Social Studies Minor
Co-Coordinator: Alison Sandman
Email: sandmaad@jmu.edu
Phone: (540) 568-6182
Co-Coordinator: John W. Hulsey
Email: hulseyjw@jmu.edu
Phone: (540) 568-7854
Social Studies Minor Website
The social studies minor offers a program of integrated study that exposes students to diverse methodologies, philosophies and controversies that define the social sciences. It is a required minor for secondary education students who wish to teach social studies and suggested for those planning to teach middle school. The minor incorporates economics, geography, history and political science and is offered in three forms: one for secondary education with a history major, one for secondary education with a political science major and one for middle education.
To be licensed to teach secondary school social studies, the student must satisfactorily complete requirements for a baccalaureate degree in either history or political science and complete the SS minor that is paired with that major. Students not selecting the secondary education licensure program should declare the middle education form of the minor.
Minor Requirements
Social Studies Minor for History Majors
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Social Studies Minor Core | ||
| HIST 225 | U.S. History [C4AE] 1 | 4 |
| POSC 225 | U.S. Government [C4AE] 1 | 4 |
| ECON 200 | Introduction to Macroeconomics [C4GE] | 3 |
| or ECON 201 | Introduction to Microeconomics | |
| GEOG 200 | Geography: The Global Dimension [C4GE] | 3 |
| or GEOG 280 | Human Geography: The Cultural Landscape | |
| Subtotal | 14 | |
| Capstone | ||
| Choose one of the following: | 3 | |
| Fates of Empires 1 | ||
| Fates of Empires 2 | ||
| Subtotal | 3 | |
| Government and Politics Requirement | 6-9 | |
| All History majors, whether in the four-year or five-year program, take the following course: | ||
| Comparative Politics for Teachers | ||
| Four-Year Program | ||
| Students in the four-year program select an American government elective from the following options: | ||
| Political Behavior | ||
| Political Parties in America | ||
| Introduction to the Politics of Race and Ethnicity | ||
| Interest Groups, Lobbying and Public Policy | ||
| Elections and Voting Behavior | ||
| The U.S. Presidency | ||
| The Role of Religion in American Politics | ||
| The U.S. Congress | ||
| The U.S. Judiciary | ||
| Five-Year Program | ||
| Students in the five-year program select two of the following American government and civic engagement electives: | ||
| Civic Engagement for Teachers | ||
| Political Behavior | ||
| Political Parties in America | ||
| Introduction to the Politics of Race and Ethnicity | ||
| Interest Groups, Lobbying and Public Policy | ||
| Elections and Voting Behavior | ||
| The U.S. Presidency | ||
| The Role of Religion in American Politics | ||
| The U.S. Congress | ||
| The U.S. Judiciary | ||
| African American History Requirement | ||
| African American history is now a state licensure requirement for everyone licensed to teach social studies graduating after May 2023. Therefore all students in this program need to complete a course in African American history and culture. This requirement may double-count towards elective credit in the History major. | 3 | |
| The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade | ||
| Jim Crow South | ||
| The Old South | ||
| Terror and Survival in American Lynching | ||
| Frederick Douglass's America: The U.S. in the Civil War and Reconstruction Era | ||
| Virginia | ||
| African American History since 1865 | ||
| Total Credits | 26-29 | |
- 1
For four-year program: MSSE 412 and HIST 357 spring junior year double count in history and SS.
- 2
For five-year program: MSSE 412 and POSC 457 fall senior year count in SS only.
Social Studies Minor for Political Science Majors
HIST 225 must be completed for General Education credit.
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Social Studies Minor Core | ||
| HIST 225 | U.S. History [C4AE] 1 | 4 |
| POSC 225 | U.S. Government [C4AE] 1 | 4 |
| Choose one of the following: | 3 | |
| Introduction to Macroeconomics [C4GE] | ||
| Introduction to Microeconomics | ||
| GEOG 200 | Geography: The Global Dimension [C4GE] | 3 |
| or GEOG 280 | Human Geography: The Cultural Landscape | |
| Subtotal | 14 | |
| Capstone | ||
| HIST 357 | Fates of Empires 1, 2 | 3 |
| or POSC 457 | Fates of Empires | |
| Subtotal | 3 | |
| Virginia History Requirement | ||
| HIST 303 | Virginia's Place in #VastEarlyAmerica | 3 |
| or HIST 350 | Virginia | |
| Subtotal | 3 | |
| Connected History Courses | ||
| Choose one of the following: | 3 | |
| The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade | ||
| Plagues, Saints and Empires: The World before 1500 | ||
| Global History of Sport | ||
| Plagues and Pandemics in Modern World History | ||
| Our Better Angels?: The World History of Violence | ||
| Gender and Sexuality in Modern Europe | ||
| Towers, Time and Technology on the Eve of World War I | ||
| Maps, Money, Manufacture and Trade | ||
| A Global History of Nationalism | ||
| The Global Middle East | ||
| Topics in Connected History | ||
| Blurred Borders: A Cultural History of the Caribbean, Latin America and the United States | ||
| History of the Ottoman Empire, 1453-1922 | ||
| Subtotal | 3 | |
| African American History Requirement or History Elective | ||
| African American history is now a state licensure requirement for everyone licensed to teach social studies graduating after May 2023. Therefore all students in this program need to complete a course in African American history and culture. If the course chosen to fulfill this requirement also double counts for either the Virginia History (HIST 350) or Connected History (HIST 307) requirement, then the student must select an additional HIST course at the 300 or 400 level. | 3 | |
| The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade | ||
| Jim Crow South | ||
| The Old South | ||
| Terror and Survival in American Lynching | ||
| Frederick Douglass's America: The U.S. in the Civil War and Reconstruction Era | ||
| Virginia | ||
| African American History since 1865 | ||
| Subtotal | 3 | |
| Total Credits | 26 | |
- 1
For four year program: MSSE 412 and POSC 457 spring junior year double count in political science and SS.
- 2
For five year program: MSSE 412 and POSC 457 fall senior year count in SS only.
Social Studies Minor for Middle Education
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses | ||
| HIST 102 | World History since 1500 [C2HQC] | 3 |
| HIST 225 | U.S. History [C4AE] | 4 |
| POSC 335 | Comparative Politics for Teachers | 3 |
| Subtotal | 10 | |
| Capstone | ||
| Choose one of the following: | 3 | |
| Fates of Empires 1 | ||
| Fates of Empires 1 | ||
| Subtotal | 3 | |
| Virginia History Requirement | ||
| HIST 303 | Virginia's Place in #VastEarlyAmerica | 3 |
| or HIST 350 | Virginia | |
| Subtotal | 3 | |
| Thinking with Geography and Economics | ||
| Choose one of the following: | 3 | |
| Maps, Money, Manufacture and Trade | ||
| Topics in IDLS (must have topic: People, Money & Place for three credit hours) | ||
| Subtotal | 3 | |
| Pre-Modern World History Course | ||
| Choose one of the following: | 3 | |
| Buried Cities, Ancestral Places: The Rise and Fall of Early Human Societies [C2HQC] | ||
| World History to 1500 [C2HQC] | ||
| Plagues, Saints and Empires: The World before 1500 | ||
| Religions of the World [C2HQC] | ||
Other courses with permission | ||
| Subtotal | 3 | |
| African American History Requirement and Electives | ||
| African American History requirement and/or two social studies electives 3 | 6-7 | |
| African American history is now a state licensure requirement for everyone licensed to teach social studies graduating after May 2023. Therefore all students in this program need to complete a course in African American history and culture. The course chosen to fulfill this requirement may double-count with either the Virginia History or the Social Studies elective requirement, but not both. | ||
| The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade | ||
| Jim Crow South | ||
| The Old South | ||
| Terror and Survival in American Lynching | ||
| Frederick Douglass's America: The U.S. in the Civil War and Reconstruction Era | ||
| Virginia | ||
| African American History since 1865 | ||
| Subtotal | 6-7 | |
| Total Credits | 28-29 | |
- 1
Capstone; corequisite with MSSE 412.
- 2
The social studies electives requirement will be waived for students who have declared two content areas for the Middle Education major. The course that fulfills the African American history requirement can also count towards this requirement.
See advisor for this requirement. Generally, courses in HIST/POSC/SOC/ANTH/GEOG/ECON/IDLS offered at the 200-400 level will be approved for this requirement.