Catalog Course Descriptions

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Integrative Studies Courses

Undergraduate

300-Level Courses in INTS

INTS 300: Law and Justice (3 Credits)

Combines various teaching methods including lectures, the Socratic method, case studies, discussion of readings and films, debates, and active inquiry-based learning to investigate the major institutions in the American legal system. Offered by School of Integrative Studies. Limited to three attempts.

Mason Core: Mason Core, Social/Behavioral Sciences

Schedule Type: Seminar

Grading:
This course is graded on the Undergraduate Regular scale.

INTS 304: Social Movements and Community Activism (4 Credits)

Examines how citizens, individually and collectively, accomplish social change in society through case study analysis. Considers advantages and limits of social change strategies from communication and social movement theory perspectives. Surveys topics including how leaders maintain momentum in face of opposition; how movements and organizations use slogans, symbols and music to inspire followers; and how participants construct persuasive media campaigns and political arguments to facilitate policy change. Notes: One credit of experiential learning enables students to explore their role as social advocates and effective citizens in context of community. Offered by School of Integrative Studies. Limited to three attempts.

Mason Core: Mason Core, Social/Behavioral Sciences

Schedule Type: Lecture

Grading:
This course is graded on the Undergraduate Regular scale.

INTS 334: Environmental Justice (4 Credits)

Examines historical and contemporary sociopolitical and socioeconomic conditions that have given rise to the environmental justice movement. Analyzes how individuals contribute to environmental justice or injustice through everyday decisions. Considers how environmental justice movement responds to these issues. Offered by School of Integrative Studies. Limited to three attempts.

Mason Core: Mason Core, Social/Behavioral Sciences, Writing Intensive in Major

Specialized Designation: Green Leaf Focused Course

Schedule Type: Seminar

Grading:
This course is graded on the Undergraduate Regular scale.

INTS 336: Poverty, Wealth and Inequality in the US (3 Credits)

Explores the social, cultural, political, and spiritual implications of poverty, wealth, and inequality in the United States. Examines the ways in which class identity informs one's views of the world and its politics; how socioeconomic status affects one's access to education and other social goods; and how dominant discourses and stereotypes related to poverty influence mass perception regarding a range of social issues, from educational policy to welfare. Offered by School of Integrative Studies. Limited to three attempts.

Mason Core: Mason Core, Social/Behavioral Sciences

Schedule Type: Seminar

Grading:
This course is graded on the Undergraduate Regular scale.

INTS 337: Social Justice Consciousness and Action (3 Credits)

Explores the many spaces at which the quest to strengthen social justice consciousness interacts with processes and commitments for personal transformation. Analyzes through the lens of the activist and in the spirit of bringing mindfulness to activism, how we come to see and experience the world. Examines how socialization informs consciousness. Offered by School of Integrative Studies. Limited to three attempts.

Schedule Type: Seminar

Grading:
This course is graded on the Undergraduate Regular scale.

INTS 347: Gender Representation in Popular Culture (3-6 Credits)

Explores the way in which gender has been represented across the decades in television, movies, music videos, pop art, and print media. Provides a review of the scholarship on historical and contemporary gender roles and examines the contradictions and expectations associated with these. Incorporates active group learning through creative, insight-oriented exercises, critical thinking and discussions, and group presentations and media research activities. Offered by School of Integrative Studies. Limited to three attempts.

Mason Core: Mason Core, Social/Behavioral Sciences

Schedule Type: Seminar

Grading:
This course is graded on the Undergraduate Regular scale.

INTS 362: Social Justice and Human Rights (3 Credits)

Considers the philosophical foundations of social justice and human rights. Explores the interpretive difficulties related to identifying what constitutes human rights abuses, and evaluates regional perspectives on human rights. Analyzes institutions that strive to promote and enforce social justice and human rights standards including the United Nations system, regional human rights bodies, and domestic courts. Offered by School of Integrative Studies. Limited to three attempts.

Mason Core: Mason Core, Social/Behavioral Sciences

Schedule Type: Lecture

Grading:
This course is graded on the Undergraduate Regular scale.

INTS 375: Special Topics (1-18 Credits)

Studies topics of special interest to undergraduates. Notes: May be repeated for credit when topic is different. Offered by School of Integrative Studies. May be repeated within the term for a maximum 18 credits.

Specialized Designation: Topic Varies

Schedule Type: Lecture

Grading:
This course is graded on the Undergraduate Regular scale.

400-Level Courses in INTS

INTS 417: Human Trafficking and Smuggling (3,6 Credits)

Explores the complexity of human trafficking and smuggling, one of the fastest growing criminal enterprises in the world. Examines forms of human trafficking and smuggling and the countries that serve as source, transit or destinations of trafficked and smuggled individuals and groups. Studies the role of the international community in addressing trafficking and smuggling, including regional and national authorities and non-governmental agencies. Offered by School of Integrative Studies. Limited to three attempts.

Schedule Type: Seminar

Grading:
This course is graded on the Undergraduate Regular scale.

INTS 419: Youth Resistance and Advocacy (3 Credits)

Focuses on contemporary perspectives on youth, resistance, and advocacy, both in the form of social movements and subcultures. Asks questions such as: When do everyday activities constitute "resistance"—and resistance to what?—and how do everyday forms of resistance relate to broader forms of historical change? How do these forms of resistance perpetuate forms of exclusion and inequality? Offered by School of Integrative Studies. Limited to three attempts.

Schedule Type: Seminar

Grading:
This course is graded on the Undergraduate Regular scale.

INTS 436: Social Justice Education (4 Credits)

Examines educational policy, practice, and materials using a variety of lenses informed by social justice theory and praxis. Investigates ways in which racism, sexism, economic injustice, heterosexism, ageism, and other forms of discrimination influence schools and educational access and opportunity for youth. Considers and practices what individuals and communities can do to ensure that all students have equitable educational opportunities. Offered by School of Integrative Studies. Limited to three attempts.

Mason Core: Mason Core, Social/Behavioral Sciences

Schedule Type: Seminar

Grading:
This course is graded on the Undergraduate Regular scale.

INTS 437: Critical Race Studies (3 Credits)

Engages students in an examination of the forms and impacts of racism, as well as movements for racial justice, in the United States. Draws on theoretical frameworks including critical race theory and intersectionality theory in order to examine the structural roots of racism and the implicit and explicit ways in which racism manifests today. Offered by School of Integrative Studies. Limited to three attempts.

Mason Core: Mason Core, Social/Behavioral Sciences

Schedule Type: Seminar

Grading:
This course is graded on the Undergraduate Regular scale.

INTS 438: Representations of Race (4 Credits)

Investigates the social and cultural construction of racial categories that have led to inaccurate and stereotypical representations that persist and cause harm today. Offered by School of Integrative Studies. Limited to three attempts.

Mason Core: Mason Core, Social/Behavioral Sciences

Schedule Type: Seminar

Grading:
This course is graded on the Undergraduate Regular scale.

INTS 450: Social Innovation in Action (4 Credits)

Develops students' capacity to engage in positive social change. Examines social innovation approaches, including social and political entrepreneurship, philanthropy, corporate responsibility and social movements. Explores how social innovators catalyze multistakeholder collaborations across commercial, governmental and nonprofit sectors, exploring social innovation through case studies, best practice analyses and relevant readings. Offered by School of Integrative Studies. Limited to three attempts.

Schedule Type: Seminar

Grading:
This course is graded on the Undergraduate Regular scale.

INTS 475: Special Topics (1-18 Credits)

Specialized Designation: Topic Varies

Schedule Type: Lecture

Grading:
This course is graded on the Undergraduate Regular scale.

Topics in INTS

Graduate

500-Level Courses in INTS

INTS 538: Representations of Race (4 Credits)

Investigates the social and cultural construction of persistent and harmful racial categories. Offered by School of Integrative Studies. May not be repeated for credit.

Registration Restrictions:

Enrollment limited to students with a class of Advanced to Candidacy, Graduate, Junior Plus, Non-Degree or Senior Plus.

Enrollment is limited to Graduate, Non-Degree or Undergraduate level students.

Students in a Non-Degree Undergraduate degree may not enroll.

Schedule Type: Seminar

Grading:
This course is graded on the Graduate Regular scale.

INTS 540: Contemporary Issues in Social Justice & Human Rights (3 Credits)

Students will examine, study the socio-historical significance of, and consider solutions for some of the most pressing social justice and human rights issues in the world today. The issues examined will cut across identity, region, and scope, and may include concerns as varied as human trafficking, hegemony, animal abuse, child labor, and sexism. Offered by School of Integrative Studies. May not be repeated for credit.

Registration Restrictions:

Enrollment limited to students with a class of Advanced to Candidacy, Graduate, Junior Plus, Non-Degree or Senior Plus.

Enrollment is limited to Graduate, Non-Degree or Undergraduate level students.

Students in a Non-Degree Undergraduate degree may not enroll.

Schedule Type: Seminar

Grading:
This course is graded on the Graduate Regular scale.

INTS 550: Social Innovation In Action (3 Credits)

Registration Restrictions:

Enrollment limited to students with a class of Advanced to Candidacy, Graduate, Junior Plus, Non-Degree or Senior Plus.

Students in a Non-Degree Undergraduate degree may not enroll.

Schedule Type: Seminar

Grading:
This course is graded on the Graduate Regular scale.

INTS 575: Special Topics (3-4 Credits)

Studies topics of special interest to graduate students pursuing integrative, multidisciplinary degrees. Offered by School of Integrative Studies. May be repeated within the term for a maximum 12 credits.

Specialized Designation: Topic Varies

Registration Restrictions:

Enrollment limited to students with a class of Advanced to Candidacy, Graduate, Junior Plus, Non-Degree or Senior Plus.

Enrollment is limited to Graduate, Non-Degree or Undergraduate level students.

Students in a Non-Degree Undergraduate degree may not enroll.

Schedule Type: Seminar

Grading:
This course is graded on the Graduate Regular scale.