductory Physics (PHY 105) 4 hours – Physical Science w/ lab TR 2:00 – 3:15, R 12:00 – 1:50
Ms. Maggie Bannon - Integrative Seminar (UNI 105) 2 hours TR 4:00 – 4:50
Did you ever wonder how a traditional camera works? How can a box with a lens and some paper end up producing an image? If a camera and a lens work like the human eye, why aren’t photographs upside down? How does a lens work with light? Does light bend? The answer to these and many other questions can be found through an exploration of the physics of light and optics woven together with a study of photography. In this learning community, a study of the history of photography will be complemented with a study of the physical properties associated with light, energy and other areas of physics. “Light! Camera! Optics!” is a learning community that explores one of the critical junctures where art and science intersect.
#6. The Soundtrack of History: German Music & Literature
Dr. Barry Salwen – Survey of Music Literature (MUS 115) 3 hours – Fine Arts TR 2:00 - 3:15
Dr. Raymond Burt – German Literature in Translation (GER 209) 3 hours – Literature TR 11:00 – 12:15
Ms. Shannon Hooker - Integrative Seminar (UNI 105) 2 hours MW 11:00 - 11:50
This learning community will take students on a journey beginning with the Baroque and moving through the Enlightenment, Romanticism, and into the fragmentation of the 20th century. The focus of this community will be German music (MUS 115) and literature (GER 209) from the early 18th to the late 20th century. Students will simultaneously read texts (in English translation) and hear music from these eras, as well as examine European cultural and historical movements as exemplified in the works. Students will receive a firm education in cultural history; knowledge that will enable them to examine common themes and problematic and to experience what is constantly new in the way artists in different disciplines deal with their topics. (Because of the strict nursing requirements, this is one of the most appropriate learning communities for students planning on majoring in nursing, as long as they are not bringing in credits for one of the represented courses.)
#7. The Unseen: Microbiology & Its Impact on the Human Condition - has filled
Dr. Rod Hagley – Microbes and Human Society (BIO 190) 3 hours – Life Science TR 11:00 – 12:15
Dr. Jill Gerard - Themes in Literature (ENG 290) 3 hours – Literature MWF 9:00 – 9:50
Mr. Greg Steele - Integrative Seminar (UNI 105) 2 hours MW 10:00 - 10:50
Join us on a scientific journey through time. Explore the influence of microbiology on people’s health and the course of human civilization; learn about the impact that diseases such as AIDS, Ebola, Bird Flu, and SARS have had on communities; explore the issues related to bioterrorism (anthrax, plague, smallpox); learn about the impact of food outbreaks (E. coli); learn about the connect between infectious proteins called prions and diseases such as mad cow disease. This learning community will link a basic microbiology course for non-science majors and a literature course. In order to be more educated citizens of the 21st century, students will gain an understanding of infectious diseases and their impact upon the development of human civilization, the contemporary threat of bioterrorism, and the AIDS pandemic in their BIO 190 course. Through the study of literature in ENG 290, students will learn to understand how disease challenges, devastates, and perhaps ultimately strengthens human beings. Meet the heroes and the survivors. Through scientific study, reading, research and writing, we will explore some of the greatest challenges of our times.
#8. Vital Signs: Navigating the Journey from Freshman Year to Medical School - has filled
Dr. Charles Ward – General Chemistry (CHM 101) 4 hours – Physical Science w/ Lab MWF 11:00 – 11:50, T 2:00 – 4:50
Dr. Alison Taylor – Principles of Biology: Cells (BIO 201) 4 hours – Life Science w/ lab TR 8:00 – 9:15, W 3:00 – 5:50
Dr. Linda Collins – Integrative Seminar (UNI 105) 2 hours F 9:00 – 10:40
With the ultimate goal of obtaining a successful health outcome, doctors routinely assess a patient’s physiological vital signs as the basis for an accurate diagnosis and appropriate plan of care. Similarly, to fulfill the dream of becoming a doctor, pre-med students must consistently monitor their own academic performance and personal development vital signs as an on-going gauge of suitability and preparation for gaining admission to medical school. This learning community is offered specifically for committed and highly motivated pre-physician, pre-dental, pre-optometry, pre-podiatry and pre-chiropractic students. It is not for nursing majors. It is designed to assist these students to begin to identify and measure specific vital signs that will enable them to become uniquely qualified medical school candidates. Appraising the vital signs of superior academic performance is of primary importance. Sharing biology and chemistry lectures and dedicated laboratory sections with fellow Cornerstone pre-meds provides an excellent environment for earning exceptional grades in these foundational science courses. To increase the likelihood of achieving an outstanding first semester GPA, the Integrative Seminar incorporates both general and science-specific academic support tools including study skills, time management and personal learning style assessment. An introduction to the MCAT is also presented. Participation in a speaker series, co-sponsored by the Southeast Area Health Education Center (SEAHEC), helps students gain valuable information and insights about the medical profession through interaction with practicing healthcare providers. To facilitate vital sign evaluation beyond the Cornerstone experience, students construct and begin utilization of an internet-base Admissions e-Portfolio that functions as the repository of information required for preparing successful medical school applications. For this learning community, students will be in regular, larger sized CHM and BIO lectures but their labs and their UNI 105 course will only have their learning community classmates in them. The CHM and BIO courses and labs will be taught in the regular academic buildings and the seminar course will be taught in Cornerstone.
