Core Curriculum at Butler University

Starting the weekend off right with our final congratulations to Eloise Sureau of Modern Languages, Literatures, and Cultures on her promotion to Full Professor!

In her words:

"I love the balance between teaching and research. I have the freedom to create as many new and exciting French courses as I want, while allowing time for conferences and publications. I also love that we are given the opportunity to take classes and to improve our own selves in a safe and knowledge-filled environment. As a result, and in addition to my work as a professor and a scholar, I am also a student. I am currently taking classes in the Lacy School of Business to broaden my horizon which, in addition to teaching me new things, allows me to empathize with my own students.

When it comes to teaching, I have recently built a new course for our French Majors on French Pop Music that I will be teaching for the first time in the Fall of 2020. I can't wait! Research-wise, I am currently working on a book proposal on Maldoror (Lautreamont, 1869) and/in the Gothic Movement. I also have a couple of articles in the pipeline on doubles and doppelgangers in 19th century French Literature. As for service, I was recently asked to serve on the MLA Gothic Studies Forum executive committee. This is an amazing opportunity to provide and strengthen my expertise in the field, and to meet like-minded scholars. I am also entering my second year as co-editor for the Journal of Midwest Modern Languages Association, a role that has taught me a lot about the review and publishing industry.

Keep up with your studies because college is difficult, but also take time for yourself. Open your eyes and your mind, learn, meet cool and interesting people, study abroad, travel the US, read a good book, expand your horizon. But most importantly, find the fun in everything that you take on! A college experience is a once in a lifetime opportunity; make the most of it!"

Also earning Full Professor this year is Irune Gabiola from the department of Modern Languages, Literatures, and Cultures.

Her comments:

"There are so many fabulous things about Butler but, mostly, my favorite part is having so many colleagues who are great friends :-).

My second book Affect, Ecofeminism and Intersectional Struggles in Latin America: A Tribute to Berta Caceres has just been released. And in the meantime, I am finishing the last round of reviews of my article “Berta vive”: Solidaridades (trans)nacionales y luchas interseccionales en Honduras” that will published by the end of this month in Middle Atlantic Review of Latin American Studies. As I am finishing this article, I am preparing for a new project on women’s literature and activism in Central America. I have been incorporating some of this material in the GHS Frontiers in Latin American course that I am teaching this summer. Drawing upon a class on environmental studies and gender studies that I taught a few years ago and on my book, I would like to design a course in Spanish examining the impacts of extractivist projects on indigenous communities. I continue my commitment to social justice by serving on the executive committees of both the Gender, Women and Sexuality Studies and the Global and Historical Studies programs.

Well, something unexpected happened recently when I went to Spain for a week over spring break and I ended up falling sick with COVID 19, “sharing” it with my family, moving the courses online and finishing the last revisions of the book. So this week trip turned into a 3 month lockdown that I happily got to spend with my mom :-).

In these tumultuous times, I would advice my students to, please, listen to the experiences and stories of those they are not familiar with, so that they can understand what it means to navigate life from different perspectives. I would fiercely recommend them to study abroad and travel as much as they can because those will be some of the most transformative experiences of their lives."

And our congratulations continue. Chris Forhan from the Department of English has been promoted to Full Professor!

He responds:

"I like best how common it is for Butler students to be truly engaged and curious. Some students bring to the classroom a passion for knowledge, melded with a humble openness to recognizing how much they don’t yet understand, that makes watching them learn intensely gratifying and invigorating. I love seeing students care enough about a subject to take hold of it fully, personally, with their intellect and imagination, and let it change them.

Although the coronavirus crisis has put my upcoming sabbatical on hold, I am still ready to delve deeply into the writing of a new book of poems. I like that I have no idea what kind of poems they will be; I look forward to discovering who I am as a poet these days. I also just finished the manuscript of a new prose book—a hybrid of memoir, meditation, and intepretation concerning the effect on our imaginations of popular songs—and am excited to polish it and try to find it a home.

When I was an undergraduate, it took me a couple of years to figure this out: College isn’t about just checking off boxes, taking the classes required of you and doing the work you are told to do in order to earn the necessary grade. College isn’t preparation for life—it IS life, right here, right now. Give yourself fully to any course or activity you’re in; you never know what might depend on it. Never lose sight of what you are passionate about, of what brings you joy, and figure out how to make the life you create at Butler honor and nurture that part of you."

Continuing congratulations, this time to Professor Christopher Bungard who was also promoted to Full!

In his own words:

"The best part of being at Butler is hands down the chance to work with some amazing colleagues and students. I doubt I ever would have co-written an article with a modern American historian on Medea or collaborated with a costumer and a student to spend a summer making replicas of ancient theatrical masks at a larger school, and I have appreciated these moments to really think about how Classics reaches out beyond my specific discipline.

I am continuing to work on two translations of plays by the Roman playwright Plautus. I am also in the early stages of developing some Latin novellae that can be used by beginning and intermediate students as they work on becoming more fluent in Latin. I hope to also develop some interesting collaborative opportunities between the Ancient Mediterranean Cultures and Archaeology Lab once this pandemic subsides and we can safely gather in medium-sized groups.

Students, you never know when a subject you had never thought would interest you will grab hold and not let you go. Go into every course, especially Core courses with an open mind. Appreciate the opportunity to think outside of the specific skills you are learning in your major. This is much of what makes you interesting, especially if you head into a field where everyone took certain courses. You never know when something you learned in some random class, for example on ancient drama, might come in handy in a conversation with people."

Congratulations to Professor Terri Jett on her promotion to Full Professor (pictured with her parents, Kenneth and Beatrice). She is the first African American woman to be promoted to Full at Butler University.

In her own words:

"I love the opportunities that have allowed me to learn side-by-side with my students as well as with my faculty colleagues who are also my close friends. There have been many creative curricular opportunities through my own department Political Science/Peace and Conflict Studies, our core, honors program, Washington D.C. Semester program and even through our Center for Faith and Vocation where the ability to reimagine what constitutes the “classroom,” has no limits.

I am in the process of finishing a book “Fighting for Farming Justice: Diversity, Food Access and the USDA and I’m looking to integrate our amazing Center for Urban Ecology (CUE) farm into a course I have developed that is connected to my research interest. I was able to learn more about our CUE farm through participation in a faculty/staff learning community with people from a vast array of disciplines and I found it inspiring. I sincerely believe that the answers to many of our larger questions about sustainability from a human and environment standpoint are situated in our CUE farm and in my humble opinion it should be elevated as a place that all of our students have some understanding of prior to graduating. I am also writing a book revisiting the conversation that James Baldwin had with Margaret Mead on race 50 years ago. Given the heightened awareness of racial injustices that the nation is currently experiencing I feel a sense of urgency to showcase how these two very different iconic public intellectuals had THAT conversation face-to-face.

I have two pieces of advice for our students, especially as someone who did not attend an institution like Butler as an undergraduate. In fact, all of my education has only been at public schools and universities, which I am thankful for because without public dollars I would not have been able to achieve this level of success. First, take full advantage of our extensive core curriculum to explore other disciplines and to expand your lens. You will become more sophisticated in your thinking and your ability to solve problems and you will meet some fabulous peers from outside of your own major and from more diverse backgrounds. Second, read. Your library card is one of the most important things you will ever have in your life. Knowledge is power."

The Social Justice and Diversity part of the core continues to host events that provide faculty, staff, and students with opportunities for conversation about important topics.

(The preview image highlights another upcoming event that may be of interest as well.)

SJD Talk: Race, Art & the Open Road - Butler Calendar The open road often exemplifies freedom, individualism, and the American Dream, yet it may not be the case to everyone. The conversation revisits the American road trip through the black experience. It also reintroduces a selection of artworks by African American artists. A talk by JCA Art History p...

‘The Core Curriculum covers a broad student educational experience, which includes getting STEM students into art classes and vice versa. Analytical Reasoning has been especially effective, says James McGrath, Faculty Director of the Core Curriculum. He has seen positive results when students are taken outside of their comfort zones.

“Lots of students think they’re not good at math, music, or writing,” McGrath says. “One of the purposes of the Core is to foster students to be well-rounded, no matter their focus of study. In these classes, they’re actually approaching the subject in ways not thought of. They may find they’re good at something they didn't know. They’re using a whole other part of their brains.”

Linos says programming drones would be a natural next step for the course, but whether they fly or dance, the robots are making some former Analytical Reasoning students change majors to Computer Science or Software Engineering. The class gave them the confidence that they can—and should—code.

“It was very gratifying to me—as an educator, as a facilitator of their learning—to see them learning how to write code in a fun way,” Linos says.’

Robots Enhance Coding Prowess, Passion in the Core Curriculum | Butler Stories Getting Butler University Dance majors to learn computer coding was as easy as a plié in first position, thanks to robots.

There is a job opening in the core curriculum office at Butler University! It's a great place to work. Come help students and faculty have a positive experience in these central components of their educational experience and our institutional mission!

Butler University Job Search The Core Curriculum Program Coordinator is a twelve month staff position which provides support for students, faculty, and leadership, working closely with a variety of units across the University to ensure proper operation and management of the core curriculum. The position reports to the Associate...

Visit Butler University Libraries and take a look at the photos from this summer’s Global and Historical Studies faculty trip!