Highlight Courses
Criminal Justice
Intro to the American Criminal Justice System
CJBS 101
This course is an introductory survey of the American criminal justice system with a view to its social and institutional context, and its structure and functioning. The course provides an overview of the foundations and components of the criminal justice system, including (substantive and procedural) criminal law, police, courts and corrections. The main emphasis will be placed on the criminal justice process, and how the various institutions of criminal justice interact. Key issues will be addressed as they arise at different stages of the process, such as the conflict between crime control and due process, and conflicts related to, for example, gender, class and ethnicity.
Introduction to Criminal Investigations
PSC 107
Provides a history of criminal investigation and an in-depth look at the investigative process as well as ethical considerations that apply. Students will learn about the qualifications for becoming an investigator, crime scene search techniques, preparing effective field notes and investigative reports, interviewing and interrogating suspects and witnesses, the proper collection and packaging methods used to preserve evidence, contributions of forensic science in criminal investigation, legal issues involved in criminal investigations and preparing a case for trial. They will also learn about real-life examples to enhance their understanding of how to effectively apply the techniques and tools provided.
Race and Ethnicity in America
AFR 125
This course examines racial and ethnic issues in American society from the perspective of justice. Among the key concepts that will be discussed are race and ethnicity as social constructions and the causes and effects of constructing individual racial/ethnic identities. Using demographic information, the course investigates how well various ethnic and racial groups are doing in areas such as income, human rights, education, and employment.
Criminology
SOC 203
This course introduces students to the subject of criminology discussing the main theoretical perspectives and issues. It focuses on the problems of definition and measurement and the main ways in which crime can be explained and controlled. In addition, the course considers how crime is represented, for example, by the mass media, the unequal distribution of crime within society; the relationship between victims and offenders, and the social and political context of debates on crime and social control.
Prerequisite: ENG 101 and SOC 101, or equivalent
Criminal Law
LAW 209
Viewing the criminal law as a means to the end of influencing human behavior, intensive analysis is made of various principles that apply in virtually every criminal case: justification, attempt, conspiracy, parties to crime, ignorance and mistake, immaturity, insanity, and intoxication. The law of homicide is explored in all its facets as is common law, statutes of New York and of representative states, and what the law ought to. Prerequisite: ENG 101 and Sophomore standing, or equivalent
Culture and Crime
ANT 230
This course examines crime, criminality and responses to crime from an anthropological and cross-cultural perspective. Students will analyze the concept of crime as a cultural construct and as a social phenomenon and consider its causes, factors and complexities in a global context. Norms and transgressions will be explored through ethnographic case studies of and cross-cultural research on a variety of world cultures and how power, economics, identity, gender, religion, and other meaning systems are integrated with these transgressions on local, national and global scales. Students will study cases critically and learn qualitative anthropological methods such as interviews and observation to consider and compare examples of and attitudes toward crime in their own society.
Prerequisite: ENG 101, or equivalent
Global Economic Development and Crime
ECO 231
This course discusses the means and obstacles to attaining healthy, sustainable economic development in the globalized economy with particular attention to the role of crime. General topics include economic theory, sustainability, investment, environment, education, poverty, inequality, gender relationships, labor conditions, agriculture, urbanization and migration, and international trade. Examples of related crime topics include child labor, sweatshop labor, environmental crime, illegal economic activity, corruption, smuggling and money laundering.
Prerequisite: ENG 101 and ECO 101 or ECO 120, or equivalent
African American Journeys
AFR 239
In this course students explore the history, impact, and legacies of African-American political and economic struggles, the racial implications of US laws and policies, and the changing social status of Blacks, in order to understand their journey from chattel slavery to the U.S. presidency. Students will analyze the ways that tensions between state's rights and federalism, white supremacy and racial equality, and individual rights and economic need emerge and re-emerge throughout US history. The course not only examines African American enslavement, the Abolitionist movement, the Civil War, Reconstruction, racial segregation, migrations from the South, and the long Civil Rights movement, but also the impact and legacies these experiences and accomplishments have on current struggles and achievements of men, women and youth of African descent.
Prerequisite: ENG 101
Comparative Criminal Justice Systems
LAW/POL 259
Study of the variations in patterns of corruption and political crimes as well as patterns of law enforcement and adjudication among political systems. Examples are drawn from a variety of political systems: democratic, communist, and modernizing.
Prerequisite: ENG 101 and POL 101, or equivalent
Youth, Crime and Justice
SOC 309
This course focuses on the illegal conduct of youth. It examines the ways that adults have reacted to misbehavior by youth over the centuries, how treatment approaches and prevention efforts by social welfare and social control agencies have changed, and how young peoples’ race, class, gender, and sexual orientation influence social and legal responses to problematic activities. This course also critically evaluates many of the sociological, psychological, and biological theories that attempt to identify the causes of a variety of youth crime and misbehavior.
Prerequisite:ENG 201, SOC 101, and junior standing, or equivalent
Systems of Law, Justice and Injustice Across Cultures
ANT 315
Examine a cross-cultural comparison of legal systems as well as consideration of concepts of justice, rules of procedure, methods of punishment, and rehabilitation.
Prerequisite: ENG 201 and any ANT or LAW class, or Junior standing, or equivalent
Sociology of Law
SOC 305
This course examines the place of legal systems within social systems according to competing social theories. Systems of jurisprudence, both civil and criminal, will be explored for their social meaning and use as instruments of social control. Obvious, as well as hidden, functions and consequences of the administration of justice, along with the interactions among lawyers, police, prosecutors and judges, and their impacts on the public will be studied.
Prerequisite: ENG 201 and SOC 101 and Junior standing, or equivalent
Latinx Experience of Criminal Justice
LLS 325
This course analyzes the criminal justice system and its impact on the lives and communities of Latinx and other groups in the United States. Particular emphasis is placed on Latinx human and civil rights and the role that race, ethnicity, gender and class play in the criminal justice system. Interdisciplinary readings and class discussions center on issues such as the over-representation of Latinx people and racial minorities in the criminal justice system; law and police-community relations; racial profiling; stop and frisk policies; immigration status; detentions and deportations; Latinx youth; media representations; gangs; and access to education and employment and the school-to-prison-pipeline.
Prerequisite: ENG 201 and Junior Standing
American Cultural Pluralism and the Law
ANT 330
Culturally different groups use law in the United States to assert their rights and to maintain their cultural autonomy. They may also avoid courts and solve disputes within their communities. This course examines, through legal and ethnographic cases, the ways in which culturally different groups interact with law in the United States. The groups studied may include Native Americans and Native Hawaiians, African Americans, Asian Americans, Mormons, Amish, Rastafarians, Hasidic Jews, Latinos, Gypsies, gays, women, and the homeless.
Prerequisite: ENG 201, or equivalent
Corporate and White-Collar Crime
ECO/SOC 360
In examining crimes committed by corporations and organizations, as well as individuals in the course of their occupation, this course explores: how such crimes are socially defined, who commits them, who is victimized by them, which social contexts promote them, and how society responds to them. The economic, social, and political costs of corporate and white-collar crime are compared to street crime. Other topics include: embezzlement, fraud, and theft which occurs within enterprises, "underground" economic activity; criminal violation of antitrust and environmental laws, security, fiduciary, and market crimes; and corrupt relationships between business and government. Members of either the Economics or Sociology faculties teach this course with varying emphasis on the above topics.
Prerequisite: ENG 201 and ECO 101; or ECO 120, ECO 125, SOC 101 or equivalent
Practicing Community-Based Justice in the Africana World
AFR 315
The purpose of the course is to engage students in the analysis of various community and alternative justice practices around the world, particularly among people of African heritage (or of relevance to Africana peoples). This course examines the assumptions behind community justice and restorative justice theories and their applicability to the Africana world. The course focuses on relationships between struggles for justice and experimentation with alternative community-based justice strategies, particularly among people of color. Students will compare and analyze strategies and practices that have been used to establish meaningful justice and community wellbeing for groups who experience discrimination. Such practices include but are not limited to: mediation, youth courts, circle sentencing, truth and reconciliation panels, victim-offender reconciliation, and community conferences.
Prerequisite: ENG 201 and Junior Standing
Organized Crime in America
PSC 405
Explore the origins, organization, function, and control of organized crime in America.
Prerequisite: ENG 201, Senior standing, and PSC 101 or CJBS 101 or CRJ 101 or ICJ 101, or equivalent
Women and Crime
SOC/CRJ 420
A seminar that explores in depth three aspects of the relationship between women and crime: 1) women as offenders, including the range, intensity, and growing nature of female criminality; 2) women as victims of crime, including abused women, rape victims, and the victimization aspects of prostitution; 3) women as social control agents.
Prerequisite: ENG 201, SOC 101, senior standing, and CRJ/CJBS/PSC/ICJ 101
Intro to Cybercrime: Theories and Applications
SEC 107
This course delves into the complex world of cybercrime by exploring different types of cybercrime; the nature and extent of cybercrime; cybervictimization; criminological theories; the reasons why offenders commit cybercrime; cyberwitnesses’ roles and reactions to cybercrime; the applicability of criminological theories to specific cybercrimes; and existing laws, policies, and measures and those needed to effectively control and combat cybercrime.
Cybercrime Investigations
SEC 217
Provides a comprehensive analysis of national and international public and private cybercrime investigations, looking in particular at: the manner in which these investigations are conducted, digital evidence, rules of evidence, and the legal admissibility of digital evidence. Emphasis is placed on the investigation of crimes involving the Internet, computers, and related technology, including network, email, social media, cloud, mobile device, gaming console, and Internet of things forensics. Special attention will be paid to the challenges private security professionals and criminal justice agents face in the detection, investigation, prosecution and prevention of cybercrime committed on the visible web and Darknet, and the measures needed to overcome these challenges.
Prerequisite: ENG 101, SEC 107, and SEC 213, or equivalent
Security of Computers and Their Data
SEC/CSCI 270
The methods which have been used in the past to steal with the aid of the computer will be examined. Methods of detecting computer fraud and physically protecting the computer and EDP systems will also be stressed.
Prerequisite: ENG 101, or equivalent
Cyberfraud & Identify Theft
SEC 317
Explore different types of cyberfraud: debit card, credit card, and securities fraud, and online scams. Further investigate the ways in which individuals steal personal data, the locations from which data is often stolen, and ways in which victims can protect themselves from identity theft and fraud. Special attention will be paid to international public and private investigations of identity thieves and those engaging in cyberfraud.
Prerequisite: ENG 201, SEC 101, SEC 213, and SEC 217, or equivalent
Cryptography & Cryptanalysis
CSCI 360
Cryptographic codes and ciphers play a key role in the protection of information and modern communications. This course examines the central topics in cryptography (the art of designing codes and ciphers) and cryptanalysis (the art of breaking codes and ciphers). Students first explore historical encryption schemes such as Caesar's cipher and substitution ciphers. They then investigate modern techniques including secret key schemes such as DES and AES and Public key methods such as RSA and Elliptic Curves. This course takes a hands-on approach to studying these techniques in that the student will write programs that make and break codes. The ethical and legal considerations that arise in code breaking are also discussed and illustrated through case studies.
Prerequisite: ENG 201, MAT 204, CSCI 272, or equivalent
Psychology of Criminal Behavior
PSY 372
A study of the psychological bases and dynamics of criminal behavior. Topics to be discussed include the "antisocial personality"; the "psychopath"; psychosis and crime; alcoholism and drug abuse; the adolescent offender; the female offender; "sex" offenders; and white collar crime. The varying ways in which the criminal justice system processes, treats, and affects the different types of offenders will also be discussed. Prerequisite: ENG 201 and PSY 242
Network Security and Forensics
CSCI 412
The course examines vulnerabilities inherent in modern networks and presents current designs for building and maintaining secure network infrastructures. The course looks at the use of cryptographic protocols to ensure the confidentiality, integrity and authenticity of network communications as well as for network authentication and access control. In addition, the course treats operational security policies and practices that help ensure the reliability and availability of networks and make possible forensic analysis in the event an intrusion is detected. Studies include the use of firewalls, intrusion detection and prevention systems, and virtual private networks. The course presents current techniques for forensic analysis of intrusions and methods for recovery.
Prerequisite: ENG 201, CSCI 360, CSCI 379, or equivalent
City of Tomorrow
Urban Sociology: The Study of City Life
SOC 201
Explore what the earliest cities were like, and how urban life has changed over the centuries; what forces guided the evolution of cities into centers of industry, commerce, finance, recreation, entertainment, higher education and media communications; why cities face problems of inadequate mass transit, congestion, housing decay, pollution, crime and fiscal bankruptcy; how city life shapes personalities and attitudes and influences lifestyles and life chances; what solutions have been proposed for urban problems; and how different everyday life will be in the city of the future.
Prerequisite: ENG 101 and SOC 101, or equivalent
Introduction to Homeland Security
SEC 112
With the majority of U.S. key critical infrastructures privately owned or operated, the private security sector plays a prominent, albeit often overlooked, role in homeland security. This course provides an overview of U.S. homeland security, threats to homeland security, and the role of private security in homeland security. It also examines the Department of Homeland Security and its mission, objectives, structure, responsibilities, and operations, and the challenges it faces. Special attention will be paid to critical infrastructure protection in the United States.
Introduction to Emergency Management
ESA 101
This course is designed to introduce students to the world of emergency management. Topics focus on professional and ethical standards, principles of hazard mitigation and preparedness, and disaster response and recovery. The course uses both academic and practitioners’ perspectives on emergency management. In addition, the course aims to familiarize the student with organizations involved in emergency management at the local, national and international levels.
Race and Ethnicity in America
AFR 125
Examines racial and ethnic issues in American society from the perspective of justice. Among the key concepts that will be discussed are race and ethnicity as social constructions and the causes and effects of constructing individual racial/ethnic identities. Using demographic information, the course investigates how well various ethnic and racial groups are doing in areas such as income, human rights, education, and employment.
History of New York City
HIS 217
As early as 1640, 18 different languages were spoken in New Amsterdam; today, Jamaica Hospital provides interpreters in 180 languages. This course tracks the ways peoples from around the planet settled in New York and how they constructed a city of spectacular diversity. New York's different nationalities, races, religions, and classes didn't always agree, but their clashing and fusing generated a cosmopolitanism that made the city a site of dramatic cultural production and political innovation. Gotham's economic arrangements became equally complex over the centuries, adding functions to its original seaport base and ultimately producing today's diverse mix of finance, media, marketing, manufacturing, entertainment, and tourism, among many others. New York City is arguably the most complex human construction ever created, and students in this course will learn how it got to be that way.
Prerequisite: ENG 101, or equivalent
Urban Anthropology
ANT 208
The basic concepts and perspectives of anthropology are used to examine the many different subcultures and groups which make up the urban environment, both in the United States and in other complex societies. The course also examines how these groups both conflict with and cooperate with each other, as they compete for urban space and urban resources, and includes examination of deviant behavior as it exists within the context of the urban environment, and the ways in which the special characteristics of cities relate to the emergence and maintenance of a great diversity of lifestyles and subcultures.
Prerequisite: ENG 101, or equivalent
A History of Crime in New York City
HIS 224
How criminal entrepreneurs seized the opportunities of their particular eras, from colonial days to the present. Topics include: pirates (Captain Kidd) and smugglers; slave revolts; river and railroad gangs; gambling and prostitution; prohibition-era bootlegging and the rise of organized crime (from the Mafia to Murder Incorporated); stock market fraud; crime on the waterfront; shoplifting; labor and business racketeering; drug dealing; arson for profit; computer fraud; the savings and loan scandal; environmental crime; and street gangs, with special attention to those (Gophers, Westies) in the John Jay neighborhood. Prerequisite: ENG 101, equivalent
Community-Based Approached to Justice
AFR 227
This course provides an introduction to community studies and the major components of community-based approaches to justice. The course first establishes a common understanding of critical concepts such as community, social capital, neighborhood effects, asset mapping, political economy, community economics, mediation, community courts, and restorative justice. In studying community institutions, organizations, and practices, an interdisciplinary approach will be used that will draw on criminology, law, sociology, anthropology, political science, economics, family studies, international studies, Africana studies, and gender studies. Such an approach will provide students with the skills necessary to understand the interactions between and among factors such as race, ethnicity, and gender on the practice and the effectiveness of community development and community justice strategies.
Prerequisite: ENG 101, or equivalent
The Sociology of Violence
SOC 308
Examine the changes in the methods, patterns, and meanings of violence. Special attention is paid to individual and collective violence in the streets, in schools, at home, within the media, by the police, by terrorists, and by the military. The major theories explaining the causes of violence, and important research about attitudes toward violence and the use of force to bring about change are reviewed.
Prerequisite: ENG 201 and SOC 101 and Junior standing, or equivalent
Emergency Planning
SEC 310
This course provides a survey of the management issues posed by emergencies of all kinds, such as bomb threats, earthquakes, explosions, labor disputes, and oil spills. Issues such as risk analysis, standards, counter-measures, and emergency public relations will be studied, along with case histories.
Prerequisite: ENG 201, or equivalent
Arts & Culture
Introduction to Art
ART 101
This course analyzes art beyond the European tradition from the ancient to modern times with a focus on cognitive analysis, art theory and methodologies. The objective of the course is to expose students to the breadth and diversity of the visual arts globally and to provide a sense of historical context. The art & design of the Americas, Asia, Africa, Oceania, and Islam are woven into discussions of aesthetics & theory. Students will gain a solid knowledge of world art & art historical discourse. Classes are enhanced by oral, reading, writing & art assignments, and museums visits.
Digital Photography I
ART 113
This course is an introduction to digital photography as an art medium and form of communication. Topics include basic DSLR camera operation and use of imaging software, associated with an introductory knowledge of concepts from history and theory of photography, which include the development of the medium since its inception to the current day (i.e. from the daguerreotype to digital). Students are encouraged to create artwork that responds to research and to philosophical inquiry, and which articulates original ideas, keeping in mind the complex ethical issues associated with representation.
Eco Art and Design
ART 122
This interdisciplinary studio art course explores diverse and exciting ways artists use to engage with our environmental challenges. Students will create a rich variety of art projects such as collages, jewelry, fashion design, and proposals for performances, installations and large scale art projects that remediate the environment. The inspiration for student projects will evolve from fieldtrips, thought provoking videos and slides, discussions, exercises and experiments with found objects, and explorations of environmental problem sites.
Introduction to Film
LIT 106
In this course students will study the art of film from its invention in the 1890s to the present day, and examine how the cinema has impacted American and world cultures. Students will use film studies, communication, and cultural studies methods to examine film clips and key films, and explore the significance of these works of art in the cultures that created them. Students will develop the necessary analytical and evaluative abilities to understand and articulate how the language of film conveys messages and meaning to audiences.
Crime Stories
LIT 140
The crime story can hold a cracked mirror up to society’s ideas about justice, violence, community and the law, but what it reflects is rarely pretty. Whether the focus is detective fiction, criminal biographies, courtroom dramas, or true- crime narratives, this course will explore what literature is capable of expressing while confronting the hard questions that crime stories can raise about power, race, privilege, gender, sexuality, and national borders.
Science Fiction, Science Fact
LIT 142
This course investigates the relationship between science fiction and science fact. We?ll study science fiction literature side by side with nonfiction science writing to explore how even the most fantastic stories grapple with real-world issues of science and justice. By depicting our wildest dreams and deepest fears about where technology is leading us, sci-fi often predicts scientific achievements, critiques unethical science, explores the implications of new discoveries, and imagines radical solutions to social problems.
Literature as Witness
LIT 237
This course investigates how literature represents, engages and reflects upon issues and events in their historical moment. Students will explore literary genre, form, and styles while learning how literature narrates and shapes present and past events. Course topics may include wars and religion, family models, social resistance, reformations and renaissances. Critical and writing skills will be enhanced through close analysis of texts and the application of basic literary concepts and methods of interpretation.
Prerequisite: ENG 101
Murder on Screen and Stage
LIT 241
This course explores how murder has been used on screen, stage, and page to entertain, to titillate, and to critique. The course will consider how murder works in narrative and performance, and what representations of murder may mean for us, especially as they move from page to stage to screen. We will also consider questions such as: Who is a murderer? Who gets murdered? What are the consequences of murder? What does the audience or reader get out of murder stories?
Prerequisite: ENG 101
The Language of Music
MUS 102
This course introduces students to the nonverbal language used by musicians around the world to read, write, and listen. Students will learn to express themselves musically using music notation and applying the basic principles of music theory. The course includes exercises in reading and composing vocal and instrumental music and practice in ear training. Previous musical training is not required.
Music in World Culture
MUS 104
This course explores the traditional and modern musics of selected world cultures, examining both their styles and their socio-cultural backgrounds. Areas to be studied may include Africa, India, Indonesia, and/or other regions, as well as diasporic communities in New York City.
Introduction to Guitar
MUS 140
This course will enable a beginning student to learn how to play the guitar and read music. Basic musical concepts to be covered include treble and bass clef, scales, chords, melody, and harmony. The student will learn the fundamentals of guitar technique including hand positions and finger exercises. The construction and technology of the instrument will be explored and discussed in conjunction with the study of technique in a variety of musical cultures and contexts from around the world.
Introduction to Theatre
DRA 110
The course provides an introduction to the study of drama and theatre, including playwriting, directing, acting, design, and technical theatre. Historical influences and production elements and values are explored. The course is designed to enhance the student's enjoyment and understanding of the theatrical experience. Plays, performances, films, demonstrations, and lectures acquaint the students with the history and techniques of the theatrical arts. There may be some opportunity for student performance. No experience in dramatic production is required.
Criminal Justice in Theatre
DRA 225
Course investigates the portrayal of violence, conflict, crime, criminals, and justice on stage and screen and how such representations shape society's perception of criminal justice issues; the course will also explore how theatrical techniques can be used in conflict intervention, criminal justice rehabilitation, and law enforcement training. Students will read plays, observe theatre productions and film, and may engage in playwriting and role-play as part of their course work. Students will participate in class discussions on the historical and contemporary issues focusing on the performing arts and criminal justice.
Prerequisite: ENG 101
Crime, Punishment, and Justice in U.S. Literature
LIT 326
This course examines literary texts about crime, punishment, and justice from the United States in order to explore how questions of right, wrong, and fairness have been and are understood. Students will read literary texts that question the psychological and social causes of crime, philosophies of law, the varieties and purposes of punishment, and what justice might mean in any given context. Critical and writing skills will be enhanced through close analysis of texts and the application of basic literacy concepts and methods of interpretation.
Prerequisite: ENG 201 and Junior standing, or equivalent
Themes of Justice in Latin American Literature and Film
SPA 335
How do post-authoritarian and post-dictatorial regimes deal with legacies of violence and human rights abuses? How do they address the demands for justice that arise after systematic mass atrocities? Should we remember or forget past atrocities? This course seeks to answer these questions as they apply to Latin American societies by exploring these themes in literature, film, various other texts, and elements of popular culture such as the construction of memorials and public spaces. Although the course is taught in English, students with a reading knowledge of Spanish are encouraged to read all materials in the original.
Prerequisite: ENG 201 and Junior Standing
Science in Five-Weeks...
Modern Biology I
5W1: BIO 103 – 01 (LEC) + 01L1 (LAB) + 01R1 (REC)
Modern Biology II
5W2: BIO 104 – 01 (LEC) + 01L1 (LAB) + 01R1 (REC)
Organic Chemistry I
5W1: CHE 201 – 01 (LEC) + 01L1/01L2 (LAB) + 01R1/01R2 (REC)
Organic Chemistry II
5W2: CHE 202 – 01 (LEC) + 01L1/01L2 (LAB) + 01R1/01R2 (REC)
Quantitative Analysis
5W1: CHE 220 – 01 (LEC) + 01L1 (LAB)
5W2: CHE 220 – 02 (LEC) + 02L1 (LAB)
General Physics I
5W1: PHY 203 – 01 (LEC) + 01L1 (LAB) + 01R1 (REC)
General Physics II
5W2: PHY 204 – 01 (LEC) + 01L1 (LAB) + 01R1 (REC)
Environmental Science: A Focus on Sustainability
5W1: SCI 112 – 01 (LEC) + 01L1 (LAB)
Scientific Principles of Forensic Science
5W1: SCI 114 – 01 (LEC) + 01L1 (LAB)
5W2: SCI 114 – 02 (LEC) + 02L1 (LAB)
Chemistry of Cooking
5W1: SCI 166 – 01 (LAB)