American Studies Concentration - Interdisciplinary Studies Major

Program Director: Dr. Michael Masatsugu
Liberal Arts Building 4221
Phone: 410-704-4647
Email: mmasatsugu@towson.edu

The Program

The American Studies Concentration is an interdisciplinary program that allows students to take courses in different academic departments that focus on the concept of American culture. The American Studies approach emphasizes the interrelatedness of history, literature, the arts and popular culture. In their course work students will examine American institutions, ideas and material forms in order to better understand the nation’s past and to shape their own futures. The major is designed for those students who may wish to have careers in fields such as law, government service, non-profit organizations, journalism, museum work and teaching, where a broad knowledge of American history and culture is desirable.

A minor is available for those students with another major who want to learn more about American culture. Students have the opportunity to receive units for internships.

Requirements for the Concentration

Students majoring in the American Studies Concentration must complete 45 units.

Required Courses
AMST 201INTRODUCTION TO AMERICAN STUDIES3
Capstone Experience
AMST 491DIRECTED READINGS IN AMST3
or AMST 497 INTERNSHIP IN AMERICAN STUDIES
Lower-Division Electives
Select one course from each area: 9
Historical Perspectives
MAIN THEMES IN AFRICAN AND AFRICAN-AMERICAN STUDIES
HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES TO THE CIVIL WAR
HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES SINCE THE CIVIL WAR
HONORS HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES TO THE CIVIL WAR
HONORS HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES SINCE THE CIVIL WAR
BLACKS IN AMERICA:MYTHS AND REALITY
American Literature
SURVEY OF AFRICAN-AMERICAN LITERATURE
MAJOR WRITERS IN AFRICAN-AMERICAN LITERATURE
ETHNIC-AMERICAN LITERATURE
SURVEY OF AMERICAN LITERATURE
Arts and Culture
ANTHROPOLOGY OF AMERICAN CULTURE
MYTHS AND STORIES IN AMERICAN ART
INTRODUCTION TO DANCE: AMERICAN EXPERIENCE
HISTORY OF SPORT IN AMERICA
INTRODUCTION TO MUSIC IN THE U.S.
JAZZ HISTORY FOR NON-MAJORS
HONORS HISTORY OF JAZZ FOR NON-MAJORS
AMERICAN NATIONAL GOVERNMENT
CHRISTIANITIES IN AMERICA
INTRODUCTION TO AMERICAN THEATRE
AMERICAN WOMEN AND POPULAR CULTURE
Upper-Division Electives
Students must take at least 6 units from each of the following three areas. No more than 9 units may be taken in any one discipline. 130
American Institutions and Communities
Courses in this area examine the social, political and economic structures that have shaped American life, their histories and the ways individuals and groups have created and challenged these institutions.
NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS
NORTH AMERICAN ARCHAEOLOGY
ARCHAEOLOGICAL FIELD SCHOOL
AMERICAN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
MONEY AND BANKING
TOPICS IN BLACK AMERICAN LITERATURE
GEOGRAPHY OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA
GEOGRAPHY OF MARYLAND
WOMEN IN 20TH CENTURY U.S. HISTORY
THE AMERICAN COLONIES 1492-1763
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTIONARY PERIOD 1763-1800
THE CIVIL WAR
THE FDR ERA
RECENT AMERICAN HISTORY: 1945-1975
UNITED STATES LESBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, TRANSGENDER, AND QUEER HISTORIES
MAKERS, BUYERS, USERS: THE HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN ECONOMY 1500-PRESENT
THE AMERICAN WEST
THE CITY IN AMERICAN HISTORY
NATIVE AMERICAN HISTORY FROM 1500 TO 1900
NATIVE AMERICAN HISTORY SINCE 1900
AFRICAN-AMERICAN HISTORY TO THE MID-19TH CENTURY
AFRICAN-AMERICAN HISTORY FROM THE MID-19TH CENTURY
WORKERS AND WORK IN THE UNITED STATES
HISTORY OF MARYLAND FROM COLONIAL TIMES TO THE PRESENT
WOMEN, GENDER, AND SPORT
URBAN GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS
AFRICAN-AMERICAN POLITICS
THE PRESIDENCY
CONGRESS
JUDICIAL SYSTEM
AMERICAN POLITICAL PARTIES
CONSTITUTIONAL LAW AND POLITICS
CIVIL RIGHTS AND CIVIL LIBERTIES: THE FIRST AND FOURTEENTH AMENDMENTS
CONSTITUTIONAL PROTECTIONS: PERSONAL LIBERTY AND THE RIGHTS OF THE ACCUSED.
POLITICS AND ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY
THE SUPREME COURT
INTEREST GROUPS AND PUBLIC POLICY
AMERICAN RELIGIONS
Global Connections
Courses in this area investigate Americans' experiences with the world and the ways the global cultures have shaped American culture. Topics include migrations, immigration, globalization and transnational cultures.
TOPICS IN MULTI-ETHNIC AMERICAN LITERATURE
THE UNITED STATES AND VIETNAM:1945-1975
AMERICAN MILITARY HISTORY: 1865 - 1950
AMERICAN MILITARY HISTORY SINCE 1950
DIPLOMATIC HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES SINCE 1900
ASIAN AMERICAN HISTORY
IMMIGRANTS & IMMIGRATION IN THE UNITED STATES
LATIN AMERICAN POLICY OFTHE UNITED STATES
UNITED STATES-RUSSIAN RELATIONS
U.S. FOREIGN POLICY
INTELLIGENCE AND NATIONAL SECURITY
Ideas and the Arts
Courses in this area explore textual, oral and visual representations of American culture and employ multi-disciplinary strategies to understand them.
INTRODUCTION TO MUSEUM STUDIES
MUSEUM AND COMMUNITY
AFRICAN-AMERICAN ART
ART AND ARCHITECTURE OF THE UNITED STATES I: COLONIAL TO 1900
ART AND ARCHITECTURE OF THE U.S. II: 1900 TO PRESENT
HISTORY OF PRINTS IN AMERICA
RADIO, CULTURE, AND SOCIETY
AMERICAN DRAMA
LITERATURE OF THE AMERICAN ROMANTIC PERIOD
LITERATURE OF THE AMERICAN REALSTIC PERIOD
AMERICAN SHORT STORY
DEVELOPMENT OF THE AMERICAN NOVEL: 19TH CENTURY
AMERICAN NOVEL-20TH CENTURY
AMERICAN POETRY THROUGH FROST
MODERN AMERICAN POETRY
CONTEMPORARY AMERICAN POETRY
TOPICS IN AMERICAN LITERATURE
ROOTS OF ROCK AND ROLL
SPORT IN FILM
MUSIC IN THE U.S.
JAZZ HISTORY
AMERICAN PHILOSOPHY
AMERICAN POLITICAL THOUGHT
Total Units45
1

Other courses relating to American culture may be substituted with the approval of the program coordinator.

Sample Four-Year Plan

The selected course sequence below is an example of the simplest path to degree completion. Based on course schedules, student needs, and student choice, individual plans may vary. Students should consult with their adviser to make the most appropriate elective choices and to ensure that they have completed the required number of units (120) to graduate.

First Year
Term 1UnitsTerm 2Units
AMST 201 (Core 11)3Lower-Division Elective - Arts and Culture3
Core 1 (or Core 2)3Elective3
Lower-Division Elective - Historical Perspectives3Core 2 (or Core 1)3
Lower-Division Elective - American Literature 3Core 33
Elective3Core 123
 15 15
Second Year
Term 1UnitsTerm 2Units
Upper-Division Elective - American Institutions and Communities3Upper-Division Elective - Ideas and the Arts3
Upper-Division Elective - Global Connections 3Upper-Division Elective - American Institutions and Communities3
Core 53Core 43
Elective3Core 74
Elective3Core 93
 15 16
Third Year
Term 1UnitsTerm 2Units
Upper-Division Elective - Global Connections3Upper-Division Elective 3
Upper-Division Elective - Ideas and the Arts 3Upper-Division Elective 3
Upper-Division Elective3Core 63
Core 84Core 103
Elective3Elective3
 16 15
Fourth Year
Term 1UnitsTerm 2Units
Upper-Division Elective3AMST 491 or 4973
Elective3Upper-Division Elective3
Core 133Upper-Division Elective3
Core 143Upper-Division Elective3
Elective3Elective1
 15 13
Total Units 120
  1. Students possess the ability to integrate knowledge and modes of thinking across two or more disciplines.
  2. Students communicate effectively in the presentation of interdisciplinary materials through various modes of transmission.
  3. Students conduct, analyze and apply research from two or more disciplines or through interdisciplinary research.