Master of Arts Programs for History Teachers

Spring 2025 Session 2 - March 3 to April 26

HIST 501 O2B / POLSC 501 O2B: The American Revolution (2)
This course is an intensive study of the principles of the American Founding and the documents that embody them, especially the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution. These principles will be illuminated through a close study of the constitutional convention, the struggle over ratification of the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and important constitutional controversies that have arisen in American history.
Instructor: Eric C. Sands (Berry College)
Schedule:
Wednesdays, 8:15 pm to 11:30 pm ET
Course Materials:
Syllabus Course Packet
HIST 502 O2B / POLSC 502 O2B: The American Founding (2)
This course is an intensive study of the constitutional convention, the struggle over ratification of the Constitution, and the creation of the Bill of Rights. It will include a close examination of Federalist and Antifederalist writings.
Instructor: David Alvis (Wofford College)
Schedule: Mondays, 6:15 pm to 9:30 pm ET
Course Materials:
HIST 503 O2B / POLSC 503 O2B: Sectionalism and Civil War (2)
A study of the sectional conflict beginning with the nullification crisis. The course will not only examine the political, social and economic developments in the period leading to the civil war, but will emphasize the political thought of Abraham Lincoln, Stephen Douglas, and John C. Calhoun.
Instructor: Andrew Lang (Mississippi State University)
Schedule: Wednesdays, 6:15 pm to 9:30 pm ET 
Course Materials: Syllabus Course Pack
HIST 505 O2B / POLSC 505 O2B: The Progressive Era (2)
The transition to an industrial economy posed many problems for the United States. This course examines those problems and the responses to them that came to be known as progressivism. The course includes the study of World War I as a manifestation of progressive principles. The course emphasizes the political thought of Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, and their political expression of progressive principles.
Instructor: Jason R. Jividen (Saint Vincent College)
Schedule: Thursdays, 6:15 pm to 9:30 pm ET 
Course Materials:
HIST 506 O2B / POLSC 506 O2B: The Rise of Modern America, 1914-1945 (2)
With the exception of the Civil War era, it is difficult to find another thirty-year period in U.S. history during which the nation underwent such dramatic change. In 1914 the United States was no more than a regional power, with a primarily rural demography and a relatively unobtrusive federal government. Thanks to the experience of two world wars, a major cultural conflict (the 1920s), and a disastrous economic crisis the country was transformed into the global economic and military power that it remains to this day. This course will examine the cultural, economic, military, and diplomatic events and trends of the period 1914-1945.
Instructor: Vincent J. Cannato (University of Massachusetts-Boston)
Schedule:  Tuesdays, 6:15 pm to 9:30 pm ET 
Course Materials:
HIST 507 O2B / POLSC 507 O2B: Lincoln (2)
This course provides an in-depth study of Abraham Lincoln’s political thought and action. Students will study Lincoln’s most important speeches, as well as study various aspects of his political leadership, including his role as the leader of the Republican party and as commander in chief. The course will also provide opportunities for students to analyze Lincoln’s rhetoric and political argumentation.
Instructor: Adam Seagrave (Arizona State University)
Schedule: Wednesdays, 8:15 pm to 11:30 pm ET
Course Materials:
HIST 605 O2A / POLSC 605 O2A: The Age of Enterprise (2)
In the last decades of the 19th century, the United States took decisive steps away from its rural, agrarian past toward its industrial future, assuming its place among world powers. This course examines that movement, covering such topics as business-labor relations, political corruption, immigration, imperialism, the New South, and segregation and racism.
Instructor: Brent J. Aucoin (Judson College)
Schedule: Tuesdays, 8:15 pm to 11:30 pm ET 
Course Materials:
HIST 631 O2A / POLSC 631 O2A: American Political Rhetoric (2)
This course examines the principles and practice of American political rhetoric through the careful reading of the speeches of its leading statesmen.
Instructor: Abigail J. Vegter (William Jewel College)
Schedule: Mondays, 6:15 pm to 9:30 pm ET
Course Materials:
HIST 643 O2A / POLSC 643 O2A: Federalism and the Constitution (2) – WAITLIST
American-style federalism is one of the most unique features of our Constitution. In this course, we will focus on its origin and development from the founding, ratification debates, state challenges to federal authority in early republic leading up to the Civil War, the Civil War Amendments, the New Deal, rise of the administrative state, and contemporary issues in federalism through the study of primary sources and Supreme Court cases. In addition, we will consider dynamics within states such as urban, suburban, and rural divides.
Instructor: Elizabeth S. Amato (Gardner-Webb University)
Schedule: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 8:15 pm to 9:50 pm ET
Course Materials:
HIST 633 O2A / POLSC 633 O2A: The American Presidency II, Andrew Johnson to the present – WAITLIST
This course is an examination of the political and constitutional development of the office of president from Reconstruction to the present. It focuses on how changing conceptions of the presidency have shaped American political life in the 19th and 20th centuries, especially as America has become a global power.
Instructor: Stephen F. Knott (United States Naval War College)
Schedule: Wednesdays, 6:15 pm to 9:30 pm ET
Course Materials: Syllabus Course Pack

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