Class Descriptions
Foundations classes are designed to provide a jumping-off point for the general education program and are intended for students in their first year at Snow College. Like GE requirements themselves, Foundations classes connect three seemingly unrelated academic fields to study an issue that is richer because of interdisciplinary insights. Topics will vary from semester to semester.
Most Foundations classes have three sections that interact in studying a common topic, and students can register for any of the sections associated with that topic.
| Title | Instructors | Description | Sections | Campus | Times |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agriculture: A Confluence of Food, Fiber, and Economics |
Kendra Bagley, |
This course will focus on the connections between sustainable agriculture food and fiber production, genetically modified crops and food, environmental impacts, and career opportunities in Agriculture. The student will learn principles of food crop production, nutrient management to make agriculture sustainable and investigate the economic impacts of these practices. | 13, 14, 15 | Ephraim | MW 11:30-12:45 |
| Are You What You Eat? |
Kelly Larsen, |
By studying three academic fields that shed insights into American food systems, this course encourages consideration of food consumption, body image, and marketing. | 22, 23, 24 | Ephraim | TR 9:30-10:45 |
| Coding My Story |
David Allred, |
Coding My Story explores the transmission of information in the form of DNA, narratives, and software. The coding in these areas creates powerful stories of who we are and what we do. | H01, H02, H03 | Ephraim | MWF 11:30-12:20 |
| Comedy: A Class About Nothing |
Scott Jackson, |
This course examines humor and comedy through the lenses of Sociolinguistics, Rhetoric and Philosophy, and Human Development. What are the purposes of comedy? How has comedy contributed to American culture? How has comedy changed over time and what factors contribute to its evolution? | 4, 5 | Ephraim | MWF 12:30-1:20 |
| Engineering Beauty |
Ana Wilson, |
In this course, we explore different ways people make beautiful things in commerce, music, and landscape, as well as how beauty functions in the natural world. Students also explore creating beauty in their personal image/brand and in their life stories. | 200, 201, 202 | Richfield | MW 2:30-3:45 |
| Facets of Food |
Katie Justesen, |
Food, food, food! - This Foundations course looks at the production, cooking, eating, impact, genetic manipulation, etc of the food that we eat. In addition, we will be working toward a better understanding of why you have decided to come to college and what you hope to gain from your time here. | NO2, N03, N04, 405 | Online | NA |
| Flow with Peace |
Dmitri Peskov, |
Flow with Peace focuses on the blending of energies and resolving of conflict through martial arts, movement, mathematics, and physics. The class explores different ways we can fit into and flow with our environments spatially, physically, socially, intellectually, and spiritually. | 25, 26, 27 | Ephraim | MW 4:30-5:50 |
| Gender Stereotypes in Education |
David Rodriguez, |
This course will explore the theme of gender stereotypes. Students will learn how the search for truth in each of three disciplines can either be advanced, or limited by, our ideas of inherent gender traits, and our own self-understanding. | 7, 8, 9 | Ephraim | TR 1:30-2:45 |
| How to I Live a Good Life? |
Anthony Beal, |
Description coming soon | 19, 20, 21 | Ephraim | MTWRF 8:30-9:20 (2nd Block) |
| The Rise of the Antihero |
Heather Holland |
More and more often, modern storytellers are shifting their attention away from those we consider to be the “good guys” and focusing on the “bad guys,” turning them from simple villains into the heroes of their own dark narratives. As an audience, what attracts us to these characters? How do their stories differ from those of their traditionally heroic counterparts? In this class, we will engage with these questions from the perspective of three separate disciplines. | N01 | Online | NA |
| The Sound of Silence |
Robert Cox, |
“The Sound of Silence” explores the art and science of communication on many levels through language, biology, and movement sciences. Join our exploration on what it means to truly connect, and learn a little about your true self along the way. | 31, 32, 33 | Ephraim | MWF 12:30-1:20 |
| Water Ways |
Maren Hyer, |
Water is literally the stuff of life. Our food, our land, our bodies, and our minds are grown of water, shaped by water, composed of water, and attracted to water. Every one of us has stories connecting us to water. It provides a source of peace and meditation, geologic masterpieces, and even the core of conflict. This course examines our deep associations to water from agricultural, geological, and creative perspectives as an element of infinite beauty and inestimable power and force. | 16, 17, 18 | Ephraim | MWF 2:30-3:20 |
| Voices |
Alan Christensen, |
Social science, Communication, and Business combine to help students consider how the chorus of voices we encounter every day influence what we think and how we live. | 1, 2, 3 | Ephraim | TR 9:30-10:45 |
| The Zombie Apocalypse Survival Guide |
Nick Marsing, |
The zombie apocalypse is going to happen … will you be ready? This course uses an interdisciplinary approach to introduce students to key concepts from cultural studies, international relations, and psychology that may help humanity to survive a zombie infestation and then live in a post-apocalyptic world. | 28, 29, 30 | Ephraim | MWF 2:30-3:20 |
| Title | Instructors | Description | Sections | Campus | Times |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fear |
Whitney Ward |
Fear is a natural, guiding part of life. Fear is something that most people think of as negative. However, fear has useful purposes as well. Some fears may be natural, and others may be engineered. We will explore how fear impacts individuals, society, businesses, and even explore the likelihoods of different fears. In this class the concept of fear will be explored from three distinct perspectives. Each discipline will provide a way of seeing fear as not only restricting behavior, but as a guiding force in our lives. Ultimately students will come to understand how to better manage fear within their own lives, and therefore leverage the emotion to their benefit. | 1, 2, 3 |
Ephraim |
TR 9:30-10:45 |
| Becoming a Jedi |
Kellyanne Ure |
Explore what it is to be a Jedi, through culture, leadership, conflict managements, relationships, language, and movement. In this course, we will study the philosophical backgrounds, and cultures that inspired George Lucas in the creation of the Jedi Order; the language and cultural contexts used in the development of Yoda and other characters; and the martial arts, meditation, movement, therapeutic paradigms, interpersonal relationships and philosophies rooted in these contexts. The entire creation of the Star Wars Universe was deeply rooted in many actual cultures and people in existence today and some that have been around for millennia. Come explore what it means to be a Jedi, and learn how these lessons can be applied to your own life. | 4, 5, 6 | Ephraim | TR 8:00-9:15 |
| Just Do It: A Lifetime of Health and Wellness |
Michael Cross |
The overall health and fitness environment in America is toxic, and we are so habituated to this environment that we miss the subtle ways in which it influences our behaviors, personal lifestyle and well-being. | 7, 8, 9 | Ephraim | MWF 12:30-1:20 |
| Natural Disasters |
Jacob Thomas |
This class helps students see the connections between different areas of learning, how they relate and how they affect each other. This specific course explores the connections between geology, business, and literature under the course theme of natural disasters. Students will learn how natural disasters occur (geology), how they impact the economies of devastated nations and communities (business), and the stories people tell about their experiences (literature). The final project for the semester will involve writing a personal narrative describing a natural disaster event. Students will also learn strategies for effective critical learning. | 10, 11, 12 | Ephraim | MWF 10:30-11:20 |
| How to Make Something Out of Nothing |
Andy Nogasky |
This GE Foundation course examines the idea of spontaneity through the point of view of three disciplines: dance (solo improvisation, contact improvisation, mindful movement, sensory explorations), music (chance theory, instrument making and playing, group harmony) and theatre (improv games, imaginary situations, verbal and non-verbal communication). More specifically, the class explores different ways we can spontaneously relate to each other and to our environments while also respecting personal boundaries and the safety of others. Students will develop skills to improve the results of situations that come upon them in the random, normal, and everyday experiences of life. | 13, 14, 15 | Ephraim | MWF 11:30-12:20 |
| Earth: The Landscape Around Us |
Christopher Lee |
This interdisciplinary course introduces students to the relationship between place and identity, with an emphasis on Utah’s rich geography and cultural history. Through the lenses of Ecology, Literature/Philosophy, and Geology, students explore how different disciplines and great thinkers understand our environment and our place within it. How does the natural environment shape our behavior and, in turn, how do our conceptions and interactions with the natural environment shape the landscape around us? What are our responsibilities to our natural environment and how can conflicting values and practices be reconciled? Students will learn how various disciplines can inform answers to these questions as well as how these disciplines pose further complicated and important questions. | 16, 17, 18 | Ephraim | TR 3:30-4:20 |
| Propaganda |
Adrian Peterson |
For your educational best interest; no, for your education's very future, it is imperative that you take this class! March over to your nearest advising office today and do your part! Be a part of the class that is winning the war over your mind! Information is always good; but when combined with a biased and/or misleading nature, used to promote or publicize a particular cause or point of view, we call this PROPAGANDA! In this foundations course, we will discover what propaganda is, how it is used and what effect that has on the brain. | 19, 20, 21 | Ephraim | MWF 12:30-1:20 |
| Are You What You Eat? |
John Van Orman |
This interdisciplinary course asks the question, "Are You What You Eat?" through combining Communication, Education and Family Studies, and Agriculture, students explore evolving trends in food consumption, nutrition and marketing. As this course provides a foundation for the GE program, this course is intended for students in their first year at Snow College. | 22, 23, 24 | Ephraim | TR 12:30-1:20 |
| Being Human | Jed Rasmussen Michael Salitrynski Dmitri Peskov |
This GE Foundation course is focused on what it means to be human through three disciplines: Biology, Philosophy, and Dance. As a critical thinking course, this class explores an understanding of how people engineer their lives, the way we process our perceptions of the world (Science of the senses), how we interpret and process that information (Philosophy of perception), and then how we embody that knowledge through physical expression (Dance). In this course, you will come to understand how our biology, our ways of thinking, and our bodies shape, limit, and may even expand our understanding of the world and our own humanity. | 28, 29, 30 | Ephraim | TR 4:00-5:15 |
| Engineered Beauty | Kevin Holdsworth LaFaun Barnhurst Richard Lambert |
In this course, we explore different ways people make beautiful things in commerce, music, and landscape, as well as how beauty functions in the natural world. Students also explore creating beauty in their personal image/brand and their life stories. | 200, 201, 202 | Richfield | TR 2:00-3:15 |
| Facets of Food |
Adrian Peterson |
This online course explores the biological, cultural, and psychological dimensions of food in our everyday lives. The course pursues a broader understanding of food's ever-present nature in society, all-the-while encouraging the development and honing of skills necessary to becoming an intentional, goal-oriented learner. | 107, 108, 407 | Online | NA |