The Visionary Course Pairing
Encountering the Past: Legacies of Modern Empire (HS 100)
Far from being a relic of the ancient world, empires existed across the world well into the twentieth century, and some people would argue they still exist today. This course will explore the legacies of modern empire with a focus on two questions. How did colonial empires leave their mark on the contemporary world? And what were the consequences of the fall of modern empires and the rise of independent nation-states—a process sometimes called decolonization? Rather than taking a survey approach, we will investigate these questions through two case studies: Ghana, which gained its independence from the British Empire in 1957; and Puerto Rico, which remains an unincorporated territory of the United States. These very different cases are useful lenses for looking at how historians interpret the past, because they shed light on historical debates about what defines an empire, how (and whether) empires should be compared, and what happens when empires end. As we examine these debates, we will also discuss how the legacy of empire has influenced contemporary ideas about democracy, citizenship, migration, race, gender, and capitalism.
Faculty biography
Dr. Sam Klug is an Assistant Teaching Professor in History. He received his Ph.D. in History from Harvard University in 2020. He is currently working on his first book, provisionally titled The Internal Colony: Black Internationalism, Development, and the Politics of Colonial Comparison in the United States, which examines how global decolonization influenced the politics of race and class in the mid-twentieth century United States. His work has been supported by the American Council of Learned Societies, the LBJ Presidential Library, the Rockefeller Archive Center, and the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study. His writing has appeared in Diplomatic History, the Journal of the History of International Law, Politico Magazine, and Dissent, among other places.
Introduction to Statistical Methods and Data Analysis (ST 110)
An introductory statistics course requiring no calculus. Statistical methods are motivated through real data sets. Topics include graphical summaries of data, measures of central tendency and dispersion, chi-squared tests, regression model fitting, normal distributions, and sampling. Technology will be used.
Faculty biography
Dr. Richard Auer is now the most senior member of the full-time faculty. He started year 42 in Fall
of 2022. Statistics is the methodology of doing ANY sort of research. Rick has especially
enjoyed applying it to sports and social sciences. But his passion has always been
knowing and teaching students.
Mentor biography
Luke Haus is an Associate Director in the Office of Student Engagement. Luke oversees the Evergreens and new student programs. Luke joined Loyola in 2020 as the Assistant Director of Student Engagement for leadership development programs, before transitioning to his new role. Luke is passionate about helping students better understand themselves and those around them so they can grow to their fullest potential while here at Loyola. Luke is a 2017 graduate of Loyola and has since received his Master's in Higher Education Administration from Kent State University.
Virtual Advisor
HS 100 satisfies the History core requirement for all students. This course pairing is not recommended for students intending to major in business or natural sciences.
