Latin American Studies

Program Director: Matthew Bush, Assistant Professor of Modern Languages and Literature and Director of Latin American Studies

matthew.bush@lehigh.edu; 610-758-3087

The minor in Latin American studies is designed for students who wish to develop an understanding of a neighboring region that is of vital importance to the United States. Courses in anthropology, archeology, foreign policy, history, language and literature, politics, sociology, visual arts and museum studies, allow students to explore various aspects of Latin American cultures and societies from different disciplinary perspectives. The minor contributes to a liberal arts education by offering students an international vantage point from which they can examine their own society and prepares them to meet the challenges of an increasingly interdependent world. Additionally, the unprecedented movement of peoples and ideas between the American continents in recent decades makes the study of this region of the world an essential component for understanding the history and culture of the expanding U.S. Latino population. The minor in Latin American Studies complements, therefore, major concentrations in disciplines that have either an international or a domestic focus, and it enhances the relevance of a Lehigh education by preparing students to be citizens of a culturally diverse society and, more generally, of the Americas.

The minor program requires 15 to 16 credit hours of coursework. In addition to regular Lehigh offerings, students may receive minor credit for appropriate courses at other LVAIC institutions, study abroad programs in Latin America, and various Lehighfaculty-led programs, such as “Lehigh in Martinique” and “Lehigh in Costa Rica” (both offered during the winter term). Students are encouraged to take advantage of extracurricular activities sponsored by the Latin American Studies Program, which include guest speakers, exhibits, films, etc.

For further information or to coordinate their minor program, students should contact Dr. Matthew Bush, Director, Latin American Studies Program. For minor declaration forms, please go to the Office of Interdisciplinary Programs, 490 Maginnes Hall.

Requirements (8 credits).

History/Culture (4 credits).
Choose one of the following:
HIST 49
History of Latin America (4)
HIST 50
History of Latin America (4)
SPAN/LAS 152
The Cultural Evolution of Latin America (taught in Spanish) (4)

Language (4 credits).

SPAN 12

Intermediate Spanish II (4)

Elective courses (7-8 credits) chosen from the following LAS cross-listed courses or collateral courses. Credit may be received for other courses, in consultation with the Program Director.

ART 273	Special Topics in Studio Practice (1)
ART 370	Special Topics in Museum or Curatorial Studies (1-4)
ART 375	Museum Internship (1-4)
ARTS 196	Sustainable Development: The Costa Rican Experience (3-4)
ANTH 178	Mesoamerican Archeology (4)
ART 269	Special Topics in Art History (1)
HIST 49	History of Latin America (4)
HIST 50	History of Latin America (4)
HIST 341	Mexico and Central America (3-4)
HIST 342	Argentina, Brazil, and Chile (3-4)
HIST 368	Seminar in Latin American History (3-4)
IR 177	International Relations of Latin America (4)
IR 222	Political Economy of NorthSouth Relations (4)
IR 323	Political Economy of Newly Industrializing Countries (4)
LAS/AAS/SSP 106	Race & Ethnicity in Latin America and the Spanish Speaking Caribbean (4)
LAS/AAS/MLL/ FREN/HIST/POLS 133	Lehigh in Martinique: Globalization and Local Identity (4)
LAS/AAS/SSP 155	Afro-Latino Social Movements in Latin America & the Caribbean (4)
LAS/AAS/SSP 177	Cuba: Race, Revolution and Culture (4)
LAS/SPAN 211	Business Spanish (4)
LAS/SPAN 213	Approaches to Reading Cultural Productions in Spanish (4)
LAS/ART 227	Latino Visual Arts and Culture in the USA (4)
LAS/SPAN 263	The Spanish American Short Story (4)
LAS/SPAN 265	Spanish and Latin American Cinema (4)
LAS/SPAN/WGSS 275	Introduction to Hispanic Women Writers (4)
LAS/SPAN 276	Contemporary Literature of the Southern Cone (4)
LAS/SPAN 320	Literature of the Spanish Caribbean (4)
LAS/SPAN 321	Children and Adolescents in Contemporary Spanish American Literature (4)
LAS/SPAN 322	The Short Novel in Contemporary Spanish American Literature (4)
LAS/SPAN 323	Literature and Revolution in Contemporary Cuba (4)
LAS/SPAN 325	Hispanic Literature of the United States (4)
LAS/SPAN/WGSS 326	Tradition and Resistance: Women Writers of Latin America (4)
LAS/SSP 328	Society, Democracy and Revolution in Latin America (4)
LAS/SPAN 342	The New Narrative in Spanish American Literature (4)
LAS/SPAN 345	Testimonial Writing in the Hispanic World (4)
LAS/SPAN/WGSS 346	Contemporary Hispanic Women Writers: The Novelists (4)
LAS/ANTH 378	Blood, Pyramids, and the Tree of Life (4)
MLL 51	Contemporary Hispanic-American Literature (4)
MLL 53	The Hispanic World and Its Culture (4)
POLS 335	Latin American Political Systems (4)
POLS 336	US Foreign Policy and Latin America (4)
POLS 337	Religion and Politics in Latin America (4)
POLS/GS/WGSS 342	Gender and Third World Development (4)
SSP 346	Society and Democracy in Latin America (4)