I'm usually not one for jumping on the bandwagon, but I've decided to follow the current blogging trend of writing about my newest batch of courses. After all, this is the last semester I will be able to grace my loyal readers with my Oberlin course schedule, so you better relish it.
PSYCH 218 - Social Psychology
I took introductory psychology during my first year, but haven't revisited the department since. Being a sociology major, I've spent a lot of time taking courses on human interaction on the macro/societal level. This class will put a different spin on things for me on a smaller scale. So far, I am extremely impressed with Cindy Frantz's knowledge of the details of every social psychology experiment ever conducted, as well as everything else you could ever want to know about psychology--maybe even about life.
ATHL 144 - Bowling I
We were told on the first day that my classmates and I are a team, and we must work together to conquer evil--evil being the pins at end of the lanes. Right now, we aren't too excellent at conquering evil, but we're getting there. I had no idea there were so many elements to conquering evil until I read the syllabus for the course. During the first half of the semester, each session focuses on a different part of our game, building on our skills each week. So far we've covered arm swing, approach, and stance. Eventually, I hope to be able to curve the ball and look like a pro while doing it. Hopefully I can absorb all of our instructor, Tom Reid's, bowling brilliance and passion.
ATHL 126 - Strength Training
Lee Suggs, former NFL player/current Oberlin College assistant football coach, is our teacher for the course. He put together a lifting routine for of us to do three days a week. I used to lift weights regularly, but I started slacking once I when I studied abroad this summer. With all [the pubs] London has to offer, who has time for arm curls and sit ups? I never really returned to my lifting routine, so my biceps have been slowly diminishing. This course is perfect because it is forcing me to lift weights and pump some life back into my guns.
RHET 206 - Advanced English Composition: Narrative Non-Fiction
This course was pretty much designed for me. Once upon a time, the Registrar gods heard my career goal wishes and answered me via this class. Our class is pretty small--I think there's about 15 of us. Each of our assignments is focused for hypothetical print in a specific publication, with an increasingly larger audience with every assignment. Our first assignment is supposed to describe a scene that would be printed in The Wilder Voice for an Oberlin audience. I will be writing a piece painting a scene in Johnny's, the local liquor store. Our last piece will be an article for the New York Times. Senioritis is impeding my relish ability to be enthusiastic to do work, but has fortunately not dampened my enthusiasm for this class.
EXCO 174 - Mixed Dreams: Exploring Multiracial Experiences in the U.S.
I applied for three ExCos this semester, and this was the only one that accepted me. Luckily, this one was the one I most wanted to take. I had never seen a course before that was ALL about multi-racial folk like myself. I am quite thankful Nicole Nfonoyim, the Africana Community Coordinator in the college's Multicultural Resource Center, decided to teach this. Not only is the reading really interesting, but I enjoy being in the company of other students of mixed race and others who are all there with a desire for good discussion.
All of these, along with my honors project, should bring me to a grand total of a whopping 112.5 credits--just enough to walk across the stage and claim B.A. status in May.
