Ethnic Studies
Chair: Rachel Harding
Business Operation Coordinator: Alexandria Joo
Office: Plaza Building, Ste. 102
Telephone: 303-315-7205
Fax: 303-315-7206
Overview
Ethnic Studies is the comparative, critical, and intersectional study of race, ethnicity, and Indigeneity. The breadth and focus of Ethnic Studies courses provide students with a strong basis in Liberal Arts education preparing them for a wide range of professional and civic roles as local, national, and global citizens, leaders, and change-agents. We strive to highlight the histories and contributions of all Black, Indigenous, and other People of Color as key agents in local, national, and transnational contexts. Therefore students and faculty engage a variety of topics including race and racism, immigration, policing, colonialism, empire, war, religion and spirituality, art, diaspora, literature and storytelling, history, gender and sexuality, and feminism, among others. The department offers a major, minor, and certificate programs (undergraduate and graduate students).
Ethnic Studies Graduate Certificate
Admission Requirements
- Degree: BA/BS
- A minimum GPA of 3.00 is recommended
Application Process
Applicants for a Graduate Certificate Program will send the following documents to the Certificate Program Director:
- Graduate Certificate Application Form:
- Official Transcripts
- Resume
- Letter of interest
Upon approval of the student’s admission by the Graduate Certificate Program, the program director will send the student’s certificate admission file to Graduate student admissions. Graduate admissions will confirm the applicant’s credentials, will determine whether the student meets the general academic requirements, will admit the student and inform the student of his/her admission to the Graduate Certificate Program.
Faculty
Associate Professors:
Faye Caronan, PhD, University of California, San Diego
Rachel E. Harding, PhD, University of Colorado, Boulder
Associate Teaching Professors:
Elizabeth Garcia, PhD, University of California Berkeley
Katherine Mohrman, PhD, University of Minnesota Twin Cities
Assistant Professor:
Chad Shomura, PhD, Johns Hopkins University
Senior Instructor:
Dennis Green, ABD, University of New Mexico
Emeritus Professors:
Paula Espinoza, PhD, University of Colorado Boulder
Donna Martinez, PhD, University of Washington
Ethnic Studies (ETST) Courses
ETST 5000 - Research Methods in Ethnic Studies (3 Credits)
Emphasizes the acquisition of a variety of data or information collection and analytic skills, especially those applicable to historical and social inquiry in ethnic studies. Restriction: Restricted to Graduate and Graduate Non-Degree majors. Cross-listed with ETST 4000. Term offered: fall. Max hours: 3 Credits.
Grading Basis: Letter Grade
Restriction: Restricted to Graduate and Graduate Non-Degree Majors
Typically Offered: Fall.
ETST 5020 - Race, Culture and Immigration (3 Credits)
In this course, we will consider the social and legal construction of race and immigration. We will also explore how immigrants have been racialized both historically and in the current moment. In addition, we will consider the role of culture in shaping the immigrant experience and immigrant outcomes. Restriction: Graduate standing or instructor permission. Cross-listed with SOCY 4020, ETST 4020 and SOCY 5020. Term offered: spring. Max hours: 3 Credits.
Grading Basis: Letter Grade
Restriction: Restricted to Graduate and Graduate Non-Degree Majors
ETST 5021 - Black and Latino Children in Families and Schools (3 Credits)
With a focus on application of scholarship to practice, this interdisciplinary course will introduce graduate students to scholarly literature from family sciences, sociology, education and related fields to understand Black and Latino children within family, school and community systems. Restriction: Restricted to Graduate and Graduate Non-Degree majors (NDGR-NHL and NDGR-NLA). Cross-listed with HDFR 5020. Max hours: 3 Credits.
Grading Basis: Letter Grade
Restriction: Restricted to Graduate and Graduate Non-Degree Majors
ETST 5030 - Race, Religion and Belonging in the United States (3 Credits)
Race/ethnicity and religion are conconstitutive social and cultural formations that have played a fundamental part in determining the boundaries of belonging of the United States. In this course, students will interrogate when, why and how race/ethnicity and religion have been used to delineate borders, determine citizenship, navigate legal classifications, dictate social mobility, and regulate economic possibilities. We will analyze both primary sources ‐such as sermons, reality TV shows, court cases and graphic images‐as well as scholarly writing to explore how formations of race and religion have shaped notions of belonging in the US nation‐state, thereby constructing the boundaries of the state itself. Restriction: Graduate standing or instructor permission required to register. Cross-listed with ETST 4030, RLST 4030, RLST 5030, HIST 4209 and HIST 5029. Max hours: 3 Credits.
Grading Basis: Letter Grade
Restriction: Restricted to Graduate and Graduate Non-Degree Majors
Typically Offered: Spring.
ETST 5165 - Cultural Diversity Awareness in the Workplace (3 Credits)
This course will analyze the impact and effectiveness of cultural diversity awareness in a variety of workplace settings including educational institutions, businesses, health care organizations, and non-profit organizations. Students will learn how implicit biases and structural inequality impact workplace culture, a work place's productivity, and a work place's ability to fulfill their mission. By the end of the course, students will acquire the skills to advocate for and implement inclusive work place policies. Restriction: Restricted to Graduate and Graduate Non-Degree Majors. Cross-listed with ETST 4165. Max hours: 3 Credits.
Grading Basis: Letter Grade
Restriction: Restricted to Graduate and Graduate Non-Degree Majors
ETST 5220 - African-American Literature (3 Credits)
ETST 5297 - Theorizing the Transpacific (3 Credits)
What is the transpacific? Though this term is most associated with global trade and economic interests, this course will examine the migratory and cultural precedents for this term. What do other perspectives from Oceania and from pacific rim countries offer us to theorize the meaning of the transpacific(s). How might a social and cultural understanding of the transpacific engage with the political and economic understandings of the transpacific undergirded by trade relations? Note: Recommended that ETST 3297- Social History of Asian Americans be completed first. Restriction: Restricted to Graduate and Graduate Non-Degree Majors. Cross-listed with ETST 4297. Max hours: 3 Credits.
Grading Basis: Letter Grade
Restriction: Restricted to Graduate and Graduate Non-Degree Majors
Typically Offered: Spring.
ETST 5305 - Women of Color Feminisms (3 Credits)
This course is an overview of women of color feminist theorizing (thinking) and praxis (practice) in the U.S. We will explore these feminisms through the writing, art, and organizing efforts of women and trans, femme, and non-binary people of color with a focus on key themes and concepts including identity, difference, oppression, intersectionality, representation, violence, resistance, empowerment, solidarity, and coalition. Texts for the course highlight key issues in the feminist theorizing and praxis of Black, Latina/x, Chicana/x, Asian (American), Pacific Islander, Indigenous, and Arab (American) women and trans, femme, and non-binary people of color, especially the politics of identity and representation; structural oppressions and violences; and practices of survival, resistance, and activism. Not only will we examine how these feminists have critiqued oppression(s) based on race, class, gender, sexuality, nationality, and religion, (as well as how these systems of domination intersect), but what kinds of approaches, strategies, and changes these thinkers and activists have organized for and promoted. Cross-listed with ETST 4305, WGST 4305 and WGST 5305. Restriction: Restricted to Graduate and Graduate Non-Degree Majors. Max hours: 3 Credits
Grading Basis: Letter Grade
Restriction: Restricted to Graduate and Graduate Non-Degree Majors
Typically Offered: Spring.
ETST 5457 - American Political Thought (3 Credits)
Critical examination of American political life at the intersections of social categories such as race, class, gender, sexuality, disability, and Indigeneity. Exploration of key and marginal thinkers through a variety of texts and genres. Restriction: Restricted to Graduate and Graduate Non-Degree Majors. Cross-listed with ETST 4457, PSCI 4457, and PSCI 5457. Max hours: 3 Credits.
Grading Basis: Letter Grade
Restriction: Restricted to Graduate and Graduate Non-Degree Majors
ETST 5722 - Communicating Latinx Cultures (3 Credits)
Communicating Latina/o/x Cultures centers historical and contemporary vernacular and institutional discourse sand narratives about, by, and for Latina/o/x people and communities. Drawing on theories, methods, and practices to understand the complexities of Latina/o/x cultures and lives, we will investigate how different actors and activists express and experience borders, migration, dispossession, citizenship, colonialism/coloniality, colorism, white supremacy, environmental racism(including anti-Blackness), mono- and multilingualism, self-determination struggles, power, representation, resistance, and mutual support networks for alternative worldmaking. To situate these concepts and concerns, we will explore contexts and places ranging from Colorado to the Caribbean. Restriction: Restricted to Graduate and Graduate Non-Degree Majors. Term Typically Offered: Spring. Cross-listed with COMM 4722, COMM 5722, and ETST 4722. Max hours: 3 credits.
Grading Basis: Letter Grade
Restriction: Restricted to Graduate and Graduate Non-Degree Majors
Typically Offered: Spring.
ETST 5880 - Directed Research (1-6 Credits)
Students will engage in original research projects supervised and mentored by faculty. Students must work with faculty prior to registration to develop a proposal for their project and receive permission to take this course. Note: Students must submit a special processing form completely filled out and signed by the student and faculty member, describing the course expectations, assignments and outcomes, to the CLAS Graduate Academic Services Coordinator for approval. Term offered: fall, spring, summer. Repeatable. Max Hours: 6 Credits.
Grading Basis: Letter Grade
Repeatable. Max Credits: 6.
Typically Offered: Fall, Spring, Summer.
ETST 5939 - Graduate Internship in Ethnic Studies (1-6 Credits)
Designed experiences involving application of specific, relevant concepts and skills in supervised employment situations. Restriction: Restricted to Graduate and Graduate Non-Degree majors. Note: Students must have graduate standing and must work with Experiential Learning Center advising to complete a course contract and gain approval. Term offered: fall, spring, summer. Repeatable. Max hours: 9 Credits.
Grading Basis: Letter Grade
Repeatable. Max Credits: 9.
Restriction: Restricted to Graduate and Graduate Non-Degree Majors
Typically Offered: Fall, Spring, Summer.
ETST 5960 - Capstone in Ethnic Studies (3 Credits)
Provides a broad overview of social research methods pertinent to the study of race, ethnicity, gender, and culture. Explores theories concerning "ethnicity and race" as both social construct and constituent feature of people's identities and lived experiences. Ethnic Studies is an interdisciplinary major where students make connections across diverse fields of inquiry; this course provides a structure for integrating an interdisciplinary examination of the intellectual, cultural, and social dimensions of racial and ethnic groups. Restriction: Restricted to Graduate and Graduate Non-Degree majors. Cross-listed with ETST 4960. Term offered: spring. Max hours: 3 Credits.
Grading Basis: Letter Grade
Restriction: Restricted to Graduate and Graduate Non-Degree Majors
Typically Offered: Spring.
ETST 6950 - Independent Study: Ethnic Studies (1-18 Credits)
Independent study in ethnic studies. Department consent required. Note: Students must submit a special processing form completely filled out and signed by the student and faculty member, describing the course expectations, assignments and outcomes, to the CLAS Graduate Academic Services Coordinator for approval. Max hours: 18 Credits.
Grading Basis: Letter Grade
Repeatable. Max Credits: 18.