May 02, 2024  
2019-2020 Academic Catalog 
    
2019-2020 Academic Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Interdisciplinary


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Interfaith Leadership

Today where cross-cultural and cross-religious contacts are nearly ubiquitous, professionals in various sectors (e.g., health- care, law, business, education, NGOs, government service and public policy) are beginning to recognize the need to address the religious/spiritual dimensions of their work not only to serve more compassionately and effectively, but also to contribute to the evolution of a more inclusive and just society. The Interfaith Leadership Minor program provides students with a set of competencies and perspectives to begin to understand what is at stake in our religiously diverse world and how to make a difference in it in their own lives and in whatever careers they pursue. Those who develop the capacities of interfaith leadership understand that religion can be a source of conflict or an invitation to cooperation, and they know how to lead others toward the latter. Hence, an “Interfaith Leader” is a person with the knowledge, capacity for self-reflection and empathy, values and skills to lead inclusively and effectively in any religiously and spiritually diverse environment.

Faculty

Barbara A. McGraw, JD, PhD, Professor, Director of the Interfaith Leadership Program

Interfaith Leadership Advisory Board

Julie Ford, D.MA, Performing Arts
Emily Hause, PhD, Psychology
Makiko Imamura, PhD, Communication
Yuan Li, PhD, Organizations and Responsible Business
Barbara A. McGraw, JD, PhD, Interfaith Leadership and Organizations and Responsible Business
Julie Park, PhD, Collegiate Seminar
Aaron Sachowitz, PhD, Communication
Grete Stenersen, MA, Leadership Studies and Collegiate Seminar
Paul Zarnoth, PhD, Psychology

Learning Outcomes

Students who complete the program will be able to:

  • IDENTITY/BIAS: Reflect on students’ own and others’ identity formation and perspectives; articulate how religious and other identities and worldviews affect perceptions of issues that arise in various environments and situations; and articulate how such perceptions can result in bias.
  • COMMUNICATION/DIALOGUE: Demonstrate effective communication and dialogue facilitation skills that can be used to address interreligious conflict and promote interfaith cooperation, engagement, and understanding.
  • RELIGIOUS LITERACY: Demonstrate an understanding of what it means to be religiously literate; articulate ways that religions differ in thought, practice, and organization; and articulate the meaning of “pluralism” in this context.
  • LEADERSHIP: Identify interfaith challenges and opportunities; propose inclusive methods for addressing them; and articulate how to lead implementation of those inclusive methods.
  • APPLICATION: Demonstrate interfaith leadership (as defined above) in a collaborative community-based project.

Interfaith Leadership Minor Requirements

To graduate with an Interfaith Leadership Minor, students must complete courses in the following Program Core, which consists of four full credit courses and one quarter-credit project course. Students must also complete Two Electives, one from each of two elective categories.

Other Courses in the Program

Course descriptions for other courses in the Interfaith Leadership Minor can be found under their respective department/program in this catalog, e.g., in Business Administration, Anthropology, Ethnic Studies, Psychology, Communication, Politics, History, Kinesiology, Global and Regional Studies, Theology and Religious Studies, and Justice, Community and Leadership.

Studies and Curricular Requirements for International Students

International students enrolled at Saint Mary’s College are required to take courses or labs developed to assist them in their assimilation to the U.S. academic rigor and greater U.S. culture. The required course is SMS 015 , a course designed to give students a working platform on which to compare their native culture to U.S. culture.

The English Composition requirement for non-native speakers of English is the same as that for native English speakers with the additional requirement of the SMS 023 /SMS 024  Writing Lab, a quarter credit lab to be taken in conjunction with ENGL 003  or ENGL 004 .

All non-native English-speaking students, both first-years and transfer, regardless of visa status, must take the Writing Placement exam. The results of this exam will determine a student’s placement in Composition and the corresponding SMS Writing Lab. As a result of the Writing Placement exam, some students may be placed in ENGL 003 , Practice in Writing, which is a prerequisite to ENGL 004 . Students placed in the SMS Writing Lab must complete the full series of corresponding labs as part of their Composition requirement unless they test out of the lab through a Writing Challenge Test administered prior to the spring semester.

Programs

    MinorOther Programs

    Courses

      Interfaith Leadership - Upper DivisionStudies for International and Multilingual Students - Lower Division

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