Courses
Winter Session courses on the New Brunswick campus meet or exceed the high academic standards set for the regular academic year at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, a top-ranked research institution and public university. Courses are selected for their suitability and approved by the school dean and/or faculty curricular committee.
View All Winter Session Courses
The course, Conflict Resolution: Artistic Tools and Action-Based Approaches, introduces students to an innovative integration of conflict resolution methodologies and choreographic practices in the process of creating participatory events.
After completing the course, students will be able to recognize a range of categories of action that impact participatory events and will understand how to effectively apply principles of conflict resolution in making decisions within those categories. Students will gain hands-on experience in the process of creating models for participatory events and developing new strategies for situational transformation, problem-solving, and communication in circumstances of conflict. Students will analyze artistic tools and consider how they might be applicable across multiple fields of endeavor towards opening dialogue and resolving situations of conflict.
Course instructor, Dana Caspersen, is an internationally known performing artist with 40 years of experience at the forefront of contemporary dance and theater in her collaborations with choreographer William Forsythe in the Ballet Frankfurt and the Forsythe Company. She has a master's degree in Conflict Studies and Mediation and over the last 8 years has worked internationally creating large-scale public dialogue events that integrate conflict resolution methodologies and choreographic practices to enable dialogue on topics like racism, violence and polarization. She works as a teacher, mediator, coach, dialogue model designer and author. Her book, Changing the Conversation: The 17 principles of conflict resolution has been translated into 6 languages.
The course is a 2-week hands-on, in-person intensive. The research will take place in class, there will be some written work. Register now.
When most people think of Dracula, the first thing that comes to mind is an image of a caped count with crimson blood dripping from his fanged mouth. This winter, students who register for the course Dracula: Facts and Fictions will learn the actual history behind the legendary figure.
Field expert and historian Professor Stephen Reinert will teach the online course, which runs December 23, 2019 – January 17, 2020. The course is offered by Rutgers University-New Brunswick Winter Session and open to all students.
The course will help students understand what happened during Dracula’s life and his three reigns as Prince of Wallachia, circa 1430-1476. Students will learn how historians uncover and interpret the life and career of Dracula on the basis of surviving narratives, documents, pictures, and monuments. Students will also discover how and why contemporaries of Dracula launched a project of vilifying his character and deeds in the early decades of printed pamphlets and books, and what characterized medieval and early modern vampire beliefs in central and eastern Europe.
The course will include a full set of audio-visual lectures, equivalent to a semester’s worth of in-classroom presentations. Students engage in writing and reflection through forum discussions on key course themes.
According to Reinert, “the course is designed so students can broadly explore the entire phenomenon from the actual Dracula of history to imaginative constructions in contemporary propaganda, art, folklore, modern literature, and film.”
Professor Reinert is fully versed in the sources and literature on the Dracula theme, having served as coordinating translator and editor of Matei Cazacu’s comprehensive study entitled Dracula, published in 2017 (Brill). He is also a specialist on the Balkans in the 14th and 15th centuries, which includes medieval Romania and Transylvania, and has taught Dracula courses at Rutgers numerous times.
Upon successful completion of this course, students will have attained:
- Critical mastery of significant historical events in the mid-to-late 15th century pertaining to the histories of Wallachia, Byzantium, the Holy Roman Empire, Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire
- A close understanding of the life and achievements of “the historical Dracula,” and the sources which make such understanding possible
- A close understanding of late medieval/early modern beliefs regarding death, the nature of the soul, and the relationship between death and the “afterlife”
- A close understanding of how celebrated historical figures become transformed, in the course of time, into fictional creations reflecting varying historical and cultural influences
The course can be toward history major or minor requirements and fulfills the pre-modern requirement. Register for this course.
The online interdisciplinary course, Gender, Culture, And Representation: Gender, Race & Queer Rep War & Terror, explores representations of culture as they occur at the intersections of race, gender, sexuality, and nation. Students will explore various vantage points: animated films, music, dance, social media, performance art, photography, and literature in varied locations, from the Americas and the Caribbean to Africa, West Asia, and Europe. The course focuses on how knowledge and materialities are produced, perpetuated, and/or erased when massifying terms such as culture, race, sex, gender, and sexuality are used to represent particular groups. We will be asking ourselves the following questions: What is representation and culture? What does representation do? What are the discursive, epistemological, and material conditions shaping representation? How do representations develop through the nexus of race, gender, sexuality and nation?
Register now.
The course Gods, Myths, Religions in a Secular Age will introduce students to the academic study of religion. Students will explore the ideas of various theorists, and the role of religion in society. The course will cover topics including new religious movements, the intersection of religion and culture, gender, ritual, and the “limits” of religious pluralism.
This course will benefit students by allowing them to academically explore and experience the role that religion plays in society, the way it shapes culture, and influences our everyday world.
Register now.
Students in the hybrid course Greek Film: Love, Eros & Death will be introduced to Modern Greece and major Modern Greek political, religious and cultural issues as exhibited in Greek film. The course surveys Greek film as a means of expression of Hellenic culture both in the homeland and the Diaspora.
Since its beginning in 1914, Greek cinema has been a vibrant site of expressive cultural production. The Greek film industry produced films that attracted growing audiences despite strict censorship, civil war unrest, and the acute poverty of the post-war years. Throughout this film course, students will be able to observe rituals, family, household, village and city customs, and practices, as these all are a valuable venue for learning the social, economic, cultural, political and religious ways that underlie and make Greek culture distinctive. Through exposure to the Greek culture, students will develop their awaremess of cultural diversity.
Course instructor, Katerina Kourti-Gavalas, is a native of Greece who has lived in Canada and the US for most of her life. She has been teaching this course successfully for over 10 years.
This course fulfills a requirement for the students pursuing a Modern Greek Minor, however, it is open to all students since the entire course is taught in English.
Register now.
This online course explores the forms and functions of popular culture and its representation. Students will examine specific media forms including, but not limited to, film, song, visual arts, music, video, television, advertising and new media forms. They will also learn to critically analyze the impact of these media portrayals while examining the cultural constructions of gender, race, sexuality, and class.
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
- Identify and debate key issues in the study of the cultural representation of gender, sexuality, and race
- Develop a vocabulary for theorizing gender and the other facets of identity in a variety of representational media
- Critically analyze cultural artifacts from various media through the application of key concepts from the course
- Advance well-supported arguments in writing
- Envision social changes that can be brought about through re-examining traditional modes of cultural representation of gender, race, class, and sexuality
Register for this course.
This winter, students will immerse themselves in Greek culture to learn about the health benefits of the traditional Mediterranean lifestyle through a unique travel-study opportunity.
Lifestyles of the Mediterranean, offered January 2-15, 2020 by the Department of Kinesiology and Health at Rutgers University–New Brunswick, will take place in Greece, where the Mediterranean lifestyle has been implemented for thousands of years. Among other topics, the course will cover the fundamental principles of the Mediterranean diet, a dietary pattern that has been recognized by UNESCO as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity and recently proposed as a health promoting diet in the 2015-2020 USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
According to the course’s instructor, Labros Sidossis, “the course combines theoretical lectures with experiential activities and research to cover the fundamental principles and components of the Mediterranean lifestyle, i.e., the adoption of the Mediterranean diet, the promotion of a physically active lifestyle, and other lifestyle habits that have been found beneficial for health such as adequate rest and hydration and conviviality during meals and exercise.”
The course will include field trips, excursions and interactive educational activities, including visits to monumental sites, demonstrations of Mediterranean lifestyle practices by local community members, cooking classes and tasting of Mediterranean recipes in traditional food-service establishments, as well as collective sports activities in nature (walking, cycling, hiking, etc.).
Lifestyles of the Mediterranean is open to all students and all majors, including non-Rutgers students. Individuals who successfully complete the program can earn three credits toward their degree. The credits may be applied as an upper-level elective for students majoring in Exercise Science and Sport at Rutgers. Students in other majors should check with their department for any credit equivalency. Students should apply to the program by October 1, 2019.
For more information, visit the program website.
Motor learning is the study of processes that underlie learning and performance of motor skills. In this course, we identify structural components of the central nervous system that are directly involved in the control of movement and describe their primary functions. Tactile, proprioceptive, and visual sensory systems are also examined in terms of their anatomical and physiological basis, how they influence the control of movement, and the limits they place on human motor skill performance.
In addition to lecture, there is a lab component that demonstrates the practical application of motor learning concepts and theories. Students consistently point out that the lab is not only one of the most enjoyable aspects of the course, but also an effective way of reinforcing topics presented during the lecture.
Instructor for the course, Dr. DeStefano, is well versed in the interrelationship between motor learning, motor development, and motor control.
Students who have continued on to graduate school, as well as having gone directly into the workplace, have repeatedly stated how applicable motor learning knowledge has been in the real world.
Register for this course.
Students in the new winter course Pediatric Development and Fitness will explore early neuromotor, musculoskeletal, and cardiovascular systems development. The course will outline the acquisition of motor milestones, the relationship to other areas of development, and the impact on overall fitness. It will also provide a foundation for further study toward a career in the therapies, medicine, exercise science, or sports studies focusing on the pediatric population. Course instructor, Lisa Rossman Murphy, has many years of experience in pediatrics working as a physical therapist specializing in neuromotor development. She has also worked extensively with other practitioners exploring the relationship between physical and neuromotor development and other areas of development (language, cognitive, adaptive, social).
This course is considered a cluster course for the Department of Kinesiology and Health. Register now.
The course, Procurement and Global Sourcing Strategy, is a strategic sourcing review, taught from a practitioner's viewpoint. A superior procurement and strategic sourcing process can increase shareholder returns by up to 15% while improving the level of service to the customer. Students will learn about the importance and impact of the procurement function, which CEO’s and CFO’s now recognize.
Students in this course will obtain practical and real-life experience, which can be applied to the business environment.
Instructors for the course, Daniel Haloukas and Jeff Zielinski, collectively have over 50 years of supply chain/procurement Fortune 500 experience. During this course, they will share their relevant, actual professional experiences with students.
The course, which meets in person, is made up of readings, case study team presentations, business news, trends, and exams. Register now
Students in the face-to-face course Safety Education and Emergency Care will learn the principles and practices of safety education and accident prevention, planning and implementation of safety programs, and legal aspects of safety programs and emergency care.
Learn how to prevent, manage and treat life threatening illnesses and injuries. Topics will include both emergent and non-emergent injuries and illnesses. This course leads to certification in First Aid, Adult, child and infant CPR and AED, which is required for many jobs.
According to course instructor, Michele Adamski, who has been teaching this course for many years, "It’s a great way to earn 3 credits and a very valuable certification."
Register now
In this course students will explore the relationship between trans aesthetics and trans politics. We’ll look at foundational texts that are the cornerstones for aesthetic philosophy and theory—Schiller, Kant, Adorno and others—and think about what trans might do to the aesthetic as a theoretical category. We’ll look at film and visual art by contemporary trans artists—ranging from Cassils, Kiyan Williams, Tourmaline to Wu Tsang and boychild—to think about how trans aesthetics redefines and pushes the boundaries of both trans theory and aesthetic practice. Finally, we’ll read archival work by Sylvia Rivera, Marsha P. Johnson and other trans activists to think through how trans activists have complicated the relationship between aesthetics and politics, from a position of extimacy with and exile from Left orthodoxy. Register now.
Use your free time this winter to learn how you can make a positive impact on a major global issue during the two-week course Service Learning and Sustainable Lifestyle in Greece, offered by the Department of Kinesiology and Health.
Students in this course will travel to Greece January 2-15, 2020 to learn about issues surrounding the refugee crisis, including human rights, practicing democracy, and achieving sustainable development.
The service-learning framework of this course combines theoretical lectures, field trips, excursions and interactive educational activities to cover the fundamental principles and components of the Mediterranean lifestyle. The course has two components: a coursework component (training seminars and workshops on social farming, sustainable lifestyle, urban garden, etc.) and a service component (voluntary work like garden activities, cooking food and distribution, engaging with the volunteers/refuges on the ground, etc.).
Instructor for the course, Dr. Sidossis, a native of Greece, has spent the past 25 years researching the role of lifestyle factors in the prevention and treatment of various diseases, including obesity, insulin resistance and dyslipidemias.
The course is open to all students and majors. Students who are interested in this unique opportunity must apply by October 1, 2019. Visit kinesabroad.rutgers.edu to apply.
For general inquiries, please contact:
Saharish Javed
Department of Kinesiology and Health
70 Lipman Drive
New Brunswick, NJ 08901-8525
848-932-7059
e-mail: saharish@rutgers.edu
Since ancient times, sports have pervaded human life. The new winter course, Special Topics: Anthropology of Sports, explores the significance of sports in modern society. While sport is often touted as being above or outside politics it has historically been a vehicle for nation building and ideology. This course focuses specifically on the intersection of modern sports with such social and cultural phenomena as; gender, class, race, and ethnicity; violence, health, global capitalism, politics, and nationalism.
Through ethnographic readings and discourse analysis students will address emergent anthropological theories of power, violence, and patterns of domination through the lens of sports. Upon completion, students will:
- Explore and discuss what constitutes a sport across time and space
- Analyze how sports intersects with various social phenomenon such as gender and sexuality; race, class, and ethnicity; violence, and global capitalism
- Assess the role of sports in nationalism and nation building
- Demonstrate a general knowledge of the history of the theory of the anthropology of sports
- Translate and deploy course knowledge into real world applications
- Sharpen your reading, writing, and critical thinking skills by producing analyses and evaluations of academic and non-academic literature
According to course instructor Michael Allen, "I personally am a sports fan, however I have not always been one. My interest in and love of sports developed over my lifetime. My academic interest in sports and society really began while I was conducting ethnographic fieldwork for my dissertation In Croatia. I was living in a small village researching post-war reconstruction and memory. Football (soccer) was a fundamental element intertwined with all aspects of everyday life in the village. I could not ignore not only soccer, but all sports during my fieldwork. From there my interest in sports as a lens for analyzing social phenomena and as an object of study took off. I developed this course out of my desire to share this growing interest with students and to learn form students' insights and feedback."
The course fulfills elective credit for anthropology and cultural anthropology majors/minors. It does not have any prerequisites and is open to all.
Register now.
Forbes magazine notes that “works well on a team” is one of the top qualities that employers look for when they're hiring and Glassdoor, Monster, and Indeed all say that “teamwork” is among the top soft skills that hiring managers and recruiters want to see in candidates. This course will present the skills needed to create teams in organizations and the best practices in leading teams and being a productive team member. It will also discuss trends such as virtual teaming, multicultural teams, and the common dysfunctions of teams.
Course instructor, Dr. Richard Dool, has comprehensive and diverse executive-level leadership experience including leading an $800M division of a Fortune 20 company, global commercial leadership roles (GE), and serving as CEO of both public and private companies. His background includes rescuing a company from near bankruptcy, leading the acquisition or divestiture of 11 companies and effectively managing companies in the US, UK, China, Brazil, Germany, France, India and Australia. Dr. Dool has a significant operational history in general management, sales/commercial leadership, product management and marketing leadership positions and successful leadership experience in a variety of settings including multi-national, multicultural and virtual environments. He is currently the director of the Rutgers Masters in Communication and Media program.
This course is an elective course for MCM students and a potential graduate transfer course for other Masters students. Register now.
This online course explores how categories of difference such as race, gender, sexuality, class, size and disability produce some people as human and others as less than human within film and society. By analyzing the representational politics of horror films, we will understand how society sees difference as monstrous and as a means of legitimizing the oppression and elimination of those framed as “other.” Who we fear as a society (and as individuals) is dependent on structural power dynamics and discourses of normalcy that produce “others” as deviant. Our fears are shaped and reshaped through the genre of horror where filmmakers and audiences work out cultural anxieties together.
Over the course of the semester, students will be able to:
- Effectively identify how horror movies mobilize normative conceptions of gender, racial and sexual difference as well as subvert those norms
- Analyze how the categories of difference shape the lived experiences of marginalized people on both individual and societal levels, in local and global contexts
- Explain how power dynamics are at play in the contexts of culture, society, politics, economics and technology as well as the role that they play in naturalizing hierarchies of difference and perpetuating stereotypes
Register for this course.