December 20, 2011

For Immediate Release

Hastings College's 2012 J-Term courses provide unique academic opportunities

Note to Media:  For additional information, contact Alicia O’Donnell at aodonnell@hastings.edu or (402) 705-0120.

(Hastings, Neb.) – One of the most successful and popular features of Hastings College’s academic program, J-Term allows students to immerse themselves in one course during the month of January, instead of four or five courses. Students can focus on a topic in their major field or study something new. J-Term at HC is a time for discovery, innovation and unforgettable learning experiences.

Now in its 46th year, J-Term includes both on-campus and off-campus courses taught by HC professors and various visiting faculty.  Below is a partial listing of the 2012 J-Term courses.  Find the complete schedule at http://www.hastings.edu/downloads/hcclassschedule_fall11spring12.pdf.

Off-Campus Courses

Mural Painting in Belize
Instructor: Kelly Manning, Instructor of Art
Location: Belize (20 days)

Description: This will be in conjunction with the Education Department’s annual trip to Belize over J-Term.  The student will participate in creating a mural for the college in Belize, as part of a campus beautification project.  The student will participate in every aspect of creating the mural.  This will involve researching possible content, collaborating on the mural’s design, transferring the chosen design onto the wall and painting the mural.  The student should have basic design knowledge, and drawing and painting skills.

Cultural Exploration and Education in Belize
Instructor: Dr. Judy Hall, Professor of Teacher Education
Location:  Belize (20 days)

Description: By teaching in classrooms in Belize, students will examine the influence of poverty and culture on education and examine teaching strategies when home language (Spanish) and school language (English) are different.  Through cultural immersion, students will examine the diversity of cultures, races, ethnicities, languages, religions, and socioeconomic groups.  Students will also have the opportunities on weekends to explore the cultural history (Mayan and Aztec) of Belize, Mexico and Guatemala.
    
Medical Mission in Trinidad and Tobago—Cross Cultural Perspectives on Healing
Instructor: Dr. John Bohmfalk, Professor of Biology, and the Dr. Jean Heriot, Director of Service Learning and Associate Professor of Religion
Location:  Trinidad and Tobago (17 days)

Description:  The class will travel to Trinidad and Tobago to work with children in orphanages, one which houses orphans with AIDS/HIV related illnesses and the other which houses orphan girls.  While students will not be able to do medical procedures, they will be able to interact with the children, learn about their needs and learn about the medical health care delivery system in Trinidad.  Classes will be held in conjunction with the University of the West Indies while in Trinidad including visiting hospitals and clinics. We will also learn about Trinidad culture, as well as cross-cultural perspectives on illness, disease, and alternative healing practices.  The trip closes with time off at the pristine beaches of Tobago.

International Infrastructures and Cultures
Instructors: Dr. Carol Meyer, Professor of Business Administration, and Dr. Dallas Wilhelm, Professor of Biology
Locations:  Australia, Fiji and New Zealand   (18 days)

Description: This excursion takes travelers to Australia, Fiji Islands, and New Zealand to experience the cultural, biological, and infrastructural diversity in first, second, third, and fourth world countries.  This course offers rainforests, metropolitan cities, ocean adventures, Maori villages, Aboriginal activities, pristine beaches, Great Barrier Reef—all incredible once-in-a-lifetime experiences.  Experience historical and ecological treasures while canyoning, spear-throwing, rafting, snorkeling, canyonings, underground tubing, and holding koala.

Taiwan Culture Face to Face
Instructors: Dr. Andrew Abel, Professor of Sociology, and Grace Abel, Adjunct Instructor of Languages and Literatures
Location:  Taiwan (14 days)

Description:  This course will help prepare students to flourish in China.  The curriculum will be geared toward the teaching of English as a Second Language (ESL); however, the focus of the course is more general cultural competency—and is therefore appropriate for students interested in doing business, pursuing advanced study, or otherwise considering career of scholarly opportunities in China.  Students will spend 2 weeks in Taipei, Taiwan.

History and Literature of Dante’s World
Instructor: Dr. Renee Laegreid, Associate Professor of History
Location:  Italy (15 days)

Description: This is an extended tour in Florence, Italy, that aims to introduce undergraduate students to the Italian Middle Ages through History, Literature and Art so that they may develop an integrated appreciation of Dante’s Italy.  The trip will include visits to important museums such as Museo Casa di Dante, San Marco, the Bargello and the Uffizi, visits to sites in and around Florence and Tuscany, including Siena and San Gimignano in order to give students a broader understanding of the historic context that formed the basis of Dante’s most famous pieces of literature, The Divine Comedy.  In addition, students will be exposed to one of the overlooked elements throughout the Divine comedy—humor—and will have the opportunity to interpret Dante’s historical literature into contemporary short stories that focus on the joy and/or humor of the human condition.  In this regard, students will also read excerpts from Giovanni Boccaccio’s Decameron.  Boccaccio was the first biographer of Dante and later taught the Divine Comedy in Florence, so we will have the opportunity as a class to further our understanding of Dante through relevant primary texts drawn from the same time period.

Film and Popular Music
Instructors: Dr. Byron Jensen, Professor of Music, and Dr. Debra Rhodes, Professor of Music
Location:  California (7 days)

Description: As a study of how music interacts with film and other forms of artistic expression, this course is highlighted by a trip to Los Angeles where further discussions are led by Disney-based and Emmy Award winning composer, Mark Watters.  The tour includes visits to recording and film studios attendance to various music-based performances, and art museums.  The California trip itself will be seven days and six nights, with other pre-trip class time spent on campus.

Culture and Civilization of Spain
Instructor: Dr. Pedro Vizoso, Assistant Professor of Foreign Languages
Location:   Spain (17 days)

Description: This course consists of a journey through the history, geography and major cultural achievements of Spain from its beginnings to the present.  The course provides an analysis of Spanish, identities, traditions and ways of life.  The immersion in the Spanish very reality will help for the students to have a direct and personal contact with the culture and language they are studying.  At the same time, their stay living with Spanish families will provide many occasions to use and improve the language in a real life context.

Chemistry Research Experience
Instructor: Dr. Moses Dogbevia, Associate Professor of Chemistry
Location:  University of Nebraska-Lincoln or University of Kansas (16 days)

Description: This course will place students in research laboratories. There they will conduct research with graduate students, post-docs, and faculty members.  This course will be modeled after the summer undergraduate research programs in chemistry found at many research institutions.  

On-Campus Courses

Designing with Glass
Instructor: Tom Kreager, Professor of Art
 
Description: This course is for the students with at least one semester of glass experience.  We will explore how to design and produce the designs with special attention to design in the past century.  There will be an emphasis on designing objects that use more than just glass; we will incorporate steel, wood and found objects into each assignment.

Comic and Graphic Novel Story Telling and Illustration
Instructor: Bob Hall – Distinguished Visiting Professor

Description: This course will introduce students to the landscape of comic and graphic novel creation.  Students will work on devising a story, whether fictionalized or biographical using their own experiences, and then shaping and illustrating that story.  Although there will be instruction in drawing, emphasis will be on story-telling.

Current Issues for American Businesses
Instructor: Roger Doerr, Professor of Business and Economics and President Emeritus of the Hastings College Foundation

Description: A seminar based course designed to delve into current topics that American Businesses will be dealing with in 2012.  Examples may include job creation, outsourcing, a repositioning of corporate America in a rapidly changing global market, global warming issues and opportunities there from and other topics from the news in January 2012.

“He Said, She Said”: Understanding Gender Communication
Instructor: Dr. Jessica Henry, Professor of Communication Arts

Description: In this course we will investigate major issues currently under investigation in communication and gender: the social construction of gender, stereotypes, cultural issues, language, nonverbal behavior, emotion, intimacy, control, friendship, courtship, marriage, family and strategies for change.  In addition, aspects of gender in communication are explored in various forms of media categories including print, television, film and advertisement.  The main emphasis of this course is not to explain the causality of the communication differences between men and women but to become aware of those differences and how those communication patterns affect all facets of life.

Be Not Afraid: Owen Meany’s World
Instructor: Dr. Rich Lloyd, Professor of English, Dean Emeritus

Description: In this course, students will read John Irving’s national bestseller, A Prayer for Owen Meany.   To better understand the novel, students will also read several other texts that give shape to Irving’s novel, a novel of friendship and faith and the forces that shape our lives.

Harry Potter 24/7
Instructors:  Dr. Antje Anderson, Professor of English and Benjamin Waller, Assistant Professor of English

Description: In this course, we’ll be discussing all seven Harry Potter novels b y J.K. Rowling, as well as all eight movies (which you’ll have to watch in between class periods, not in class).  For dedicated Harry Potter fans and intrepid rookies alike, this is a fabulous opportunity to study the entire series, its sources and forerunners, the many genres it belongs to (from children’s novel to fantasy fiction, from boarding-school tale to allegory), its genius and its flaws (gasp!), as well as the film art it has generated.  We’ll be offering two sections but will occasionally trade classes or join forces for discussions.

Literature, Language, Film, and Cuisine of France
Instructor:  Dr. Constance Malloy

Description: Students with previous coursework in French language will read novels, write a paper, see French films, and cook French food while increasing the fluency of their spoken French.  More experienced French students may read the novels and write the essay in French.

Clash of the Generals I- Ancient Warfare and Clash of the Generals II- The Horse & Musket Era
Instructor:  Dr. Mark Ibeji- Distinguished Visiting Professor

Descriptions:  The Clash of the Generals offerings are intensive 6-day interactive crash courses in the history of ancient warfare.  Battles pitting famous generals against each other are fought out in a battlefield simulator (often Rome: Total War) to see who might have won if Hannibal or Alexander had ever gone up against the other greats of the Ancient world, if Robert E. Lee could have outfoxed Napoleon or if Wellington could have held his ground against Alexander’s charge.

Sports Reporting and Writing
Instructor:  Brian Rosenthal, Adjunct Instructor of Communication Arts

Description:  Sports Reporting and Writing will focus on game coverage, sports features, and sports columns.  Students will learn how to use media guides and to handle media relations with coaches, sports information directors, and competing media.  The class will travel to a Tri-City Storm game and a University of Nebraska-Lincoln Men’s Basketball game, and will tour area sports coverage and press box facilities.  

Images of West Nebraska
Instructors:  Brett Erickson, Assistant Professor of Communication Arts

Description:  Ask anyone on the street from anywhere but western Nebraska: the whole state is flat.  Or is it?  As photographers, it is imperative to lay aside our predisposed notions of the Great Plains and explore it firsthand.  This class will examine the landscape and culture of northwest Nebraska, and travel there to document its land and its people with the camera.  There will be a limited number of cameras for checkout to students for the course, so students are encouraged (but not required) to own a digital camera.  Sam Abell, a 40-year photographer for National Geographic, will assist with this course.

Jazz Techniques, History and Literature
Instructors:  Dr. Marc LaChance, Professor of Music, and Dr. Jonathan Sokasits, Professor of Music

Description: The purpose of this course is as follows: l) to understand the historical and cultural context of jazz.  2) to provide an overview of jazz theory, jazz improvisation and teaching strategies for both and 3) to provide the jazz educator with tools for choosing and preparing music, as well as other aspects of running a jazz program.

Yoga: Posture, Power and Poise
Instructor: Tracy Glomski, Adjunct Instructor of Physical Education  

Description: Vinyasa-style yoga employs a flowing sequence of poses and counterposes to stretch and strengthen opposing pairs of muscles.  Improved posture, balance, self-confidence and grace are just some of the many benefits of this intriguing practice.  Each class period also includes a half-hour of cardio work, (dance movements borrowed from Eastern traditions), plus breathe exercises and guided meditations for stress management.

Animal Cognition
Instructor: Dr. Jeri Thompson, Associate Professor of Psychology
 
Description: This course consists of an overview of philosophic and scientific research on the thought processes of various species of animals.  The possibilities of animal self-awareness, problem-solving, and language will be discussed in relation to human cognitive processes.  We will also consider why this comparison seems to be so important (to us, probably not to them).

Moneyball Revolution: Football and Basketball Analysis
Instructor:  Dr. Mark Zajack, Assistant Professor of Psychology

Description: Michael Lewis' 2003 best-seller "Moneyball" both launched mainstream awareness of statistical analysis in sports as well as precipitated its spread throughout Major League Baseball front offices.  The revolution has since spread to other sports, including both football and basketball. This course will explore the potential of statistical models to predict success in football and basketball.  Students will gain hands-on, step-by-step experience modifying and evaluating analytics for football and basketball.

Understanding How the Brain Works
Instructor: Dr. Lorraine Edwards – Distinguished Visiting Professor

Description: This course will be taught at the basic level and will incorporate principles of electrophysiology, neurochemistry and neuroanatomy to understand how the brain works.  Students will have the opportunity to experience electroencephalograms, nerve conduction studies and computerized tomography of the brain

Revolutionary Ideas in Science
Instructors:  Dr. William Beachly, Professor of Biology and Chemistry, and Dr. David Lovekin, Professor of Philosophy

Description: Few would deny that science has instigated tremendous progress over the past few centuries, but how does this progress proceed?  Thomas Kuhn argues it happens in spurts he called paradigm shifts, when revolutionary ideas overturn old notions.  Newton, in homage to hose thinkers before him, said he could only see farther by standing on the shoulders of giants.  In this class we want to examine some notable instances of scientific revolutionaries, and discuss the personalities and circumstances behind them.  Each student will pick a scientist as their focus.  They will research biographies of their scientist, find their personal “giants” and what was insufficient about the ideas they overturned.  We will use articles, films, and some short field trips to explore the development of scientific ideas, as well as the question: “What is science, really?”

High-Speed Photography
Instructor: Dr. James Dugan, Professor of Physics

Description: Have you ever wondered how “stop action” photos of speeding bullets are taken or seen pictures of falling water drops that are seemingly suspended in space?  Both of these types of photographs are made possible using “high speed” photographic techniques.  In this class you will learn how to take high speed photographs of bursting balloons, exploding light bulbs, and numerous other phenomena that occur so rapidly they are undetectable by the human eye.

House M.D. and Kuehn D.V.M.
Instructor: Dr. John Kuehn, Associate Professor of Biology

Description: Through an analysis of the fictional character Gregory House, M.D., the course will examine the process of medical diagnosis, treatment, and decision making.  The roles of medical oaths, evidence based medicine, advanced technology, and informed consent in the practice of medicine will be evaluated.

Factors Influencing Marital Quality
Instructor:  Dr. Robert Kettlitz, Professor of Sociology

Description: This course is designed to introduce students to several factors that have been shown to influence individuals’ perceptions of the quality of their relationship.  Factors to be explored:  expectations, interaction, communication, and bonding.

Musical Theatre Workshop
Instructors:  James Fritzler, Professor of Theatre Arts; Dr. Fritz Mountford, Professor of Music; Bernard Tushaus, Instructor of Communication Arts and Theatre; and George White, Professor of Theatre Arts

Description: See www.hastings.edu/jmusicals.  

Invited Faculty

Dr. Lorraine Edwards, Distinguished Visiting Professor
Lorriane Edwards, M.D., a neurologist from Central Nebraska Neurology, P.C. in Hastings, Neb., is experienced in the treatment of disorders of the nervous system, which include diseases of the brain, spinal cord, nerves and muscles.
 
Bob Hall, Distinguished Visiting Professor
Bob Hall has spent more than 30 years as an artist in the comic book industry. He co-authored a stage adaptation of The Passion of Dracula, which ran in Greenwich Village and London and was filmed for the Showtime network. He founded Nebraska's Flatwater Shakespeare Company.
 
Dr. Mike Ibeji, Distinguished Visiting Professor
Mike Ibeji, Ph.D., has produced and directed television series that have aired in the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States, including “Ultimate Engineering” (History Television), “Ancient Megastructures” (National Geographic Channel), “Warrior Challenge” (PBS) and more. An expert on the Roman army, Ibeji holds a doctoral degree and bachelor’s degree in ancient and medieval history from the University of Birmingham in Birmingham, U.K.
 
Brian Rosenthal ’94, Adjunct Instructor of Communication Arts
HC grad and writer for the Lincoln Journal Star’s Husker Extra Brian Rosenthal teamed up with Hastings College Associate Professor of Communication Arts Kathryn Stofer and Nebraska Wesleyan journalism professor James Schaffer to write and publish “Sports Journalism: An Introduction to Reporting and Writing,” a textbook he will be using in his J-Term course.

Hastings College, founded in 1882, is a private, four-year liberal arts institution affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA). A total of 64 majors in 32 areas of study and 12 pre-professional programs are offered to more than 1,150 students. Hastings College was named among “America’s Best National Liberal Arts Colleges” by U.S. News & World Report, a “Best in the Midwest” by The Princeton Review, and a “Best Buy in College Education” by Barron’s. Visit www.hastings.edu for more information.