Dear SOAN students,
Welcome back to Colgate! I hope your summer was restful and that you are ready for another semester of classes and activities. I am taking on the position of SOAN Department Chair from Professor Hsu, who did an excellent job over the past four years. I’m writing with a few key pieces of news and information to be aware of as you get started on the 2013-14 academic year. Please read on…
SOAN = SOCI + ANTH
You may have noticed that our courses have new names and, in some cases, new numbers. This is part of a big change that we began implementing last year, and that will lead to a new set of SOAN majors being offered beginning with the Class of 2016. For all students through the class of 2015, SOAN will remain a joint Sociology/Anthropology major, and there are no changes to the course requirements. Starting with the Class of 2016, students will be able to choose distinct Anthropology (ANTH) and Sociology (SOCI—but the “I” is silent!) majors with somewhat different requirements than in the past. We decided to move to these two new majors based in part on a lot of student feedback, so we hope that students starting with the Class of 2016 will find the new majors rewarding. You can check the course catalog to learn more about the new majors or talk to any SOAN professor. Though we are moving to these separate ANTH and SOCI majors, SOAN will still be a joint department of anthropologists and sociologists, and students of each major will be part of the SOAN community.
SOAN Community and Events
Speaking of community, I hope you will help me generate some ideas for events and gatherings that will build SOAN community among students and faculty. Last year we had a great start with our SOAN Happy Hours, where we met at Donovan’s Pub for food and drink. We will continue with more Happy Hours this year, and, in addition, we are already planning the following events that you should add to your calendar:
SOAN BBQ! : Thursday, September 12, 5:30-7:00pm. Location: on the “back quad” behind West Hall (rain location: Alumni 111). We will have food from Holy Smokes BBQ and some fun games. All SOAN majors, minors, and students in SOAN intro courses are invited.
Chobani Tuesdays! : The second Tuesday of each month will be Chobani Tuesday for all SOAN students. Our first Chobani Tuesday will be held on September 10, when you will be able to stop by the SOAN lounge (on the 4th floor of Alumni Hall) to grab a cup of Chobani yogurt and say hi to other SOAN students and faculty. We will also have Chobani Tuesday on October 8, November 12, and December 10.
SOAN Speakers: We have a great lineup of speakers coming to campus this fall to speak on topics related to anthropology and sociology, so I hope you will take time to go to some of these lectures and talk about them with your classmates. SOAN will be sending out a weekly email with a calendar of events, so that you can keep track of all the opportunities, so be on the lookout for that.
Other Ideas? : What ideas do you have for building SOAN community? Discussing current events and issues together? Highlighting SOAN student research? Committing to a SOAN community service project? Send me an email or stop by my office in Alumni 419 if you want to share ideas.
SOAN Faculty and Courses
This semester we have all our SOAN faculty returning to teach courses, except for Prof Hsu, who is on a well-earned research leave during the 2013-2014 academic year. Professor Amy Groleau also returns for another year as a visiting archaeologist; this semester Prof Groleau will be teaching our Introduction to Archaeology (ANTH 103) course as well as a section of Core Peru.
We do have some courses with openings as of beginning of the Add/Drop period, so I encourage you to speak with your SOAN faculty advisor or me if you are looking for a course to take this semester.
SOAN and Study Abroad
You may know that Colgate is moving toward some new policies with respect to off-campus study. Among the most important changes is the move to a new list of Colgate “approved programs” from which you can select your study abroad experience. These programs include a number that have been approved for students in SOAN to attend, broken down into those approved for ANTH and SOCI majors. These approved programs lists are effective starting with the 2014-2015 academic year, so they will impact students in the Class of 2016 traveling in their junior year or students in the Class of 2015 traveling in their senior year.
For questions about study abroad opportunities in Anthropology, please contact Professor Nancy Ries (nries@colgate.edu); for opportunities in Sociology, please contact Professor Paul Lopes (plopes@colgate.edu).
Honors and High Honors
If you are a SOAN senior who meets the required grade point average for Honors or High Honors, you should consult with your advisor and senior seminar instructor about the possibility of pursuing honors during the current academic year. (Honors requires a 3.3 overall GPA and a 3.5 GPA in SOAN courses; High Honors requires a 3.7 GPA in SOAN courses.) Our SOAN Honors Seminar is offered in the spring, but it always helps to begin planning early for your project.
I wish you all the very best in your courses and other campus activities this semester. Please stop by and say “hi” some time this semester, as I would like to get to know as many SOAN students as possible. My office is in Alumni 419.
Sincerely,
Chris Henke
Chair, SOAN Department