Peace and Conflict Studies Concentration

Department Home Page

Search Current Schedule of Courses

Peace and Conflict Studies

Chair(s):

John Garrison (English)

Faculty:

Timothy Dobe (Religious Studies)
Brigittine French (Anthropology)
Ross Haenfler (Sociology)
Sharon Quinsaat (Sociology)
Gemma Sala (Political Science)

Conflict is a regular and enduring facet of the human condition. The purpose of the concentration is to give students the academic knowledge and skills to identify underlying causes of conflict, address conflict productively, and work constructively in post-conflict environments. Peace and Conflict Studies is an interdisciplinary academic field with historical roots stretching through a rich range of social and intellectual contexts, beginning with concerns about the Cold War nuclear arms race, a heritage in the civil rights and antiwar movements, and now reflecting applied scholarship in building peaceful practices and institutions in societies across the globe that have been ravaged by war and violence.

The Peace and Conflict Studies Concentration focuses on the following aspects of peace and conflict in historical, theoretical, and/or broad comparative perspective: (1) underlying causes of conflict; (2) strategies for resolving conflict and the consequences of different strategies for resolving conflict; (3) approaches to dealing with post-conflict trauma, including issues of identity (individual, group, and especially ethnic identity) and restorative practices; (4) conflict prevention strategies including global development and security; and (5) justice and human rights issues as they pertain to peace.

The curricular structure of the concentration is comprised of a core course chosen from four pathways into the concentration, four 200-300 level elective courses, and one 300 level advanced course with a major project dedicated to Peace and Conflict Studies.

Concentration requirements: 24 credits as follows

1. Core Class: 4 credits

Taken from the following:

ANT 285 - Anthropology, Violence, and Human Rights 4 credits
PCS 101 - Introduction to Peace and Conflict Studies 4 credits
PCS 230 - Conflict Analysis 4 credits
REL 229 - Violence and Nonviolence 4 credits
Special Topic Course 295 - as approved by instructor and PCS Concentration Chair

2. Electives: 16 credits

Take two courses from each category.

A) Theoretical and Comparative Approaches

ANT 285 - Anthropology, Violence, and Human Rights 4 credits
EDU 217 - Comparative and International Education 4 credits
ENG 225 - Introduction to Postcolonial Literatures 4 credits
ENG 273 - Feminism and Difference 4 credits
PCS 230 - Conflict Analysis 4 credits
PHI 264 - Political Theory II 4 credits or the cross-listed POL 264
POL 250 - Politics of International Relations 4 credits
POL 257 - Nationalism 4 credits
POL 259 - Human Rights: Foundations, Challenges, and Choices 4 credits
Special Topic Course 295 - as approved by instructor and PCS concentration chair.

B) Regional and Case Studies

ANT 246 - Anthropology of the Modern Middle East and North Africa 4 credits
CLS 255 - History of Ancient Greece 4 credits or the cross-listed HIS 255
CLS 257 - The Roman Republic 4 credits or the cross-listed HIS 257
CLS 258 - The Roman Empire 4 credits or the cross-listed HIS 258
FRN 342 - Orientalism Revisited 4 credits
FRN 346 - The Francophone Caribbean World: From Plantation to Emancipation 4 credits
HIS 214 - The American Civil War and Reconstruction 4 credits
HIS 244 - Ivan and Fritz Go to War: World War II on the Eastern Front 4 credits
HIS 261 - Southern Africa 4 credits
HIS 262 - Modern Africa from the Sahara to the Zambezi 4 credits
HIS 271 - Imperial Collisions in the Asia-Pacific 4 credits
HIS 277 - China’s Rise 4 credits
HIS 342 - Stalinism 4 credits
PHI 266 - Reading Arendt 4 credits
POL 262 - African Politics 4 credits
REL 241 - Religion in U.S. Public Life 4 credits
REL 265 - The Crusades in the Middle East 4 credits or the cross-listed HIS 265
RES 291 - Perspectives in 20th-Century Central and Eastern European Literature 4 credits or the cross-listed GLS 291
SOC 255 - Sociology of Asian America 4 credits
Special Topic Course 295 - as approved by instructor and PCS Concentration Chair

3. Seminar: 4 credits

Take one from the following:

ANT 324 - War, Peace, and Human Nature 4 credits
ANT 355 - Collective Memory in Anthropological Perspective 4 credits
ANT 365 - Fighting Words: Conflict, Discourse, and Power 4 credits
ANT 377 - War, Religion, and Politics in the Puebloan Southwest 4 credits
ENG 360 - Seminar in Postcolonial Literature 4 credits
HIS 314 - U.S. Civil War: History and Memory
HIS 334 - Decolonization
HIS 371 - Human Rights in Asia
PCS 397 - Independent Study as aproved by instructor and PCS Concentration chair
PCS 499 - Mentored Advanced Project as approved by instructor and PCS Concentration chair
POL 350 - International Politics of Land and Sea Resources 4 credits
POL 352 - Advanced Seminar on the U.S. Foreign Policymaking Process 4 credits
POL 356 - Islam and Politics 4 credits
Special Topic Course 395 - as approved by instructor and PCS Concentration chair

4. Experiential Learning Component*

This component need not be credit bearing. It should be chosen from among the following possibilities:

internship
OCS program
PACS committee service
participation in the Prison Program
relevant volunteer experience over the course of a semester or summer

*The experiential learning will be approved by the Concentration advisor in conjunction with the Concentration chair. Faculty advisors will be responsible for notifying Registrar of the completion of this requirement for degree evaluation.

Peace and Conflict Studies Courses

Click here for Peace and Conflict Studies Courses.