The French Revolution

Last Updated: Mon, 01/12/2026
Course prefix:
HTS
Course number:
3038
Semester:
Spring
Academic year:
2026
Course description:

The French Revolution produced a sharp break with the past in many areas, including politics, economics, culture, education, art, medicine, and human rights. This course focuses on the origins of the Revolution, the nature of the transformations that occurred, the relationship between revolution and the Terror, and the rise and fall of Napoleon. The long-term global impact of the Revolution, especially that caused by warfare in Europe and around the world, is another particular emphasis.

Course learning outcomes:

Students will:

  • describe the social, political, economic, and intellectual forces that influenced behaviors and events. (All essays)
  • understand the intellectual and cultural ferment of the Enlightenment and its relationship to the origins and course of the French Revolution. (Essay 1)
  • understand the economic and political causes of the French Revolution. (Essay 1)
  • demonstrate basic knowledge of content (names, events, concepts) related to the French Revolution. (All essays)
  • analyze the causes and meaning of the Terror. (Essay 2)
  • assess the impact of the French Revolution and Napoleon on the modern world. (Final Essay)
Required course materials:

Readings, which are indicated on the weekly schedule, are to be completed in advance of class meetings, which will usually include discussion of the material. There are two required books that can be purchased online: 

William Doyle, The Oxford History of the French Revolution, 2018 (3rd ed.)

Philip Dwyer, Napoleon and Europe, 2001 (1st ed.)

Be sure to bring books and other readings to class when we are working with them. You need to acquire the assigned paper copies of books so that we are all on the same page during discussions. You'll be able to use the two books for your in-class essays. You cannot use electronic devices for the essays.

Grading policy:

Requirements and Grading

The scheduled essay exams cover people and topics from lectures, readings, and discussions. There are no make-up exams except in cases of emergencies supported by appropriate documentation. Grades are determined as follows: 

 

  1. In-class Essay 1: 30 points (Origins of French Revolution)
  2. In-class Essay 2: 30 points (Republic and Terror)
  3. In-class Final Essays and Short Answer: 40 points (Rise and Fall of Napoleon and Global Legacy of FR)

 

A = 90 points

B = 80 points

C = 70 points

D = 60 points

F = fewer than 60 points

Attendance policy:

None

Academic honesty/integrity statement:

Students are expected to maintain the highest standards of academic integrity. All work submitted must be original and properly cited. Plagiarism, cheating, or any form of academic dishonesty will result in immediate consequences as outlined in the university's academic integrity policy.

Core IMPACTS statement(s) (if applicable):

Note: This is a core IMPACTS course within the social sciences.

 

Core IMPACTS refers to the core curriculum, which provides students with essential knowledge in foundational academic areas. This course supports students' broad academic and career goals.

 

The course directs students to a broad orienting question: How do I understand human experiences and connections?

 

Completion of this course will allow students to meet the following learning outcome: Students will effectively analyze or describe the complexity of human behavior and how historical, economic, political, social, or geographic relationships develop, persist, or change.

 

Course content, activities, and exercises help students develop the following career ready competencies: 

  • Intercultural competence
  • Perspective taking
  • Ability to persuade others
Instructor First Name:
John
Instructor Last Name:
Tone
Section:
A
CRN (you may add up to five):
34991
View PDF
Department (you may add up to three):
History and Sociology

Modern European Intellectual History

Last Updated: Mon, 01/12/2026
Course prefix:
HTS
Course number:
3032
Semester:
Spring
Academic year:
2026
Course description:

This course covers the history of the major intellectual movements of the modern era in the West from the Renaissance to the late 20th century, focusing on developments in science, the arts, and political philosophy in western Europe. The course covers major issues in philosophy, the arts (fine art, music, and literature) and popular thought in the context of their times.  The course reviews the birth of philosophical thought in the ancient Western world through the Middle Ages. It then covers Renaissance challenges to traditional thinking, the Scientific and Industrial Revolutions, early political philosophy, the Enlightenment, Romanticism, Conservatism, Liberalism, Democracy, Socialism, modern irrationalism in political thinking, nationalism, antisemitism, fascism, totalitarianism, communism, modernism,  post-modernism and other strands of Western thought. Student will read about these movements along with selections written by the original authors (in English translation). 

Course learning outcomes:

 Philosophical literacy - students will achieve and demonstrate an understanding of the major figures, questions, and ideas in the history of modern European philosophy, including ethics, metaphysics, theory of knowledge, and the philosophy of the mind. Students will demonstrate the ability to understand, analyze, and respond to questions about key concepts and questions in the history of philosophy and popular thought, such as the nature of existence, knowledge, morality, and consciousness, a basic understanding of epistemology, metaphysics, and political and ethical philosophy, and major intellectual movements,  ideologies, trends in culture and art ,  and specialized topics such as social Darwinism, psychoanalysis, and sociological theory. Students will compare, contrast, and write persuasively about the course material, defend ethical positions, and be able to relate major ideas to their historical context(s). 

Required course materials:

Required textbook: Marvin Perry, An Intellectual History of Modern Europe. Additional readings, maps, timelines, audio and video recordings, and other materials to be provided by the instructor and available online.

Grading policy:

There will be several short quizzes (10 points total), six tests (approximately bi-weekly, 72 points total), and a comprehensive final exam with a writing component (18 points), for a total of 100 points. Quizzes are linked to individual reading, listening, or viewing (video) assignments, consist of just a few questions, and and timed. Students will have 15-45 minutes to complete the quizzes, depending on the length of the assignment. Tests will be available during a scheduled, 24-hour period, and students will have one hour to complete each one. The final exam will be available for 2 hours, 50 minutes and will be available during a 24 hour period (to be determined) during the regular exam week. All quizzes, tests, and the exam will be available online. Student grades will be available through the Canvas LMS within 72 hours of the cut-off time for the graded exercise. 

The maximum scores for all quizzes, tests, and the exam for the course will total 100 points, with final assigned grades to be based on the following scale: 

90-100 points = A

80-89 points = B

70-79 points = C

60-69 points = D

0-59 points = F

Attendance policy:

Since the course is taught asynchronously, there is no attendance policy and students can work at their own pace. However, each week during the course, the instructor will release a new module to students, in an effort to pace their progress through the course. 

Academic honesty/integrity statement:

Students are expected to maintain the highest standards of academic integrity. All work submitted must be original and properly cited. Plagiarism, cheating, or any form of academic dishonesty will result in immediate consequences as outlined in the university's academic integrity policy.

Core IMPACTS statement(s) (if applicable):

This course is defined by Georgia Tech as a "Core IMPACTS course" that is part of the Social Sciences area.

Core IMPACTS refers to the core curriculum, which provides students with essential knowledge in foundational academic areas. This course will help master course content, and support students’ broad academic and career goals.

This course should direct students toward a broad Orienting Question:

  • How do I understand human experiences and connections?

Completion of this course should enable students to meet the following Learning Outcome:

  • Students will effectively analyze the complexity of human behavior, and how historical, economic, political, social or geographic relationships develop, persist or change.
Instructor First Name:
David
Instructor Last Name:
Morton
Section:
A
CRN (you may add up to five):
33128
View PDF
Department (you may add up to three):
History and Sociology

African American History since 1865

Last Updated: Mon, 01/05/2026
Course prefix:
HTS
Course number:
3025
Semester:
Spring
Academic year:
2026
Course description:

Course Description

This course explores African American history from the abolition of chattel slavery to the present. In addition to examining Black people’s centuries-long striving for community, identity, and solidarity across local, national, and global contexts, we pay special attention to differences and diversity—particularly gender distinctions within African American communities.

We will consider the contours of Black life, thought, and resistance in the late 19th, 20th, and early 21st centuries, and the ways African American communities resisted state-sanctioned policing and violence. Students will gain new insights into lynch victims and lynch mobs, working people and employers, the rich and the poor. More importantly, students should understand how these relationships are interconnected with U.S. culture, the economy, politics, power, and tradition.

Our intention is not simply to “add more color” to the historical painting, but to revise the painting altogether.

Course learning outcomes:

 

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this course, students will be able to:

Knowledge & Understanding

  1. Describe major developments in African American history from emancipation to the present, including labor, migration, activism, community-building, and cultural expression.
  2. Identify key events, organizations, strategies, and figures in Black freedom struggles across the late 19th, 20th, and early 21st centuries.
  3. Explain how race, gender, class, sexuality, and region shaped diverse experiences within African American communities.
  4. Recognize the forms and legacies of state-sanctioned and extralegal violence (lynching, policing, incarceration) and the range of Black responses to such oppression.

Critical Analysis & Interpretation

  1. Analyze primary and secondary sources (speeches, letters, films, court cases, essays, organizational documents) related to Black life, resistance, and politics.
  2. Interpret historical narratives through documentaries and visual culture, paying attention to power, memory, and representation.
  3. Develop analytical arguments using textual and visual evidence to challenge simplified or traditional narratives about U.S. history.

Research & Communication Skills

  1. Write concise, thoughtful response papers that demonstrate critical engagement with assigned readings.
  2. Formulate discussion questions that reflect deeper inquiry into course themes, debates, and contradictions.
  3. Cite sources effectively to support interpretations in both written and oral formats.

Participation & Engagement

  1. Contribute meaningfully to class discussion by listening carefully, posing questions, and building on others’ insights.
  2. Demonstrate preparation by completing readings, participating in in-class activities, and connecting ideas across weeks.

Assessment & Evaluation

  1. Recall and explain key concepts, figures, and events on exams based on lectures, readings, and films.
  2. Synthesize course material (community, resistance, policing, incarceration, gender, culture) to answer comparative and interpretive exam questions.
Required course materials:

Required Reading

  • Robin D.G. Kelley and Earl Lewis, eds., To Make Our World Anew: A History of African Americans since 1880, Volume II (Oxford University Press)
  • James Kilgore, Understanding Mass Incarceration (New Press)

* Additional readings will be posted on Canvas.
* Documentaries are used as key texts; students should take notes and analyze them alongside readings and lectures.

Grading policy:

Assignments

  • 20% — In-Class Test 1
  • 20% — In-Class Test 2
  • 20% — Take-Home Test 3
  • 20% — Participation
  • 20% — Response Papers

Final Letter Grade Range

A — 90–100
B — 80–89
C — 70–79
D — 60–69
F — 0–59

Attendance policy:

Course Policies

Attendance: More than three unexcused absences will reduce your final grade by one full letter.

Tardiness: Being late more than three times will reduce your final grade by one full letter.

Internet & Phone: Using devices for non-class purposes counts as an absence.

Academic honesty/integrity statement:

Students are expected to maintain the highest standards of academic integrity. All work submitted must be original and properly cited. Plagiarism, cheating, or any form of academic dishonesty will result in immediate consequences as outlined in the university's academic integrity policy.

Core IMPACTS statement(s) (if applicable):

This is a Core IMPACTS course that is part of the Social Sciences area.

Core IMPACTS refers to the core curriculum, which provides students with essential knowledge in foundational academic areas. This course will help master course content, and support students’ broad academic and career goals.

This course should direct students toward a broad Orienting Question:

  • How do I understand human experiences and connections?

 

Completion of this course should enable students to meet the following Learning Outcome:

  • Students will effectively analyze the complexity of human behavior, and how historical, economic, political, social or geographic relationships develop, persist or change.

 

Course content, activities and exercises in this course should help students develop the following Career-Ready Competencies:

  • Intercultural Competence
  • Perspective-Taking
  • Persuasion
Instructor First Name:
Sherie
Instructor Last Name:
Randolph
Section:
A
CRN (you may add up to five):
202602
View PDF
Department (you may add up to three):
History and Sociology

Introduction to Sociology

Last Updated: Sun, 01/04/2026
Course prefix:
SOC
Course number:
1101
Semester:
Spring
Academic year:
2026
Course description:

This course is to provide students with a general survey of the field of sociology. The lectures, readings, and assignments will focus on understanding the basic social processes and how sociological concepts can be applied to everyday events, both small and large, both personal and political. With this in mind, the course begins by focusing on the development of the ‘self’ and identity, as well as the rules that guide interaction between individuals. Then, in the second part of the course, we will examine how large-scale social changes and the organization of society affect us as individuals. In the second part of the course, we will also explore how institutions and social interaction create and reproduce social inequality. And in the final part of the course, we will see how all of this applies to contemporary U.S. society.

Course learning outcomes:
  • Students in this class will be able to describe theoretical perspectives and concepts used by sociologists to explain the links between social institutions and individual behavior.
  • Students will demonstrate the ability to describe the social, cultural, political, and economic forces that influence social behavior.
  • Students will demonstrate an understanding of how society is structured in terms of both social institutions and social stratification, as well as how the social structure shapes and influences social interactions.
  • Students will demonstrate an understanding of how political and economic forces shape social change in U.S. society.
Required course materials:

Henslin, James. Down to Earth Sociology: Introductory Readings. 14th Edition.

Grading policy:

Grading:

  • Short Papers (4) = 15%
  • Exams (2) = 25% each (50% total)
  • Final Exam = 35%

Grading System:

  • 90-100 = A
  • 80-89 = B
  • 70-79 = C
  • 60-69 = D
  • 0-50  = F
  • *Students taking this course “Pass/Fail” must earn at least 60% to receive a “Pass.”
Attendance policy:

This course is remote/online and asynchronous. Students are expected to complete readings and watch lecture videos. 

Academic honesty/integrity statement:

Students are expected to maintain the highest standards of academic integrity. All work submitted must be original and properly cited. Plagiarism, cheating, or any form of academic dishonesty will result in immediate consequences as outlined in the university's academic integrity policy.

Core IMPACTS statement(s) (if applicable):

This is a Core IMPACTS course that is part of the Social Sciences area.

Core IMPACTS refers to the core curriculum, which provides students with essential knowledge in foundational academic areas. This course will help master course content, and support students’ broad academic and career goals.

This course should direct students toward a broad Orienting Question:

 • How do I understand human experiences and connections?

Completion of this course should enable students to meet the following Learning Outcome:

  • Students will effectively analyze the complexity of human behavior, and how historical, economic, political, social, or geographic relationships develop, persist, or change.

Course content, activities and exercises in this course should help students develop the following Career-Ready Competencies:

  • Intercultural Competence
  • Perspective-Taking
  • Persuasion 
Instructor First Name:
William
Instructor Last Name:
Winders
Section:
B
CRN (you may add up to five):
31428
35848
View PDF
Department (you may add up to three):
History and Sociology

Survey of U.S. History I

Last Updated: Sat, 01/03/2026
Course prefix:
HIST
Course number:
2111
Semester:
Spring
Academic year:
2026
Course description:

This is a course about an early America bathed not in the hazy soft light of folklore and imagined memory, but confronted head-on in its ambitious, boisterous, complex, contentious, messy, noisy, violent, fully human and full-bodied act of becoming. It is a course about arguments and uprisings, rebellions and revolutions, stunning successes and heartbreaking failures. 

This semester we will explore the collisions and chaos of colonial settlement, multiple struggles for independence, and the improbable rise of a new nation founded on the proposition, radical for its time, that “all men are created equal.” Together we will try to understand the American past through examinations of art, class, culture, gender, geography, politics, race, and technology. We will also investigate how the grand ideals but unequal outcomes of the first American Revolution set the stage for a second in the Civil War and Reconstruction. 

Course learning outcomes:

Upon completing this course, students should be able to:

  • Demonstrate knowledge of the major cultural, economic, intellectual, political, and social events in American history from 1607 to the 1870s.  
  • Develop and apply historical methods for collecting, sifting, organizing, questioning, synthesizing, interpreting, and contextualizing a diverse array of complex material.
  • Describe past events from multiple perspectives.
  • Consider a variety of historical sources for credibility, position, perspective, and relevance.
  • Explain and justify multiple causes of complex events and phenomena using conflicting sources.
  • Recognize the ambiguity that history –and historical inquiry– requires.
  • Generate substantive, open-ended questions about the past and develop research strategies to answer them.
  • Craft well-supported historical narratives, arguments, and reports of research findings in a variety of media for a variety of audiences.
Required course materials:

This course will require to you read, respond to, and know a robust selection of key primary sources. All assigned texts are available through our Canvas Reading List or on the slides for this course. Please see the course calendar for details.

In advance of the due date for each text, please

  • plan adequate time to read, make brief notes about, and thoughtfully consider the material,
  • write and upload an original, substantial, and well-argued discussion post responding to the specific discussion prompt,
  • and, after posting your own paragraphs, thoughtfully reply to the posts of two other students. 

 

Grading policy:

Exams

  • Exam #1: 75pts
  • Exam #2: 75pts
  • Exam #3: 75pts
  • Exam #4 (final): 100pts

Early American History Project [connected to an image or object at the High Museum of Art (or elsewhere, if you are not in Atlanta this semester)]

  • Topics/Groups: 5pts
  • Images of object + paragraph: 5pts
  • Preliminary list of secondary sources: 5pts
  • Annotated list of primary sources: 15pts
  • Essay on secondary sources: 25pts
  • Video script with discursive footnotes: 10pts
  • 5-7-minute final video: 30pts
  • Discussion posts on two other videos: 5pts

Participation

  • Discussion posts for all assigned readings: 30 pts
Attendance policy:

Since this is an asynchronous online course, there is no attendance requirement. However, you must view each lecture video in its entirety in order to succeed in this course. 

Academic honesty/integrity statement:

Students are expected to maintain the highest standards of academic integrity. All work submitted must be original and properly cited. Plagiarism, cheating, or any form of academic dishonesty will result in immediate consequences as outlined in the university's academic integrity policy.

Core IMPACTS statement(s) (if applicable):

This is a Core IMPACTS course that is part of the Social Sciences area 

Core IMPACTS refers to the core curriculum, which provides students with essential knowledge in foundational academic areas. This course will help master course content, and support students’ broad academic and career goals. 

This course should direct students toward a broad Orienting Question: 

  • How do I understand human experiences and connections? 

Completion of this course should enable students to meet the following Learning Outcome: 

  • Students will effectively analyze the complexity of human behavior, and how historical, economic, political, social, or geographic relationships develop, persist, or change. 

Course content, activities and exercises in this course should help students develop the following Career-Ready Competencies: 

  • Intercultural Competence
  • Perspective-Taking
  • Persuasion 

 

This is a Core IMPACTS course that is part of the Citizenship area 

Core IMPACTS refers to the core curriculum, which provides students with essential knowledge in foundational academic areas. This course will help master course content, and support students’ broad academic and career goals. 

This course should direct students toward a broad Orienting Question: 

  • How do I prepare for my responsibilities as an engaged citizen? 

Completion of this course should enable students to meet the following Learning Outcome:

  • Students will demonstrate knowledge of the history of the United States, the history of Georgia, and the provisions and principles of the United States Constitution and the Constitution of Georgia. 

Course content, activities and exercises in this course should help students develop the following Career-Ready Competencies: 

  • Critical Thinking
  • Intercultural Competence
  • Persuasion 
Instructor First Name:
Christopher
Instructor Last Name:
Lawton
Section:
D
CRN (you may add up to five):
35256
View PDF
Department (you may add up to three):
History and Sociology

Twentieth Century Europe.

Last Updated: Mon, 01/05/2026
Course prefix:
HTS
Course number:
2037
Semester:
Spring
Academic year:
2026
Course description:

The course provides an overview of European history from 1914 to the present. It examines the major economic, social, and political developments in Europe, including the world wars, totalitarian regimes, postwar economic growth, the welfare state, the fall of communism, the rise of neoliberalism, European integration, and the rise of nationalism and populism. The course will combine lectures and discussions. Students are expected to attend class sessions and contribute to classroom discussions.

Course learning outcomes:

On the completion of this course, students should be able to:

  • Analytically distinguish the general tendencies of historical development from the specific forms they have taken in different European countries.
  • Understand the main factors (ranging from economic development to ideologies) that influence the historical process; critically discuss the reasons for specific historical events.
  • Understand the specificity of the historical approach to social and cultural phenomena and the distinction between historical analysis and value judgment.
  • Critically use key historical concepts (such as capitalism, communism, modernity, revolution, totalitarianism, and democracy).
  • Understand the difference between primary and secondary historical sources and critically analyze them.
  • Analyze the main economic, social, political, and cultural phenomena of twentieth-century European history.
Required course materials:

There will be no textbook. PowerPoint slides will be available to students after lectures.

Grading policy:
  • Attendance and participation: 20%
  • Co-teaching (presentation): 20%
  • Midterm essay: 20%
  • Final essay: 40%
Attendance policy:

Students are expected to attend class sessions. Three unexcused absences are allowed. For each unexcused absence after the third, a student will lose half a letter grade in participation. Students are also responsible for arriving to class on time.

Academic honesty/integrity statement:

Students are expected to maintain the highest standards of academic integrity. All work submitted must be original and properly cited. Plagiarism, cheating, or any form of academic dishonesty will result in immediate consequences as outlined in the university's academic integrity policy.

Instructor First Name:
Nikolay
Instructor Last Name:
Koposov
Section:
A
CRN (you may add up to five):
33383
View PDF
Department (you may add up to three):
History and Sociology

The City in American History

Last Updated: Fri, 01/02/2026
Course prefix:
HTS
Course number:
3011
Semester:
Spring
Academic year:
2026
Course description:

Through a combination of lectures, readings, and discussion, this course examines the nature of urban life throughout U.S. history, especially since the late nineteenth century. It explores how cities have arisen, declined, and changed over time due to economic, demographic, cultural, and political developments as well as shifts in ideas about how to manage urban and later metropolitan affairs. It also examines how cities have served as engines of cultural and artistic production and why cities have been a perennial source of political controversy. Above all, it contends that the struggle to make cities livable and sustainable remains one of the most pressing issues of our time and that understanding the past is indispensable for moving toward a better urban future.  

Course learning outcomes:

In addition to gaining opportunities to hone their writing, discussion, and critical reading skills, students will leave this course demonstrating a firm understanding of the main political, economic, social, and cultural dynamics that have shaped urban and later metropolitan life in the United States primarily (but not exclusively) from the late nineteenth century through today. Ideally, students will also leave the course with a strengthened appreciation of history as a tool for making sense of the present.

Required course materials:

Assorted articles, book chapters, and other readings posted on Canvas or accessible electronically through the GT Library. You do not need to purchase any books for this course.

Grading policy:

Grades in this course are based on:

1) Brief Reading Quizzes (10% of final grade) -- Classes that include discussion of an assigned reading will begin with a brief quiz consisting of basic questions related to that reading. The purpose of the quiz is simply to confirm that you have done the reading well.

2) Participation in Class Discussions (15% of final grade) -- evaluation criteria will be distributed on the first day of class.

3) Brief Research/Reading Project (15% of final grade)

4) Mid-Term I (20% of final grade)

5) Mid-Term II (20% of final grade)

6) Final Exam (20% of final grade)

Exams in this course are essay-based and take place in class. They are designed to be tools to help you review and synthesize the material discussed during the term and to show the instructor your mastery over the topics at hand. 

Scale for Final Course Grades:

90-100 – A

80-89.99 – B

70-79.99 – C

60-69.99 – D

59.99 and Below – F
 

Attendance policy:

Students may miss up to two classes that are solely discussion-based during the semester without impacting their class participation grade. Any absence thereafter, no matter the reason, will lower student's grades in a manner described in the evaluation criteria for class participation that will be distributed on the first day of class. Exceptions will only be made for documented illnesses and family emergencies. The instructor does not keep track of attendance on days that are primarily lecture-based, but attending lectures is essential for succeeding in the course.

 

Academic honesty/integrity statement:

Students are expected to maintain the highest standards of academic integrity. All work submitted must be original and properly cited. Plagiarism, cheating, or any form of academic dishonesty will result in immediate consequences as outlined in the university's academic integrity policy.

Core IMPACTS statement(s) (if applicable):

This is a Core IMPACTS course that is part of the Social Sciences area. 

Core IMPACTS refers to the core curriculum, which provides students with essential knowledge in foundational academic areas. This course will help master course content and support students’ broad academic and career goals. 

This course should direct students toward a broad Orienting Question: How do I understand human experiences and connections? 

Completion of this course should enable students to meet the following Learning Outcome:  Students will effectively analyze the complexity of human behavior, and how historical, economic, political, social, or geographic relationships develop, persist, or change. 

Course content, activities and exercises in this course should help students develop the following Career-Ready Competencies: 

  • Intercultural Competence
  • Perspective-Taking
  • Persuasion 
Instructor First Name:
Daniel
Instructor Last Name:
Amsterdam
Section:
A
CRN (you may add up to five):
31656
View PDF
Department (you may add up to three):
History and Sociology

Survey of US History II

Last Updated: Fri, 01/02/2026
Course prefix:
HIST
Course number:
2112
Semester:
Spring
Academic year:
2026
Course description:

Through a combination of lectures, readings, visual art, documentary photography and film, this primarily lecture-based course examines the major political, economic, social and cultural trends that have made the United States the nation that it is today. The class also examines related dynamics in Atlanta and in Georgia more generally. The course focuses on the period since 1877 and especially examines: 

            1) the rise of a modern industrial economy and its transformation in recent decades; 

            2) the creation of modern American government as well as debates over its proper size and scope; 

            3) how inequality has riddled American society and how various groups have sought to redress this fact;

             4) why the United States has gone to war since the late 19th century and how these conflicts have, in turn, shaped American life. 

Course learning outcomes:

1) To give students a greater understanding of major events and trends that have shaped the development of the United States since 1877. 

2) To give students a greater understanding of what historians do and therefore what “history” is. 

3) To convince students that historical inquiry is critically important for making sense of the world around them.

4) Additional, related learning objectives specific to general education (Core Impacts) requirements as described below.

Required course materials:

With the exception of Outcasts United, all of the books listed below are available for free as ebooks through the GT library. Students are also regularly required to read short primary sources posted on Canvas.

1) Rebecca Burns, Rage in the Gate City: The Story of the 1906 Atlanta Race Riot

2) Michael C.C. Adams, The Best War Ever: America and World War II

3) Robert A. Pratt, We Shall Not Be Moved: The Desegregation of the University of Georgia

4) Warren St. John, Outcasts United: An American Town, A Refugee Team, and One Woman’s Quest to Make a Difference. (Be sure not to buy the young adult version by mistake.)

Grading policy:

Assignments and Grading:

In-Class Exercises on Required, Book-Length Readings (15% of final grade)

Mid-Term I (20% of final grade)

Mid-Term II (20% of final grade)

Mid-Term III (20% of final grade)

Final Exam (25% of final grade)

Grading Scale:

90-100 – A

80-89.99 – B

70-79.99 – C

60-69.99 – D

59.99 and Below – F

Attendance policy:

Although the instructor does not keep track of attendance, attending class is absolutely essential to succeed in the course.

Academic honesty/integrity statement:

Students are expected to maintain the highest standards of academic integrity. All work submitted must be original and properly cited. Plagiarism, cheating, or any form of academic dishonesty will result in immediate consequences as outlined in the university's academic integrity policy.

Core IMPACTS statement(s) (if applicable):

This is a Core IMPACTS course that is part of the Social Sciences area.

Core IMPACTS refers to the core curriculum, which provides students with essential knowledge in foundational academic areas. This course will help master course content, and support students’ broad academic and career goals.

This course should direct students toward a broad Orienting Question: How do I understand human experiences and connections?

Completion of this course should enable students to meet the following Learning Outcome: Students will effectively analyze the complexity of human behavior, and how historical, economic, political, social, or geographic relationships develop, persist, or change.

Course content, activities and exercises in this course should help students develop the following Career-Ready Competencies:

•  Intercultural Competence
•  Perspective-Taking
•  Persuasion
 

This is also a Core IMPACTS course that satisfies part of the Georgia Legislative Requirement 
This course should also direct students toward a broad Orienting Question: How do I prepare for my responsibilities as an engaged citizen? 

Completion of this course should enable students to meet the following Learning Outcome: Students will demonstrate knowledge of the history of the United States and the history of Georgia

Course content, activities and exercises in this course should help students develop the following Career-Ready Competencies: 
•    Critical Thinking 
•    Intercultural Competence 
•    Persuasion 
 

Instructor First Name:
Daniel
Instructor Last Name:
Amsterdam
Section:
A
CRN (you may add up to five):
23831
View PDF
Department (you may add up to three):
History and Sociology

Survey of U.S. History I

Last Updated: Fri, 01/02/2026
Course prefix:
HIST
Course number:
2111
Semester:
Spring
Academic year:
2026
Course description:

This is a course about an early America bathed not in the hazy soft light of folklore and imagined memory, but confronted head-on in its ambitious, boisterous, complex, contentious, messy, noisy, violent, fully human and full-bodied act of becoming. It is a course about arguments and uprisings, rebellions and revolutions, stunning successes and heartbreaking failures. 

This semester we will explore the collisions and chaos of colonial settlement, multiple struggles for independence, and the improbable rise of a new nation founded on the proposition, radical for its time, that “all men are created equal.” Together we will try to understand the American past through examinations of art, class, culture, gender, geography, politics, race, and technology. We will also investigate how the grand ideals but unequal outcomes of the first American Revolution set the stage for a second in the Civil War and Reconstruction. 

Course learning outcomes:

Upon completing this course, students should be able to:

  • Demonstrate knowledge of the major cultural, economic, intellectual, political, and social events in American history from 1607 to the 1870s.  
  • Develop and apply historical methods for collecting, sifting, organizing, questioning, synthesizing, interpreting, and contextualizing a diverse array of complex material.
  • Describe past events from multiple perspectives.
  • Consider a variety of historical sources for credibility, position, perspective, and relevance.
  • Explain and justify multiple causes of complex events and phenomena using conflicting sources.
  • Recognize the ambiguity that history –and historical inquiry– requires.
  • Generate substantive, open-ended questions about the past and develop research strategies to answer them.
  • Craft well-supported historical narratives, arguments, and reports of research findings in a variety of media for a variety of audiences.
Required course materials:

This course will include multiple days when we engage in group discussions of key texts. These texts will also appear on exams. In advance of each class discussion, please

  • plan adequate time to read, make brief notes about, and thoughtfully consider the material,
  • write and upload a paragraph-length Canvas discussion post (approximately 150-250 words) responding to the specific discussion prompt,
  • and, after posting your own paragraph, reply in a few thoughtful sentences to the post of at least one other student. 

All assigned texts are available through our Canvas Reading List, at assigned websites, or on the slides for this course. Please see the course calendar for details.

Grading policy:

Exams

  • Exam #1: 75pts
  • Exam #2: 75pts
  • Exam #3: 75pts
  • Exam #4 (final): 100pts

Early American History Project [connected to an image or object at the High Museum of Art]

  • Topics/Groups: 5pts
  • Images of object + paragraph: 5pts
  • Preliminary list of secondary sources: 5pts
  • Annotated list of primary sources: 15pts
  • Essay on secondary sources: 25pts
  • Video script with discursive footnotes: 10pts
  • 5-7-minute final video: 30pts
  • Discussion posts on two other videos: 5pts

Participation

  • Discussion posts for all assigned readings: 15pts
  • Attendance and engaged participation: 15pts
Attendance policy:

Regular class attendance is required, will be checked daily, and will be necessary to succeed in this course. You must be here for the entire class period to be counted as having attended for that day. Everyone is allowed two no-questions-asked absences. More than two absences without approved written documentation will adversely affect your grade.

Academic honesty/integrity statement:

Students are expected to maintain the highest standards of academic integrity. All work submitted must be original and properly cited. Plagiarism, cheating, or any form of academic dishonesty will result in immediate consequences as outlined in the university's academic integrity policy.

Core IMPACTS statement(s) (if applicable):

This is a Core IMPACTS course that is part of the Social Sciences area 

Core IMPACTS refers to the core curriculum, which provides students with essential knowledge in foundational academic areas. This course will help master course content, and support students’ broad academic and career goals. 

This course should direct students toward a broad Orienting Question: 

  • How do I understand human experiences and connections? 

Completion of this course should enable students to meet the following Learning Outcome: 

  • Students will effectively analyze the complexity of human behavior, and how historical, economic, political, social, or geographic relationships develop, persist, or change. 

Course content, activities and exercises in this course should help students develop the following Career-Ready Competencies: 

  • Intercultural Competence
  • Perspective-Taking
  • Persuasion 

 

This is a Core IMPACTS course that is part of the Citizenship area 

Core IMPACTS refers to the core curriculum, which provides students with essential knowledge in foundational academic areas. This course will help master course content, and support students’ broad academic and career goals. 

This course should direct students toward a broad Orienting Question: 

  • How do I prepare for my responsibilities as an engaged citizen? 

Completion of this course should enable students to meet the following Learning Outcome:

  • Students will demonstrate knowledge of the history of the United States, the history of Georgia, and the provisions and principles of the United States Constitution and the Constitution of Georgia. 

Course content, activities and exercises in this course should help students develop the following Career-Ready Competencies: 

  • Critical Thinking
  • Intercultural Competence
  • Persuasion 
Instructor First Name:
Christopher
Instructor Last Name:
Lawton
Section:
B
CRN (you may add up to five):
31619
View PDF
Department (you may add up to three):
History and Sociology

Survey of U.S. History I

Last Updated: Fri, 01/02/2026
Course prefix:
HIST
Course number:
2111
Semester:
Spring
Academic year:
2026
Course description:

This is a course about an early America bathed not in the hazy soft light of folklore and imagined memory, but confronted head-on in its ambitious, boisterous, complex, contentious, messy, noisy, violent, fully human and full-bodied act of becoming. It is a course about arguments and uprisings, rebellions and revolutions, stunning successes and heartbreaking failures. 

This semester we will explore the collisions and chaos of colonial settlement, multiple struggles for independence, and the improbable rise of a new nation founded on the proposition, radical for its time, that “all men are created equal.” Together we will try to understand the American past through examinations of art, class, culture, gender, geography, politics, race, and technology. We will also investigate how the grand ideals but unequal outcomes of the first American Revolution set the stage for a second in the Civil War and Reconstruction. 

Course learning outcomes:

Upon completing this course, students should be able to:

  • Demonstrate knowledge of the major cultural, economic, intellectual, political, and social events in American history from 1607 to the 1870s.  
  • Develop and apply historical methods for collecting, sifting, organizing, questioning, synthesizing, interpreting, and contextualizing a diverse array of complex material.
  • Describe past events from multiple perspectives.
  • Consider a variety of historical sources for credibility, position, perspective, and relevance.
  • Explain and justify multiple causes of complex events and phenomena using conflicting sources.
  • Recognize the ambiguity that history –and historical inquiry– requires.
  • Generate substantive, open-ended questions about the past and develop research strategies to answer them.
  • Craft well-supported historical narratives, arguments, and reports of research findings in a variety of media for a variety of audiences.
Required course materials:

This course will include multiple days when we engage in group discussions of key texts. These texts will also appear on exams. In advance of each class discussion, please

  • plan adequate time to read, make brief notes about, and thoughtfully consider the material,
  • write and upload a paragraph-length Canvas discussion post (approximately 150-250 words) responding to the specific discussion prompt,
  • and, after posting your own paragraph, reply in a few thoughtful sentences to the post of at least one other student. 

All assigned texts are available through our Canvas Reading List, at assigned websites, or on the slides for this course. Please see the course calendar for details.

Grading policy:

Exams

  • Exam #1: 75pts
  • Exam #2: 75pts
  • Exam #3: 75pts
  • Exam #4 (final): 100pts

Early American History Project [connected to an image or object at the High Museum of Art]

  • Topics/Groups: 5pts
  • Images of object + paragraph: 5pts
  • Preliminary list of secondary sources: 5pts
  • Annotated list of primary sources: 15pts
  • Essay on secondary sources: 25pts
  • Video script with discursive footnotes: 10pts
  • 5-7-minute final video: 30pts
  • Discussion posts on two other videos: 5pts

Participation

  • Discussion posts for all assigned readings: 15pts
  • Attendance and engaged participation: 15pts
Attendance policy:

Regular class attendance is required, will be checked daily, and will be necessary to succeed in this course. You must be here for the entire class period to be counted as having attended for that day. Everyone is allowed two no-questions-asked absences. More than two absences without approved written documentation will adversely affect your grade.

Academic honesty/integrity statement:

Students are expected to maintain the highest standards of academic integrity. All work submitted must be original and properly cited. Plagiarism, cheating, or any form of academic dishonesty will result in immediate consequences as outlined in the university's academic integrity policy.

Core IMPACTS statement(s) (if applicable):

This is a Core IMPACTS course that is part of the Social Sciences area 

Core IMPACTS refers to the core curriculum, which provides students with essential knowledge in foundational academic areas. This course will help master course content, and support students’ broad academic and career goals. 

This course should direct students toward a broad Orienting Question: 

  • How do I understand human experiences and connections? 

Completion of this course should enable students to meet the following Learning Outcome: 

  • Students will effectively analyze the complexity of human behavior, and how historical, economic, political, social, or geographic relationships develop, persist, or change. 

Course content, activities and exercises in this course should help students develop the following Career-Ready Competencies: 

  • Intercultural Competence
  • Perspective-Taking
  • Persuasion 

 

This is a Core IMPACTS course that is part of the Citizenship area 

Core IMPACTS refers to the core curriculum, which provides students with essential knowledge in foundational academic areas. This course will help master course content, and support students’ broad academic and career goals. 

This course should direct students toward a broad Orienting Question: 

  • How do I prepare for my responsibilities as an engaged citizen? 

Completion of this course should enable students to meet the following Learning Outcome:

  • Students will demonstrate knowledge of the history of the United States, the history of Georgia, and the provisions and principles of the United States Constitution and the Constitution of Georgia. 

Course content, activities and exercises in this course should help students develop the following Career-Ready Competencies: 

  • Critical Thinking
  • Intercultural Competence
  • Persuasion 
Instructor First Name:
Christopher
Instructor Last Name:
Lawton
Section:
A
CRN (you may add up to five):
31617
View PDF
Department (you may add up to three):
History and Sociology
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