Summer I 2023: M - TR 8:30 - 9:30 AM
If you have a disability (learning, mental, physical) that affects your ability to participate effectively and have access to any program or service at Amarillo College please contact Disability Services at (806) 345-5639 . Our offices are located in the Student Service Center office 112. More information may be found at www.actx.edu/disability.
Disability Services facilitates access to all programs and services according to the ADA, Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, as well as other federal and state laws.
Amarillo College is committed to providing equal access to all programs and services, including all working, learning, and service environments that affect equal access for persons with disabilities. This commitment to provide equal access and opportunity for persons with disabilities is in compliance with federal and state law. Amarillo College also strives to provide Electronic and Information Resources (EIR) that are accessible to all authorized users.
If you find you are unable to access material in an accessible format please contact the Disability Services Office at (806) 345-5639 . This office will work in conjunction with other campus resources to address and accommodate your issue in a timely manner.
As a student you may experience a range of issues that can cause barriers to learning, such as strained relationships, increased anxiety, alcohol/drug problems, feeling down, difficulty concentrating and/or lack of motivation. These mental health concerns or stressful events may lead to diminished academic performance or reduce a student's ability to participate in daily activities. Amarillo College offers services to assist you with addressing these and other concerns you may be experiencing. If you or someone you know are suffering from any of the aforementioned conditions, you can learn more about the broad range of confidential mental health services available on campus by calling the AC Counseling Center at 806-371-5900. The AC Counseling Center website is https://www.actx.edu/counseling/ . Also, if you are in need of social services (affordable housing, utilities, transportation, food, clothing, childcare, medical/dental/vision, legal), please call the AC Advocacy & Resource Center at 806-371-5439. The AC Advocacy & Resource Center website is https://www.actx.edu/arc
The Tutoring for Success policy applies to any student whose grade or performance in the course falls below a departmentally determined minimum threshold. In either of those cases, the instructor will direct the student to the appropriate tutoring service, which may be faculty-led, discipline-specific, and/or general. Under this policy, the instructor will follow specific departmental guidelines governing the use, duration, and grade component of the tutoring need.
Students who do not attend class on or prior to the census date will be administratively dropped. Effective Fall, 2016
Students who wish to withdraw from a course must complete all steps indicated on the Academic Withdrawal Request form by the course withdrawal deadline.
NOTE: Students who are attending Texas institutions of higher education, for the first time fall 2007 and later, may not withdraw from more than six courses during their academic career. This withdrawal limitation does not include dual credit or developmental classes (Senate Bill 1231 Rule 4.10.) For more information on Drop and Withdrawal Policies, please visit the Registrar's Office Web site.
The Amarillo College Privacy Policy is found at https://www.actx.edu/-amarillo-college-privacy-notice , and applies to all Amarillo College students. If you have questions about this privacy statement or you believe that your personal information has been released without your consent, send email to humanresources@actx.edu .
HIST-1301-021 United States History I
A survey of the social, political, economic, cultural and intellectual history of the United States from the pre-Columbian era to the Civil War/Reconstruction period. United States History I includes the study of pre-Columbian, colonial, revolutionary, early national, slavery and sectionalism, and the Civil War/Reconstruction eras. Themes that may be addressed in United States History I include: American settlement and diversity, American culture, religion, civil and human rights, technological change, economic change, immigration and migration, and creation of the federal government.
Student ResourcesStudent Resources Website
Notice to Students enrolled in an educational program for preparation of issuance of certain occupational licenses:
Students enrolled in an educational program in preparation for obtaining certain occupational licenses are potentially ineligible for such license if the student has been convicted of an offense. For further information, please contact:
Melodie Graves
Justice Involved Advocate
Student Service Center 117
mgraves24@actx.edu
806-371-5995
Make appointment at https://melodiegraves.youcanbook.me
You can also contact the Legal Clinic, or the faculty member in charge of the educational program that you seek to enroll in. The further information you will receive will include notification to you of your right to request a criminal history evaluation letter from the licensing authority in order to clarify your particular situation.
(3 sem hrs; 3 lec)
On Campus Course
The American YAWP, volume I, edited by Joseph Locke and Ben Wright
The Fate of John Brown, 1859, by Bill Offutt; this will be provided to students
You are required to have regular access to a personal computer with reliable internet access.
Bring paper and something to write with to class.
Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
In order to receive your AC Connect Email, you must log in through AC Connect at https://acconnect.actx.edu .
If you are an active staff or faculty member according to Human Resources, use "Exchange". All other students, use "AC Connect (Google) Email".
You are expected to follow all Amarillo College policies and procedures, particularly those relating to academic integrity and personal conduct. The following are of particular importance:
Course materials created by your professor, including assignments, handouts, lectures, exams, quizzes, and similar materials and derivative works such as course notes are protected by copyright and for personal educational use only, and may not be reproduced, distributed, sold, bartered, or publicly posted to the Internet without your professor’s express written permission. Your instructor will pursue any available legal avenues to protect his intellectual property such as takedown notices as permitted by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. Students found to have violated the instructor's intellectual property rights will be referred to the college for disciplinary action.
Do not record the class without your instructor's permission.
You are responsible for taking the proper steps to solve technical problems with technology used in the class: a list of support resources has been provided for you under the “help” section of the course’s Blackboard site. It it particularly important to give yourself enough time to work through technical issues before due dates: because you will be given ample time to complete your work, technical problems will not be an acceptable excuse for failing to meet deadlines. Your professor is not a technical support person and will simply refer you to the “help” section if you come to him with technical problems, but you are encouraged to speak with him if you are unable to reach a resolution after consulting the appropriate resources.
The best way to get in touch with your professor is through email. Please email your professor using the "Send Email" tool in the Blackboard course menu. Please observe the proper etiquette for business emails when contacting your professor: provide a descriptive yet concise subject in addition to a professional salutation and closing; additionally, you should write in complete sentences and avoid net- or text-speak. Most workplaces use email, so this should be good practice for you.
You should check your school email each weekday, particularly before leaving for school: Dr. Fauss will occasionally send out reminders and other important information via email. If class is cancelled, an email will be sent out as early in the day as possible.
Email is not an instantaneous form of communication: Dr. Fauss checks his email at least once a day Monday through Friday, which means that usually, but not always, you will get a response within 24 hours. Emails received over the weekend may not be replied to until the following Monday.
Graded components
Exams
You will be taking three in-class exams. The exams will be written, with fill-in-the-blank, multiple-choice and/or true/false, and essay questions. These will count 60% of your course grade. The lowest exam score will be dropped: this will begin factoring into your grade after the second exam.
Because the lowest exam is dropped, students who miss exams will generally not be allowed to retake them.
Attendance
Attending class is vital to your success; this component of your course grade will be worth 10%. The first three absences will be automatically excused. Beyond this, unexcused absences will reduce your grade on a percentage basis (for example, if there are five classes and you have two unexcused absences, your participation grade would be 60%).
RTTP participation
During the Reacting to the Past portion of the class, you will be expected to be working towards your character's objectives, contributing to discussions, etc. While active participation is important, only students who demonstrate knowledge of the material will receive a high grade. This will be worth 10% of your course grade.
RTTP speech
You will be expected to deliver a short speech during one of the Reacting to the Past sessions and turn in an accompanying piece of written work. The speech will be 5% of your course grade. Students who are prepared and demonstrate knowledge of the material will receive a high grade. Students may not reschedule their speeches, and if a student misses class the day of his/her speech, he/she will not be allowed to make it up unless he/she has an excused absence.
Documents paper
You will be completing a paper analyzing historical documents. The paper will be 15% of your course grade. The assignment will be found attached to the dropbox in Blackboard (this will be located in the "content" folder). You will be able to see the rubric used to grade the paper in "My Grades" in Blackboard.
Late papers will receive a 5-point penalty for each day late. Papers with no in-text citations will not be accepted: offending papers may be resubmitted but will receive late penalties based upon the day that the corrected paper is received. The instructor will check for submitted papers once every 24 hours after the due date and notify offending students shortly thereafter.
Extra credit
There will be no extra credit awarded in the class.
Display and calculation of grades by Blackboard
Your current grade will be available in Blackboard under "My Grades" in the course menu. Your grade is calculated as a running total, meaning that the grade is only based upon the material submitted as of the time you check. Your running total will be calculated based upon the weighting of the different categories of grades, so for example, exams will always calculate as the stated percentage of the total, even if only one exam is in; as more grades come in within the category, the grade will change, but it will still be calculated with the category weighting.
Final grade calculation
Final grades will be calculated according to the following criteria:
90-100 = A
80-89 = B
70-79 = C
60-69 = D
Below 60 = F
Your final grade will be rounded to the next highest integer.
Attendance will be taken at the beginning of class. If you come in after attendance is taken, it is your responsibility to inform your instructor that you were present.
Students who are chronically late risk being counted as absent.
Students who leave early without speaking with the instructor first will be counted as absent unless the student faced a true emergency.
Students should not inform the instructor as to why they are absent for their first three instances of missing class because they are automatically excused; beyond this, if you wish to have an absence excused, you must email your instructor before class begins with the reason why you are missing class. Excuses are not automatically granted and the instructor may request documentation proving your need to miss class.
The calendar is organized by day. The chapters that will be covered and due dates for major assessments are noted after each date (these, along with exams, are noted in bold to help you).
You should read the indicated chapters in the textbook/John Brown book before class
8/26: Introduction to the class
8/27: CH 2
8/28: CH 3
8/29: CH 3
9/2: Labor Day – no class
9/3: CH 3; CENSUS DATE
9/4: CH 4
9/5: CH 4
9/9: CH 4
9/10: CH 5
9/11: CH 5
9/12: Exam 1
9/16: CH 6
9/17: CH 6
9/18: CH 6
9/19: CH 7
9/23: CHs 7
9/24: CH 8; Documents paper due by 11:59 PM
9/25: CH 8
9/26: Exam 2
9/30: CH 9
10/1: CH 9
10/2: CH 11
10/3: CH 11
10/7: CH 13
10/8: CH 13; LAST DATE TO WITHDRAW
10/9: John Brown game; read in gamebook as instructed by your character sheet; select speeches due
10/10: John Brown game; select speeches due
110/14: John Brown game finale; remaining session 2 speeches will be delivered
10/15: NO CLASS: study for the final
10/16: Exam 3
This class features a Reacting to the Past game where you will step into the shoes of people in history and engaging in structured roleplaying. Most students find Reacting to the Past to be fun and engaging, but because it requires public speaking, some students may be anxious about this particular format. If this is you, please speak with your instructor as soon as possible. Nearly every student who has come to Dr. Fauss with these concerns in advance has been able to develop strategies to successfully participate in class and complete the requirements for the game(s).
The instructor reserves the right to change the syllabus and calendar if needed.
08/25/19 3:46 PM
10/10/19 1:35 PM