Special Topics in the Humanities (370-4-21)
Topic
Settler Colonialism on Campus
Instructors
Heather Shaw Menefee
Heather Menefee is a PhD Candidate in Native American and US History, with a focus in Dakota language and history (Dakhóta Iápi ga eháŋna wóyakapi), the history of US universities, and settler colonialism. She is happy to answer any questions from students interested in her courses.
Meeting Info
Kresge Centennial Hall 4-410: Mon, Wed 9:30AM - 10:50AM
Overview of class
Settler Colonialism on Campus
This seminar explores histories of the "campus" as a central geography of US settler colonialism. We will study the historical construction and histories of anticolonial movements on many forms of the campus - educational institutions (PWIs, HBCUs, Tribal colleges, boarding schools), military bases, religious institutes, museums, and corporate landholdings. By engaging with Indigenous Studies, Black Studies, Asian American Studies, and Queer theoretical scholarship, we will study how structures of power and possibility are embedded in the landscape. Students will be encouraged to create a research project based on a campus of their choice, producing either a traditional paper, a digital project, a performance, or a public event. Class meetings will center on discussions of texts, films, and other documentary material but will also include trips to sites around Evanston and Chicago, collaborative research sessions, and project workshops. This course is approved for the NAIS Minor.
Learning Objectives
This seminar is structured to enable students with little prior knowledge of archives or historical research methods to plan, begin, and share the preliminary outcomes of an original research project about a campus of their choice. By the end of the course, students will have experience with historical analysis of case studies, close-reading of short theoretical texts, and comparative analysis of settler colonial contexts. Students will have the option of completing a research paper or proposing an alternative interdisciplinary project (i.e., an event, performance, zine, short film, etc.). Students will gain an understanding of how to plan and work toward a historically grounded project in their chosen genre.
Teaching Method
Seminar
Class participation
Writing assignments
Discussion
Evaluation Method
Participation (30%); 2 short papers (30%); 1 final paper or alternative project (40%)
Class Materials (Required)
All the assigned readings will be uploaded on Canvas.
Class Notes
Concentration: Americas
Class Attributes
Historical Studies Distro Area