Freshman Seminar - Office of the Registrar

Fall 2026 Freshman Seminar Course Descriptions

**The paired sections, 01-18 (FSEM/FSWI), are intended for incoming freshman.

FSEM 101-01 (CRN: 51487): “Esports in Education”
TR 13:30-14:45
Professor Harrison

*Co-requisite: FSWI 101-01 (CRN: 51488) MWF 10:00-10:50 – Professor Rink

Description: This course examines the development, implementation, and leadership of scholastic esports programs within educational settings. Students will analyze esports as a vehicle for student engagement, digital literacy development, career pathway exploration, and school culture enhancement. Emphasis is placed on innovation leadership, ethical considerations, infrastructure planning, equity and access, and program sustainability. Students will develop a comprehensive esports program proposal as a culminating project.

FSEM 101-02 (CRN: 51489): “Esports in Education”
TR 15:00-16:15
Professor Harrison

*Co-requisite: FSWI 101-02 (CRN: 51490) TR 11:00-12:15 – Professor Rink

FSEM 101-03 (CRN: 51491): “Video Game Culture”
MWF 08:00-08:50
Professor Skenes

*Co-requisite: FSWI 101-03 (CRN: 51492): MWF 11:00-11:50 – Professor Rink

Description: This First-Year Seminar will give students a behind-the-scenes look at the cultural phenomenon of video games. The class will begin by looking at the history of video games from a technical standpoint and move into a discussion of the increasing role video games have played in culture and politics. From there, the course will move into a discussion of creative license and censorship in an artistic medium, and the various ways video games are treated in this manner. This will be followed by a discussion on historical accuracy and the integration of real-life events into a player-controlled story. As part of this historical accuracy section, students will be expected to model fundamental physics to predict how objects behave when acted upon by forces in the real world. The course will then address business models for creating video games and how they differ between AAA-level studios like Electronic Arts or Blizzard and indie developers on a shoestring budget. Finally, students will spend time studying the potential effects of video games on real-life actions, ranging from possible links to violence and addiction to therapeutic treatment and the development of fine motor skills.

FSEM 101-04 (CRN: 51493): “Machine Learning & Internet Things”
MWF 10:00-10:50
Professor Aggarwal

*Co-requisite: FSWI 101-04 (CRN: 51494) MWF 11:00-12:15 – Professor Scott

Description: Coming Soon!

FSEM 101-05 (CRN: 51495) : “Cybersecurity & Humans”
TR 08:00-09:15
Professor Sahin

*Co-requisite: FSWI 101-05 (CRN: 51496): TR 09:30-10:45 – Professor Vilouta Vasquez

Description: This course introduces cybersecurity as a critical domain shaping modern society and everyday life. While cybersecurity is often viewed as highly technical, this course approaches it through the lens of the human experience. Technology does not exist in isolation, but it reflects human choices, values, behaviors, and vulnerabilities. At the same time, the systems we build shape our privacy, security, relationships, leadership decisions, and even national defense. It further explores the major sub-domains of cybersecurity, such as social engineering, network security, cryptography, digital forensics, and human-centered security, without requiring prior technical experience. Through interactive games, case studies, debates, applied activities, and reflective writing, students will examine how cyber systems are attacked, defended, regulated, and managed, and how human behavior remains at the center of both risk and protection.

The course emphasizes critical thinking, ethical reasoning, leadership responsibility, and real-world application rather than technical complexity. Students will leave with a broad understanding of cybersecurity career domains, risks, and responsibilities, as well as practical skills for personal digital security and thoughtful participation in an increasingly connected world.

FSEM 101-06 (CRN: 51497) : “Media Past & Present”
MW 14:30-15:45
Professor Wood

*Co-requisite: FSWI 101-06 (CRN: 51498): MWF 10:00-10:50 – Professor Livingston

Description: In tracing the history of media, the notions of progress and “newness” play a pivotal role. This course will situate various media technologies and theories of history in contexts that are both strange and familiar. In doing so, we shall see that media technologies often taken for granted represent a seminal shift in human history, while other seemingly “new” forms of communication are mere reinventions of the old. This course will map the emergence and effects of media, such as printed text, sound recording, film, radio, television, computer software, and social media. These media technologies will be studied in relation to empire building, extraterrestrial communication, virtual reality simulators, special effects, and more. As we study these historical moments and developments, we will consider how technology influences culture and the ways in which culture influences technology.

FSEM 101-07 (CRN: 51499): “Games & How to Win Them”
MWF 10:00-10:50
Professor Swart

*Co-requisite: FSWI 101-07 (CRN: 51500) TR 11:00-12:15 – Professor Spring

Description: In this FSEM 101, we will explore a variety of deterministic combinatorial games, including impartial and partisan games. For each game, we will determine winning strategies. Justifications will play an important role in this course. Games investigated may include Nim, Hex, and Hackenbush.

FSEM 101-08 (CRN: 51501): “Games & How to Win Them“
MWF 12:00-12:50
Professor Swart

*Co-requisite: FSWI 101-08 (CRN: 51502): TR 13:30-14:45 – Professor Spring

FSEM 101-09 (CRN: 51503): “History of the FBI“
TR 11:00-12:15
Professor Graves

*Co-requisite: FSWI 101-09 (CRN: 51504) TR 09:30-10:45 – Professor Hendriks

Description: This course introduces students to the history of the FBI as a prism through which to view the larger history of the United States’ approach to law enforcement and intelligence over the last 120 years. What began as a controversial, “federal” creation in the tenuous years following the Civil War eventually burgeoned into the FBI as we know it today—a large organization with the ability to investigate worldwide wrongdoings, led primarily through the work of special agents. This course will challenge traditional stereotypes of the Bureau by looking at specific instances in history, assessing spheres of power, and evaluating the impacts of popular figures (i.e., J. Edgar Hoover) on the Bureau’s development. The class will strengthen students’ ability to analyze and communicate different issues and be informed citizens concerning issues related to the FBI. Students will uncover the iterative nature of crime, espionage, and war, which led to paradigm shifts in American society.

FSEM 101-10 (CRN: 51505): “French Culture“
MWF 11:00-11:50
Professor Frask-Ramos

*Co-requisite: FSWI 101-10 (CRN: 51506) MWF 13:00-13:50 – Professor Booth

Description: The romantic language, the internationally beloved art, the sophistication, the fancy cuisine. What makes the French so… French? Find out in Culture of France where we’ll take a leisurely tour of France’s cultural traditions from their core values such as liberté, égalité, fraternité (liberty, equality and brotherhood) to their artistic legacy in literature and even their culinary creations! We’ll also be looking into their rich tradition of intellectualism as well as pivotal historical events. If you want to find out why the French are who they are, Culture of France is the class for you!

FSEM 101-11 (CRN: 51507): “Modern Americans, Modern Grit”
TR 08:00-08:50
Professor Leonard

*Co-requisite: FSWI 101-11 (CRN: 51508) TR 13:30-14:45 – Professor Vilouta Vazquez

Description: Coming Soon!

FSEM 101-12 (CRN: 51509): “Theory of Knowledge”
TR 08:00-09:15
Professor Ortiz

*Co-requisite: FSWI 101-12 (CRN: 51510) MWF 12:00-12:50 – Professor Booth

Description: In this course, students reflect on the nature of knowledge, and how we know what we claim to know. Through critical thinking and inquiry, they are encouraged to question assumptions, analyze different perspectives, and support their ideas with evidence. Rather than passively accepting information, students learn to engage actively with knowledge, construct reasoned arguments, and navigate its complexities with clarity and coherence.

FSEM 101-13 (CRN: 51511): “Reading Urban Spaces“
TR 09:30-10:45
Professor Mushal

*Co-requisite: FSWI 101-13 (CRN: 51512) TR 11:00-12:15 – Professor Leonard

Description: Why do different towns and cities look the way they do? How do geography, economic concerns, and cultural values shape a city? Can you tell a city’s history by looking at its buildings and roads? How do cities adapt to new challenges? This class will examine key aspects of urban development over the past three centuries. These will include 18th-century ideas of trade and ordering the landscape; 19th-century industrialization and the creation of new parks in cities; the role of commerce and transportation networks in shaping urban layout; the role of cars and other new technology in shaping building forms and urban expansion; and some of the challenges facing American cities today. We will discuss how each of these developments reflects larger social values, and how they have shaped experiences of urban life.

FSEM 101-14 (CRN: 51513): “Reading Urban Spaces“
TR 11:00-12:15
Professor Mushal

*Co-requisite: FSWI 101-14 (CRN: 51514) TR 09:30-10:45 – Professor Leonard

FSEM 101-15 (CRN: 51515): “Military & the Environment“
MWF 10:00-10:50
Professor Berry

*Co-requisite: FSWI 101-15 (CRN: 51516) MWF 13:00-13:50 – Professor Plichta

Description: The relationship between the military and the environment is unique. Rarely do humans intentionally cause complete and lasting destruction of the environment as they do during times of war. In this course, we will explore some of the environmental impacts of military actions and warfare, and examine alternatives.

FSEM 101-16 (CRN: 51517): “Growth Mindset“
TR 09:30-10:45
Professor Jones

*Co-requisite: FSWI 101-16 (CRN: 51518) TR 13:30-14:45 – Professor Frame

Description: Can we increase our intelligence, abilities, and talents or are they determined at birth? Are our minds fixed or can we grow them? Did you know that we can build new neural pathways that will allow our brains to function in new ways? Come and explore how our brain is a muscle, like others in the human body. In this course, we will explore how our brains learn. We will come to see obstacles as challenges and mistakes as opportunities for growth. We will also develop our resiliency and grit. We will learn what a growth mindset is and how to cultivate it. We will apply the growth mindset as we increase our intelligence and talents in the areas of art, communication, math, and science. This course will help you to become a lifelong learner.

FSEM 101-17 (CRN: 51519): “Growth Mindset“
TR 11:00-12:15
Professor Jones

*Co-requisite: FSWI 101-17 (CRN: 51520) TR 15:00-16:15 – Professor Frame

FSEM 101-18 (CRN: 51521): “Mixed Reality Education Games“
TR 09:30-10:45
Professor Annetta

*Co-requisite: FSWI 101-18 (CRN: 51522) MWF 11:00-11:50 – Professor Booth

Description: Students will both design and develop a Mixed Reality Serious Educational Game. Infusing mobile devices in the classroom is at the forefront of 21^st century learning. In this class, students will play through a variety of Mixed Reality Serious Educational Games and create a game using a design document provided for you and the Adobe Aero software application found in the Adobe Creative Cloud suite.

FSWI 101-21 (CRN: 51527): “Freshman Writing Seminar“
MWF 10:00-10:50
Professor Allen

Description: This is an opportunity to retake FSWI for upperclassman. It is being offered as a standalone 3 credit class as opposed to the typical linked course with FSEM.