General Education Courses
Fundamentals of Human Communication
Description: Group or individual oriented class designed to explore the connection between all social classes and the power of body language.
Philosophy
Description: The Philosophy honors class at Hillcrest college offers students the opportunity to explore all realms of the student mind and plunge into the very ideals and thoughts that provoke some of mans many achievements.
Art History
Description: At the beginning of the semester students will learn about some of the most prominent artists in history and their greatest works and what made them great. Taking the analysis skills gained from these lessons, students will analyze art in the Harrisonburg Community. We will focus on the culture that surrounds James Madison and examine how we play a role in our community and its art.
Calculus
Description: In addition to learning the basic calculus skills needed in order to continue learning that requires a calculus background, CALC 235 will be supplemented with an outside of the box approach and dig into who the creators of Calculus were and how the subject has evolved throughout time and contributed to many of the worlds greatest successes. Students will be able to assess why knowledge of calculus and get an idea of what kinds of things can be achieved through learning it.
Environmental Science
Description: The Honors Environmental Science course allows students to apply what they learn in the course to the surrounding Harrisonburg community. The course will include trips to the Lurray Caverns, Skyline Drive, and many other local natural wonders.
US History
Description: US History will take a look back into the creation of the United States and focus on the key members involved in transforming our nation into what it has become today and how those implementations will affect the future. Because our university is named after James Madison, who played a prominent role in the drafting of the Constitution, there will be a supplementary lesson dedicated to him so students can learn more about the University. There will be a trip to Montpelier to supplement learning.
US Government
Description: Many of the daily policies and procedures that our government undergoes today are unknown to the general public. GOV 101 will provide a solid groundwork for students to truly understand the role of our government and openly discuss many of these different policies. This includes a trip to DC where students will engage with policy makers, senators, and lobbyists.
Macroeconomics
Description: Students in Honors Macroeconomics will develop an understanding about what moves supply and demand curves and how the general consumer thinks. The course will begin with the fundamentals of economics and then move into a wide array of applications. There will be a simulation of investing in stocks so students have a better understanding of how they can use investing to make money in the real world. There will be a trip to Wall Street incorporated into this course.
Personal Wellness
Description: Students in Honors Personal Wellness should be able to understand the dimensions of wellness, the various factors of each dimension, and how dimensions are interrelated; understand the relationship between personal behaviors and lifelong health and wellness; and identify and implement strategies to improve their wellness. Students will devise a wellness plan for themselves in the first week of the course. They will be expected to carry out the plan and document their progress on an e-portfolio. A significant part of their grade will be based on their ability to carry out and stick to their wellness plan.
Human Physiology
Description: An introduction to basic physiological principles using primarily humans. Physiological adaptations will be examined at the molecular through organismal levels. Students will have an enhanced understanding of their body’s parts and how they work together. Students will visit RMH and shadow doctors to have a supplementary experiential learning component to the course.
Ethical Reasoning
Description: A critical thinking course focused on ethical principles and problems. The course provides students with knowledge of a plurality of approaches to ethical decision making, including influential philosophical and religious accounts of what makes an action right and the components of a good human life. This discussion-based section will acquire knowledge of theoretical approaches to ethical rightness and living well so that students gain a moral compass for approaching practical ethical issues. There will be many activities integrated into this course similar to JMU's "It's complicated" where students will be able to apply their skills to real world ethical problems.
Problem Solving in Science and Technology
Description: This small, discussion-based course examines issues in modern science and technology as a means to introduce, develop and enhance critical thinking and problem solving skills. Current scientific and technological research and applications will be introduced to reinforce problem solving, instruction in systems thinking and critical inquiry.
Critical Reading and Writing
Description: Fosters reflective, critical reading, writing, and research in public discourse, culture, humanities, technology, and science. Challenges students to consider cross-disciplinary modes of inquiry through multiple genres with an attention to enlightened, global citizenship. Emphasizes revising for rhetorical effectiveness. There will be an end of the semester project in which students will write an essay that reflects something they feel is of importance on campus or in the community and they will display their message through digital storytelling.
World History (1500 on)
Description: A survey of important historical developments from 1500 to the present. Emphasis is given to the growth of nationalism, the development of colonialism, and to world events, problems, and conflicts of the present century. A focus will also be on current events and how the past has made an impact on events happening today. There will be a current events component tied into this course that will emphasize the importance of learning about the past's affect on the future.
Great Works
Description: An intensive examination of great literary works that focus on key issues of knowledge and reality, meaning and purpose, ethics, and aesthetics. Discussion, analysis and intensive writing are required. Texts will vary by section and instructor. According to availability, students will be able to meet with at least one author (or an expert on the author) of a work they read to be able to gain additional insight on what makes the work so great.
Religions of the World
Description: An investigation of the world's major religions which will give attention to their origin, history, mythology and doctrines. Time will be spent in small groups exploring different beliefs and their presence on JMU’s campus. There will be a day where students will attend multiple places of worship as a class and get to interact with them firsthand.
Music in General Culture
Description: Designed to increase the student's perceptual ability in listening to music and to encourage an interest in both familiar and unfamiliar music. Primary study will be on music from the classic, Western heritage. Folk, jazz, popular and non-Western music may also be considered. Students will go downtown and evaluate musical acts with the skills they acquire.
Literature, Culture, Ideas
Description: This course will take a thematic approach to literature by examining multiple literary texts that engage with a common course theme concerned with the human experience. Themes address cultural, political, social, religious, or philosophical aspect ideas through literature. Specific topics will vary.
Physics 1
Description: The first semester of a non-calculus sequence in general physics. Topics include principles of mechanics, thermal properties of matter, wave motion and sound. Students will explore these through a multitude of hands-on labs and group projects. A working knowledge of algebra and trigonometry is required.
Biology (Organisms)
Description: An exploration of how diverse life forms carry out fundamental processes that sustain life, including acquiring and using essential molecules, growing and reproducing, responding to environmental stimuli, and maintaining a stable internal environment. Labs will introduce students to the scientific method in a series of investigative lab and field experiences. There will be a supplementary service component where students will go out into the Harrisonburg community and tutor children interested in science.
Astronomy: Stars, Galaxies, and Cosmology
Description: An introductory course in astronomy which includes the following topics: the Sun, stellar properties, stellar evolution, black holes, the Milky Way, galactic evolution, quasars, cosmology. Students will have a greater understanding of the universe in which they live. There will be multiple star gazing opportunities throughout the semester.
Oceanography
Description: An introduction to the oceanography of coastal environs including barrier islands, estuaries and tidal marshes. The physical, geological and biochemical characteristics of coastal waters will be discussed in the context of the economic and social pressures brought to bear on these areas by an increasing global population.
Seminars
Carrier Library Seminar
Description: The Carrier Library seminar focuses on everything that is Carrier. We will take you on a sixteen week journey through the creation of carrier library from the ground up. Topics discussed will focus around the philosophical need for libraries, the planning of the project, the funding, the architecture, and the maintenance of Carrier Library. This course attempts to integrate the aspects of forming and operating a library in order to visualize the interconnectedness of the world.
Firehouse Seminar
Description: The firehouse seminar takes an in depth look at the Harrisonburg Fire Department. Students will begin by experiencing the history of the fire industry in the U.S. and applying that knowledge to the understanding of how it affects construction codes and regulations, insurance policies in the local community, and social congregations in the community.
Parks and Recreation Seminar
Description: This sixteen week seminar is intended for students who are passionate about the understanding of the role that parks have in our society. Topics discussed in this course will cover the science behind exercise and the human body, the psychology behind childhood exercise and the correlation between adulthood behavior, the development of interactive park components, and the impact of parks on the local community.
The American Trolley: A Historic Masterpiece
Description: This course takes an in depth look at the history of the American Trolley car. Trolleys were once a staple in many thriving American cities, but have now faded into the background. We will look at the history of their design, their integration into the public transportation system and more. For the main topic of discussion, we will dive into the impact that they had on society and the possible social effects they are responsible for.
Tree House Building 101
Description: This is a sixteen week course designed to focus around the most basic engineering concepts. This course is intended for students considering a career in engineering. Our instructors will take you on a journey from the ground up (literally) and give you all the knowledge you need to construct a basic tree house. Topics also covered include building sustainably with natural supplies available to you as well as building efficiency.
The Thomas Alva Edison Experience
Description: This course will take you on the journey that was Thomas Edison. Students will learn about the life of Thomas Edison from youth to death as well as the impacts his work had on the future. Students will be taking a look at Edison’s work and getting hands on experience with some of his inventions. This knowledge will be applied to examine the social implications of his work as well as the direct societal changes that result. This experience culminates with an end of semester project where students are tasked with building a prototype of one of Edison’s patents that never came to fruition.
The Appalachian Experience
Description: This is our newly designed practical history course in which students will learn about the history of the geographical area by means of a very hands on and up front manner. Students will spend much of their semester in the field, learning the ways of the people that lived off the land before urban development occurred. Emphasis will be placed chiefly on ways of life and common daily practices.
Food for Thought
Description: Food for thought is a 16 week course at our new state of the art culinary workshop. While this course offers hands on cooking time, emphasis will be placed on the factors that make up food today. Weeks 1-2 cover the cultivation of food followed by four weeks of food production and wholesale. Weeks 6 through 12 will be the bulk of the course material where food ethics will be examined in depth and how they relate to public policy. The course concludes with four weeks of hands on cooking experience.
Brew Seminar
This course will take an in depth look at the local Three Brothers Brewing Company. Students will learn about the brewing process through hands on experience at the brewery as well as through classroom components and taste testing. Emphasis will be placed on the economics of running a large scale company and the effects that it has on the local economy. This course forces students to engage in thinking across multiple boundaries of the community in order to be able to analyze the interconnectedness of society. Keep in mind that this course is only available if you are 21 or over!
James Madison the Seminar
This is an 8 week course intended to diversify students’ knowledge on the history and current community of JMU. Weeks 1-2 begin by examining the founding of the school as well as its early development however, this course chiefly looks into the impact that JMU has on the local community today. This course culminates with a short service learning project aimed at giving back to the community that has given us so much. Replaces US Government/History General Education requirement.
Epistemology of Social Media
This is a course that is intended to teach students about the effects social media and our cell phones/electronics have on politics, education, interpersonal relationships, religion, and other aspects of our culture. The class is discussion based where we will be sharing experiences and exploring the shifts our culture has made that have gone almost entirely unnoticed with these new technologies. Students will create an online blog and document their experiences and observations. Replaces General Writing, Communication, and Philosophy General Education requirements.
Sustainability and the Shenandoah Valley
Sustainability and the Shenandoah Valley takes a detailed look at energy related issues in the Shenandoah Valley. Geographically, Shenandoah Valley is in a very unique place. Students will explore environmental limitations as well as energy sources of the area. This sixteen week course will focus around making the Shenandoah Valley area more sustainable while at the same time, being more environmentally friendly. Students will learn from valuable field work in which they will be working hands on with renewable energy resources. This course is intended to provide students with the understanding of where their power comes from and what it takes to produce it. To learn more about our specialized program that integrates this seminar, visit the Shenandoah Valley page. Replaces Lab Science General Education requirement.
Fundamentals of Human Communication
Description: Group or individual oriented class designed to explore the connection between all social classes and the power of body language.
Philosophy
Description: The Philosophy honors class at Hillcrest college offers students the opportunity to explore all realms of the student mind and plunge into the very ideals and thoughts that provoke some of mans many achievements.
Art History
Description: At the beginning of the semester students will learn about some of the most prominent artists in history and their greatest works and what made them great. Taking the analysis skills gained from these lessons, students will analyze art in the Harrisonburg Community. We will focus on the culture that surrounds James Madison and examine how we play a role in our community and its art.
Calculus
Description: In addition to learning the basic calculus skills needed in order to continue learning that requires a calculus background, CALC 235 will be supplemented with an outside of the box approach and dig into who the creators of Calculus were and how the subject has evolved throughout time and contributed to many of the worlds greatest successes. Students will be able to assess why knowledge of calculus and get an idea of what kinds of things can be achieved through learning it.
Environmental Science
Description: The Honors Environmental Science course allows students to apply what they learn in the course to the surrounding Harrisonburg community. The course will include trips to the Lurray Caverns, Skyline Drive, and many other local natural wonders.
US History
Description: US History will take a look back into the creation of the United States and focus on the key members involved in transforming our nation into what it has become today and how those implementations will affect the future. Because our university is named after James Madison, who played a prominent role in the drafting of the Constitution, there will be a supplementary lesson dedicated to him so students can learn more about the University. There will be a trip to Montpelier to supplement learning.
US Government
Description: Many of the daily policies and procedures that our government undergoes today are unknown to the general public. GOV 101 will provide a solid groundwork for students to truly understand the role of our government and openly discuss many of these different policies. This includes a trip to DC where students will engage with policy makers, senators, and lobbyists.
Macroeconomics
Description: Students in Honors Macroeconomics will develop an understanding about what moves supply and demand curves and how the general consumer thinks. The course will begin with the fundamentals of economics and then move into a wide array of applications. There will be a simulation of investing in stocks so students have a better understanding of how they can use investing to make money in the real world. There will be a trip to Wall Street incorporated into this course.
Personal Wellness
Description: Students in Honors Personal Wellness should be able to understand the dimensions of wellness, the various factors of each dimension, and how dimensions are interrelated; understand the relationship between personal behaviors and lifelong health and wellness; and identify and implement strategies to improve their wellness. Students will devise a wellness plan for themselves in the first week of the course. They will be expected to carry out the plan and document their progress on an e-portfolio. A significant part of their grade will be based on their ability to carry out and stick to their wellness plan.
Human Physiology
Description: An introduction to basic physiological principles using primarily humans. Physiological adaptations will be examined at the molecular through organismal levels. Students will have an enhanced understanding of their body’s parts and how they work together. Students will visit RMH and shadow doctors to have a supplementary experiential learning component to the course.
Ethical Reasoning
Description: A critical thinking course focused on ethical principles and problems. The course provides students with knowledge of a plurality of approaches to ethical decision making, including influential philosophical and religious accounts of what makes an action right and the components of a good human life. This discussion-based section will acquire knowledge of theoretical approaches to ethical rightness and living well so that students gain a moral compass for approaching practical ethical issues. There will be many activities integrated into this course similar to JMU's "It's complicated" where students will be able to apply their skills to real world ethical problems.
Problem Solving in Science and Technology
Description: This small, discussion-based course examines issues in modern science and technology as a means to introduce, develop and enhance critical thinking and problem solving skills. Current scientific and technological research and applications will be introduced to reinforce problem solving, instruction in systems thinking and critical inquiry.
Critical Reading and Writing
Description: Fosters reflective, critical reading, writing, and research in public discourse, culture, humanities, technology, and science. Challenges students to consider cross-disciplinary modes of inquiry through multiple genres with an attention to enlightened, global citizenship. Emphasizes revising for rhetorical effectiveness. There will be an end of the semester project in which students will write an essay that reflects something they feel is of importance on campus or in the community and they will display their message through digital storytelling.
World History (1500 on)
Description: A survey of important historical developments from 1500 to the present. Emphasis is given to the growth of nationalism, the development of colonialism, and to world events, problems, and conflicts of the present century. A focus will also be on current events and how the past has made an impact on events happening today. There will be a current events component tied into this course that will emphasize the importance of learning about the past's affect on the future.
Great Works
Description: An intensive examination of great literary works that focus on key issues of knowledge and reality, meaning and purpose, ethics, and aesthetics. Discussion, analysis and intensive writing are required. Texts will vary by section and instructor. According to availability, students will be able to meet with at least one author (or an expert on the author) of a work they read to be able to gain additional insight on what makes the work so great.
Religions of the World
Description: An investigation of the world's major religions which will give attention to their origin, history, mythology and doctrines. Time will be spent in small groups exploring different beliefs and their presence on JMU’s campus. There will be a day where students will attend multiple places of worship as a class and get to interact with them firsthand.
Music in General Culture
Description: Designed to increase the student's perceptual ability in listening to music and to encourage an interest in both familiar and unfamiliar music. Primary study will be on music from the classic, Western heritage. Folk, jazz, popular and non-Western music may also be considered. Students will go downtown and evaluate musical acts with the skills they acquire.
Literature, Culture, Ideas
Description: This course will take a thematic approach to literature by examining multiple literary texts that engage with a common course theme concerned with the human experience. Themes address cultural, political, social, religious, or philosophical aspect ideas through literature. Specific topics will vary.
Physics 1
Description: The first semester of a non-calculus sequence in general physics. Topics include principles of mechanics, thermal properties of matter, wave motion and sound. Students will explore these through a multitude of hands-on labs and group projects. A working knowledge of algebra and trigonometry is required.
Biology (Organisms)
Description: An exploration of how diverse life forms carry out fundamental processes that sustain life, including acquiring and using essential molecules, growing and reproducing, responding to environmental stimuli, and maintaining a stable internal environment. Labs will introduce students to the scientific method in a series of investigative lab and field experiences. There will be a supplementary service component where students will go out into the Harrisonburg community and tutor children interested in science.
Astronomy: Stars, Galaxies, and Cosmology
Description: An introductory course in astronomy which includes the following topics: the Sun, stellar properties, stellar evolution, black holes, the Milky Way, galactic evolution, quasars, cosmology. Students will have a greater understanding of the universe in which they live. There will be multiple star gazing opportunities throughout the semester.
Oceanography
Description: An introduction to the oceanography of coastal environs including barrier islands, estuaries and tidal marshes. The physical, geological and biochemical characteristics of coastal waters will be discussed in the context of the economic and social pressures brought to bear on these areas by an increasing global population.
Seminars
Carrier Library Seminar
Description: The Carrier Library seminar focuses on everything that is Carrier. We will take you on a sixteen week journey through the creation of carrier library from the ground up. Topics discussed will focus around the philosophical need for libraries, the planning of the project, the funding, the architecture, and the maintenance of Carrier Library. This course attempts to integrate the aspects of forming and operating a library in order to visualize the interconnectedness of the world.
Firehouse Seminar
Description: The firehouse seminar takes an in depth look at the Harrisonburg Fire Department. Students will begin by experiencing the history of the fire industry in the U.S. and applying that knowledge to the understanding of how it affects construction codes and regulations, insurance policies in the local community, and social congregations in the community.
Parks and Recreation Seminar
Description: This sixteen week seminar is intended for students who are passionate about the understanding of the role that parks have in our society. Topics discussed in this course will cover the science behind exercise and the human body, the psychology behind childhood exercise and the correlation between adulthood behavior, the development of interactive park components, and the impact of parks on the local community.
The American Trolley: A Historic Masterpiece
Description: This course takes an in depth look at the history of the American Trolley car. Trolleys were once a staple in many thriving American cities, but have now faded into the background. We will look at the history of their design, their integration into the public transportation system and more. For the main topic of discussion, we will dive into the impact that they had on society and the possible social effects they are responsible for.
Tree House Building 101
Description: This is a sixteen week course designed to focus around the most basic engineering concepts. This course is intended for students considering a career in engineering. Our instructors will take you on a journey from the ground up (literally) and give you all the knowledge you need to construct a basic tree house. Topics also covered include building sustainably with natural supplies available to you as well as building efficiency.
The Thomas Alva Edison Experience
Description: This course will take you on the journey that was Thomas Edison. Students will learn about the life of Thomas Edison from youth to death as well as the impacts his work had on the future. Students will be taking a look at Edison’s work and getting hands on experience with some of his inventions. This knowledge will be applied to examine the social implications of his work as well as the direct societal changes that result. This experience culminates with an end of semester project where students are tasked with building a prototype of one of Edison’s patents that never came to fruition.
The Appalachian Experience
Description: This is our newly designed practical history course in which students will learn about the history of the geographical area by means of a very hands on and up front manner. Students will spend much of their semester in the field, learning the ways of the people that lived off the land before urban development occurred. Emphasis will be placed chiefly on ways of life and common daily practices.
Food for Thought
Description: Food for thought is a 16 week course at our new state of the art culinary workshop. While this course offers hands on cooking time, emphasis will be placed on the factors that make up food today. Weeks 1-2 cover the cultivation of food followed by four weeks of food production and wholesale. Weeks 6 through 12 will be the bulk of the course material where food ethics will be examined in depth and how they relate to public policy. The course concludes with four weeks of hands on cooking experience.
Brew Seminar
This course will take an in depth look at the local Three Brothers Brewing Company. Students will learn about the brewing process through hands on experience at the brewery as well as through classroom components and taste testing. Emphasis will be placed on the economics of running a large scale company and the effects that it has on the local economy. This course forces students to engage in thinking across multiple boundaries of the community in order to be able to analyze the interconnectedness of society. Keep in mind that this course is only available if you are 21 or over!
James Madison the Seminar
This is an 8 week course intended to diversify students’ knowledge on the history and current community of JMU. Weeks 1-2 begin by examining the founding of the school as well as its early development however, this course chiefly looks into the impact that JMU has on the local community today. This course culminates with a short service learning project aimed at giving back to the community that has given us so much. Replaces US Government/History General Education requirement.
Epistemology of Social Media
This is a course that is intended to teach students about the effects social media and our cell phones/electronics have on politics, education, interpersonal relationships, religion, and other aspects of our culture. The class is discussion based where we will be sharing experiences and exploring the shifts our culture has made that have gone almost entirely unnoticed with these new technologies. Students will create an online blog and document their experiences and observations. Replaces General Writing, Communication, and Philosophy General Education requirements.
Sustainability and the Shenandoah Valley
Sustainability and the Shenandoah Valley takes a detailed look at energy related issues in the Shenandoah Valley. Geographically, Shenandoah Valley is in a very unique place. Students will explore environmental limitations as well as energy sources of the area. This sixteen week course will focus around making the Shenandoah Valley area more sustainable while at the same time, being more environmentally friendly. Students will learn from valuable field work in which they will be working hands on with renewable energy resources. This course is intended to provide students with the understanding of where their power comes from and what it takes to produce it. To learn more about our specialized program that integrates this seminar, visit the Shenandoah Valley page. Replaces Lab Science General Education requirement.