Curriculum:Reader's College
Join a Reader's College and meet new friends over great readings. Taught by faculty and staff, Reader's College courses typically involve reading books, joining in discussions and some writing. Students who satisfy the leader's requirements receive ½ course credit.
To sign up for one of the reading groups below simply contact the leader or enroll online through PeopleSoft.
RCOL 104-01: HWS Leads:Leadership Theory I # 5717
Instructor: Caitlin Finn
Instructor Consent Required
By providing an overview of contemporary leadership theories, this course deepens students' understanding of leadership and balances academic enrichment with engaged learning. Students enter in a cohort by way of the Leadership Theory I course and complete a cohort project together. Students also start an individual portfolio that chronicles their growth, perspectives, values, experiences and personal leadership understanding. Students will add to their portfolio throughout each of the certificate requirements and be expected to submit a copy of their completed portfolio.
Meeting Time: TBA
Meeting Location: TBD
Contact: Caitlin Finn at FINN@hws.edu
RCOL 106-01: HWS Leads: Public Speaking # 5719
Instructor: Caitlin Finn
Instructor Consent Required
HWS Leads: Public Speaking Reader's College introduces students to the basics of public speaking and presentation techniques, an essential leadership skill. Topics covered include: critiquing a speech, analyzing an audience, exploring a topic, arranging a speech, the use of language and the performance of speech through the voice and body. This course provides a practical opportunity for students to become a better public speaker while framing techniques for ethical, inclusive, value-driven leaders who are posed to articulate their views.
Meeting Time: TNA
Meeting Location: TBD
Contact: Caitlin Finn at FINN@hws.edu
RCOL 109-01: Personal Empowerment # 5632
Instructor: Brandon Barile
Instructor Consent Required
Personal Empowerment is a course designed to develop and apply the core skills of Emotional Intelligence and make and sustain the behavioral changes necessary to support a positive and successful lifestyle. The course objectives include the following: To demonstrate accurate self-awareness, including the identification of one's emotions and their effect, influential factors which generate emotions, and an awareness of personal strengths and limits.
To demonstrate self-control, emotional regulation and the ability to form appropriate and positive response patterns to life situations, including attitudes of adaptability, initiative, resiliency, and optimism. To demonstrate the application of empathetic responses to life situations and the understanding of others including recognition of others' needs, the value of diverse problem-solving approaches and attitudes, and the recognition of power relationships and their emotional structure. To recognize and respond effectively to relationship issues, including personal influence, communication styles, conflict management, change, collaboration and teaming, and nurturing instrumental relationships.
Meeting Time: M, 6:30 PM - 8:00 PM
Meeting Location: TBD
Contact: Brandon Barile at barile@hws.edu
RCOL 130-01: Classics & Digital Learning Team # 6407
Instructor: James Capreedy
Instructor Consent Required
Digital Maps and Ancient Greece (Cities and Sanctuaries): As part of the Short-Term study abroad in Greece, Cities and Sanctuaries, this reader's college course will introduce students to how to create their own digital maps and to the nuances of reading digital maps. As we prepare for Greece, students will build their own digital maps here at HWS and begin to work on projects that they will finish while in Greece. Woven into the lessons on creating a digital map, students can also expect to learn about the Ancient Athenian polis by reading a few (2) of the seminal works and briefly surveying Greece's history. In sum, this course is in preparation for the short-term study abroad but will require on average 3 hours of work outside of class and 1.5 hours of work in class per week.
Meeting Time:
Meeting Location: TBD
Contact: James Capreedy at capreedy@hws.edu
RCOL 150-01: What's Next?: Engage Life # 6432
Instructor: Joseph Mink & Kelly Payne
Instructor Consent Required
How often have you been asked: What's next for you after graduation? What are you going to do with your degree? This Reader's College course examines this prescient question, as we work to explore for each senior in the class: What's next in your life after college? Usually we think of these questions in practical terms--in terms of employment, graduate or professional school plans, or college loans. But you must also negotiate a fundamental transformation of your identity as a member of an academic community. This course introduces you to the body of writing and films on the topic of life transitions, including perspectives from creative writers and scholars on the value and meaning of a Liberal Arts education in the 21st century. You will have the opportunity to reflect on your intellectual identities as well as on the discourse communities and academic affiliations that have played such a vital role in your life at the Colleges. You will also have the opportunity, during two weeks of the course, to work with Ingrid Keenan and Ruth Shields from the Center for Teaching and Learning on Designing your Life After College workshops. While the course will cover a range of topics, the themes of intellectual engagement in college and throughout life, maintaining academic habits, and continuing practices of critical thinking for engaged citizenship will be emphasized.
Meeting Time: W, 6:30 PM - 8:00 PM
Meeting Location: TBD
Contact: Joseph Mink at MINK@hws.edu or Kelly Payne at PAYNE@hws.edu
RCOL 152-01: Public Speaking for Everyone # 6443
Instructor: Marlene Pierce
Instructor Consent Required
This introductory course is designed to strengthen public speaking skills and knowledge about communication. Students will learn skills that are cross-transferable to other areas of interest as they give a variety of speeches they are likely to encounter in their future experiences both in and outside of the workplace. Throughout the semester, this class will help students in all stages of public speaking including research, development, practice, and delivery. This class is catered to those just starting out in their public speaking journey and is in no way connected to the HWS debate team, but rather, the student body writ large.
Meeting Time: W, 6:30 PM - 8:00 PM
Meeting Location: TBD
Contact: Marlene Pierce at MPIERCE@hws.edu