Sociology (SOC)
SOC-101 
Introduction to Sociology
3 Credits
Lecture: 3 hours per week
Offering: Fall, Spring, and Summer, All Years
This course introduces students to the academic field of sociology. Sociology is a broad discipline, which employs scientific methodology to study society. Students are exposed to introductory concepts, theories, and methods used in contemporary sociology. Upon successful completion of this course, students will have a basic understanding of the sociological perspective and the ways in which the discipline understands and explains human behavior at all levels of society. The course also provides students with a sociological toolkit that they can utilize to understand themselves and their world; the theories, concepts, and ideas covered in this class will help students recognize the connection between self and society, biography and history, as well as the individual and social structures.
SOC-102
Social Problems
3 Credits
Lecture: 3 hours per week
Offering: Fall, Spring, and Summer, All Years
This course applies sociological concepts and methods of analysis to current social problems in the United States. Topics of study include issues such as racism, social inequality, crime and environmental degradation. This course is recommended for students entering the fields of sociology, counseling, social work and justice studies.
SOC-220 
Marriage and Family
3 Credits
Lecture: 3 hours per week
Offering: Fall, Spring, and Summer, All Years
This course is designed to help students understand more about marriage and family life processes. Students will examine values, needs, and responsibilities as they relate to intimacy, the selection of partners, cohabitation and marriage, family planning choices, parenting, family economics, and interpersonal communication. Students will also address the issues of family violence, divorce, and the restructuring of new families. This course will be helpful to those who wish to have more knowledge about relationship, marriage, and family issues or those who are entering such fields as counseling and social work.
Recommended Prerequisites: SOC-101
SOC-251
Race and Ethnic Relations
3 Credits
Lecture: 3 hours per week
Offering: Fall and Spring Only, All Years
This course examines the historical and current social construction of race and ethnicity in shaping social relations within the United States and globally. The primary focus of this course is to explore racial and ethnic inequalities by applying sociological theoretical perspectives. This course will be helpful for individuals seeking to understand the changing racial and ethnic demographics of the United States and globally, as well to those going into sociology, social work, health care, political science, criminal justice or counseling fields.
Recommended Prerequisites: SOC-101
SOC-296 Introduction to Sociology of Gender
3 Credits
Lecture: 3 hours per week
Offering: Fall Only, All Years
This course explores ideas about gender and gendered systems of relationships embedded in society, politics, economics, culture, history, and media in the United States. From a variety of sociological perspectives and theories, it sets out to explore gender constructions by using the sociological imagination to investigate contemporary gender-related social problems. It also looks at the various ways in which gendered institutions have been produced and perpetuated to maintain specific power dynamics and hierarchies. Additionally, this course looks at the ways in which gender ideologies intersect with other socially and culturally constructed categories of identity such as race, class, sexuality, and disability.