Bureaucracy & Democracy
The image of a democratically elected body of lawmakers granting broad discretionary powers to an unelected, seemingly unaccountable bureaucracy is a picture that may make any reasonable observer suspicious, or worse, cynical. Our concern might be heightened when we recognize that the vast majority of law in the U.S. comes from these bureaucratic agencies. Our suspicion, or cynicism, is not unwarranted in many cases—one has only to think of the very public display of bureaucratic bungling in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Often, however, popular myths about the bureaucracy seem to overshadow the reality of bureaucratic responsiveness to the pressing needs of modern society. If we are concerned about the performance of our elected officials, their responsiveness to our interests, and the resulting policy outcomes, it is necessary to examine more closely the political, economic, social, and legal context of bureaucratic work. In this course, we will explore the tension between bureaucracy and democratic accountability by drawing from some of the best scholarship on this topic in the areas of American Politics, Philosophy, Public Administration, Environmental Science, Economics, History, Women’s Studies, Psychology, and African American Studies. There will also be a significant service learning dimension to the course. Each student will have the opportunity to experience how a bureaucratic agency works, and draw from that experience to make connections to their own work in this course and (depending upon agency placement availability) their academic interests within their major.
Global Issues and Their Impact on the Human Condition
This seminar course examines select global issues and their impact on the human condition. Issues such as poverty, war, disease, religious conflict, global warming, deforestation of the rain forests, and human trafficking are among topics covered. Special emphasis will be paid to the impact these complex problems have on human health and human potential. Students will explore how engaged leaders can play a role in solving complex problems.
Technological Leadership
Welcome to the Information Age. In this epoch there is one rule you need to know to survive--you must be better than your computer. The days of simple memorization are gone; today the skill of using knowledge is the goal. Never has access to information been so open and so easily manipulated – for better and worse. In this sea of ideas and opinion, it is easy to believe in whatever the majority believes. However, mob rule cannot govern the Information Age. This Age requires leadership. The intent of this seminar is to combine the process of science, the wisdom of ethics, and the seductive ease of information with your strengths to help you become a leader in today’s world. The Information Age, your Age, requires you to be an engaged leader.
Friendship
In this seminar—through close reading of important texts drawn from the ancient world to the present—we will explore one of the great themes of the Western philosophical and literary tradition: friendship. Mindful of the haunting echoes of the early Greek academies—Aristotle is reputed to have welcomed his students each year with the words—‘Oh my friends, there are no friends’—we will proceed to raise friendship as a question. This means: we will read as if we did not know what friendship is, as if we had not yet encountered a true friend, as if we did not understand the experiences we commonly label friendship, as if we were not sure which of our experiences counted as friendship. Such an approach—the bracketing of our common sense experiences of friendship—will allow the nuances and harmonics of the texts we will engage to emerge, so that later we can return to our common sense understandings of friendship and evaluate them. At first though, we will have to be attentive to the fragility, the singularity and the mystery of the friend. Who are friends? And how do we know?
Creativity of Leadership
This seminar will explore the nature of leadership and creativity through the reading of fiction by authors ranging from Homer to Douglas Adams. One of the reasons that fiction has been valued through the ages is that it allows readers to explore and resolve the natural human fears of chaos, uncertainty and human limitations. Critical reading of fiction can yield insights into both leadership and human creativity. The course will assist students in developing critical thinking, oral presentation, and writing skills.
Hey Holmes, there's a Dworkin in my Hart that's a Pound Fuller than the Raz on my Tushnet: Constitutional Interpretation and Separated Powers
In this course, students will consider the basic doctrines and principles of the U.S. legal system and the institutional contexts in which they operate. It will be an opportunity for students to explore the relationship between law and morality, ethical considerations of law, the social nature of law, and the political context in which constitutional interpretation takes place. The course is designed to encourage students to critically evaluate the major schools of contemporary legal philosophy. Students will also come to understand the multiple issues and controversies faced by courts as judges interpret the law and evaluate legal arguments. But judges are not the only public officials who engage in constitutional interpretation. We’ll pay particular attention to recent developments in executive power and legislative-executive interaction as we approach the topic of constitutional interpretation.
Spiritual Dimensions of Health and Healing
Humans experience their lives as biological, psychological, social and spiritual beings, especially in times of illness, death, or loss. It is not simply a body that suffers in illness, but the whole person. Recent research has begun to explore the importance of the spiritual dimension in health maintenance, stress management, and healing for individuals, groups, and communities. While an important relationship exists between religion and spirituality, this course approaches the topic of spirituality from broad historical, cultural, medical, and personal perspectives, without advocating particular religious beliefs. This course would be of interest to people wanting to explore the concept of spirituality, or those with professional interests in health and medicine. Readings are drawn from multi-cultural, spiritual sources.
