Updated 01/03/2023
Accy 420 Section 1, Independent Study (Accountancy Practicum)
Accy 420 is a two-course sequence which serves as an alternative to the traditional honors thesis for accountancy majors. The class will be an evening class meeting one day per week (3 credit hours for each semester) that will meet throughout the fall and spring semesters of the junior year. Case Studies–Students will prepare cases approximately every other week. These cases will deal with financial reporting, judgment and analytics and go beyond but reinforce the Intermediate curriculum. The case studies will take place throughout the year. Professional Speakers–In the alternative weeks throughout the year, representatives from the accounting profession will speak to the class. The topics will be regarding current topics in the profession. We encourage the professionals to engage the students in active discussion. Case Competitions–This part of the course will be focused on developing presentation and communication skills through preparation and participation in a case competition format. Final Thesis Document–The final thesis work will include the many case briefs worked on over the course of the year in addition to the case competition materials.
AH 101 Section 3, Introduction to Western Art
This course is designed to introduce students with no prior knowledge of art to the various styles and media of Western art. After an introduction to the fundamentals of art, two-dimensional media, including painting, drawing, printmaking, and photography, and three-dimensional media, such as sculpture and architecture, will be explored. This course concludes with a brief overview of the history of art from Prehistory to now. After completing this course, students will be able to: analyze the basic vocabulary of visual elements of art (line, shape, mass, texture, light and value, color, space and time) and principles of design (unity and variety, balance, emphasis and subordination, scale, proportion, and rhythm); analyze works of art, verbally and in writing, based on the elements, principles, and materials (media) of art; place works of art in their historical context based on a general timeline and identify different styles and movements in art. During this course, students will have the opportunity to explore the University Museum’s collection and attend in-studio demonstrations related to media and processes with practicing artists and faculty. The Honors section of Art History 101 will aim to develop oral presentation skills throughout the semester, practice visual and contextual analysis through compare and contrast exercises, as well as completing written responses to issues raised in class.
AH 102 Section 2, Art Beyond the West
This course is designed to introduce students to works of art in various media developed in isolation from the European tradition. Lectures focus on the major artistic traditions of South/Southeast Asia, China, Japan, Korea, the Islamic World, Oceania, the Americas, and Africa from ancient until modern time. Using visual arts as a tool, this course introduces students to the diverse social customs, religions, and beliefs of Non-Western peoples.
AH 201 Section 2, History of Art I
In this class students will interpret representative examples of prehistoric, ancient, and medieval art of Western and selected world cultures using the specific vocabulary of art. They will investigate various art styles within their historical, political, and religious contexts. In addition, they will examine the roles of artists, patrons, and audiences, and will identify the processes by which artists produce their work. This Honors College section differs from the large sections (up to 120 students) with classes consisting of a blend of illustrated lectures, discussion, and group and individual presentations. In addition, students will read key primary documents to assist in interpreting art works within chronological and geographical contexts, and the “outstanding universal value” of UNESCO Heritage Sites will be examined. Rather than multiple-choice tests, as in the regular sections, in the honors section, students will demonstrate critical thinking while evaluating various perspectives on art in several brief oral and written assignments.
Arab 471, Section 1, Issues & Trends in Contemporary Lebanon
In this content-based course, students will examine major socio-political issues in contemporary Lebanon, with the purpose of achieving a better understanding of the political, social, and cultural context of the country. The majority of the course will revolve around four issues: (1) the sectarian problem of Lebanon; (2) the Lebanese-Israeli conflict; (3) the refugee crisis; and (4) the economic crisis, along with a brief introduction to the history and culture of Lebanon. Because this course is an upper-level one, the targeted linguistic function is argumentation. Students will work thoroughly in both written and oral assignments on how to summarize the views of others, articulate their own well-substantiated views, and respond to critiques of those views. The course will be conducted entirely in Arabic.
Astr 104, Section 8, Intro Astronomy of Stars and Galaxies
This is a laboratory-based course in introductory astronomy, with special emphasis on stars, galaxies and the universe. The two weekly lectures are common with the non-honors sections; they are full of pretty pictures, and with a minimal preparation for tests and regular attendance should not represent any sort of difficulty for honors students. The honors content is entirely contained in the laboratory. Whenever it is possible, observations are held in Kennon Observatory or simply outside. We learn the constellations, look at the craters of the Moon, at the planets, and explore star clusters and galaxies in the telescopes. Honors students have a chance to use the most powerful telescopes and watch objects that we usually cannot offer in regular classes. The laboratory includes a systematic image taking project, which occupies 1/3 of the total time. Students are requested to do individual work (only directed by faculty), which involves one full night of image taking. Due to the unpredictability of the weather in Oxford, flexibility is needed (on short notice) in picking that night. To compensate for the 10 – 20 hours of total out-of-class work, three laboratories are cancelled, and no homework is assigned in the class. The student projects usually result in spectacular images.
Chem 222, Section 3, Elementary Organic Chemistry II
Dr. Mattern’s organic chemistry class uses a “flipped” format. Videos of all lectures are available on Panopto for students to watch at their own pace. Class time features small-group problem solving that emphasizes the most crucial organic topics. In the extra recitation hour, we will have lectures on special topics, discuss especially intriguing homework problems that go a bit beyond the standard class material, and provide extra time for exams. Grade expectations will be the same as for a non-Honors class (the median letter grade for Honors Chem 222 has typically been an A-).
Csci 433, Section 2, Algorithm and Data Structure Analysis
This course seeks to introduce to the students the basic theory, concepts, and techniques of analysis of the efficiency of computer algorithms and concepts of computational complexity. Upon successful completion of this course, the students should: understand the concept of computational complexity; be able to analyze a class of computational algorithms and; be able to apply the concept of computational complexity to real-world applications. Topics to be covered will include basic asymptotic notations and basic efficiency classes, brute force and exhaustive search, divide-and-conquer, space and time trade-offs, dynamic programming, greedy technique, data structures, graph algorithms, and limitations of algorithm power. Besides the regular lectures, the instructor offers additional weekly meetings with Honors students to explore advanced topics.
EDCI 353, Section 1, Planning and Teaching Strategies for Effective Classroom Practice
Introduction to teaching strategies and models including direct instruction, discovery and inquiry, cooperative/collaborative learning, concept teaching in a developmental-constructivist context; attention to taxonomies for cognitive, affective, and psychomotor domains; reflection of classroom practices; curriculum design and planning; classroom management; evaluation and assessment; use of technology across the curriculum. Participants in the Honors/METP section of this course will be required to teach multiple days from an original unit plan developed during the course.
Eng 199, section 6, Introduction to Creative Writing
This course will introduce students to writing and workshopping poetry, personal essays, and short stories. We will read examples of these genres and do exercises designed to inspire creativity, experimentation, and the pleasure of ushering brand-new literature into the world. With an emphasis on community and process, we will create a welcoming space that will allow us to try new techniques and find new ways to write well. Students will produce one story, one personal essay, and several poems. For our final project, each student will create a chapbook containing revisions of your best work from the semester.
Eng 220, Section 19, Survey in Literary History, Literature and Economics
It is not unusual to assume that measures of economic value and measures of literary value have little or nothing in common. Yet literature is a significant sector of commercial enterprise. It provides employment, renewable productive resources, and flow-on economic impetus (book production, copyright law, film adaptation, and so on). This class will examine both the history of literature’s relationships to economics and the ways in which ideas of artistic value have interacted with economic value theory. From the medieval period through the present day, ideas of what constitutes value have evolved through continual interactions between culture, industry, class, environment, and many other factors, all of which literary writers have represented and helped to shape. Readings will include works by Chaucer, Shakespeare, Jane Austen, and Octavia Butler, as well as selections of poetry and brief critical discussions.
Eng 224, Section 32, Survey of American Literature since the Civil War
In this version of Eng 224 we will be exploring the importance of form to literary works from the Civil War to the present. Form is our way into interrogating texts for meaning, historical significance, and representation in all its forms. We’ll look at fiction, poetry, nonfiction, and hybrid works. My normal surveys cover a number of small works across a broad time range, but this class will allow us to explore texts more completely, look at historic artifacts related to literature here on campus, engage with visiting writers coming to campus, and look at the “hands-on” process of literature.
Eng 393, Section 1, Studies in Popular Culture, The Future is Female
Speculative fiction, it is often pointed out, was born with the Creature in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein in 1818. Even before that, Margaret Cavendish’s 1666 The Blazing World invented an entire world built on her scientific theories and her desire for the personal sovereignty that her patriarchal society dismissed and denigrated. This course will explore the worlds women have invented and explored through science fiction and fantasy novels from the seventeenth century to today. We will examine the ways these worlds interrogate, respond to, and even predict the political, social, and scientific problems of the societies from which they emerged, as well as the way these novels interrogate the notion of “womanhood” itself. Authors may include Margaret Cavendish, Mary Shelley, Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain, C.L. Moore, Ursula K. LeGuin, Octavia Butler, Margaret Atwood, Louise Erdrich, Rebecca Roanhorse, N.K. Jemisin, Nnedi Okorafor, Emily St. John Mandel, and Tasmyn Muir. Assignments will include weekly reading journals, two papers, and a final project that will give students the opportunity to develop their own speculative worlds!
G St 201, Section 3, Introduction to Gender Studies
This is an interdisciplinary course that surveys critical issues examined by scholars in the field of women’s and gender studies. In this course, students are introduced to key concepts and theories, which can be used as lenses to think critically about the world around them, their own positionality, and the diversity of lived experiences in different social, historical, cultural, and global moments. Major focal points to be covered over the course of the semester are: social construction theory and aspects of identity, such as gender, race, class, age, sexuality, ability, and religion; analysis of systems of privilege and discrimination; the historicization of institutions and institutional power; popular culture and representation; intersectionality; and heteronormativity. The history of feminism will not be covered in its totality in this course, but key moments in that history could be important in framing some of these concepts.
Hon 350, Section 1, Introduction to American Law and Reasoning
American society is thick with laws and litigation. Nonetheless, few undergraduates ever study American legal institutions and what they do. To the extent that such courses are taught, most deal with the United States Supreme Court and matters of constitutional law. Though vitally important to our society, such courses touch upon a minuscule portion of what lawyers and their clients actually do, and the crucial role that institutions such as courts play in our society. This course is intended to remedy this gap by providing a broad introduction to American law and legal reasoning. The purpose of the course is to read, analyze and discuss American law using the “case method” as it is used in the first-year law school curriculum at most American law schools. This course will cover Constitutional Law, Civil Procedure, Contracts, Torts, Property, Criminal Procedure, and Criminal Law.
Hon 392, Section 3, Southern Exiles
Southern Exiles: From the Indian Removals of the 19th century, the Great Migration of the 20th century, and the brain drain crisis of the present, residents of the South have long been forced to leave. In this seminar we will engage with this theme of expulsion from the South and what it means for ideas of “Southern hospitality.” Who gets to stay here and why? Do these exiles take a bit of the South with them? What does this all mean for students trying to plan their own futures?
Hon 392, Section 6, Topics in Higher Education
Topics in Higher Education will analyze higher education in the past, present, and future through weekly readings. Weekly classroom sessions will discuss and analyze the issues. Topics will include free speech on the college campus, college athletics, college admissions, academic freedom, and other topics pertinent to postsecondary institutions.
Hon 392, Section 7, Topics in Medicine and Health Care
Topics in medicine and health care will be presented as documentaries which students view outside of class. Weekly classroom sessions will discuss and analyze the issues. Topics will include human genomics and personalized medicine, obesity and chronic diseases, opioid abuse, gun violence, vaccine controversies, aging and death, abortion, and U.S. and global health care policies.
Hon 399, Section 3, Influences and Interactions in Art and Music
In this course, students will explore with Bruce Levingston and Philip Jackson the influences and interactions between the visual arts and music from the Renaissance to the present day. There will be particular emphasis on works of the Classical, Romantic, Impressionist and Modern periods with focus on such artists as Caravaggio, Fragonard, Goya, Delacroix, Corot, Manet, Eakins, Monet, Cassatt, Van Gogh, Picasso, Ernst, Matisse, Kahlo, Warhol, Basquiat and Close and their stylistic parallels and influences upon such composers as Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, Liszt, Debussy, Bartok, Schönberg, Cage and Glass. We will also study other related media including film, dance and sculpture. The class will involve looking, listening and analyzing the lives and works of these artists and their eras. It only requires a passion to learn and explore the extraordinary richness of the artistic creative spirit.
Hon 551, Section 1, Honors Advanced Study in Law
Law 510, Legislation, is a study of statutory interpretation and the legislative process. The course focuses on how to determine statutory meaning and construct arguments regarding statutory language. We will cover the debate between textualists and intentionalists, and analyze the judicial review of legislative process. Students will be introduced to statute drafting, with attention devoted both to drafting precise sentences and effective statutory schemes.
Hon 551, Section 3, Honors Advanced Study in Law
This course, Criminal Procedure I, will focus on the constitutional issues confronting law enforcement and suspects during a criminal investigation as a result of the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution. Specifically, we will cover the law of search and seizure, self-incrimination and the right to counsel as defined by the U.S. Supreme Court. We will also discuss important selected procedural issues that arise during the prosecution of a criminal case including double jeopardy, discovery, pretrial hearings, jury selection, confrontation and the ethical responsibilities of a prosecutor. Students will learn the black-letter law concerning constitutional issues that arise during the investigation of a crime. They will also learn to understand a court’s written opinion and discuss/debate the legal principles involved and their applicability to different facts. This will assist them to think, write and act like an attorney. Finally, they will be exposed to the practical applications and problems that confront the criminal practitioner in the real world.
Hst 131, Section 11, The United States Since 1877, Honors
This is an introductory survey course covering the history of the United States from the end of Reconstruction to the present. We will take a chronological approach to chart important political, economic, and cultural developments during this time frame, including industrialization, western conquest, the Progressive era, World Wars I and II, the Great Depression, the Cold War, the civil rights movement and other movements for inclusion, and recent events that historians are only beginning to examine. Throughout the course, we will use primary sources—materials created by historical subjects during the time we’re studying —to help us interpret and understand the past. This course will also introduce students to core principles of historical thinking. Historians do more than memorize facts, dates and names. They consider how societies change over time and debate why those changes happened. Moreover, these changes often had disparate effects: particular social groups experienced certain periods and changes in very different ways. In this course, we will explore the American past with an understanding that our knowledge of the past is always incomplete. All works of history are works of interpretation that make arguments based on the historical evidence available. To demonstrate mastery of historical thinking, students will complete writing assignments each week and craft a paper contextualizing the life history of someone who was born before 1960.
Hst 492, Section 1, Race and Ethnicity in Modern East Asia
This course explores the history of Race and Ethnicity from the perspective of Asia (primarily East Asia – or the present-day nations of China, Japan and Korea). We begin with the premise that most people today understand “race” and “nation” as natural, “real” things. The first section of the course is therefore dedicated to breaking down many of the assumptions contemporary people have about race, ethnicity, and the nation-state, and by thinking about how the experience of people living in Asia can challenge US- or Euro-centric ideas of race and nation. From here, we will establish a rough outline of how Asia transformed politically from a collection of territorial empires, independent kingdoms and European colonies to the modern nation-states that exist today. The remainder of the course is dedicated to case studies that illustrate a range of experiences, practices, and historical analyses of race and nation in East Asia. Examples will take us through imperial pageantry and processions, Pan-Asian idealism and social Darwinist race war; through census attempts, baseball and colonial anthropology, all the way up to the so-called “separatist” struggles of the Uyghur and Tibetan people in China today.
ISS 125, Section 2, Introduction to Intelligence Studies
Students will receive a broad overview of intelligence gathering and analysis as practiced by agencies of the United States government, to include its purpose, history and potential benefits. The organizational makeup of the U.S. Intelligence Community (IC); the laws, guidelines and ethics pertaining to intelligence collection; and employment/internship possibilities in the IC will also be presented. Finally, students will be given an introduction to analytical procedures and writing/briefing for policymakers. The Honors College version of the class will accomplish these goals with a combination of discussions, hands-on learning activities, and group wargames based on historical intelligence dilemmas.
Jour 353 Section 1, Topics in Journalism III (Freedom Farm Revisited)
Call it Mississippi’s version of Wakanda… Fifty years ago, Sunflower County was home to a place where African-Americans could eat, work and live economically independent from the all-white power structure. “Freedom Farm Revisited” will explore the rise and fall of Fannie Lou Hamer’s Freedom Farm Cooperative and its relevance to today’s Mississippi. This 3-hour depth reporting class in the School of Journalism and New Media will immerse students in Mississippi’s history, issues of race, inequality, food economics, public policy and systemic power struggles. Students will research historical records, conduct primary source interviews and immerse themselves in experiential learning activities, then produce & publish original media content that connects various aspects of Freedom Farm’s history to current issues, topics, and trends on the state and national level.
MKTG 356, Section 1, Legal, Social, & Ethical Issues in Marketing
This course focuses on various external issues and constraints that often impact a marketing manager’s decisions yet are typically beyond the manager’s control. Specifically, it addresses the legal/regulatory issues that impact marketing and both historical as well as contemporary social, ethical, and institutional factors. Honors students will examine one or more issues in greater depth than students do in regular sections.
Mus 103, section 15, Introduction to Music
After a re-design of the course, Music now teaches Music 103 without a textbook and has changd how they teach the course. After going over some introductory material in our Elements of Music Module—we will explore 4 to 6 themed, two-week modules. Some of those modules include: Music of War and Tragedy, Music and Nationalism, Music & Virtuosity, Music of Oppression and Justice. This topic focus allows us to discuss and listen to music from a wide array of art music genres including classical, jazz, world, and popular music. The ultimate goal for this course is for the student to become a better listener while developing your ability to interpret music in an informed yet personal manner, regardless of the style or historical period. Mus 103 students will also have the opportunity to attend and see live performances of music on the UM campus. The honors section of this class has greater focus in classroom discussion and hearing from individual students in their experiences with class topics and music.
Phil 101, Section 8, Introduction to Philosophy
Philosophy 101 Honors introduces students to a number of core philosophical problems about the nature of knowledge and our place in the universe. The guiding questions of this course are: What is philosophy and why is it valuable? What can we know about the world and ourselves? What makes something a person? Must a person be the right kind of animal, have the right kind of mind, have an immaterial soul, or something else? What is the mind and how exactly is it related to the body and brain? What can the physical sciences tell us about the mind? Do we have freewill? When are we responsible for what we do? Do our choices, actions, and lives have any meaning? The overarching goal of the course is for students to develop the ability to critically analyze philosophical arguments and to hone their reasoning skills. This honors section will give special attention to the ongoing relevance of philosophy for science and society today.
Phil 103 Section 2, Logic: Critical Thinking (cross-listed as Ling 103)
Students will develop the ability to uncover the logical structure of ordinary language; to recognize, represent, and assess everyday statements and arguments; and to work competently within formal logical systems. The material will be presented in three distinct sections, with an exam after each section. The first section is introductory. Topics include basic logical concepts, the informal analysis of statements, the nature and analysis of arguments, and fallacies (including statistical fallacies). The second section concerns categorical logic. Topics include categorical statements, the logical relationships amongst categorical propositions, and categorical syllogisms. The third section concerns propositional logic. Topics include the truth-functional operators and the use of truth tables to prove validity. Note that the course is excellent preparation for standardized graduate admissions tests (GRE, LSAT, MCAT).
PPL 390, Section 1, Health Policy in the U.S.
This course will explore the debates regarding the problems facing health care in the U.S., their causes, and possible solutions. It will focus on the interaction of policy and practice, especially regarding a wide range of reform ideas. We will analyze a number of reforms, including their justification and intended outcomes, how they have been developed and implemented, how well they work and how they could work better, and alternatives to these reforms. In the process, we will discuss how key institutions (Congress, state governments, interest groups, the free market, et al.) and actors (elected officials, health professionals, researchers, insurers, patients, et al.) shape the American health care system, for better or worse.
Psy 327, Section 1, Psychology and Law
The course systematically presents material relating to the interface between the fields of psychology and law, including forensic, police, and correctional psychology. Major emphasis is also placed on psychology’s role in the courts and criminal behavior prevention and intervention. This course contains material that some may find disturbing. Coverage of topics is necessary given the nature of the course. We will approach sensitive material in a professionally appropriate manner.
Psy 456, Section 1, Integrative Topics in Psychology – Green with Envy and Going Green? The Seven Deadly Sins and the Psychology of Sustainability
This course will situate humans as the focus of our examination of sustainability. There is broad scientific consensus that humans are causing global warning and climate change and belief that these same humans will be necessary to stop and maybe even reverse these effects. Envy. Greed. Gluttony. Lust. Pride. Sloth. Wrath. The Seven Deadly Sins, most clearly associated with Christian beliefs, are thought to be abuses or excesses of natural human tendencies. This semester, we will focus on answering two questions: (a) are our human vices and sins uniquely bad for the planet, contributing to climate change and other man-made environmental dangers? And (b) if we are all sinners (or at the very least, human and imperfect), can we leverage our “sinful nature” to make us more sustainable? To take our learning outside of the classroom, this course will also involve (a) a spring break trip to Las Vegas, Nevada – known as Sin City and as a leader in sustainability efforts and (b) a presentation with the University of Mississippi Office of Sustainability to share our accumulated knowledge on the subject.
Span 211, Section 4, Intensive Intermediate Spanish
Spanish 211, Intermediate Spanish, is a continuation of Spanish 111, Elementary Spanish, and is therefore, designed to continue the study of the language and culture in the Spanish-speaking world. By the end of this class, students should be able to complete intermediate-level communicative tasks in Spanish using the communication strategies, grammar structures and vocabulary acquired during the semester, and to understand and be able to talk about the diversity of the Spanish-speaking world. The goals of this course are based on the Standards for Foreign Language Learning in the 21st Century. These standards, often referred to as the 5 Cs, emphasize the following areas: Communication in Spanish; Learning about different cultures in the Spanish speaking world; Using language to make connections to other disciplines; Comparing and contrasting languages and cultures to develop a deeper understanding about language and; Using the larger community as a way to experience and acquire knowledge about language. Students in the Honors section will have the opportunity to work with authentic materials (news articles, literature, etc.) and will engage reading and writing strategies they have learned in regular classes in the production of class work and homework in Spanish. Because this Honors section will also include Croft students, who will necessarily continue to Spanish 303 and 305, we will spend more time in preparing all the students for excellence in those courses.