A semester-long study of topics in Politics, Policy, Law, and Ethics. Topics and emphases will vary according to the instructor. This course may be repeated for credit with different topics. See the New and Topics Courses page on the Registrar's webpage for descriptions and applicability to graduation requirements.
This course reviews elements of American government in light of contemporary political issues, analyzes political processes through which public concerns are translated into public policies and develops analytical tools with which to examine American politics in its economic and social context.
This course is an introduction to questions of ethics and politics. Topics to be discussed may include justice, the nature of the good, different conceptions of happiness, virtue, ethical theory, moral relativism, feminist ethics, liberty, equality, and the foundations of rights, as well as particular applied topics in moral and political philosophy (such as economic justice and the ethics of war).
A semester-long study of topics in Politics, Policy, Law, and Ethics. Topics and emphases will vary according to the instructor. This course may be repeated for credit with different topics. See the New and Topics Courses page on the Registrar's webpage for descriptions and applicability to graduation requirements.
Exploration of the vital and often contentious relationship between politics and religion in the United States. Topics include theories of justice, authority and morality, religious and American culture, contemporary public policy issues.
This course enables faculty and students to focus on a specific topic in politics, be it within or across the disciplines subfield. Topics will involve attention to some aspect of the interconnections between ideas, images, personalities, power, and institutions as these arise in the political, socio-economic, and cultural spheres. Designation of specific topic and relevant cases and theories will be made at the time of course offering.
How and why do individuals and collectives decide to pursue certain courses of action and avoid others? What is the basis and process of good judgment and how can it be recognized and valued? What is the role of habit, reason, force, emotion, desire, faith? Diffrent approaches to political judgment will be examined and applied to vexing social and moral issues.
An ethics and public policy case-based seminar that proceeds from the premise that the patterned mal-distribution of mortality rates is a conspicuous consequence and hence robust measure of social justice. Four distinct cases are addressed from philosophical, ethical and policy perspectives, on topics such as the automobile, capital punishment, food, environmental causes, health-care, being health uninsured, gun ownership, HIV/Aids, occupational fatalities, oil and petroleum, physician-assisted suicide, and tobacco. Pedagogy includes discussion, exams, digital field-work, and service-learning.
This course examines the nature and development of welfare policy in the United States, analyzing both the philosophical underpinnings of social provision and the role of politics in shaping and changing the extent of that provision. In addition, we consider the most recent attempts to reform welfare, the obstacles to implementation of new policy, and the efforts of states to address poverty issues.
This course examines the American public policy process through a case study approach. Attention will be paid to issues of policy formation and implementation with a focus on the role of national and state institutions in altering policy outcomes. Case studies will vary but may include: tax and budget policy, crime, education, housing, health care, morality policies.
This course explores the institution of state-level direct democracy, which enables citizens in Oregon and many other states, particularly in the West, to propose and pass laws without involvement by the legislature or governor. Questions to be explored include: whether ballot initiatives promote public policies that better approximate the public interest or whether they tend to advantage special interests and the wealthy; whether the majoritarianism inherent in ballot initiatives tends to harm the rights and interests of minority groups; and whether ballot initiatives promote greater citizen engagement. The course will also investigate why direct legislation flourished in the Western United States while making only limited inroads in much of the rest of the nation and why the reliance on initiatives increased so dramatically in the late twentieth century. In addition, the course examines the role of the courts in the initiative process and considers ways in which the initiative process might be reformed.
This course examines the law in its social context and the extent to which law reflects social philosophy and public policy. It analyzes law in its formal setting - opinions, precedents and rules - and its informal setting - policy discretion and the political nature of juries and prisons. The course considers the impact of legal education on values and social responsibility.
This course examines the development of the U.S. Constitution from 1803 to the present from the perspective of Supreme Court decisions. Primary emphasis is placed on the definition of and the priority among principles of limited government, the protection of private property, the promotion of commerce and individual liberty.
The United States currently incarcerates about 2.4 million men, women and children. The number of incarcerated does not take into account how many people's lives are affected by our extensive system of punishment, including those on parole or probation; children of incarcerated parents; and communities that support prison systems. Furthermore, racial disparities in arrests, sentencing, and prison time call into question our guarantees of equal justice and fundamental fairness. Inside the prison walls, many prisoners are subject to a system of control that prioritizes punishment over rehabilitation. This course explores these elements of the penal system with a group of prisoners at the Oregon State Penitentiary (OSP), a maximum security male prison, and asks, what can be done to reform and improve the system? Eight of our classes will be held at OSP; students and prisoners will work together on reform ideas, culminating in a research project that will go to a lawmaker, advocacy group or corrections organization for consideration. (Note: Students must have a government-issued identification, submit to and pass a criminal background check, and follow the rules of dress and conduct established by the Oregon Department of Corrections.)
This course enables faculty and students to focus on a specific topic in politics, policy, law, and/or ethics. Topics will involve attention to some aspect of the interconnections between power and justice in the political culture of the United States. Designation of specific topic and relevant cases and theories will be made at the time of course offering.
The United States system of health care remains mired in problems of access, cost, and quality despite passage of a nearly trillion-dollar health care reform package in 2010. What explains the problems with health care policy in the United States? Why is universal insurance coverage so elusive? What are the consequences of a fragmented system of insurance for health care delivery and public health outcomes, especially for vulnerable populations? What aspects of the U.S. health care system should be preserved? What reforms-either public or private, federal or state-should be pursued? In this inquiry-driven course, students will examine the role of federal and state governments, private economic interests, policy legacies, and public debates on the structure and implications of our complex health care system.
A wide range of political issues, from abortion to marriage equality, raise fundamental questions about the nature of sex, gender roles, and the role of government. These issues play out in an electoral arena where female voters outnumber male voters but the percentage of female candidates for office remains low. Is politics a mans game? Is there a distinctive feminist politics? What are the institutional opportunities and barriers to political equality? Questions about the gendered dimensions of political life will animate our analysis of American democratic life.
This course explores the uneasy position of political parties in a constitutional system designed in part to thwart majority action and asks, to what extent do American political parties and elections enhance or obstruct democratic control of government? Topics include: The Founders views of political faction and the development of a party system; the historical exclusion of women and African-Americans from party politics; and the role of parties today in shaping and governing political conflict. Finally, the course analyzes a variety of reform proposals from alternative citizen organizations to calls for proportional representation.
This course analyzes the American presidency. The primary focus is typically on the contemporary period, but the course also includes a substantial historical dimension. The particular presidencies studied will vary from year to year.
Latinxs represent the largest growing demographic in American Politics, pressing the debate about their growing cultural and political influence. COVID-19, the Black Lives Matter movement, the 2020 presidential election, and climate change migration add further complexity to the field of Latinx/o politics. However, no universal Latinx/o experience leads to uncertainty about their identification and mobilization within the U.S. political system. Despite this, Latinx/o communities have organized powerful social movements to demand political power and policy changes. This course explores Latinx's political strides, struggles, and possibilities that continue to shape U.S. politics. It covers major theories, Latinx/o political engagement, the role of women in social movements, and contemporary policy issues impacting Latinx/o communities.
This course examines a wide range of American public policies in cross-national and historical perspective. The course investigates the extent to which American policies and outcomes (e.g., health care, economic inequality, welfare state, taxation, gun violence, incarceration rates, hate speech laws, environmental regulations) diverge from those of other advanced industrial societies and assesses rival explanations, including institutional, cultural, and historical explanations. Finally, the course explores what American citizens and policy makers can learn from the experiences of other countries.
This course provides an in-depth exploration of Oregon farm labor and examines the ethical dimensions of the industry from the viewpoint of agricultural workers in the Pacific Northwest. The course covers historical policies, contemporary developments, and ongoing debates shaping the modern food labor system and dives into the complexities of farmworkers' lives that intersect across gender, class, race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and globalization. Students will challenge assumptions by being exposed to the systemic challenges farmworkers face, such as wage disparities, health, housing, food, demographic shifts, and workplace conditions.
This course analyzes the substance and sources of American foreign policy since World War II and examines the complexity of interests and issues that affect U.S. relations with selected countries and regions.
This course examines dissent in 20th century American political thought. Major areas of political divisiveness, such as Capitalism, Labor and (anti-) Communism, Race and Racism, and Sex, Gender, and Sexuality, will be explored through works of political activism and analysis on both the Left and Right.
Opportunity to conduct a major research project, which cannot be satisfied through any existing course in the departments curriculum, under faculty supervision. Proposed projects must be submitted to the Department Chair and must be approved by the department faculty.
Supervised internships in state and local government. Interns are placed only in positions which provide academic learning opportunities and the availability of such positions may be limited. A student is accepted for internship at the discretion of the instructor on the basis of demonstrated capabilities, including research and writing skills. Interns are expected to work 12 hours a week, meet regularly with the instructor, attend periodic seminars, and write a final research paper.
Supervised internships in local, state, and regional advocacy organizations. Interns are placed only in positions that provide academic learning opportunities and the availability of such positions may be limited. A student is accepted for internship at the discretion of the instructor on the basis of demonstrated capabilities, including research and writing skills. Interns are expected to work 8-12 hours a week (120 hours for the semester), meet regularly with the instructor, attend periodic seminars, and write a final research paper.
Supervised internships in the Oregon State Legislature. Interns are placed only in positions which provide academic learning opportunities and the availability of such positions may be limited. Students are admitted to the course by consent of the instructor and are selected on the basis of their demonstrated capabilities, including research and writing skills. Interns are expected to work 12 hours a week, meet regularly with the instructor, attend periodic seminars, and write a final research paper.
A semester-long study of topics in Politics, Policy, Law, and Ethics. Topics and emphases will vary according to the instructor. This course may be repeated for credit with different topics. See the New and Topics Courses page on the Registrar's webpage for descriptions and applicability to graduation requirements.
A semester-long study of topics in Politics, Policy, Law, and Ethics. Topics and emphases will vary according to the instructor. This course may be repeated for credit with different topics and applicability to graduation requirements.
A semester-long study of topics in Politics, Policy, Law, and Ethics. Topics and emphases will vary according to the instructor. This course may be repeated for credit with different topics. See the New and Topics Courses page on the Registrar's webpage for descriptions and applicability to graduation requirements.
This two-credit senior seminar invites students to go beyond dealing with identifying problems in a given area of policy and politics, to designing solutions and analyzing how the desired change can be brought about. Students are required to engage in collaborative problem-solving in devising their action proposals. Although the seminar will have a few common texts, the bulk of the semester's work will be organized around smaller group projects that will require students to draw on the relevant academic literature, available data, and community expertise. The final written product will be a briefing memo and research report, which will be presented orally in a public setting. The course cannot be taken credit/no credit.
Willamette University