Salameno School of American and International Studies (SSAIS)

The 2010-11 academic year was an exciting and productive year. We implemented a new major (Liberal Studies contract major), launched a Creative Writing Minor, developed and received approval for two new minors (Human Rights & Genocide Studies, and International Studies), developed courses in American Sign Language, organized over 30 extra-curricular events (poetry readings, cross-cultural and international fora, screening of films/documentations, and public lectures), organized two World Languages and Cultures Symposia, and  welcomed four new full-time faculty members, in Political Science/International Studies, History, and American Studies, five visiting teaching assistants, and one Fulbright Scholar from St. Petersburg State University. We also organized two Alumni/Students Networking Events, a symposium on immigration, and another symposium on liberal arts. Our faculty, while maintaining their commitment to teaching excellence, published over a dozen articles and books and presented papers at 25 national and international conferences.

The next year promises to be just as productive and exciting as we plan to organize several more cocurricular events, review and enhance academic quality based on assessment data, offer new and revised courses in critical reading and writing, and increase our international affiliations.
 
Please see The AIS website for details of upcoming events.

The School of American and International Studies aims to create a holistic educational experience that enables our students to become literate, intentional and empowered global citizens who are prepared, not only in specific recognized fields, but also in interdisciplinary dialogue. Through our varied offerings (in Anthropology, American Studies, Foreign Languages, History, International Studies, Literature, Political Science, Liberal Studies, and Philosophy), we seek to enhance students' understanding and appreciation of the complex cultural, political, and imaginative dimensions of human existence.

Our teaching, service, and scholarly or creative achievement combine to help our students develop their powers of reasoning, speaking, writing, and creativity, thus equipping them for the challenges of contemporary life. The School's faculty members are dedicated to teaching and scholarship, have traveled extensively and studied abroad, and have backgrounds in foreign languages, humanities, and social sciences.

Mission

Consistent with the College’s Mission and Strategic Plan, AIS aims to create a holistic educational experience that enables students to become literate, intentional and empowered global citizens who are well-versed, not only in specifically recognized fields, but also in interdisciplinary dialogue. Through varied offerings in Anthropology, American Studies, World Languages, History, International Studies, Literature, Political Science, Liberal Studies, and Philosophy the School seeks to enhance students’ understanding and appreciation of the complex cultural, political, and imaginative dimensions of human existence.

Learning Goals/Objectives

At the heart of School’s curriculum is a commitment to a liberal arts education. This curriculum is designed to help students:

• Communicate effectively in writing and speaking
• Think, read, write, analyze, and make presentations with developed critical skills
• Understand and appreciate cultural differences
• Understand trends in and problems facing the global community
• Understand major philosophical, political, literary and social thought and become familiar with primary sources in these areas
• Conduct research using a variety of methods and sources
• Participate in civic and political life
• Speak another language
• Understand intercultural and international complexities
• Use disciplinary and interdisciplinary analysis in problem solving
• Apply classroom and co-op experiences to new professional, personal and cultural environments
• Understand historical change

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The Curriculum of AIS

AIS students are urged to consult with their AIS faculty academic advisors prior to registering for classes, meet with them regularly for advice and assistance in fulfilling requirements for majors and minors, and report on their academic progress. Names of faculty advisors and their advisees are posted both electronically to students each semester and are displayed outside the AIS office in the B-Wing.

The Undergraduate Program

The undergraduate curriculum consists of a series of carefully designed and intellectually stimulating academic connections. These include a core curriculum, seven disciplinary and interdisciplinary majors, and over a dozen minors. Students may select a single major, a double major, or combine a major with a minor.

School Core

The Core includes a “First Year Seminar” and a World Language Proficiency Requirement

The First Year Seminar (FYS): AIID 101: Intro to Liberal Studies

All first-year AIS majors complete the School’s FYS. Offered each fall semester, this team-taught seminar introduces students to the various disciplines and interdisciplinary programs in the School, all of which are a part of a liberal arts curriculum. Focusing on a different theme each year in an engaging environment that fosters open communication, the seminar strives to enhance critical thinking, reading, and writing about the complexities of intercultural and international interaction.

World Language Proficiency Requirement (Language other than English)

All AIS students must provide proof of proficiency in a world language other than English at the “intermediate low level” or complete up to three 4-credit courses in one of the languages offered in the School’s curriculum. Language instruction are offered in Spanish, Italian, and French and subject to availability of faculty resources and sufficient enrollment in other languages. Most of these languages are offered regularly. The language program utilizes a modern computerized language lab.

For more information on the world language requirement and proficiency testing procedures, visit the Language Requirement and Testing page on the AIS website.

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The Graduate Program; Master of Arts in Liberal Studies (MALS)

The Master of Arts in Liberal Studies is an innovative approach to graduate education whose purpose is as old as the idea of the university itself. As Socrates suggested over two thousand years ago, we need more than specialized learning or mastery of a particular skill to function well in our world. Unlike traditional Masters' programs, which focus on developing skills in one specific discipline, Graduate Liberal Studies emphasizes the interrelated nature of knowledge and brings the expertise of different disciplines to bear on the issues it examines.

Ramapo’s Master of Arts in Liberal Studies program uses the interdisciplinary, multicultural and international perspectives that Ramapo first developed in its undergraduate programs to explore issues that shaped and continue to influence the modern world. Ramapo's program is unique in focusing upon the contact between Western and non-Western peoples in the past and the present. It explores how groups who are outside the mainstream have viewed society at different times, and investigates the perceptions of peoples from different cultures. Students study these issues in three core courses, followed by five electives, which build upon themes introduced in the core, culminating in a six-credit thesis.

For information on admissions and graduation requirements, contact MALS office.

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Co-Curricular Programs

AIS Co-Curricular activities include a series of events designed to supplement and enhance classroom/academic learning and to educate and inform the internal and external communities of the College. Many are offered through the following programs:

• Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies
  Events and activities planned and organized by this Center are focused on the history of the Holocaust and prevention of genocide and human rights violations. Prominent activists, political leaders, and academics are invited to speak at these events.
  
  
• AIS Colloquium & Visiting Writes/Poets Series
  The “Colloquium” is sponsored by a dedicated team of faculty who invite experts both from within and outside the Ramapo community to present their writings or poetry, and/or to discuss important issues, events, crises, and challenges facing our nation and the world. Typically, there are three to four presentations each term.
  
  
• Film Series
  The School sponsors a number of feature films and documentaries that are relevant for the understanding of certain historical, cultural, literary, and/or political issues. Each film is placed in a special academic, social, and intellectual context and is presented with a commentary and analysis by the faculty sponsor.
  
  
• The International at Home
  This program consists of three to four events each semester, sponsored by the School’s international faculty and students and is designed to enhance the international and cross-cultural knowledge of the community.

General Education Courses Required for all Students at Ramapo

• Readings in Humanities
  Readings in Humanities is a cornerstone of the College’s General Education program and is offered in multiple sections each semester by AIS. Readings in Humanities courses include philosophical and literary works from the ancient period to the present.
  
  
• Critical Reading and Writing II (formerly College English)
  The goal of this course is to help students read critically and write with clarity and precision. College English is also a fundamental component of the College’s General Education curriculum and is offered in multiple sections each semester by AIS.