Intergenerational Studies and Community Service Minor

A broad contextual overview of urban life that examines from a systems perspective the relationship of humans to their environment.

Examination of the development of metropolitan America from a multi-disciplinary approach, with emphasis upon dynamics of urban growth, internal development of cities, immigrations, socio-economic stratification, metropolitanization, and problems deriving from growth.

Investigation of the aging process for women in urban society, focusing on their great longevity, lower income status, and major care-giving role.

This class looks at how public policy relates to the social construction of race, class, and gender categories and how urban residents navigate such policies as part of their everyday struggle for survival and stability. The course considers how popular discourse features dominant narratives of security, insecurity, and human worth when it comes to questions of how the social safety net is allocated. How do these narratives contribute to the way urban residents experience and interpret government on an everyday level? How do these narratives affect the way urban residents interact with the state and public institutions?

Exploration of the necessary role of community service in civic life with emphasis on harnessing the power of intergenerational programs to address social concerns.

Role and problems of youth in urban societies viewed from a variety of social science perspectives with additional employment of contemporary music and literature.

Role of theory, attitudes, and public opinion in the formation of policies concerning delinquency, with exploration of current practices and innovative strategies.

Directed experiential study for advanced students.