International Relations
PLSC 300D: Model United Nations II
PLSC 367: Model United Nations I
Professor Endless
Mon 7:00pm / LSC
This course is designed to provide an orientation to the activities of the United Nations, as well as providing an understanding of the modalities of international diplomacy. This course will include current events, pressing international issues, the basics of international law and some of the protocol and procedures of diplomacy. All of this will assist students in preparing for their role as a distinguished diplomat at the National Model United Nations conference in New York. This course requires instructor permission to enroll.
PLSC 300D: Politics/ International Health
Professor Endless
TTh 11:30am / LSC
This course will look at political issues in the field of international health, both comparing a variety of health care systems, as well as discussing broad reaching health problems. A portion of the course will be dedicated to a comparison of how government's treat public health, using the United States, France and Cuba among other examples. The remainder of the course will focus on how the international community deals with diseases that cross borders and effect all of humanity, including the HIV/AIDS pandemic, tuberculosis and malaria.
PLSC 300D: Transitional Justice & Human Rights
Ms. Mecellem
MWF 2:45pm / LSC
This course examines the role of different political and social events after periods of extreme violence and their relation to human rights. The course will situate transitional justice within the contemporary discussion of human rights policies and practices.
PLSC 300D: Capstone: Intervention
Professor Schraeder
TTh 10:00am / LSC
This is a capstone course in the Political Science subfield of “International Relations” that focuses on the hotly debated topic of "intervention" in world politics: The purposeful and calculated use of political, economic, and military instruments by one country to influence the domestic or foreign policies of another country. Among the tools of intervention to be examined include economic and military aid, economic sanctions, covert intervention, paramilitary intervention, and direct military intervention. We will explore the evolution of United States interventionist practices from the founding of the American Republic in 1776 to the present, with a special focus on U.S. interventionist practices in the aftermath of the tragic events of September 11, 2001. Although our geographical focus will be all regions of the world, we will especially focus on U.S. interventionist practices in South Asia (especially Afghanistan and Pakistan) and the larger Middle East region (most notably Iran, Iraq, and Syria), including U.S. responses to the “Arab spring” and regime changes that have taken place in the North African countries of Egypt, Libya, and Tunisia. Students will craft a major research paper on one case study of U.S. intervention abroad. Students wishing to enroll in this class should email Nora Rybarczyk (nenglun@luc.edu), Senior Administrative Assistant in Political Science, who will place their names on an enrollment list (enrollment is by permission only, and students who have taken an earlier version of this class are not eligible).
PLSC 325: American Foreign Policy
Professor O'Leary
MWF 1:40pm / LSC
American foreign policy is made by the President and executed by the State Department--or so says grammar school civics. In reality, policy is occasionally articulated by the President, but usually not. Numerous agencies have their own foreign and domestic agendas and Congressional mandates and compete to determine America’s outlook and actions. Members of Congress also want a hand in foreign policy, often in response to their constituents’ concerns. Special interest groups, NGOs, “public opinion”, the press, the availability of resources, foreign governments, and international entities also influence policy formation and execution. In this course, we will attempt to sort out who does what to whom against the backdrop of President Obama’s first years in office—a time when Presidents have come to accept that campaign rhetoric usually does not match reality. Students will determine the foreign policy priorities and orientations of the Administration and assess how those policies may fare as competing interests struggle to shape them to achieve their own goals. Current events will also be used to illustrate the policy-making process. The goal is to enable students to understand American foreign policy and its components; comprehend constraints on policy formation; and evaluate effectiveness of the policy itself, both at home and abroad.
PLSC 350: Politics of International Economic Relations
Professor Van Benthuysen
MWF 10:25am / LSC
This course introduces competing perspectives on nation-states and economic systems within the international relations subfield of international political economy (IPE). IPE focuses on how politics interacts with and shapes economic outcomes in order to understand who gets what, when, and how under conditions of scarcity. Issues that will be explored in this course include: Globalization, foreign trade policy, Multi-National Corporations, International finance, multilateral and bilateral trade agreements, development, North-South relations, economic conflict, interdependence, and the relationship between democracy and markets.
PLSC 364: UN & International Organizations
Mr. Wainwright
TTh 1:00pm / LSC
This course serves as an introduction to the study of international organizations, both in theory and in practice. We will be studying the theories behind the creation and operation of international organizations, as well as their actions in international politics. To study this, we will focus on the United Nations system, as well as studying a variety of other international organizations (like the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, or the European Union). The goal is to provide students with a strong theoretical foundation for understanding the working of international organizations, as well as an overview of the operations of the major organizations in the international system.
PLSC 300D: Model United Nations II
PLSC 367: Model United Nations I
Professor Endless
Mon 7:00pm / LSC
This course is designed to provide an orientation to the activities of the United Nations, as well as providing an understanding of the modalities of international diplomacy. This course will include current events, pressing international issues, the basics of international law and some of the protocol and procedures of diplomacy. All of this will assist students in preparing for their role as a distinguished diplomat at the National Model United Nations conference in New York. This course requires instructor permission to enroll.
PLSC 300D: Politics/ International Health
Professor Endless
TTh 11:30am / LSC
This course will look at political issues in the field of international health, both comparing a variety of health care systems, as well as discussing broad reaching health problems. A portion of the course will be dedicated to a comparison of how government's treat public health, using the United States, France and Cuba among other examples. The remainder of the course will focus on how the international community deals with diseases that cross borders and effect all of humanity, including the HIV/AIDS pandemic, tuberculosis and malaria.
PLSC 300D: Transitional Justice & Human Rights
Ms. Mecellem
MWF 2:45pm / LSC
This course examines the role of different political and social events after periods of extreme violence and their relation to human rights. The course will situate transitional justice within the contemporary discussion of human rights policies and practices.
PLSC 300D: Capstone: Intervention
Professor Schraeder
TTh 10:00am / LSC
This is a capstone course in the Political Science subfield of “International Relations” that focuses on the hotly debated topic of "intervention" in world politics: The purposeful and calculated use of political, economic, and military instruments by one country to influence the domestic or foreign policies of another country. Among the tools of intervention to be examined include economic and military aid, economic sanctions, covert intervention, paramilitary intervention, and direct military intervention. We will explore the evolution of United States interventionist practices from the founding of the American Republic in 1776 to the present, with a special focus on U.S. interventionist practices in the aftermath of the tragic events of September 11, 2001. Although our geographical focus will be all regions of the world, we will especially focus on U.S. interventionist practices in South Asia (especially Afghanistan and Pakistan) and the larger Middle East region (most notably Iran, Iraq, and Syria), including U.S. responses to the “Arab spring” and regime changes that have taken place in the North African countries of Egypt, Libya, and Tunisia. Students will craft a major research paper on one case study of U.S. intervention abroad. Students wishing to enroll in this class should email Nora Rybarczyk (nenglun@luc.edu), Senior Administrative Assistant in Political Science, who will place their names on an enrollment list (enrollment is by permission only, and students who have taken an earlier version of this class are not eligible).
PLSC 325: American Foreign Policy
Professor O'Leary
MWF 1:40pm / LSC
American foreign policy is made by the President and executed by the State Department--or so says grammar school civics. In reality, policy is occasionally articulated by the President, but usually not. Numerous agencies have their own foreign and domestic agendas and Congressional mandates and compete to determine America’s outlook and actions. Members of Congress also want a hand in foreign policy, often in response to their constituents’ concerns. Special interest groups, NGOs, “public opinion”, the press, the availability of resources, foreign governments, and international entities also influence policy formation and execution. In this course, we will attempt to sort out who does what to whom against the backdrop of President Obama’s first years in office—a time when Presidents have come to accept that campaign rhetoric usually does not match reality. Students will determine the foreign policy priorities and orientations of the Administration and assess how those policies may fare as competing interests struggle to shape them to achieve their own goals. Current events will also be used to illustrate the policy-making process. The goal is to enable students to understand American foreign policy and its components; comprehend constraints on policy formation; and evaluate effectiveness of the policy itself, both at home and abroad.
PLSC 350: Politics of International Economic Relations
Professor Van Benthuysen
MWF 10:25am / LSC
This course introduces competing perspectives on nation-states and economic systems within the international relations subfield of international political economy (IPE). IPE focuses on how politics interacts with and shapes economic outcomes in order to understand who gets what, when, and how under conditions of scarcity. Issues that will be explored in this course include: Globalization, foreign trade policy, Multi-National Corporations, International finance, multilateral and bilateral trade agreements, development, North-South relations, economic conflict, interdependence, and the relationship between democracy and markets.
PLSC 364: UN & International Organizations
Mr. Wainwright
TTh 1:00pm / LSC
This course serves as an introduction to the study of international organizations, both in theory and in practice. We will be studying the theories behind the creation and operation of international organizations, as well as their actions in international politics. To study this, we will focus on the United Nations system, as well as studying a variety of other international organizations (like the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, or the European Union). The goal is to provide students with a strong theoretical foundation for understanding the working of international organizations, as well as an overview of the operations of the major organizations in the international system.