History and Politics Department

Department Faculty

Richard Follett
Jay Green
Cale Horne
Alicia Jackson
Paul Morton

Department Goals

The Department of History and Politics believes that historical thinking is an essential feature of faithful living. In our classes, we aim to help cultivate in students the skills, knowledge, and virtues necessary for thinking historically. To think historically is to read all dimensions of the creation with a keen and subtle awareness of how they were shaped by processes rooted in the remote and the recent past. It also involves understanding past events, ideas, institutions, and civilizations within their thick and varied contexts. The department offers both a major and minor in history to achieve these goals, as well as a concentration and minor in political studies to allow students to explore the dimensions of human governance and interstate relations, specifically.

For General Education

The department will help students taking history or politics courses within the core curriculum to understand the shape, political dynamics, and historical roots of the modern world and to ask questions within their own major fields informed by the realities of historical development.

For the Major

Majors are further assisted in developing a deeper understanding of certain aspects of the past and in thinking critically about the issues and problems of teaching and writing history as Christians. To that end, Introduction to History, Historiography, Senior Seminar in History, and the Senior Integration Paper are required for all history majors. Majors in history at Covenant have led to vocations in teaching, journalism, law, government service, pastoral ministry, academic scholarship, and a host of other fields that benefit from a strong foundation in research skills, writing aptitude, and general training in the liberal arts. For further information, the student is urged to consult with anyone within the Department of History and Politics.

Teacher Certification

History Pre-MAT

Students interested in teaching history for grades 6-12 should complete a BA degree with a major in history and then enroll in the one-year Master of Arts in Teaching at Covenant College. It is recommended that the Education Minor be completed. Three of the courses in the minor, EDU 121 Introduction to Teaching , EDU 222 Educational Psychology and EDU 361 Education of Exceptional Children , are required for admission to the MAT. For information about certification, see Teacher Certification under the Education section of the catalog.

Additionally, pre-MAT history majors must take the following specific courses as part of their history major:

Must take HIS 205 Georgia History (offered every other May Term) or transfer in to Covenant College an equivalent course.
HIS 213 Formation of Europe
At least two of the following courses:

HIS 218 Studies in U.S. Constitutional History , or
HIS 305 The History of Political Theory , or
HIS 340 20th Century U.S. Foreign Relations , or
POL 217 Presidential Politics and Elections

For more information see Dr. Sarah Donaldson in Brock Hall 316 (sarah.donaldson@covenant.edu).

Political Science Pre-MAT

Students who are interested in teaching political science for grades 6-12 should complete the history major with a political studies concentration and then enroll in the one-year Master of Arts in Teaching at Covenant College. It is recommended that the Education Minor be completed. Three of the courses in the minor, EDU 121 Introduction to Teaching , EDU 222 Educational Psychology and EDU 361 Education of Exceptional Children , are required for admission to the MAT. For information about certification, see Teacher Certification under the Education section of the catalog.

In addition, they must take the following History and Political Science courses:

HIS 218 Studies in U.S. Constitutional History
HIS 305 The History of Political Theory
POL 217 Presidential Politics and Elections
POL 200 , POL 202 ,and POL 210 (Two of these are already required in the major. A student doing the pre-MAT in political science must take all three.)

For more information see Dr. Sarah Donaldson in Brock Hall 316 (sarah.donaldson@covenant.edu).

Programs

Major

Minor and Concentrations

Pre-Professional

Pre-Law Studies

Courses

History Courses

Islamic Studies Courses

ISL 220 Introduction to Islam

Political Studies Courses