Linked Course Learning Communities

UNIV 101: Section 17304, MW 11:00-11:50am, FR 119
BIOL 100: Section 10302, TR 11:00am-12:15pm, BUD 120

Cells, communities, and ecosystems! Oh, my! In University and BIOL 100, students will develop a strong foundation for success at KU and beyond, while learning how to sort out valid scientific information from all the information available and use that information to inform decisions, a skill important to all of us as global citizens. In Biology 100 students will learn the basic concepts of biology at the cellular, organismal, and population levels of organization and their applications to humans and modern society. The linked section of UNIV 101 provides students with behind-the-scenes lab and museum visits that enhance their understanding of biology, while introducing skills that will help them be successful not only in Biology 100, but in all of their courses.  

Biology (BIOL) 100-Principles of Biology/Biology 102 

Goal 3 Natural Sciences (GE3N), 3 Credit Hours, 1 credit: Intended for non-science majors

The basic concepts of biology at the cellular, organismal, and population levels of organization and their applications to humans and modern society. An honors section, BIOL 101, is offered for students with superior academic records. BIOL 100 and BIOL 102 (or BIOL 101 and BIOL 103, honors) satisfy the College natural science with laboratory requirement. Concurrent enrollment in BIOL 102 is recommended.

Tara Marriage & Kristina Holder - BIOL 100 Instructors

Bio coming soon.

Erin Kelley-Garrison - UNIV 101 Instructor

Erin attended Emporia State University and was extremely involved in her sorority and major before graduating in 2017! Erin just couldn’t get enough of college and decided to major in at the University of Kansas! After completing a graduate assistantship in the Student Involvement & Leadership Center she found her next position as an Academic Advisor in the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences! Erin is passionate about getting involved on campus and helping students enjoy their college experience!

UNIV 101: Section 12357, MW 1:00-1:50pm, WES 4037
COMS 130: Section 16201, TR 1:00-2:15pm, BA 202

Civil and effective discourse is essential to personal development and success, as well as to social and political progress. What are the ethics of listening and speech making?  How do these skills contribute to a free society? In University and COMS 130 students will investigate these questions and practice these skills in Communication Studies 130. The linked section of UNIV 101 provides students with experiences that enhance their understanding of communication studies, while also introducing skills that will help them be successful not only in Communication Studies 130, but in all of their courses.

Communications Studies (COMS) 130- Speaker-Audience Communication

Goal 2 Outcome 2 (GE22), 3 credit hours:

Study of rhetorical theory and its application to the preparation, presentation, and criticism of oral discourse in audience situations. Special consideration of listening behavior and of the ethical conduct of speech in a free society. This course fulfills the College argument and reason requirement.

Meggie Mapes, Course Director

Meggie Mapes (Ph.D. Southern Illinois University, Carbondale) is the Introductory Course Director in the Department of Communication Studies. As a teacher, Meggie values critical thinking and facilitating student advocacy skills. As a researcher, she studies communication through pedagogy, feminist theory, and rhetoric. Meggie lives in the Kansas City Waldo neighborhood with her partner and 2 dogs where she enjoys the local community vibe. When she isn’t writing or working, she weightlifts (#profswholift) and serves on the Kansas City’s Environmental Management Commission.

Kate Nygren, Academic Programs & Experiential Learning, UNIV 101 Instructor

Kate Nygren (PhD, University of Kansas) is an Assistant Director for the Office of Academic Programs & Experiential Learning where she oversees UNIV 101, Learning Communities, and student programs for the KU Common Book. Kate collaborates with staff, graduate students, and instructors to continually improve these programs. She recruits new instructors and offers them a range of training and professional development opportunities. She also teaches, which she loves most of all. Kate originally joined KU in 2013 as a graduate student and instructor in the English department studying contemporary theater. She loves to read and see plays that explore national identity and activism in the United States. Any time she travels, she can be found at a local theater taking in something new.

UNIV 101: Section 24302, MW 11:00-11:50am, BA 110
C&T 100: Section 12743, MWF 1:00-1:50pm, JRP 150

Education is a pillar of our society and plays an important role in helping young people become engaged citizens. In University and C&T 100, students will be introduced to the profession of education and characteristics of effective teaching in Curriculum and Teaching 100. Students will have the opportunity to observe teachers in public school classrooms and work with pupils during the semester. The linked section of UNIV 101 provides students with experiences that enhance their understanding of education and teaching, while also introducing skills that will help them be successful not only in Curriculum & Teaching 100, but in all of their courses.

Curriculum & Teaching (C&T) 100 – Introduction to Education Profession

Fulfills Goal 1 Outcome 1 (GE11), 3 credit hours:

This course is designed to acquaint students with the profession of education by helping to increase an awareness of the role and characteristics of an effective teacher. Large and small group activities and assignments are dispersed throughout the semester to facilitate these outcomes. Students will be involved in observation of and participation with teachers and pupils in public school classrooms, which complement course activities and assignments. Students will work with a mentor pre-service teacher from the KU School of Education to provide discussions about each of the course objectives. C&T 100 is a pre-professional course. Successful completion of the course does not guarantee eventual admission to the School of Education's Teacher Education Program.

Reva Friedman, Associate Professor of Curriculum and Teaching 

Reva C. Friedman, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of Curriculum and Teaching at the University of Kansas, where she was responsible for degree and graduate certificate programs in gifted/talented/creative child education for 35 years. A former high school teacher and teacher of gifted students (elementary and secondary), she continues to educate general education and gifted education teachers about the learning and personal needs of gifted and talented students, to counsel bright youngsters and their families, and to collaborate with teachers K-12. Her writings focus on the psychological factors that impact the development of gifted young people and on using models that develop students' talents and strengths. She has served on the boards of the National Association for Gifted Children and The Association for the Gifted. Currently she serves on NAGC's Professional Standards Committee. On the state level, she is a board member of the Kansas Association for the Gifted, Talented, and Creative.

Michele Casavant, Education Administration

University 101 Instructor

Michele Casavant is originally from a small college town in Washington State. She wrote her doctoral dissertation on Star Trek and she continues to be a fan of the show. She earned her Ph.D. in American Studies at the University of Kansas in 2003 and is currently the Director of Undergraduate Advising for the School of Education. Her research interests began as a focus on representations of underrepresented identities in science fiction, which she continues to explore and teach. Her interests now also include how current educational systems enhance certain inequalities in the U.S. and the ways in which the same systems have the power to undo these disparities.

Jerica Burgess, School of Education 

UNIV 101 Instructor 

Jerica Burgess is an Academic Advisor in the School of Education at the University of Kansas. Jerica advises undergraduate students admitted to the Department of Health, Sport, and Exercise Sciences. She was a former Graduate Assistant in the Office of First-Year Experience, and graduated with her Master’s Degree in Higher Education Administration from KU. Prior to becoming a Jayhawk, she earned her Bachelor’s Degree in English and Communication Studies with a minor in Leadership from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. In her free time, she enjoys doing yoga, reading, and cheering on the Jayhawks at all sporting events.

UNIV 101: Section 17216, MW 10:00-10:50am, FR 119
POLS 110: Section 12312, MW 9:00-9:50am, MAL 1001

Understanding the basic workings of American governmental institutions, political processes, and policy is essential for effective citizenship. The University and POLS 110 learning community will provide students with the tools and knowledge to understand and critically engage with American politics and political systems in Political Science 110. The linked section of UNIV 101 provides students with experiences that enhance their understanding of politics and public service, while introducing skills that will help them be successful not only in Political Science 110, but in all of their courses.

Political Science (POLS) 110-Introduction to U.S. Politics

Fulfills Goal 3 Social Sciences (GE3S), 3 credit hours: 

An introduction to basic American governmental institutions, political processes, and policy.

Mark Joslyn, Professor of Political Science

Broadly, I study attitude formation and change. How are political attitudes formed and under what conditions may we expect change? I draw from cognitive and motivational theories, recognizing the value of both to understanding the complexities of the political mind. Recently, I have devoted considerable time to examining the determinants of causal attributions. Specifically, what are the individual and contextual factors that influence the public's causal attributions? Hotly debated attributions such as the causes of mass shootings, obesity, homosexuality, wealth and success are the present focus of my research.

UNIV 101 Instructor 

Instructor information coming soon.

UNIV 101: Section 12358, MW 9:00-9:50am, WES 4040
PSYC 104: Section 17373, TU 9:30-10:45am, ONLINE

The mission of the Department of Psychology at the University of Kansas is to further the understanding of the mind, the brain, and human behavior through classes and research. In the University and PSYC 104 learning community, students are introduced to the basic and foundational concepts of the science of psychology through the Psychology 104 course. The linked section of UNIV 101 provides students with experiences that enhance their understanding of psychology, while introducing skills that will help them be successful not only in Psychology 104, but in all of their courses.

Psychology (PSYC) 104-General Psychology

Goal 3 Social Sciences (GE3S), 3 Credit Hours

A basic introduction to the science of psychology.

Christin Bowman

Bio coming soon.

Taylor Hanna-Peterson, College Advising & Student Services 

UNIV 101 Instructor 

Taylor Hanna-Peterson loves working with students one on one and helping them find success in their Jayhawk Journey! I had such wonderful advisors and mentors as an undergraduate student that I wanted to help a new generation of students find their path to success too.