Economic Justice

Description
This economic justice concentration focuses on the application of justice principles to different fields of economics, including microeconomics, macroeconomics, labor economics, public finance, development and international trade and investment, among others. Students will gain transdisciplinary knowledge of economic justice that will promote the growth of sustainable communities, locally, nationally and globally. Areas of focus include different approaches to economic justice, wealth and poverty, labor movements and unionization, social innovation, legal constructions of labor justice and forms of work discrimination, employment and welfare advocacy and activism. The course work in this concentration will prepare students to analyze and develop policies to build local skills; develop the capacity to design, control, manage and evaluate initiatives aimed at economically revitalizing communities; increase research abilities and lay the groundwork for new approaches to economic justice.

Requirements

• Students must complete a minimum of 18 credit hours including 12 of upper division hours for this concentration.
• A minimum of 12 hours must be taken as ASU.
• All courses must be completed with a grade of “C” (2.00) or higher.
• Students are required to complete 9 hours from both substantive areas: Race, Gender, Class, Citizenship & Economic Justice National and Global Justice. Courses must be from two or more academic areas.
• Students must participate in either a for-credit internship or in a Research Experience with Undergraduates (REU) under faculty supervision.
• * Course prerequisite: students are required to have completed a minimum of 36 semester hours and have a minimum 2.50 GPA to enroll in these courses.

Theories and Foundation in Economic Justice 3 Hours Required
Choose course from the following:

ASB 316 Money and Culture, L or SB (3) (Prerequisites: ENG 101, ENG 105, or ENG 107 with C or better)

ECN 360 Economic Development, SB & G (3) (Prerequisites: ECN 211/213, ECN 212/214, & MAT 211 or 271 with C or better)

JUS 321 Wealth Distribution and Poverty, SB & C (3)

JUS 323 Justice and Development of the Welfare State (3)

JUS 325 Globalization and Economic Justice, G (3) (credit is allowed for only JUS 325 or SGS 325)

Economic Justice Praxis 3 Hours Required
Choose course from the following:

ASB 328 Rules, Games and Society, L (3) (Prerequisites: must have 45 credit hours)

ECN 331 Economics of the European Economic Union, SB & G (3) (Prerequisites: ECN 211 or 213, ECN 212 or 214, and MAT 211 or 271 with C or better)

JUS 405 Economic Justice, (L or SB) & G (3)*

 PUP 434 Urban Land Economics (3) (Prerequisites: PUP 301 with C or better)

SGS 350 Economic Development and Globalization (3) 

SWU 432 Social Policy and Services (3) (Prerequisites: Social Work student; SWU 310 with C or better; ECN 111 or 211; POS 110 or 310; Co-requisites: SWU 410; SWU 412; SWU 413)

Interdisciplinary Components 9 Hours Required
Courses must be taken from both substantive areas listed below, and from two or more academic units.
Select in consultation with a Justice and Social Inquiry advisor.
Choose courses from the following:

Race, Gender, Class, Citizenship and Economic Justice

AIS 380 Contemporary Issues of American Indian Nations (3)

APA 350 Inequality and Diversity in Education (3)

ASB/POS/SGS 447 Citizenship, Nationalism, and Identity, SB & C (3) (Credit for only ASB 447, POS 447, or SBS 447)

CRJ 306 Race, Ethnicity and Criminal Justice, C (3) (Prerequisites: CRJ 100, CRJ 201 with a C or better)

HST 306 Studies in United States History, (HU or SB) & H (3)

HST 325 Immigration & Ethnicity in the United States, SB & H & C (3)

HST 333 African American History to 1865, SB & H & C (3) (Prerequisites: AFH 305 or AFR 210 or HST 109 or HST 326; Minimum 45 hours; credit for AFS 363 or HST 333)

IAS 305 Work and Identity, SB (3)

JUS 420 Women, Work and Justice, (L or SB) & C (3)*

JUS 425 Race, Gender and Justice, (L or SB) & C (3)*

JUS 438 Human Differences: Dilemmas of Justice, (L or HU) & C (3)*

SWU 374 Diversity and Oppression in a Social Work Context, C (3) (Pre/Co-requisite: SWU 310 with C or better if completed)

TCL 314 Transborder Regional Immigration and Economy, (L or SB) & H & C (3)

National and Global

AFS/JUS 304 Islands of Globalization Caribbean Politics and Political Economy, SB & G & H (3) (Prerequisites: AFS 200, or 45 completed hours; credit for JUS 304 or AFS 304)

ASB/SOC/SBS 342 Mexico-United States Borderlands, SB & C (3)

ECN 441 Public Economics, SB (3)

JUS 408 Comparative Development of the Welfare State, L & G (3)*

JUS 469 Political Deviance and the Law, (L or SB) & C (3)*

PHI 336 Social and Political Philosophy (3)

POS 480 Global Justice, G (3) (Prerequisites: Credit for only POS 480 or SBS 480)

POS 486 International Political Economy, SB & G (3)

Experiential Learning 3 Hours Required
Select in consultation with a Justice and Social Inquiry advisor.

A central element of this concentration will be the linkage of learning and doing; connecting theoretical and substantive learning about economic justice with practical knowledge about the workings of organizations and institutions seeking to address poverty and the wealth gap. To better connect classroom learning with practical experience, students will be required to participate in either a for-credit internship or a Research Experience with Undergraduates (REU) under faculty supervision (honors thesis may substitute). A written component to the internship or REU is required.

JUS 304 OR AFS 304 Islands of Globalization: Caribbean Politics and Political Economy, SB & G & H (3)