OAKS - Oakes College

OAKS 1 Academic Literacy and Ethos: Communicating Diversity for a Just Society

Teaches foundational concepts for intellectual exploration and personal development within an academic community: analysis, critical thinking, metacognition, engagement with others across difference, and self-efficacy. The Oakes core course considers the intersections between reading, personal and social identities, and social justice.

Credits

5

Instructor

The Staff

Requirements

Enrollment is restricted to first-year college members.

Quarter offered

Fall

OAKS 1A Introduction to University Life and Learning

Orientation to and exploration of the nature of the liberal arts, and of learning at research universities. Topics include: academic planning for upper-division coursework; enrollment processes; and understanding pathways to degree completion; UCSC resources that support health and well-being strategies for academic success; the cultivation of just communities; the prevention of sexual harassment and violence; campus conduct policies; awareness of risks associated with drug and/or alcohol use; and an introduction to traditions of community-engaged learning, ground-breaking research, and interdisciplinary thinking that define a UC Santa Cruz degree. This course can be taken for Pass/No Pass grading only.

Credits

1

Instructor

Nirshan Perera

Requirements

Enrollment is restricted to entering first-year Oakes College students.

Quarter offered

Summer

OAKS 3L Precalculus Academy Lab

Students use worksheets designed to help them solve problems by thinking critically, and participate in answering project-based questions relevant to the themes of their college core courses. Prerequisite(s): Mathematics 2 or placement (MP) score of 200 or higher. Concurrent enrollment in Mathematics 3 is required. Enrollment is by permission of the instructor.

Credits

2

Repeatable for credit

Yes

OAKS 10 Academic Success

Provides opportunity to assess and revise methods of and purposes in studying. Critical, effective approaches to reading, writing, participating in lectures and sections, taking exams, balancing competing responsibilities, and utilizing campus resources explored. Enrollment by permission of college adviser.

Credits

2

Instructor

Lindsay Knisely

Quarter offered

Fall, Winter

OAKS 11 Foundation of Leadership

Teaches leadership skills to create effective teams, and motivates individuals to communicate effectively with teammates with different styles. Enrollment is restricted to first-year and sophomore college members and by permission of instructor.

Credits

3

General Education Code

PR-E

OAKS 26 Navigating the University From a Black Critical Lens

Explores critical engagement in education within the U.S. research university context. Introduces sociohistorical perspectives on how new students (frosh and transfer) can navigate the opportunities and challenges of the institution's academic life from a critical race and decolonial theoretical lens. Provides strategies to define goals, develop an action-oriented plan toward academic, career, and civic-oriented outcomes, and examine and build students' own social and cultural capital.

Credits

2

Instructor

Aaron Jones

Quarter offered

Fall, Spring

OAKS 30 Thesis Writing and Editing

Substantial writing and revision for a piece of writing relevant to a student's field. Focuses on academic research, documentation, editing, and revision. Enrollment restricted to junior and senior college members. Enrollment by permission of instructor.

Credits

2

Repeatable for credit

Yes

OAKS 46 Multiracial Visibility Project

The purpose of the class is to bring visibility to multiracial and multicultural populations on college campuses. Students explore readings and other course content to understand the experiences of multiracial people. They explore different ways to advocate for multiracial people who may not have space or a voice in research or in popular cultural outlets (e.g., mainstream media). The goal is to raise awareness of multiracial people by elevating multiracial students' voices and experiences.

Credits

5

Instructor

LaTecia Yarbrough

Requirements

Enrollment is restricted to Oakes College affiliates.

General Education Code

ER

Quarter offered

Fall, Winter, Spring

OAKS 47 Building an Inner Sanctuary

Through experiential methodologies of self-leadership and mind-body practices, this course encourages students to discover and flex those internal resources which enhance resilience, foster psycho-emotional and community-building skills, and affirm their cultural dignity. Enrollment is by application and permission of the instructor. First-pass enrollment is restricted to Oakes students. Second-pass enrollment open to all students.

Credits

2

Instructor

Silvia Austerlic

Requirements

First-pass enrollment is restricted to Oakes students. Second-pass enrollment is open to all students.

OAKS 48 Slugs Speak: Our Stories, Our Selves

Students learn about the power of story to make change through this Storytelling for Justice project. Students practice developing personal life stories, learn to create and facilitate community space, and participate in a community storytelling event focused on intersectional identities.

Credits

2

Instructor

Mark Gardner

Requirements

Enrollment is restricted to Oakes College affiliates or by instructor permission.

General Education Code

PR-S

Quarter offered

Winter

OAKS 60 Oakes Literary Journal: Further Reflections on a Diverse Society

For publication in an Oakes College literary journal, students significantly refine an essay from the fall quarter Oakes College core course. Course work includes consideration of a substantive text that engages core course themes and promotes the focus of the essay.

Credits

2

Requirements

Prerequisite(s): OAKS 80A or OAKS 80B. Enrollment is restricted to first-year students.

Repeatable for credit

Yes

OAKS 67 The Politics of Food: Labor and Social Justice

Engages the themes of Oakes College (respect for diversity and social justice) and the interests of UCSC's Center for Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems. Topics include the racial politics of food, farm labor, organic farming, and activism.

Credits

2

Instructor

Mark Baker, Robin King

Requirements

Prerequisite(s): OAKS 1. Enrollment is restricted to Oakes College affiliates.

Repeatable for credit

Yes

OAKS 70 Diverse Voices in Contemporary American Women's Poetry

Students examine issues in the work of contemporary American women poets representing a range of cultural, sexual, socioeconomic, and ideological identities. Discussion focuses on theories of poetics as well as poetry analysis and interpretation within the context of social and cultural identity. Students create a portfolio of their own poetry in response to weekly prompts.

Credits

2

Instructor

Lindsay Knisely

Requirements

Enrollment restricted to Oakes College members.

Repeatable for credit

Yes

General Education Code

PR-C

OAKS 72 Building the Strength to Love and Dream: Oakes Oral History Project

Students study the founding and development of Oakes College through oral history. Students immerse themselves in thorough background research and build skills necessary to conduct oral histories with previous Oakes affiliates, revising pieces suitable for publication.

Credits

5

Instructor

Leslie Lopez

Requirements

Prerequisite(s):satisfaction of Entry Level Writing and Composition requirements. Enrollment is restricted to College members; other students may contact the instructor for a permission code.

OAKS 73B Oakes College Mentoring: Service Learning Practicum

Mentors introduce first-year students to campus resources, provide them with academic support, share academic successes and difficulties, and offer guidance on college adjustment. Enrollment is restricted to College members. Please apply to be a mentor or a mentee online on the Oakes College Mentoring website.

Credits

2

Instructor

Lindsay Knisely

Repeatable for credit

Yes

General Education Code

PR-S

Quarter offered

Fall

OAKS 75 Oakes Student Development and Leadership Theory

Overview of theories, methods, applications, skills, and special topics focusing on college student development and leadership. Uses a variety of learning modes including lecture, discussion, case studies, small group interaction, and presentations. Interview only: see Oakes coordinator for residential education during spring enrollment period. Enrollment restricted to Oakes College members.

Credits

2

Instructor

The Staff

Repeatable for credit

Yes

OAKS 76 Social Geography and Justice in Santa Cruz

Explores how social identities, life practices, and power are reflected and shaped by the spaces and places we live in. Combines local history and contemporary research with placements in the community focusing on justice for children, youth, and families; topics vary by year and seek to build on the understanding and community relationships advanced through winter quarter research.

Credits

5

Instructor

Leslie Lopez

Requirements

Prerequisite(s): Oakes core course. Restricted to Oakes College members; others by permission of instructor.

General Education Code

PR-S

OAKS 80H Rainbow Theater Cultural Studies

Introduction to multicultural theater and multicultural plays that aims to bring cultural awareness to all students interested in theater discipline. Students are required to read and critically analyze contemporary plays of color with emphasis on race and culture in contemporary American society.

Credits

5

Instructor

Donald Williams

Repeatable for credit

Yes

Quarter offered

Fall, Winter

OAKS 93 Field Study

Supervised off-campus study conducted under the immediate and direct guidance of a faculty supervisor. To be used primarily by lower-division students doing part-time off-campus study. Prerequisite(s): approval of student's adviser, certification of adequate preparation, approval of provost.

Credits

5

Repeatable for credit

Yes

OAKS 94F Group Tutorial

A program of independent study arranged between a group of students and a faculty instructor. Students submit petition to sponsoring agency.

Credits

2

Repeatable for credit

Yes

OAKS 95 Directed Reading

Directed reading on selected topics in literature. Students submit petition to sponsoring agency.

Credits

5

OAKS 99 Tutorial

Individual study for lower-division students directed by a fellow of Oakes. Students submit petition to sponsoring agency.

Credits

5

Repeatable for credit

Yes

OAKS 99F Independent Study

Independent study on various topics to be arranged between student and instructor. Students submit petition to sponsoring agency.

Credits

2

Repeatable for credit

Yes

Quarter offered

Fall, Winter, Spring

OAKS 130 Writing Resistance: Creative Writing Workshop

Engages diasporic and people of color (POC) writers whose work inspires social justice. Through course materials and creative exercises, students examine and break down the roadblocks that create silence. Focuses on the craft of writing, and revision and performance to create socially relevant and powerful words through community engagement.

Credits

5

General Education Code

PR-S

OAKS 134 Diasporic Central Americans

Engages literature and culture from multiple generations of diasporic Central Americans in the U.S. whose work inspires conversations on politics and identity. Through course materials and oral history projects, examines the (in)visibility of this emergent Latinx group. Focus on oral history, aesthetics, poetics, and projects of representation.

Credits

5

Instructor

Maya Chinchilla

OAKS 150 Queer History and Theory in the United States

Gives students a broad overview of the historical and social construction of queer identities in the United States. Through assigned readings and archival research, students contribute to the project of documenting queer history in the present. Students also examine how queer theory addresses the meanings that U.S. politics and culture have placed on sexual orientation over time.

Credits

5

Instructor

Philip Longo

Requirements

Enrollment is restricted to junior and senior Oakes College members.

OAKS 151A Corre la Voz: Community Literacies and Power Seminar

Required seminar for first-quarter students in the Corre la Voz program. Examines theories, curriculum design, and teaching methods that emphasize social connection, leadership, verbal enrichment, multi-modal literacies, and community empowerment. Taken concurrently with field study. Prerequisite(s): satisfaction of the Entry Level Writing and Composition requirements. Co-requisite(s): course 151B. Enrollment is by interview only and successful application to the Corre la Voz program.

Credits

2

Cross Listed Courses

EDUC 151A

Instructor

Leslie Lopez

Repeatable for credit

Yes

OAKS 151B Community Literacies Field Study

Field study for Corre la Voz interns. Intensive on-site training and participation in team teaching of dual-language (Spanish English) students (4th-5th grade). Literacies include social-emotional, expressive (artistic/dramatic), collaborative problem-solving, academic, and use of digital tools as well as traditional tools. Enrollment by interview only, and successful application to the Corre la Voz program. Concurrent enrollment in OAKS 151A is required during the first quarter after which OAKS 151B may be repeated by itself.

Credits

3

Cross Listed Courses

EDUC 151B

Instructor

Leslie Lopez

Repeatable for credit

Yes

General Education Code

PR-S

OAKS 152 Transformative Literacies

Combines a seminar on critical inquiry into different theories and practices of transformative literacy work with community-service placement or a creative project to assist a local organization in its mission communicating internally and externally.

Credits

5

Instructor

Leslie Lopez

Requirements

Prerequisite(s): Enrollment is restricted to Oakes College members. Other students may enroll by permission of the instructor.

General Education Code

PR-S

Quarter offered

Winter

OAKS 153 Community Mapping

Students study the theories and methods of community mapping, and work in research teams to design and conduct social-research projects. Emphasizes research questions that focus on assets and capacities, as well as on participatory-action research for justice.

Credits

5

Instructor

Leslie Lopez

Requirements

Prerequisite(s): satisfaction of Entry Level Writing and Composition requirements. Enrollment is restricted to Oakes College members and community studies majors.

Repeatable for credit

Yes

General Education Code

PR-S

Quarter offered

Winter

OAKS 155 Research for Social Justice: Special Topics

Examines how social science research informs advocacy and advances social justice issues. Students analyze quantitative and qualitative data and use evidence-based findings to create a final advocacy project. Students will strengthen skills for developing research questions, interpreting qualitative and quantitative data, articulating research findings, and effectively communicating research for advocacy and public outreach. Relevant for students interested in careers in advocacy, policy, and nonprofit work.

Credits

5

Requirements

Enrollment is restricted to Oakes College affiliates during first-pass enrollment; open to all students at the start of second-pass enrollment.

Repeatable for credit

Yes

General Education Code

SI

OAKS 160 Cuir Américas

Advanced seminar on the politics of knowledge production and translation in queer theory across the Américas, considering the meaning and construction of queer/cuir in three languages. Students develop bibliographies of academic and activist work addressing the lives of queer/trans people throughout the Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking Américas, including U.S. Latinx communities. Examines gaps in translation in this field, and students practice translation of work specific to sexual minority communities based on their language training and proficiency. Class works from the language and community expertise of students in the course inspired by bilingual poetics. Final projects produce a translation of a significant article or chapter-length work in queer theory from Spanish, Portuguese, or English to another one of these languages.

Credits

5

Cross Listed Courses

Prerequisites: SPAN 6, SPHS 6, or PORT 65B; or submission of a writing sample in either Spanish or Portuguese for instructor approval. Course requires language and composition proficiency in Spanish or Portuguese.

Cross Listed Courses

FMST 160

Requirements

Prerequisites: SPAN 6, SPHS 6, or PORT 65B; or submission of a writing sample in either Spanish or Portuguese for instructor approval. Course requires language and composition proficiency in Spanish or Portuguese.

General Education Code

CC

Quarter offered

Spring

OAKS 167 Food Systems: Culture, Social Justice, Sustainability

Examines the complexities of food systems with special attention to labor practices, food access, and food production. Students consider the nature of culture in advancing problematic notions of food options and sustainability. A service-learning project is required.

Credits

5

Instructor

Mark Baker, Robin King

Requirements

Enrollment is restricted to sophomore, junior, and senior Oakes students. Non-Oakes affiliated students may email instructor for a permission code.

General Education Code

PR-S

Quarter offered

Fall

OAKS 185 Tracing Health

Firsthand experience with the global pandemic of COVID-19. Students train as certified contact tracers in partnership with the Public Health Institute's Tracing Health Program and work as bilingual contact tracers as part of the field study. Teaches essential skills in helping members of marginalized communities stay safe and prevent further spread of SARS-COV-2. Trainings emphasize public health protocols and cultural/linguistic competency in promoting positive health behaviors related to COVID-19. Introduces students to theories of public health, health disparities, and effective strategies for community-based health interventions. Students must be bilingual and culturally competent in English and Spanish, Mandarin, Cantonese, Tagalog, or an indigenous language of Mexico or Central America. Interview required for acceptance in the class. Contact oakscara@ucsc.edu for instructions on applying.

Credits

5

General Education Code

PE-H

Quarter offered

Spring

OAKS 188B Legal Field Practice: Professional Skills and Ethics

Offers placement, standards, and support during on-site experiential training in professional skills and ethics for students working in the legal field or with legal information to empower under-served communities. Previous or concurrent enrollment in LGST 188A or OAKS 188A and by permission of instructor.

Credits

3

Cross Listed Courses

LGST 188B

Instructor

Marina Garcia

Repeatable for credit

Yes

General Education Code

PR-S

OAKS 189 Building Websites for Social Change

In this fast-paced course, students learn to build an interactive, user-centered websites that serve the needs of a social justice organization. First half of the course involves learning the basics of Wordpress design, meeting with stakeholders, and helping them articulate their objectives and target audiences. Second half focuses on teamwork as students work with content to develop a Wordpress site and a short user guide for our partners. Lab-based, hands-on course with minimal homework requirements.

Credits

2

Instructor

Tonia Beglari

Requirements

Prerequisite(s): Entry Level Writing and Composition requirements. Oakes College affiliates have preference; other students email instructor for permission.

Repeatable for credit

Yes

General Education Code

PR-S

OAKS 192 Directed Student Teaching

Teaching a lower-division seminar under faculty supervision. (See course 42.) Prerequisite(s): upper-division standing in Oakes; a proposal supported by a faculty member willing to supervise.

Credits

5

OAKS 193 Field Study

Supervised off-campus study conducted under the immediate and direct guidance of a faculty supervisor. To be used primarily by upper-division students doing part-time off-campus study. Prerequisite(s): approval of student's adviser, certification of adequate preparation, approval of provost. If taking two or more such courses in any one quarter, must obtain approval of academic adviser.

Credits

5

OAKS 195 Senior Thesis

Senior thesis related to college-sponsored individual majors. Students submit petition to sponsoring agency. Sponsoring faculty must be member of individual major committee.

Credits

5

Repeatable for credit

Yes

OAKS 198 Independent Field Study

College-sponsored individual study programs off campus for which faculty supervision is not in person (e.g., supervision is by correspondence). Up to three such courses may be taken for credit in any one quarter. Prerequisite(s): approval of the student's adviser, certification of adequate preparation, and approval by provost.

Credits

5

Repeatable for credit

Yes

OAKS 199 Tutorial

Individual study for junior and senior members of Oakes College directed by a fellow of Oakes. Students submit petition to sponsoring agency.

Credits

5

Repeatable for credit

Yes

Quarter offered

Fall, Winter, Spring

OAKS 199F Tutorial

Independent study on various topics to be arranged between student and instructor. Students submit petition to sponsoring agency.

Credits

2

Repeatable for credit

Yes

Quarter offered

Fall, Winter, Spring

Cross-listed courses that are managed by another department are listed at the bottom.

Cross-listed Courses

LALS 128 Latino Media in the U.S

Explores the history and practice of Latino media in the U.S. with an emphasis on work created by, for, with, and about Latino constituencies. Course highlights the role that media plays in struggles for social change, political enfranchisement, creative self-expression, and cultural development. Course content varies with instructor.

Credits

5

Cross Listed Courses

OAKS 128

Instructor

Leslie Lopez

General Education Code

IM

LALS 80D Political Change in Mexico

Reviews broad trends in contemporary Mexican politics against the backdrop of long-term historical, social, and economic change throughout the 20th century, analyzing how power is both wielded from above and created from below. The course covers national politics, grassroots movements for social change and democratization, environmental challenges, indigenous movements, the media, and the politics of immigration and North American integration.

Credits

5

Cross Listed Courses

OAKS 80D

General Education Code

CC

LGST 188A Introduction to the Legal Profession and Legal Aid Work

Offers a basic introduction to key aspects of the Legal Profession, generally, as well as an introduction to the specific area of the profession known as Legal Aid -- the system and services through which under-served communities gain access to legal services. Course covers key elements of the legal profession and legal aid work, offering practical information and training on topics such as professional responsibility, ethics, confidentiality, interviewing skills, record keeping, communication, and working with diverse clients. It is particularly designed as a preparation or companion course for law-related internships and field student through courses such as OAKS 188B / LGST 188B (3 credits), OAKS 199, or LGST 185 Internship (5 credits). Enrollment by permission of the instructor.

Credits

2

Cross Listed Courses

OAKS 188A

Instructor

Henry Martin

Quarter offered

Winter