shp course descriptions

All courses offered through the Summer Honors Program are designed to be dynamic, interactive explorations by the students and professor into the course topic.

Classes meet Monday through Friday between 9:00 AM and 12:00 PM for classes chosen by the student, and again between 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM for Honors Core. All classes are conducted by IUP faculty: students enrolled will be working with full-time IUP professors.

Honors Core
Required afternoon class for all students.

All students will tackle some of the most basic and debated questions of human existance such as "How do we discern the good from the bad?" or "What do we know? What do we believe? Is there a difference?" in the Interdisciplinary Honors Core Course. Working with professors from literature, philosophy, history and the fine arts provides a unique opportunity for a synthesis of ideas. You will be challenged to develop critical thinking skills through the analysis of great scholars' arguments, group discussions, writing and group presentations.

SHP Faculty Information

MAJOR CLASS CHOICES:

Biochemistry

Genetic Engineering: Techniques and Application

Covers nucleic acid properties, structure, and functions. The lecture part of the course will cover the principles and techniques of recent developments and findings in recombinant DNA technology. The laboratory component will provide the opportunity to learn and apply hands-on recombinant DNA procedures and the technologies of spectrophotometer analysis of nucleic acids and proteins; restriction enzyme digestion, gel electrophoretic analysis of mutant genes, and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis.

Program Prerequisites: High School Biology, Chemistry or Physics

Instructor: Dr. N. Bharathan

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Chemistry

The Real World of Chemistry

We all have heard the urban legends about Frisbees and silly putty being the accidental invention of a scientist in the 40’s. But, what about asprin?  Or anti-bacterial soap?  Where did these things come from? Asprin can be made from ingredients in your kitchen and we will show you how. You will also analyze the structure and purity of the compounds you make utilizing current scientific equipment featuring visible and infra-red spectroscopy, nuclear magnetic resonance and high-performance liquid chromatography. Discover how the sustances we use in our  everyday lives originate from a chemists' investigative and creative skills.

Program Prerequisites: Successful completion of high school Chemistry is recommended.

Instructors: Dr. Wendy Elcesser, Dr. Larry Kupchella, Dr. Nathan 
McElroy and Dr. John Woolcock

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English/Education/Writing

Examining the Culture of Education in the Writing Classroom

Many leading educationists, compositionists, and historians decry a culture of education that has become increasingly focused on "accountability." They limn a business model system of education that commodifies teaching and learning by restricting curricular choices and standardizing instruction and assessment. Some assert that this system creates a culture of education that devalues teachers' professionalism and students' agency in their own educational lives. Others observe the system's failure to deliver on its promise of increased educational equity and access to historically under-represented students. This course is designed to engage students in critical analysis of how this culture might have affected their experiences in the writing classroom, their attitudes toward education, and their plans for college and career. In doing so, we'll examine both sides of the accountability debate, envision classrooms of the future, and draft our own educational policy. The culminating project will be an autobiography of our writing lives.

Instructor: Dawn Fels

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Forensics

CSI - IUP

Just how realistic are the crime-scene television shows? Spend two weeks working with a forensics pathologist in lab settings, analyzing crime scenes, participate in a special presentation by the FBI--you'll never see crime-scene TV the same way again! The lecture part of the course will cover the principles and techniques of recent developments and findings in recombinant DNA technology. The laboratory component will provide the opportunity to learn and apply hands-on recombinant DNA procedures and the technologies of spectrophotometer analysis of nucleic acids and proteins; restriction enzyme digestion, gel electrophoretic analysis of mutant genes, and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis.

Program Prerequisites: High School Biology, Chemistry or Physics

Instructors: Dr. John Delmastro, MD and Thomas Slagle

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Journalism

Control the News: Control the World

Students will learn what it is to be part of a professional journalism team. Through in-depth looks at things like copy-editing, interviewing, and style recognition, they will learn how a newspaper is put together and how a group of people work together to create one. They will then put this knowledge into effect through creating their own mini-portfolios and have one-on-one conferences with the professor as well as have the opportunity to solicit information from journalism majors at IUP. In addition to the fieldwork (i.e. writing and interviewing others around IUP campus), students will listen to guest lecturers, take a tour of the local newspaper, and be given the chance to explore all aspects of the journalism world.

New to the program this year will be the creation of a magazine.

Instructor: Dr. Michele McCoy

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Law

Amend the Constitution!

Whether it is the issue of same sex marriage, the right of the unborn to enjoy the status of full personhood, or the limits of the executive branch to push the boundaries civil liberties in a time national crisis, the United States Supreme Court struggles daily with the need to balance the rights of its collective citizenry against the individual rights of its citizens, as defined by the Constitution. Justices appointed to this task must wrestle daily with the words of our founding document as they define and interpret the cases that come before it.

Students will be led through an in depth exploration of the process of judicial review. The course will begin with an examination of several very complex and emotional legal issues that threaten to rend the fabric of our national unity. Students will investigate a controversial topic from a constitutional and legal perspective. Students will also undergo the very process of judicial review that takes place in the US Supreme Court. After researching and developing positions, the course will culminate in a presentation of a brief that interprets the case and sets the precedent for all future litigation surrounding the issue.

Instructors: Dr. Chambers and Dr. Torges

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Physics

Erasing Our Carbon Footprint

Toxic mercury levels in tuna…increase in acid rain…hole in the ozone layer… greenhouse has emissions from SUV’s…environmental issues need solutions that work; spend two weeks finding them.  Use the application of physics’ most important principles to analyze current energy and environmental problems.  In active laboratory settings, this course will utilize concepts of kinetics, electromagnetism and optics along with others to engage issues of the environmental world.   Hybrid cars use their inertia to generate power (kinetics) in custom batteries (electromagnetism).  Our environment has problems.  Physics has answers.

Instructor: Dr. Stan Sobolewski

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Psychology

How to Think Like a Psychologist

Isn’t psychology all just common sense?  Why don’t psychologists believe in punishment?  How can psychology be a science when every person is unique?  Why do psychologists compare the human brain to a machine; people aren’t machines!  The course will address questions such as these to broaden the understanding of psychology as a science.  Classic psychological experiments will be reviewed and students will have the opportunity to design their own research study.  Students will also learn about the extensive applications of psychology to various aspects of personal life and various careers. 

Instructor: Dr. Lisa Newell

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Theater

Improvisation and Acting

This two week course will introduce you to professional skills, techniques, and methods in Improvisation and Acting. Sessions will involve games and exercises, and short scene presentations. Please wear clothes that you can move in freely, and be prepared to participate fully."

Instructor: Dr. Rick Kemp