Topics not regularly offered in a department'snormal course offerings, chosen based on currentstudent interest and faculty expertise. Specialtopic courses can only be offered 3 times; afterthis, the course must be approved as a regularcourse. Graded A-F or Pass/Fail.

This course is one of four courses that make upthe Chesapeake Semester and addresses the naturalscience of the estuary, including the formation ofestuaries, physical oceanography (tides, currents,salinity, etc.), chemical and biologicaloceanography, and many elements of estuarineecology. We focus on the ecology and speciesfound in Chesapeake estuarine habitats (saltmarsh, mud flats, sandy beaches, etc.), but willalso address elements of topical systems (coralreef, mangrove and even tropical rain forestecology) to support comparative study during ourtrip to Belize. We will also address some of themore pressing anthropogenic impacts on theestuarine environment including the causes of sealevel rise, ocean acidification, nutrient loadingand habitat fragmentation and their effects ofestuarine habitats and food webs. The courseincludes critical thinking at all levels, in-classand in-the-field lab exercises designed toreinforce course content and sharpen analyticalskills, cooperative work and learning, andcross-disciplinary links with the other threecourses of the Chesapeake Semester.

The focus of this piece of the semester is toexplore the social aspects of the Chesapeake Bayand its watershed, including its people, history,and their complex relationships with one anotherand the environment. Students will cover a widerange of topics, drawing on the disciplines ofanthropology and archaeology, economics,geographic information systems, history, politicalscience and sociology. Students also will explorethe ways in which these approaches may be informedby other disciplines, such as those in thehumanities and natural sciences. Intersectionsbetween disciplines and integrating differentkinds of knowledge are essential. A substantialamount of learning will take place in the field,with particular design and focus around theJourney Around the Chesapeake: A Sense of Placeand History.

This section of the Chesapeake Semester offers ahumanistic perspective on the Chesapeake Bay. Oneway to think about this part of the course wouldbe the most familiar: just as you will beexploring the organic life of the Bay from theperspective of the natural and social sciences, sotoo you will encounter, in both readings,discussions, and your various field experiences,cultural artifacts of the Bay in terms of music,philosophy, the visual arts, and writing. However,to develop any understanding of the Bay, be itscientific or poetic or philosophical oranthropological, the student must learn to see andhear and think and write, as Thoreau puts it, withdeeper references. Writing and thinking andcreating are also organic endeavors. In thissense, our course is an exploration not just ofthe humanities of the Bay- arts, ethics,literature, writing-but of the humanisticunderstanding that you will bring to all thecomponents of the Chesapeake Semester, that youwill demonstrate (the expectation) in your finalproject, and that you will translate (the hope)into your future studies and endeavors beyond thiscourse and the college.

The Chesapeake Semester is a novel design ofintegrated experiential learning rooted inWashington College's strong traditions in liberallearning, coupled with its rich historicalheritage and natural setting. This course buildsupon three additional courses: CRS 242, CRS 240,and CRS 244 and helps to deliver elements of eachcourse curricula in the field, dissolvingdisciplinary boundaries and makingtrans-disciplinary connections. Environmentalpolicy and natural resource management are keytopics, as students explore the rules andregulations that govern society's use of our mostprecious resources. Food production and foodsystems are analyzed as a key but oftencontroversial linkage between environment andsociety. An additional area of focus for thiscourse is the global nature of the problems thatwe face in the Chesapeake, using our experiencesin Central America as a means to compare andcontrast coastal environments around the world.Students will use interdisciplinary tools like theChesapeake Semester Intersections to help framethese concepts. A substantial amount of learningwill take place in the field with particulardesign and focus around the journey Resources andRegulations of the Chesapeake. Finally, thiscourse will explore the ways in which a fullerunderstanding of place and people can be used toconstruct visions for the future, empoweringpeople to take an active role in positivelyinfluencing society's impact on the natural world.In doing so, students will learn the elements ofbecoming student-citizen-leaders, taking on theevolving role as they explore the Chesapeakearea's rich culture and environment.

Topics not regularly offered in a department'snormal course offerings, chosen based on currentstudent interest and faculty expertise.

An introduction to archaeological fieldworkmethods and to the theoretical concerns ofanthropological archaeology. includesparticipation in archaeological survey andexcavation as well as lectures, readings, andwriting assignments. It typically is a six-weeksummer program, with a minimum obligation of 20hours per week. This course is open to allstudents.

Topics not regularly offered in a department'snormal course offerings, chosen based on currentstudent interest and faculty expertise.