Concordia College

2010 May Seminars

May 4-28, 2010
 
May Seminar Application 
May Seminar Timetable 
May Seminar Financial Aid Info
 

Global Business in Europe: Germany, France, England and Italy
Business 300 • Prerequisite: Business 250
James Specht, School of Business
Estimated seminar cost: $4,200 plus tuition: $2,800

This is an in depth study of business operations in the European countries of Germany, France, England and Italy. It includes visits to several European manufacturers such as Mercedes, BMW, Porsche, Zeppelin and Siemens to observe their manufacturing processes. Discussions of business issues with top managers within these firms are also included. The seminar focuses primarily on the manufacturing, transportation and electronics industries. Some of the purposes of the seminar are to familiarize students with international business operations, gain an appreciation of the role of government in business operations and gain an understanding of the global capital markets. There is no language requirement for this seminar. Students that become interested in applying for international jobs after graduation may choose to continue developing their foreign language proficiency.

Vanished Civilizations of the Mediterranean
Classics 300 • Prerequisite: Classics 250
Heather Waddell Gruber, Classical Studies
Estimated seminar cost: $6,400 plus tuition: $2,800

By visiting ancient places once known only in literature, now recovered by archaeology, participants will gain insights into great ancient civilizations whose cultural remains still excite our imaginations. The Bronze Age palaces of Minoan Crete will challenge us to understand a people who ruled supremely over the Aegean. The citadels of Mycenae and Tiryns will allow us to glimpse the warlike culture of the Myceneans. The great Panhellenic sanctuaries of Olympia and Delphi offer insights into the lives of the classical Greeks. The buried cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum remind us of the fragility of existence even as the eternal cities of Athens and Rome display their timeless grandeur. Our travels will include bustling Athens and Rome, scenic Greek islands, verdant mountains of the Peloponnese, and Italy’s sun-drenched western coast. Includes half board (breakfast and dinner) at most locations.

Understanding China’s Rise: An Exploration into Politics, Business and Environmental Challenges
Political Science 300 • Prerequisite: Political Science 338
Greg Cant, School of Business, and Ken Foster, Political Science and Global Studies
Estimated seminar cost: $5,050 plus tuition: $2,800

China’s continuing rise in global importance is one of the biggest stories in our world today. In nearly every sphere of life and nearly every part of the globe, China’s increasing influence is being felt, and many believe that this is only the beginning. Indeed, a new book out this fall is entitled “When China Rules the World: The End of the Western World and the Birth of a New Global Order.” What is this place, China? What is going on over there?

In this course, you will gain an insider’s view of the interaction between politics and business in China, while also discovering how environmental concerns increasingly shape life and government action there. Along the way, your instructors (one of whom is fluent in Chinese) will enable you to gain deep insights into life in China today. In each location, we will meet with businesspeople, government officials, and other engaged citizens – while also seeing famous sites and experiencing local streetlife.

Our journey will begin in the capital of Beijing, the center of political power for a communist party that rules more than 1.3 billion people. Then we will travel by train down into the central heartland of Henan Province, to the small city of Xinxiang to take advantage of a special opportunity to get a behind-the-scenes look at a path breaking policy reform effort. We’ll also visit the Yellow River (central to Chinese history and culture) and learn how water issues are critical to China’s future. Next we’ll fly to the Southwest, to the special autonomous region of Guangxi. Special connections in this provincial capital will enable us to probe the government-business-environment nexus in unique depth.

Guangzhou is the next stop, where we will investigate how China’s industrial powerhouse province is faing amid the global economic recession. Then we’ll hop over to the beautiful costal city – and “special economic zone” – of Zhuhai to continue our investigations while taking stock of what we’ve learned. We will end our journey in the fascinating and fun world-class city of Hong Kong, where Chinese culture mixes with free-wheeling cosmopolitan capitalism like nowhere else in the world. If you want to prepare yourself for what may be a China-centered 21st century, enhance your marketability in the job market, and have a lot of fun, then come join us on this unique journey. Includes full board (breakfast, lunch, and dinner) most days.

Historic Lifestyles in Europe: England, France, Germany 
and Switzerland
Food/Nutrition/Dietetics 300 • Prerequisite: Food/Nutrition/Dietetics 250
Betty Larson, Nutrition and Dietetics
Estimated seminar cost: $5,300 plus tuition: $2,800

Do the communities and lifestyles of individuals and families from the past and present fascinate you? We will explore and analyze the character of life, relationships and communities in England, France, Germany and Switzerland. We will especially focus on the impact of lifestyle on health, wellness and disease occurrence in each community we visit. We will start in England with a stop at Hampton Court, the home of kings and queens for more than 400 years of English history. This venue provides us with many opportunities to study daily life, the lifestyle of women, health issues and the development of the Protestant religion.

We will then travel to Stratford to examine country life in the 16th century. We will continue the exploration of communities and the life of royalty with a visit to Warwick Castle, the Tower of London, Napoleon’s Apartments and Versailles. We will explore the open-air food markets in England and France for an opportunity to view the current daily life. We will discover why the French have a lower infant mortality and a longer life than Americans. We can examine the health impact of the Mediterranean diet, the European view of biotechnology and spend time with researchers at the largest private nutrition research facility in the world.

We will have the opportunity to enjoy the elegance of gourmet food at the Cordon Blue Cooking School, meet with dietitians in France and Switzerland and visit international health organizations. There will also be opportunity to visit famous cathedrals for insight into spiritual health by exploring Notre Dame, St. Paul’s and Sacre-Coeur.

Cameroun: L’Afrique en miniature – Cameroon: Africa 
in Miniature
French 300 (practicum in France offered concurrent and at conclusion of seminar for an extra fee)
Prerequisites: French 250, French 212 (completed or concurrent), second-year student
Zacharie Petnkeu, French
Estimated seminar cost: $5,800 plus tuition: $2,800

This is an exploration of the rich heritage and cultures of Cameroon, West Africa. We will be speaking French and navigating Francophone culture on a daily basis, while we enjoy the music, food, art, museums, theatre, religions, geography, traditions and history of this vibrant country. We will look closely at issues of colonization and post-colonization. Cameroon has the reputation for being a miniature Africa because it contains a taste of everything. It has all of the geographical elements, sea coasts, tropical forests, savannas, and high plateaus; it also has more than 200 languages and cultures and shows the effects of colonization.

We will visit four different regions to see how tradition mixes with modernity, how Anglophones mix with Francophones, how Muslims mix with Christians and with Traditionalists. In Yaoundé, the capital and center of the government, we have visits planned with government officials, the American Embassy, the national television and media, the Peace Corps and other political groups. In Garoua, where Islam dominates, we plan to go on safari. In Douala, we will visit the coast and important economic centers. In Bafoussam and Bamenda, we will enjoy homestays.

Near Bafoussam, we will also visit historic cities, one where the sultan once lived and where the inhabitants had a written language before colonizers arrived and destroyed it. Although there is a wealth of possibilities and languages, the dominant language is French and many of the infrastructures are based on the France’s equivalent.

Three Art Capitals of Europe: London, Florence and Paris
Art 300 • Prerequisite: Art 155 or 156 or 158
Peter Schultz and Heather Pollock, Art
Estimated seminar cost: $5,175 plus tuition: $2,800

Fun-loving art fanatics wanted! We’ll travel to London, Florence and Paris to observe and study some of the world’s greatest collections of art in three of Europe’s most dazzling “art capitals.” We’ll tour the museums, cathedrals, galleries and theatres that set these cities apart. Of particular importance will be your ability to demonstrate familiarity with the basic monuments of Western art, place these monuments within meaningful social contexts and to think about the interactions that exist between material culture, the historical process and the human mind.

We’ll begin in London and the exquisite collection of ancient Greek art in the British Museum. We’ll stop at the National Gallery, St. Paul’s Cathedral and sample the West End theatre district. Then it’s off to glorious Florence, where the Renaissance flourished, to enjoy the city and spend time at the Uffizi, Duomo, Medici Palace and the Leonardo da Vinci Museum. In Paris we’ll make the most of the Louvre and the Musee d’Orsay before exploring the colorful neighborhoods of the City of Light.

Travel Writing: Around the World in 25 Days
English 300
Prerequisite: English 377
W. Scott Olsen, English
Estimated seminar cost: $9,200 plus tuition: $2,800

To travel around the world is an intriguing idea. To move always westward, always chasing a setting sun, always finding yourself in someplace new, someplace completely unlike where you’ve been before, someplace extraordinary and strange. But then a problem creeps in, how in the world do you explain to anyone else what it’s like to breathe the air at the base of a mountain range called The Remarkables, what it’s like to swim at the Great Barrier Reef, what it’s like to stand in the shadow of the Sphinx?

Travel writing is at the heart of education. We talk about active and contemplative lives, and travel writing requires both. You must live the experience and you must think about it, articulate it, give it over to readers in ways that make the whole thing immediate and new again. We’ll go all the way around the world: From New Zealand to Australia, to Hong Kong then India, to Egypt and to England, and then back home, our adventure will put you in places and cultures, each different from each other, and ask you to follow your best curiosities. Your own explorations in context are the real subject here. It’s the most extraordinary trip in the world. Our travel and reflections will be enriched by sharing much of our itinerary with Jonathan Steinwand’s seminar: The Sun Never Sets on the Literary Legacy of the British Empire (Around the Postcolonial World in 25 Days).

Education vs. Training: Schooling in Northern Europe
Education 300 • Prerequisite: Education 250
Karla Smart-Morstad, Education
Estimated seminar cost: $5,400 plus tuition: $2,800

We will study schooling in Denmark, Norway, England and Iceland. Teachers and students in these countries face the same issues as we do, including public policy and school funding, curriculum, use of educational IT, national standards and testing, and teaching social skills and classroom management. But, beliefs, values, and practice in education are cultural, so we’ll look at education from global perspectives. Our understandings of American education, and our beliefs about childhood and adolescence, will be expanded by considering them in comparison to what we learn from students, teachers and administrators in public and private K-12 settings in rural and urban Northern Europe.

In Denmark we will visit Tivoli Gardens, the Helsingor Castle and Hans Christian Andersen’s birthplace and museum. Fjords, mountains, Viking history, and the May 17th Syttende Mai celebration are wonders in Norway. We will enjoy a daylong excursion into the beautiful fjords prior to departing for England. In London, we will see a Shakespearian play at the Globe Theatre, visit the Tower of London, the British National Museum, the London Eye and more. A daylong tour to Stratford, Oxford, and Warwick Castle connects us to history, as well as Harry Potter fantasy. Iceland’s nuggets include The Blue Lagoon and a daylong Golden Circle Tour to geysers, black sand lava beaches and waterfalls.

The Sun Never Sets on the Literary Legacy of the British Empire: Around the Postcolonial World in 25 Days
English 300 • Prerequisite: English 451XG
Jonathan Steinwand, English
Estimated seminar cost: $9,200 plus tuition: $2,800

As it spread across the globe in the 19th century, the British Empire was referred to as “the Empire on which the sun never sets.” We’ll explore the history and legacy of the British Empire through the postcolonial literature of some of the places it has touched. In order to get a sense of the local diversity of this global phenomenon, this seminar will travel around the world to visit New Zealand, Australia, Hong Kong, India, Egypt and England.

We will visit sites connected to recent award-winning postcolonial novels read in preparation for our travels. We will research and visit sites related to the British East India Company as we trace how the growing consumer market for commodities such as tea, sugar, opium, silk, and spices contributed to the spread of empire and globalization. Our travel and reflections will be enriched by sharing much of our itinerary with W. Scott Olsen’s seminar: Travel Writing (Around the World in 25 Days).
 
International Communication in Central Europe and the Arctic
Communication 300 • Prerequisite: Communication 312 or 316
Aileen Buslig and Hank Tkachuk, Communication Studies and Theatre Art
Estimated seminar cost: $4,848 plus tuition: $2,800

People’s experiences shape their communicative interactions. Scholars know that as history is passed on through stories from generation to generation, it influences us in ways both obvious and subtle. On this seminar we will explore the role of communication in shaping cultural identities from ancient to modern, from rural to urban, and from everyday to unusual. We will trace the development of communication within a people of common linguistic identity. Emphasis will be placed on understanding the cultural variables that affected these developments and on the people that lived with them.

Learn more about the myths and realities of four fascinating countries that you may not know much about, Hungary, Romania, Estonia, and Finland, as we travel via plane, train, and hydrofoil from sunny Central Europe to the Arctic Circle. We will stroll the banks of the Danube River in Budapest, the “Paris of the East,” then make our way to Transylvania, home of the Dracula legend. Next, we’ll visit Old Town in Tallinn, considered to be the best-preserved medieval city in Northern Europe, and end our trip in ultra-modern Helsinki, with a quick trek up to the Land of the Midnight Sun and Santa Claus. Our adventures will take us to castles, fortified cities, traditional villages, seaports, churches, parks, museums, and more.

Immerse yourself in the diversity of cultures we will visit, interacting with people, attending theatrical and folk performances, shopping in historic marketplaces, and enjoying great food in each region. Communication is an essential part of culture, identity, and relationships, but you don’t need to be a communication major to join us on our journey. Everyone is welcome.

Issues of Class, Race and Ethnicity: A Comparative Journey from Rome to London (Italy, Germany, France, Holland, England)
Sociology 300 • Prerequisite: Sociology 328
Nicholas Ellig, Sociology and Social Work
Estimated seminar cost: $5,150 plus tuition: $2,800

What do the Roman Colosseum and other architectural marvels in the Eternal City teach us about social inequality? How are the upscale shopping districts of Rome, Florence and Paris benefiting from and contributing to global stratification? What do the slaves of ancient Rome have in common with immigrant laborers in the East End of London and sex workers in Amsterdam? How might we explain the current ethnic and racial tensions found in the suburbs of Paris and other immigrant enclaves? What does the French Revolution teach us about the causes, effects and responses to inequality? How is the legacy of colonization evident in the museums, streets and neighborhoods of great European cities like Paris, Amsterdam and London? Why must we not forget the horrors of concentration camps like the one outside of Dachau?

We will use our observational skills as sociologists to address these and other questions about social inequality from the past to the present. Our journey will begin in Rome and take us to London by way of Florence, Munich, Paris and Amsterdam. Along the way we will have many opportunities to engage with the cultures of the places we visit by interacting with residents, visiting some of the greatest museums and churches in the world, touring neighborhoods, eating good food, shopping and visiting historical sites.

Historical and Cultural Influences on European Psychology: England, Germany, Switzerland and Austria
German 300 or Psychology 300 • Prerequisite: German 250 or Psychology 382
Steven Grollman, German, and Susan Cordes-Green, Psychology
Estimated seminar cost: $5,500 plus tuition: $2,800

Much of the field of psychology may be better understood by studying its European origins, which can also bring unique insights into European culture and history. This dynamic will be our focus as we travel in England, Germany, Switzerland and Austria. We will become familiar with the history and culture of the German speaking countries as we traverse their landscapes and explore their cities. Our visits to historic sites, churches, and museums will enhance our understanding of important events that changed the world and also created the impetus for major growth in psychology.

Our itinerary will include important sites in Berlin, Vienna, Munich, Heidelberg and Lucerne, as well as the breathtaking vistas of the Alps. As we travel, we will trace the roots of psychology in Freud’s office, attend a class at Carl Jung’s home, visit Wundt’s laboratory in Leipzig, and view the archives of “Bedlam” in London. We will also visit with professionals and patients at the York Retreat, where the notion of “humane” treatment for mental illnesses was first introduced, and we will meet with current psychological practitioners and scientists in the German-speaking countries. Of course, many other fun adventures will be added bonuses. Students from all majors are invited to share in this adventure.

Office of Global Education
inted@cord.edu
218.299.3927