Government Course(s)

Course Description: This course is a survey of national governmental/political processes, American democracy, the Constitution, political parties, the executive/congressional/judicial branches, and contemporary issues.

Course Description: This course examines the American presidency and presidents throughout history. The approach taken is to study presidents chronologically and thematically with a focus on the development of the presidency, growth in presidential powers, relations with other branches of government, presidential selection, public policy, and constitutional issues.

Course Description: This course examines the many ways that religion plays a role in American politics including church-state relations, public opinion and voting , political culture, and public policy.

Course Description: This course examines American federalism and state and local politics. The approach taken is comparative and considers variations among the American states with regard to constitutions, policies, state governments, political culture, policies and politics.

Course Description: International Development has taken on a new emphasis in the post 9-11 world, after the events of that day it became obvious that the poverty and lack of freedom in the developing world can have a direct, and catastrophic, impact on those living in any part of the world. This course will examine the approaches taken by the international community towards promoting democracy and economic growth in the developing world as well as assess the reasons why some people have so much, and some so little. This course will take theory and apply it to real world application as we consider the historical progression of development in determining how we practice it in the future.

Course Description: Family law pertains to the formation and dissolution of domestic relations, including the law of marriage, annulment, separation and dissolution, maintenance, and custody and support of children. This course will study the differences between community and separate property, the classification of property, and the impact of such classification. The role of the paralegal in family law practice and the importance of mediation of domestic issues will also be discussed. View syllabus.

Course Description: Available online or Text-based (please specify format in "comments" section of registration form). Link to syllabus.

Course Description: This course looks at the primary perspectives of what “Islam” is in the 21st Century International System. It has been argued that understanding “Islam” is a mandatory requirement to be able to function in the globalized world, this class will begin to fill that requirement by analyzing conceptual notions of the role of Islam in our world today and what it all means from differing paradigms.

Course Description: This course examines Supreme Court decisions and doctrine in areas such as search and seizure, the exclusionary rule, interrogations, right to counsel, cruel and unusual punishment and other issues in criminal justice and the courts.

Course Description: This course examines Supreme Court decisions and doctrine in areas such as speech, assembly, religion, privacy, press, civil rights, and election law.

Course Description: The interaction of religious ideas, practices, and aspirations in United States History, 1607 to Present.

Course Description: In this course we will study advanced and specialized research approaches to utilize the legal resources available in a law library, online, and elsewhere. The conceptual differences between computer-assisted legal research and hard copy research will be taught. You will also learn how to formulate WESTLAW search queries and how to effectively and efficiently use WESTLAW and other online services as timesaving devices in legal research and writing.

Course Description: Advanced and specialized approaches to utilize the legal resources available in a law library, and elsewhere, will be examined. The conceptual differences between computer-assisted legal research and hard copy research will be taught. You will also learn how to formulate WESTLAW search queries and effectively and efficiently use WESTLAW and other online legal research methods as timesaving devices in legal research and legal writing. Link to syllabus.