3 credits
Fall 2026 Lecture HumanitiesUpper Division
Using a historical perspective, examines the shifting role of the presidency in the American imagination and the cultural, social, and economic changes that have wrought political developments in public functions and expectations of the modern presidency.
Learning Outcomes1Identify the historical development in American political, cultural, economic, and social structures by examining primary and secondary sources.
2Analyze primary and secondary sources to explain how and why these historical developments happened.
3Pursue original primary research about a specific topic in American history and synthesize primary and secondary materials to advance an original argument about the roots, shape, and implications of a historical moment.
4Interrogate the role of the modern American presidency in American political life with an analysis of primary sources that will allow students to go beyond popular biographies of presidents and understand a more complicated historical reality of the debate about the responsibilities and nature of the office.
5Recognize the historical roots of contemporary political debates about the presidency and the constitutional authority of the institution.
6Understand the modern American presidency in ways that will allow students to better navigate the American political process more effectively.
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