TOPICAL MAJOR PROPOSAL: Latin American Studies

Dear committee members,

1) I am requesting an opportunity to pursue a topical major in Latin American Studies (LAS). This major allows me to examine Latin America through various lenses, and therefore offers a more comprehensive understanding of a region and people than that afforded solely through language study. Currently, at Monmouth College, there is no existing major, minor, or well articulated set of courses that coherently explore Latin American history, culture, and developmental issues. My choice of coursework was designed using criteria found at other institutions and includes several of the social sciences, modern foreign language, independent studies, and literature as a means of capturing the complexity of Latin America through broad and deep study. Currently, through the existing majors offered at Monmouth College, I am only able to achieve proficiency in the Spanish language and that is only one of my goal with the proposed topical major.

2) The set of interrelated courses representing the core of the major consists of a total of 45 semester hours achieved through combining courses in:  MFL (SPAN 201, 210, 220, 252, 3l0 AND 326)  HISTORY (HIST 250 AND 305);  SOAN (ANTH 103, 366 and SOCI 343, 345);  ECONOMICS (ECON 200; ECON 331, ECON 351, or ECON 360)  POLITICAL SCIENCE (POLS 250).

These courses provide a foundation for further investigation of issues involving Latin American policy or cultural studies. A capstone course is necessary for completion of the major and I have attached a separate justification. This major uses an interdisciplinary curriculum that combines the strengths of various social sciences coupled with regional and comparative international studies, resulting in a comprehensive understanding of Latin America and a rich knowledge of the global processes affecting the region and its people. I feel this major will provide the framework and experience needed to pursue graduate studies, volunteer placements such as Peace Corps, or work opportunities in education, international organizations, or social services.

3) I have taken an existing Latin American Studies major from Western New Mexico University’s catalogue as a model for the major that I am proposing. Below is the description for the major as it is posted on the University’s website. I believe that my proposed coursework is very similar in content with the major at WNMU. I have included courses in sociology, history, economics, political science, and literature. A fundamental difference in my proposal is that I have decided not to study abroad for a semester. In lieu of the semester abroad I have included more coursework in Spanish Language and literature. If there is an existing major at another institute of higher learning that can be used as a model, it can be inserted below, in order to give the committee further justification that the proposed major is similar in content and/or intent to currently approved programs at other institutions.

Specify Institution: Western New Mexico University

The Latin American Studies major provides a challenging interdisciplinary approach to the area involving three disciplines: Sociology/Anthropology, History, and Hispanic Studies. Generally, majors participate in our study abroad program in Cuautla, Mexico, or in the Border Studies Program in El Paso/Ciudad Juárez (recognized by the GLCA); however, students may choose to join other programs in Latin America.

Study abroad offers first-hand experience with issues affecting Latin American societies and explores Latin America in a global context. Students live with families and devote significant time to a Field Study of their choice in addition to classes. They spend an average of 15 hours a week working and studying in a specific site, producing a final written ethnographic study. Some examples of recent field studies include work with human rights organizations, environmental agencies, schools, and immigrant rights offices. These field study projects are a very important vehicle for connecting with everyday life in Latin America. On campus, students take six core courses for the major including two electives and a Senior Colloquium designed to bring together both off- campus and on-campus academic experiences. In this course, senior majors read and reflect on key works in the field from an interdisciplinary perspective and design and carry out a final research project/thesis.

The Program

Students wishing to major in Latin American Studies should submit an application to the Latin American Studies Committee by the end of the sophomore year. All Latin American Studies majors take six core courses including Senior Colloquium, two additional courses from a list of choices, and study abroad where the required field study is completed. Final course selection should be made in close consultation with a Latin American Studies adviser.

The Major

 LTST 346 Latin American Culture and Society  LTST 353 Latin America to 1825  LTST 354 Latin America since 1825  LTST 368 The Political Economy of Development: Latin America  LTST 480 Senior Colloquium  Two Latin American Literature course at the 300/400 level  Four additional courses related to Latin American Studies chosen in consultation with your adviser.  Semester Abroad Advisor’s Statement

I have worked with this student to identify appropriate courses and have helped design a coherent major labeled Latin American Studies. I feel that the collective courses offer an interdisciplinary approach to the study of Latin America and that this major will give the student the requisite background to pursue work or further study in this area. After investigating the existing majors at Monmouth College I agree that a comprehensive examination of Latin America is not possible without creating a topical major. That this major fulfils the usual requirements of any major is without question, in my mind, due to the inclusion of language courses, literature courses, and numerous courses in the social sciences centered on the description, analysis, and comprehension of various political, social, and economic factors at work in a current and historical Latin America.

Academically, this coursework gives the student a thorough foundation of language study, with six separate courses devoted to achieving fluency. The LAS major insists that the student take six language courses in MFL; this works out to one or two courses of language per semester. Assuming that culture is mirrored in language it is essential that speaking, comprehending, and listening to Spanish are consistent and key component throughout the pursuit of the LAS major. To fully appreciate a subject one must have studied the dynamic forces that influence it and the environment that engenders or contains it. For this reason using the social sciences to study Latin American is essential to this major. Two history courses allow the student to investigate current and historical trends and defining moments/movements in different regions of Latin America. History 305 is the “History of Mexico” which focuses on the demographic and political transitions of the country by examining indigenous peoples, colonialism, and recent cultural shifts. History 250 is a “Special Topics” course entitled “Revolution: Central to understanding Central America” which examines 100 years of political and social revolution in Central America and The United States’ involvements in these upheavals. The historical elements of this major offer the student a necessary context for understanding major regions of Latin America as they currently exist in the Southern Hemisphere. Adding four courses from Sociology and Anthropology offers complexity to the historical narrative by including analysis and evaluation of culture, behavior, society, and archeology. The student will take Anthropology 103, a course designed to supply the student with a foundational framework in the discipline, followed by Anthropology 366, which extends the framework and examines colonial and post- colonial influences on different regions of the world. The course deals directly with a few Latin America countries, but the analytic framework used in the course will allow the student to investigate other Latin America societies as well. The major also includes Sociology 343“Sociology of Development” and Social Inequality”—two courses that investigate the impact of globalization and economic development on several developing countries, including Latin American. It is important that this major create a context that allows the student to see overt political and social interconnections as well as subtle influences in order to better understand social and institutional variations within Latin America. In addition to the courses in Anthropology and Sociology, the student is taking two courses in Political Economy and an independent study in Political Science. The economics coursework functions to give the student one course in microeconomics and another in international or comparative trade and economic development. The independent study, entitled, “Democracy: Toxic Spill?” will permit the student to explore the politics of Latin American countries proximal to the United States in light of its economic and military influences.

The aim of the LAS major is to give this student a solid foundation in language and the social sciences that concern Latin American issues, problems and cultural transformations. The major is interdisciplinary, requiring the student to take courses in five departments. A student completing this major should have a solid grasp of each of the major issues affecting most Latin American countries. Upon finishing the major a student should feel capable of traveling in several Latin American countries able to communicate and be aware of the social and symbolic meanings of cultural artifacts. A student would also be expected to articulate the implications of social, political and economic tensions and changes as they are currently enacted. I feel that this major offers such an understanding of Latin America by synthesizing the cultural, linguistic, intellectual, and developmental aspects of various peoples through different disciplinary perspectives. Each of these areas of study becomes essential to a comprehensive understanding of the particular issues faced in certain areas of Latin America in a global political system.