COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES
AMERICAN ETHNIC STUDIES

Detailed course offerings (Time Schedule) are available for

To see the detailed Instructor Class Description, click on the underlined instructor name following the course description.

AES 150 Introductory History of American Ethnic Groups (5) I&S Gamboa, Salas
Survey of the history of African Americans, Asian Americans, Chicanos, and American Indians in the United States.

AES 151 Introduction to the Cultures of American Ethnic Groups (5) I&S
Survey of the cultures of Chicano, African-American, Asian-American, and American-Indian communities of the United States. Each group's culture is examined in its isolation and in its interaction with mainstream culture.
Instructor Course Description: Enrique C. Bonus

AES 212 Comparative American Ethnic Literature (5) I&S/VLPA Butler
Selected texts from the African-American, American-Indian, Asian-American, Chicano/Latino, and Euro-American traditions of American literature. Examines the American Dream, identity, community, conformity, individualism, and family. Explores themes of assimilation, double consciousness, meztiza consciousness, and wholeness as an introduction to multiple American voices in literary expression.
Instructor Course Description: Stephen H. Sumida

AES 250 Race in the American University (5) I&S
Racial integration in American institutions of higher education. Entry to, and impact on, American universities by people of color. History of ethnic studies and its relation to other disciplines. Recommended: AES 150; AES 151.

AES 310 Women of Color as Cross-Cultural Artists (5) I&S/VLPA Habell-Pallan
Provides a historical context for artistic forms produced by racialized women. Examines the cultural production of Chicanas and Latinas in relation to that Native American, African American, East and South Asian American , and Arab American women as well as those women of mixed heritage in the U.S. Offered: jointly with WOMEN 351.

AES 322 Race and Gender: Historical Perspectives (5) I&S
The intersection of race and gender in the lives of women of color in the United States from historical and contemporary perspectives. Topics include racism, sexism, activism, sexuality, and inter-racial dynamics between women of color groups. Offered: jointly with WOMEN 322.
Instructor Course Description: Sasha Welland

AES 330 Beyond Civil Rights: Law, Culture, and Change (5) I&S
Assessment of the contemporary politics of civil rights as shaped by an identity politics that is both significant and passe. Recommended: LSJ 363 or one course in either AES or WOMEN. Offered: jointly with LSJ 330.

AES 333 Race and Ethnicity in the U.S. Military (5) I&S Salas
The experiences of racial minorities in the military. Topics include segregation of units, desegregation of military, career limitations and opportunities, minority women, military families, racism and role of veterans in civil rights struggles after service.

AES 335 Sports and Social Change in the Twentieth Century (5) I&S Walter
Development of sport in the US and its importance for US culture and society. Covers increased centrality of athletic competition as part of the new leisure time in the late-19th century, revival of the Olympic movement, racial segregation/integration, today’s American notions of celebrity and social style.

AES 340 Race, Ethnicity, and Education (5) I&S
Focuses on critical social and political dimensions of race and ethnicity as they relate to issues and practices of pedagogy and power in American education. Considers schooling as sites at which contemporary politics of diversity play out amidst increasingly diverse demographics of students, teachers, and parents.

AES 361 Ethnicity, Business, Unions, and Society (5) I&S Scott
Interrelationships of ethnicity, business, unions, and the larger society. Examines financial and sociological structure of business and manufacturing sector, how this sector performs, and consequences of performance for selected ethnic groups in United States. Offered: jointly with SOC 363.

AES 389 Race, Gender, and Sexuality in the Media (5) I&S
Introduction to media representations of gender, race, and sexuality. Offered: jointly with COM 389/WOMEN 389.

AES 404 Critical Pedagogies of Social Change (5) I&S
Examines theories of critical pedagogy as developed in struggles against race, class, and gender oppression in the U.S. and transnationally. Topics include the relation between theory and practice, the position of educators in struggles for social change, and the role of the arts in movement-building. Offered: jointly with WOMEN 404.

AES 446 Music in American Cultures (3) I&S/VLPA
Compares musical history and experience of selected American cultures that have fed into the American musical mainstream or had significant popularity on its periphery. Case studies may include African Americans, Latino/a Americans, Jewish Americans, Asian Americans, or European Americans. Considerations of social identity as well as musical styles. Offered: jointly with MUSIC 446.

AES 461 Comparative Ethnic Race Relations in the Americas (5) I&S
Sketches the ethnoracial systems operating in American society. Studies these systems as systems and examines their institutional and interpersonal dynamics. Compares ethnoracial systems in order to arrive at empirical generalizations about race/ethnorelations in the Americas. Offered: jointly with SOC 461.

AES 462 Comparative Race and Ethnic Relations (5) I&S Scott
Race and ethnicity are examined as factors of social differentiation in a number of Western and non-Western societies in Europe, Africa, Asia, and the Americas. Offered: jointly with SOC 462.

AES 487 Cultures and Politics of Environmental Justice (5) I&S Pena
Comparative survey of environmental justice movements in the world with focus on critical studies of environmental racism, risk, and sustainable development. Provides theoretical knowledge and research methods incorporating the study of equity and autonomy in environmental impact and risk assessment and other aspects of environmental policy politics. Offered: jointly with ANTH 487.

AES 490 Representing Beyond the Binaries: Mixing Race, Gender, and Sexuality in the Media (5) I&S Joeseph
Cultural studies approach to examining the mixed formations that race, sexuality, and gender take in the contemporary United States media. Draws upon multi-disciplinary scholarship in examination of the media. Offered: jointly with COM 490/WOMEN 486.

AES 494 Community Practicum and Internship (3-5, max. 10)
Faculty supervised practicum and internship experience in variety of settings and agencies, e.g., ethnic specific agencies, government and civic community-based offices. Students contribute skills and knowledge to respective communities and gain experience by working with professionals and community organizers. Credit/no credit only.

AES 495 Senior Seminar (5) I&S
Focus on a central comparative theme for individual research topics.
Instructor Course Description: Gail M. Nomura Tetsuden Kashima

AES 496 Senior Thesis (5-10) I&S
Supervised individual and independent/tutorial study for seniors involving research, writing, and completion of major 20-30 page paper. Offered: AWSpS.

AES 498 Special Topics in American Ethnic Studies (1-5, max. 15) I&S
Designed to provide the student an opportunity to concentrate on one specific aspect of American Ethnic Studies through a comparative, interdisciplinary approach.
Instructor Course Description: Wanda M. Brown Devon G Pena Enrique C. Bonus

AES 499 Independent Study or Research (1-5, max. 10)
Independent readings and/or research under the supervision of a faculty member.

COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES AMERICAN ETHNIC STUDIES

COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES
AMERICAN ETHNIC STUDIES