UCOR Section Descriptions

Course Description

This course examines migration and migration policies through the lenses of social science research and Catholic social teaching. In the present moment, many countries have adopted migration policies that are out of step with the realities of migration and the dignity of the human person. As you study these tensions and contradictions, you will devise research-based policy proposals and explore opportunities for meaningful action in both personal and political contexts.

Course Description

Anthropocene, or the era of the humans, and consequently climate change are the biggest threat to global biodiversity. However, biodiversity conservation policies are themselves products of social histories of colonization and social stratification. The course will enable students to adopt a critical analytical lens to learn about the challenges to our global environment, as well as understand how principles of social justice and equity can lead to a better future.

Course Description

As the global movement of people increases in the 21 century, how have we updated the concept of citizenship? By examining the theoretical frameworks of nationalism and cosmopolitanism, the impacts of globalization, and our own lived experiences, the course will explore emerging global citizenship orientations and its relevance in the United States

Course Description

As the world’s two most powerful and important players, the U.S. and the People’s Republic of China hold the key to collectively solving many of the global challenges we face in the 21st century. This course explores this most important and complex strategic relationship through an examination of the basic dynamics of strategic thinking and policy‐making in the U.S. and China and a theory‐informed analysis of key contemporary issues in the bilateral relations, including security, arms control, trade, human rights, energy, and the environment, from a variety of perspectives of International Relations and Foreign Policy Analysis. No prior background on China, U.S. foreign policy, or International Relations is assumed or required.

Course Description

This course examines the impact of global migration on the mental health and well-being of individuals in the Asian and Pacific Islander community. We will be examining migration patterns in Asia and the Pacific within a focus on how structural inequities such as colonization, imperialism, and war can impact families and individuals who are seeking safety. This course will also offer explore how global migration impacts historical and intergenerational trauma within the Asian and Pacific Islander diaspora communities.

Course Description

As the world’s two most powerful and important players, the U.S. and the People’s Republic of China hold the key to collectively solving many of the global challenges we face in the 21st century. This course explores this most important and complex strategic relationship through an examination of the basic dynamics of strategic thinking and policy‐making in the U.S. and China and a theory‐informed analysis of key contemporary issues in the bilateral relations, including security, arms control, trade, human rights, energy, and the environment, from a variety of perspectives of International Relations and Foreign Policy Analysis. No prior background on China, U.S. foreign policy, or International Relations is assumed or required.

Course Description

Globally, excess female mortality after birth and missing" girls at birth account every year for an estimated 3.9 million women below the age of 60. About two-fifths of them are never born, one-fifth goes missing in infancy and childhood, and the remaining two-fifths do so between the ages of 15 and 59" (World Bank, 2012). In this course you will learn how the social sciences help us understand this current world crisis and why the health of women and children is seen by many institutes as a proxy for the country's health and future prosperity (United Nations, 2012).

Course Description

This course explores the complexities of education. This exploration encompasses the study of philosophical and historical orientations, purpose of schools, and contemporary and critical issues and trends in schools and schooling. Included is a comparative look at global school reforms and practices and their influence on education in the United States. Service Learning field experience with a minimum of two hours per week through the Children’s Literacy Project is required. This course is taught onsite at the Bailey Gatzert Elementary School, the focal point of the Seattle University Youth Initiative (SUYI).

Course Description

This course will focus on migration and health, with a specific focus on the US-Mexico border context. We will take a critical and intersectional approach to examining the ways that migration and border enforcement regimes impact health and produce health inequities. Designed for nursing and health sciences students, this course will prepare students to meet key global health competencies.

Course Description

This course introduces students to the widespread challenge of achieving both environmental sustainability and social equity. We consider this challenge from a cross-cultural perspective by reading, discussing and assessing a wide variety of both international and local case studies drawn from history and the present day. In addition to reading and viewing case studies, students also engage in hands-on learning in the local community in order to better assess and address local sustainability issues.