Source: https://www.olivetcollege.edu/undergraduate/academics/academic-departments/arts-humanities-department/course-descriptions/
Timestamp: 2019-04-19 23:22:59+00:00

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For your convenience, below are the course descriptions for the required classes for all Arts and Humanities majors and minors. For more information please visit the academic catalog.
Traditional portrait sculpture where students model in clay from a live model. Attention is paid to skeletal/muscle anatomy and proportion. Clay heads are then cast into plaster through a waste-mold process.
This course involves understanding the various stages of developing layouts for print. A focus on the organization of visual information: type, photographs and graphic elements will be emphasized through the creation of specific visual communication exercises. Students will be exposed to current design issues and be expected to expand their understanding of formal design principles, type as imagery, creative brainstorming, critical thinking, presentation, and craftsmanship.
This course further develops the skills introduced in ART 208 Layout & Typography I and continues to explore the interaction of text and image. Students will be guided to be more independent in their use of fundamental components of graphic communication design and problem solving.
Women in the Arts explores the role of women in performing arts, visual arts and literature. Historical and contemporary personalities will be examined in terms of their contributions, and the evolution of roles will be addressed in terms of socio-cultural changes.
Cross listed with MUS 220, THR 220, and WGS 220.
Basic printmaking where students explore one medium (woodcut, intaglio, serigraphy or lithography). Personal responses are developed to an assigned technique and subject matter through sketches and trial proofs that are then used to create the final print. Four prints in editions will be accomplished over the course of the semester.
Survey of art, architecture and craft from prehistory to medieval Europe through illustrated discussions and readings. The relationships between art, craft, culture and environment is explored from cultures around the world, including Chinese, Japanese, Indian, South-East Asian, Mesoamerican and Islamic art.
Two weeks of travel through Tuscany, Umbria and the Marches regions of Italy, including the cities of Florence, Siena, Assisi and Urbino. In addition to viewing the art, participants are expected to open themselves up to the language, cuisine and customs of the area. One week of inclass preparation included.
Intensive Learning Term, odd years.
Students enhance skills learned at the 200 level with additional processes and materials introduced. While both hand building and wheel throwing abilities are expected to increase, students may begin to determine what areas of clay interest them most. Students focus on developing skill at wheel thrown ceramics and continuing glaze and decorating techniques.
Prerequisites: ART 200 or permission of instructor.
Students further pursue their interest in the portrait genre while developing a personal form vocabulary as they work from a live model.
Prerequisites: ART 205 or permission of instructor.
The first half of this course provides introduction instruction for the digital publication for e-books, electronic articles, magazines, newsletters, and other forms of online communications. The course will focus on applying good design with the technical skills needed to define content, metadata required for search engines, etc. The second half of this course will introduce students to the fundamental principles, theory, and concepts of web site design and creation.
Students, in consultation with the instructor, choose their own subject matter from observable forms and engage in more sophisticated materials such as stone, wood and metal.
Prerequisites: ART 221 or permission of instructor.
Students explore a second medium (woodcut, intaglio, serigraphy or lithography) or further technically develop a previous medium in which they have worked. Four prints in editions will be accomplished over the course of the semester.
Prerequisites: ART 231 or permission of instructor.
Prerequisites: ART 245 or permission of instructor.
Intermediate problems in painting using the still life format to develop a technological command of the oil medium. In-depth work with the principles of organization and elements of design focuses each assignment.
Fall and odd Spring Semesters.
Prerequisites: ART 251 or permission of instructor.
Traditional rendering class with emphasis on close observation and accurate description of natural forms in wash, colored pencil, water color and pen and ink.
Prerequisites: ART 271 or permission of instructor.
A service learning course that addresses an art-related community need and reinforces the college’s focus on Education for Individual and Social Responsibility. Students, with the approval of the course instructor, arrange to fulfill the college’s service learning requirement working at a venue where they provide art-related support under the direction of an on-site supervisor. A minimum of 40 hours of verifiable service is required; students that do not complete the minimum number of hours cannot pass the course.
Prerequisites: junior standing and ART 209 or 371; or any other 300-level student course or above in painting, sculpture, ceramics or printmaking.
Students consult with the instructor to decide on projects in hand building and/or wheel throwing. Frequent conferences follow with students keeping a detailed log of hours, processes and work accomplished. Appreciation of the diverse history of ceramics across many cultures would be evidenced by research and writing.
Prerequisites: ART 300 or permission of instructor.
Students work from a live model and are expected to be self-directed in their approach to portrait sculpture. They may choose to work in a highly representational manner or they may investigate alternative ways to interpret the human form.
Prerequisites: ART 305 or permission of instructor.
This course provides the essential skills and instruction required for setting up and managing a graphic design business. Students will be guided through everything from how to present your portfolio, find work, and market themselves, to an introduction into registering a company name, billing and accounting systems, and how to get started in setting up their own corporation. Students will have the opportunity to create a business plan, learn how to respond to a Request For Proposal (RFP), test-drive accounting software, create a budget, and customize their own business forms.
Students, in consultation with the instructor, determine their projects and are expected to be self-directed in the subjects they choose, the manner in which they choose to interpret the subjects (from highly representational to nonobjective) and the materials selected to house their ideas.
Prerequisites: ART 321 or permission of instructor.
Students develop technical mastery over one medium (woodcut, intaglio, serigraphy or lithography). They are expected to be self-directed, to explore personal subject matter and issues of personal style (from highly representational to non-objective). Five prints in editions will be accomplished.
Prerequisites: ART 331 or permission of instructor.
Drawing in pencil and charcoal from the live model (gesture and extended poses, including portrait work). Attention is paid to anatomical structure and proportion, however, students are encouraged to explore and expand their personal attitude toward figure drawing.
Prerequisites: ART 345 or permission of instructor.
Advanced problems in oil painting where students are expected to be self-directed in the subjects they choose, the manner in which they choose to interpret the subjects, and the materials they select to house their ideas.
Intensive Learning Term, Fall and odd Spring Semesters.
Prerequisites: ART or permission of instructor.
Traditional rendering class with emphasis on close observation and accurate description of natural forms. Media is expanded to include gouache and colored pencil.
Prerequisites: ART 371 or permission of instructor.
Students develop their own ideas and manner of communication in the studio discipline of their choice (painting, sculpture, printmaking or ceramics). Work from this course may be incorporated in the student’s senior project which is a graduation requirement and forms the hub of their senior exhibition.
Prerequisites: 9 semester hours in one studio discipline (200, 300 and 400-level courses).
Please speak to your academic advisor for more information.
Basic zoological principles as illustrated by selected representatives of the animal kingdom. Topics include a survey of animal types with reference to taxonomy, morphology, ecological relationships and evolution. Laboratory exercises provide hands-on experience.
Prerequisites: SCI 102, BIO 111 or BIO 112.
Chordate types with emphasis on the structure of vertebrate animals and the evolution of vertebrate systems. Laboratory includes comparative dissections.
Prerequisites: BIO 150 or instructor permission.
A study of the anatomy and physiology of the human body. Topics include the integumentary, skeletal, muscular and nervous systems.
Prerequisites: BIO 111, SCI 102 or equivalent.
A continuation of the study of the anatomy and physiology of the human body. Topics include the cardiovascular, respiratory, urinary, digestive, endocrine and reproductive systems.
Prerequisites: C or higher in BIO 211.
Fall and Spring Semesters. 3 semester hours.
managers in an organization. The course focuses on financial analysis, manufacturing cost flows, budgeting, and planning for long-term financing and investing activities.
Prerequisites: C or higher in BUS 201.
Business Law I provides an introduction to the law and legal system in the U.S., as well as a thorough examination of the law of contracts and sales. The course includes the study of sales, contracts, bailment and Article II of the Uniform Commercial Code. Also included is the law of negotiable instruments, secured transactions and bankruptcy.
Fall Semester. 3 semester hours.
Spring Semester. 3 semester hours.
Prerequisites: C or higher in BUS 202 and ECO 202.
This course is an overview of the functions, practices and growing application of public relations in private industry and the public sector. Emphasis is placed on planning, writing and management functions, working with the media and developing effective public relations strategies. At the end of this course, students should be capable of performing the following public relations activities: analyzing public relations problems and opportunities; understanding and developing concise and targeted public relations messages; and understanding the terminology and theoretical concepts associated with public relations.
This course examines, through the use of case studies, why some businesses are successful while others fail. Guest entrepreneurs will also be invited to speak, and their business ventures analyzed. The goal of this course is to take students through the actual process of initiating a business venture from the conceptualization phase to the preparation of a detailed business plan. Students are required to present the completed plans to the class.
Prerequisites: C or higher in BUS 201, 202, 300, and 309.
Business Policy and Strategic Management is a capstone course in solving the problems of advanced general management. The course develops the concepts and techniques of strategic management as well as providing an analytical approach in understanding and dealing with actual business world situations.
Prerequisites: C or higher in BUS 202, 300, 309, 316, ECO 202 and senior standing.
Introduction to computer information systems. Literacy, hardware and software concepts, history, social and ethical issues, elementary systems software and applications software such as word processor, spreadsheet, database, communications and graphics packages. Does not count toward a major or minor in Computer Science.
Students will learn basic HTML scripting, use of Web editors to create various styles of Web pages (single and multipage sites, online forms, CSS, etc.), management of Web sites and use of animated Web programming. CS 116 does not count toward a major or minor in Computer Science.
This course examines economics from the aggregate perspective. National, regional and international issues, policies and effects will be explored. Topics include inflation, GDP, unemployment, recessions, growth and development, government strategies such as fiscal and monetary policy, international trade and trading blocks.
Introduction to fundamental techniques of literary analysis through the study of texts from a variety of world cultures. This course also introduces some of the issues surrounding the idea of culture, in particular how literature plays a role in how cultures are defined and understood. Text and Culture stresses the importance of writing in the learning process, and the course includes instruction in the writing process.
Guided assignments for beginning writers in drama, fiction and poetry. Features stressed are plot, point of view and imagery. Creative Experience courses offer hands-on experience—students are actively engaged in the creative process.
This course explores the various literary creations of the “myths” behind American literature. It questions, explores, and eventually may demystify the historical and political reasons behind such creations.
The course introduces students to the relationship between the literary and the form through which it has been recorded and through which it represents its themes and concerns. It is a highly historically oriented course insofar as it perceives the form as continually changing.
This course aims to introduce students to the chief terms in the practice of literary studies. The course addresses the question of how and why we read literature, not by providing an answer to the course title, but by considering the historical and cultural implications of reading. The course introduces students to the purpose and function of literary criticism as well as to an understanding of how we are everywhere interpreting, with special emphasis on Romantic, Victorian and Modernist texts.
This course covers basic reading in literary theory, the relationship between critical theory and literature, and the principles of evaluation, appreciation and understanding. American texts from the mid 19th-century to the present will serve as a point of departure for critical analysis.
Students combine active learning, close reading and performance study to gain a greater understanding of Shakespearean drama and poetry. Like all Creative Experience courses, Shakespeare through Performance is a hands-on experience in which the student is actively engaged in the creative process.
An overview of the major issues in the history of the English language, basic linguistics, and applied sociolinguistics. Topics covered include beginning linguistics, including phonology, phonetics, and orthography; principles of language variance and change; the historical development and migration of the English language; and issues in contemporary English usage.
Prepares students to be more astute, knowledgeable critics of film, centered on building a greater understanding of how film is made and works. While approaches to the class may vary-one section may be organized historically, another by genre, and another by country Introduction to Film stresses points of cultural differences and similarities with regard to filmmaking techniques and filmic content.
Prerequisites: IDS 111 or concurrent.
A writing workshop designed to help students improve their ability to write clear, unified and interesting prose and to refine their appreciation and understanding of the English language. The course stresses the writing process and how to apply writing strategies effectively to a range of writing tasks, including argumentation, analysis, and researchsupported essays. Also addresses issues of style, grammar, mechanics and usage.
Prerequisites: C or higher in IDS 112.
Writing short stories, from the basics to the finer points. In-class exercises, guided assignments and free projects. Creative Experience courses offer hands on experience— students are actively engaged in the creative process.
Writing poetry of many types. Workshop setting with sharing students’ works; attention to the poetic process. Creative Experience courses offer hands-on experience— students are actively engaged in the creative process.
An introductory course in creative writing which applies the literary qualities of fiction and poetry to non-fiction essays. Through journals, drafting, and revision, students will construct reflective essays on the lived experiences which have the most meaning for them.
A travel-based, experiential course, studying various forms of travel writing with an emphasis on the writing process. In-class exercises, workshops, guided assignments, projects and presentations. Note: Travel may be required for the course involving expenses in addition to course tuition.
Intensive Learning Term, even years.
Satisfies Creative Experience and Global Diversity requirements.
When most people think of a particular century, they think of its most sweeping movements. But often those arose out of authors’ discontents with the particular conventions of those same movements. Much of 19th century thought arises because authors perceived current ideas as too limiting, too frustrating, too conservative. This course examines the conventions governing such thought. But it also looks at some of the criticism of the period, which may have helped (or not) create the conventions the authors sometimes opposed.
Prerequisites: [ENG 105, ENG 240 and ONE of the following: ENG 202, 203, 204 or 205] OR [ENG 240 and TWO of the following: ENG 202, 203, 204 or 205].
When most people think of a particular century, they think of its most sweeping movements. But often those arose out of authors’ discontents with the particular conventions of those same movements. Much of 20th century thought arises because authors perceived current ideas as too limiting, too frustrating, too conservative. This course examines the conventions governing such thought. But it also looks at some of the criticism of the period, which may have helped (or not) create the conventions the authors sometimes opposed.
Appreciation of the rich tradition of international literature and understanding the culture in which a literature has emerged. Awareness of the impact and contribution of international literature to world society.
Writing short stories, from the basics to the finer points. In-class exercises, guided assignments and free projects. Creative Experience courses offer hands-on experience— students are actively engaged in the creative process.
A study of important texts for children with attention to the use of literature, including illustrated books, in elementary teaching. Emphasis is on using literature to teach subjects across the curriculum.
Prerequisites: ENG 105 and ENG 240.
A study of important texts for adolescents with attention to the use of literature in secondary teaching. Emphasis is on using literature to teach subjects across the curriculum.
Many writers of different ethnic roots have created images of the individual’s relationship to his/her community. Indeed, much of the work of writers from various ethnic groups, be they Asian American, Native American, Latino, African American or others, grapples with the issue of identity, whether self-identity or social and political identities within society. This course will speculate on the following questions: How do these writers determine who we are, that is, how do they come to define their, and by extension, our sense of “self”? How do they distinguish between the many communities to which we all belong (our genders, families, races, religions and ethnic backgrounds)? What effects do these memberships have on their/our lives? In discussing these works, we will examine the way writers work within forms that often blur the distinction between reality and fiction, between genres (are we dealing with an autobiography or a social document, a history, a memoir, or a novel?). We will also explore the dynamics of that blurring and the social implications for society as a whole, for the academic disciplines, and for the “imagined community” that makes up our nation.
This course explores key interpretations between philosophy and literature. How is the literary a primary form of knowing about the self and about subjectivity? Or is this a statement that belongs only to philosophy? What are literary critics to do with primarily philosophical texts, like those of Derrida and Foucault, but also with authors such as Whitman or Blake? Or is it, as postmodernism would like it, that there are in fact no boundaries among disciplines, just texts? The course explores these and other philosophicalliterary issues.
The exploration of a literary topic ordinarily outside the scope of more traditional courses in literature. Topics might include such subgenres of literature as the detective novel or science fiction, or literary trends of current interest. Topics will change every semester.
Writing poetry of many types. Workshop setting with sharing students’ works, attention to the poetic process. Creative Experience courses offer hands on experience— students are actively engaged in the creative process.
Emergence of the U.S. as a world power from 1898 to the present.
Cross listed with POS 317.
Prerequisites: C or higher in IDS 112, HST 202 or instructor permission.
The Middle East from the 19th century to present. Islam and Islamic civilization, the impact of European control, independence movements of the early 20th century, Egyptian and Iranian Revolutions, and the Arab-Israeli dispute.
Prerequisites: C or higher in IDS 112, sophomore standing or instructor permission.
Students are required to take the seminar every semester they are enrolled at Olivet College. Each program or major has its own seminar and students must take the seminar of the major they have declared. Seminars meet every Wednesday of the semester. During that time, academic advising, portfolio development, program support and community building take place.
Statistics and probability. Including measures of central tendency and dispersion, normal and binomial probability distributions, hypothesis testing, confidence intervals, correlation, regression and nonparametric tests. Statistical software introduction.
Fall and Spring Semesters. 4 semester hours.
Satisfies Mathematics Proficiency requirement with a grade of C or higher.
Prerequisites: MTH 109 or completion of two years of high school algebra.
Theory I is an introductory class to the technical elements of music. Basic elements of pitch, rhythm, melody, harmony and musical structure are explored in this class. This class will focus on the fundamental aspects of major and minor key signatures, simple triads and seventh chords, voice leading and basics of functional harmony.
All the elements of rhythm, melody, harmony and structure are studied in this class. This class will also explore aspects of harmonic progressions, seventh chords, modulations, secondary dominants and basic musical forms.
Prerequisites: MUS 111 and 113.
This is an introductory course in the skills of sight singing and dictation, concentration upon simple diatonic melodies within the octave and basic rhythmic structures.
Spring Semester. 1 semester hour. Co-requisite: MUS 112. Prerequisites: MUS 111 and MUS 113. Students will further develop their sight singing and dictation skills. Emphasis is given to minor keys and more complex rhythmic structures.
Prerequisites: MUS 111 and MUS 113.
The student will take private lessons in his/her major instrument, voice or in musical composition.
Prerequisites: audition for the Music Program; academic credit can only be earned by persons who are currently enrolled at Olivet College.
This course is a survey and analysis of global music that will examine the various aspects of music and culture in both western and non-western music, and in art music as well as selected popular culture music and folk music idioms. It will also include an investigation of musical terminology, the structure of music and the various instruments.
Keyboard Experiences is a hands-on class in which the student is actively engaged in the creative process through playing the piano, listening to performances, giving an oral presentation, and reflecting on musical experiences through speaking and writing. It is designed to develop basic music reading skills as well as the technical ability to perform elementary repertoire pieces on the keyboard. This class is designed for those with no, or little, music background.
This class will focus on principles and techniques of classical, folk and popular piano. This course is open to all students.
This class will focus on advanced principles and techniques of classical, folk and popular piano.
Prerequisites: MUS 141 and instructor permission.
This choir is open to all students, faculty, staff and community members. This ensemble performs music of all historical periods and styles and performs throughout the academic year both on- and off-campus. The ability to read music is not mandatory, but basic singing ability is necessary.
Members of the Chamber Singers perform traditional music for chamber choirs as well as explore rarely performed music that requires a high level of technical and musical proficiency. The Chamber Singers perform at on- and off campus events. This course is open to all students. Enrollment is subject to audition.
Satisfies one of three semester hours of Creative Experience requirement.
This course will address the many intricacies and idiosyncrasies of the pronunciation of major European languages including Italian, German and French, as well as Latin. Students will become acquainted with the IPA system to help them learn foreign language pronunciation on their own. In addition, students will investigate the musical repertoire unique to their own voice as well as those of others.
The Olivet College Concert Band is an ensemble that offers wind players the opportunity to perform traditional band repertoire. This class is open to all students. Audition is necessary for seat placement.
The Olivet College Chamber Ensemble offers students and community members the opportunity to perform chamber music with a wide variety of instruments. Students will develop skills of balance, leadership, control and independence. This course will demand practice outside of class meetings. Enrollment is subject to audition.
This group is made up of students and community members who desire to represent the college at gatherings, such as parades and sporting events, through music. This group will perform a wide variety of music, and work on marching routines and formations. There is an audition for placement.
This percussion group performs a wide variety of music written for drum line, and will represent the college at various gatherings, such as sporting events. Enrollment is subject to audition.
Members of the Olivet College Jazz Ensemble will explore the various styles and stages of development of jazz. It will focus on development of improvisation and jazz performance techniques. This course is open to all students and community members, and acceptance is subject to audition.
In this course students will learn, rehearse and perform scenes from opera, operetta and musical theatre in fully staged performances. Students will also be responsible for costuming, sets, props and working together as the stage crew. There will be public performances.
Fall and Spring Semesters (as announced).
This class will focus on chromatic harmony, altered chords, advanced secondary harmony, modal mixture and simple musical forms, as well as set theory and atonal music.
Prerequisites: MUS 112 and MUS 114.
This class will explore aspects of advanced composition and analyses techniques with an introduction to Set Theory, and other methods of contemporary music theory analyses. Elements of musical form will also be addressed.
Prerequisites: MUS 211 and MUS 213.
Students will focus in the perception of rhythmic, melodic and harmonic changes, through sight singing and aural dictation. Emphasis is given to modulation to related keys and syncopation.
Prerequisites: MUS 112 and 114.
Students will focus in perception of rhythmic, melodic, harmonic changes, through sight singing and aural dictation. Emphasis is given to mode, advanced modulations and complex rhythmic structures.
Prerequisites: MUS 211 and 213.
Cross listed with ART 220, THR 220 and WGS 220.
This course will focus on music and literature from the Middle Ages and Renaissance through 1600. There is a strong emphasis on reading, listening, musical analysis, research and citing writing.
This course will focus on music and literature from the Baroque and Classical periods. There is a strong emphasis on reading, listening, musical analysis, research and critical writing.
This course introduces students to the role of computers in the discipline of music. Topics include basic IBM and Macintosh personal computer skills, a thorough exploration of MIDI, music sequencing software, music publishing software and orchestration with electronic/digital instruments. Software to be examined may include, but is not limited to Score, Finale, Performer and Master Tracks Pro. Students will be required to spend time in the computer lab working on individual and group projects for presentation to the class and for a final public performance.
This course is an introduction to the analysis of musical form, beginning with structural elements and proceeding to the analysis of classical forms, from simple song forms to smaller compound forms such as Minuet and Rondo. Other more advanced forms to be examined include: Sonata Form, Theme and Variations and Fugue.
Prerequisites: MUS 212 or permission of the instructor.
An introduction to composition, students will be exposed to phrase structure, review aspects of harmony, counterpoint, and form in a variety of idioms through the composition of exercises and short compositions. Students will be required to compose musical works demonstrating a variety of techniques and skills. Principles of orchestration and instrumentation along with techniques in musical arrangements will be examined.
This class will focus upon music and literature from the Romantic era (19th century) through the present day. There is a strong emphasis on reading, listening, score analysis, research and critical writing.
This class will focus on ethnomusicology: music of the world’s people. Course will concentrate on non-western art music as well as various folk music idioms. There is a strong emphasis on reading, listening, score analysis, research and critical writing.
This provides an in-depth discussion of unique and timely issues in music history and literature, such as women in music, gender in music, music in the popular culture, the works of an individual composer (Bach, Beethoven, Richard Wagner, etc.), or of a specific genre (opera, symphony, American musical theatre).
This course will help the student in preparation for and performance of a Senior Recital or a Senior Music Project approved by the faculty and Music Program Director.
This course is one in the sequence of two courses that students will take in the departmental honors program. It is designed by the individual student in conjunction with his/her faculty advisor in an advanced area of study.
This is the second course in the sequence of two courses that students will take in the departmental honors program. It is designed by the individual student in conjunction with his/her faculty advisor in an advanced area of study. Meeting times with the faculty instructor/advisor will be arranged at a time convenient to both student and faculty. There is paperwork to be filed by the student for this course.
Overview of mass communication roles in global society, exploring books, newspapers, magazines, radio, television, film and new technologies. Emphasis on media literacy, impact and ethics.
Purposes, functions and methods of oral communication. Practical application of both formal and informal oral communication.
Observing, reporting and writing under deadline. Story types and structures, research, writing styles and interviewing, in addition to media law and ethics.
Prerequisites: IDS 111 or instructor permission.
The study of oral communication in the public setting through understanding of the rhetorical skills of delivery, organization, language, and the application of this knowledge in presentation and evaluation of prepared informative and persuasive speeches.
Introduction to radio, television, Web and film broadcast production formats, techniques and equipment. Text and lab work.
A continuation of Basic Reporting I, advancing professional writing skills in print and all other media, including beat reporting and investigative/critical thinking skills.
Prerequisites: C or higher in IDS 111 and JMC 200.
Instruction and critiques in the skills involved in writing and announcing in professional broadcast venues. Students will explore informational writing skills in a variety of professions, from news to public relations, incorporating research techniques, project coordination, collaborative work, deadlines, critical analysis, and oral presentations. Students will also be introduced to broadcast announcing techniques as well as broadcasting equipment.
Planning, taking, and editing photographs and visuals for mass communication. Includes the impact of photo and visual selection and layout as well as ethical decisions facing visual communicators. Students must provide materials and have a digital camera.
Introduction to the functions, components, terminology, features and uses of Adobe Photoshop, focusing on the essential techniques and functions of the program. Course offers hands-on lectures, demonstrations and student projects. Students must have electronic storage media.
Cross listed with ART 250.
Prerequisites: JMC 200 or instructor permission; pre-requisite waived for Graphic Design majors.
Guided practical on-campus experience in mass communication production. No more than six semester hours will count toward graduation for Journalism and Mass Communication majors.
Introduction to digital videography and digital video editing skills and techniques. Students will receive classroom instruction and work individually or in teams to conceive, script, shoot and edit video projects related to journalism and mass communication.
Prerequisites: JMC 101 or instructor permission.
Readings, discussions and practice in publication design, in print and online publications. Conceiving and executing finished layouts and graphics. Appropriate software exploration. ART 311 may substitute for this course.
Satisfies Service Learning and Creative Experience requirements.
Prerequisites: JMC 200 or 290.
Critiquing and editing copy for print and broadcast. Focusing on accuracy (fact checking), grammar and layout.
Prerequisites: JMC 200 or instructor permission.
Professional experience with any appropriate communications-oriented organization. Proposed and initiated by student with approval from faculty adviser, department chair and prospective employer. Pass or Fail grade.
Prerequisites: JMC 101 or chairperson permission.
The study and analysis of theories and processes of mass communication. Lectures, research, presentations and projects will assist in learning how we communicate, motivate and advocate within our own society and within other cultures through mass media. Learn, analyze and test current theories and practices and apply that knowledge to prospective careers and endeavors.
Prerequisites: JMC 101, 200 and 300 or instructor permission.
Independent reading and research on some aspect of mass communication culminating in an individual project. Under the guidance of a journalism/mass communication instructor.
Prerequisites: JMC 101, 200 and 300; 3.0 overall grade point average, junior or senior standing, instructor permission and approval of Academic Performance Committee.
Lecture and research into mass communication law and ethics with emphasis on libel, privacy, free press, copyright, broadcast and advertising regulation, court systems, indecency and obscenity, as well as ethical standards.
Courses developed by individual faculty members in order to: a) serve a specific student’s needs; b) meet unforeseen or one-time curriculum, industry or college needs; or c) make use of an extraordinary staffing opportunity. Topics will be announced in advance of course registration.
Prerequisites: JMC 101, 200 and 300, or instructor permission.
Discusses questions about right, virtue and happiness, including the question, “why be moral?” The work of contemporary philosophers will be examined along with the work of great philosophers of the Western tradition, including Plato, Aristotle, Aquinas, Hume, Kant and Mill. The course will also serve as an introduction to various religious approaches to ethics.
Fundamentals of the national government.
Fundamentals of state and local government.
Process and factors which comprise the legislative process. Including the media, interest groups, lobbyists, the party structure, the people and other influences.
Prerequisites: POS 201 and 202.
Courts, litigation, the law as a body of information and specific issues of law. The relationship of the judiciary to the executive and legislative branches of the national government.
This is a survey course introducing students to many of the discipline’s subfields (e.g., developmental, neuroscience, learning, cognition, social, abnormal) with an emphasis on psychology as a science.
Positive psychology studies the nature of happiness and psychological well-being. Such topics discussed include happiness, life satisfaction, creativity, wellness, love, selfactualization, wisdom, character strengths and virtues.
This course focuses on the biopsychosocial development across the lifespan (from birth to death). Major theories in the field of developmental psychology are explored and students complete several applied projects.
Prerequisites: C or higher in both PSY 110 and IDS 112 and junior standing.
The course surveys various theoretical conceptions of personality and the different types of data upon which they are based. Each approach is evaluated critically in light of its ability to scientifically explain both the uniqueness of individual patterns of behavior and the personality characteristics common to all humans.
A survey of psychological disorders, with a special emphasis upon disorders of personality and affect, including depression, suicide and identity. Discussion includes biological, genetic and learned precursors, historically important views and theories.
A survey of individual and group counseling techniques and theories, including psychodynamic, humanistic, behavioral and cognitive therapies. Activities include discussions, demonstrations of methods, and applications to different ages, the developmentally disabled and crosscultural counseling. Activities include discussion and demonstrations to understand techniques, treatment and practitioner ethics.
Prerequisites: C or higher in PSY 110, PSY 325, and IDS 112 and junior standing.
Must take during fall semester of graduation year. This capstone course prepares students for graduate study and/or employment. Students also integrate their learning of psychology to date through assigned readings and discussions. Reflection on their undergraduate experience at Olivet College is also a central focus of the course.
Prerequisites: C or higher in PSY 390 and PSY 460 and senior standing.
This course is designed to explore the complex relationships between religion, culture and society and to introduce students to religion as an academic field of study. Through a study of the diverse religious practices and beliefs throughout the world in their cultural and social contexts as well as an introduction to classic theories in the study of religion, students will explore what religion means to others while beginning to understand what religion means in their own lives. Exploring the customs, rituals and everyday practices of major religions of the world will help students discover the complex ways in which religion impacts the everyday lives of people throughout the world.
A critical introduction to the Old Testament/Hebrew Bible, examining its key theological themes, literary forms, and critical content. Attention will be given to the institutions, religion and national life of the Hebrew people, including the history of Israel from the Exodus to the rise of the Pharisees.
An introduction to the critical study of the New Testament, including investigation into the historical background and messages of the New Testament books. Students will examine the Synoptic Gospels, Paul’s Epistles, Revelation, and other books of the New Testament. The compilation of writings into what we now consider as the Christian canon will also be explored, asking the questions: what was included; what was excluded; and why?
This course explores the journey of Christianity from the earliest Christian communities through the Reformation to Christian life in contemporary times. Turning points of Christian history will be covered, as well as the varied beliefs of early Christians and the spread of the religion beyond the Roman Empire via conquest, conversion and monastic life. The movement of Christianity via missionaries into Asia, Africa, and the Americas will be covered, as well as the expressions of Christianity in today’s global context.
A study of the ethical principles, paradigms and values informing decisions in the medical and biological sciences, with a focus on the health care professions. The course format will include numerous actual and hypothetical cases. Topics covered could include physician-assisted suicide, organ transplantation, abortion, cloning and artificial reproduction, termination of life-sustaining medical treatment, and the allocation of medical resources.
Cross listed with SCI 360.
Prerequisites: PHL 102, an introductory course in the sciences, or permission of the instructor.
An investigation into the history and beliefs of contemporary Eastern religions and their relationship to the societies in which they have developed. Particular focus upon Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Confucianism, and Shinto.
An investigation into the history and beliefs of contemporary Western religions and their relationship to the societies in which they have developed. Particular focus upon Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, and the indigenous traditions of the West.
An exploration of historical and contemporary expressions of religions and spiritualties based upon a reverence for the earth or nature. Topics covered will include the contemporary earth-based religions. Particular attention will be given to modern expressions of Pagan, Heathen, shamanistic, and Wiccan traditions and will include a review of the philosophies, worldviews, theologies/thealogies, ethical systems, and practices of these religious and spiritual pathways. Pantheistic and syncretic strains in traditional Eastern and Western religions will also be explored.
Exploration of a special topic in religious studies that falls outside of the roster of regularly offered courses. Topic will be announced in advance.
Course explores the role of religion in the development of cultures, society and institutions within those cultures, emphasizing the effect religion and institutions have on socio-cultural relationships.
Cross listed with SA 306.
Prerequisites: IDS 112 with C or higher, six semester hours of 200 level coursework in sociology/anthropology, psychology, gender studies or criminal justice or instructor permission.
This course explores the unique political and social circumstances of life in the time of Jesus and how the teachings of Jesus challenged the dominant political powers and social mores. It examines the ethical and theological framework that undergirds these teachings and examines how they are expressed in contemporary Christian ethics.
Prerequisites: One 100-200 level course in religious studies, or permission of the instructor.
The interaction of religion, gender and sexuality will be explored through a cross-cultural, multi-religious perspective. Religious approaches to the ethics of sexuality and gender will be examined. The complexities of these relations as they are impacted by the politics of race, class, colonialism, and the globalization of religions will also be explored.
Cross listed with WGS 330.
A broad overview of the religion of Islam and Muslims. Includes a study of Islamic beliefs, rituals, sacred texts and sacred places, the history of Islam, its relationship with Christianity and other religions, as well as its modern challenges. The course will focus on the central figure of Muhammad the Prophet as well as later historical developments, such as the split between the two major sects of Islam, i.e., the Sunni and the Shi’a. The course will also explore issues of modern fundamentalism and reform.
Independent reading or research on special topics in religious studies and ethics.
Prerequisites: 3.0 overall grade point average, junior or senior status, instructor permission and approval of Academic Performance Committee.
Exploration of an advanced topic in religious studies that falls outside of the roster of regularly offered courses. Topic will be announced in advance.
Micro and macro explorations of resource-related issues including development, environment, health and social justice.
This course is a critical analysis of women figures in biblical texts and contexts, using historical, anthropological, sociological, feminist/womanist, literary, and theological methodologies.
Prerequisites: IDS 112 or permission of instructor.

References: ART 208
 ART 200
 ART 205
 ART 221
 ART 231
 ART 245
 ART 251
 ART 271
 ART 209
 ART 300
 ART 305
 ART 321
 ART 331
 ART 345
 ART 371
 ART 220
 ART 250
 ART 311