Peace and Justice Studies

Peace and Justice Studies at the University of Montevallo examines causes and consequences of economic disparity, institutionalized inequality, and strategies of peace building and conflict resolution.

UM’s location at the heart of the civil rights triangle in rural Alabama and our institutional history of working toward gender equity and inclusivity provides unique opportunities to pursue the work of a peace and justice studies minor. Our students explore community issues within global contexts to critically analyze race, gender, and class relations.

We offer students spaces for experiential education and community partnerships as well as scholarly engagement to learn the history of and techniques for conflict resolution, mediation, social change, and critical thinking. Minors may enhance their major field of study through our social justice framework and go on to become negotiators, community mediators, government officials, educators, businesspeople, organizers, and professionals in organizations focused on human rights, dispute resolution, environmental protection, international law, and human and economic development.

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Course Requirements

PJS 200 Introduction to Peace and Justice Studies (3 credits) – required

Exploration of issues, methods, and terminology essential to Peace and Justice Studies. Consists of readings, projects, and lecture-based study. Interdisciplinary course taught by UM professors in selected fields.

PJS 370/470 Special Topics in Peace and Justice Studies (3 credits) – required

Topics vary. Course may be repeated for credit as often as the topic changes.

Electives (12 credits) – list of approved electives announced each semester

Students must take four elective courses in at least three different disciplines. No more than two courses may be taken in any one discipline (includes cross-listings).

• AAS 200 – Introduction to African American Studies
• ART 326 – Special Topics**
• BIO 405 – Biological Topics in Environmental Studies**
• BL 283 – Legal Environment of Business
• COMS 141 – Interpersonal Communication
• COMS 355 – Intercultural Communication
• COMS 410 – Environmental Communication
• COMS 420 – Interpersonal Conflict Management
• COMS 435 – Social Movement Rhetoric
• COMS 460 – Seminar in Communication Studies**
• ENG 232 – Global Literature: Perspectives Within a Period or Location**
• ENG 405 – Studies in One or Two Authors**
• ENG 471 – African-American Literature
• ENG 472 – Literature from the Margins
• ENG 473 – Postcolonial Literature
• ENG 474 – Anglophone Literature**
• ENG 475 – Literature of Sexuality and Gender**
• ES 200 – Environment and Society
• ES 300 – Interdisciplinary Approaches to Environmental Studies
• HIST 424 – Colonial Latin America
• PHIL 220 – Ethics
• PHIL 300 – Special Topics in Philosophy**
• POS 333 – Gender in World Politics
• POS 335 – Identity Politics
• POS 340 – World Politics
• POS 350 – Model United Nations
• POS 360 – Citizenship and Public Service
• POS 446 – The Politics of Social Policy
• POS 455 – International Relations
• SOC 322 – Group Identities, Power and Difference
• SOC 324 – Social Stratification
• SOC 360 – Social Change
• MG 308 – Business and Society
• MG 371 – Nonprofit Organizations
• MG 400 – Globalization: National and International Issues
• MG 420 – Social Entrepreneurship and Sustainability
• MG 464 – Leadership and Organizational Change**
• NPS 371 – Nonprofit Organizations – Overview and Operations
• NPS 420 – Social Entrepreneurship and Sustainability
• SWK 203 – Introduction to Social Welfare and Social Work
• SWK 301 – Selected Topics in Social Work**
• SWK 373 – Social Policy

**Requires approval by PJS Coordinating Committee

Total: 18 credits

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PJS Courses Spring 2025

 

Cross-listed Course number	PJS number	Course title	Instructor	Max Seats
ENG 456	PJS 470	Writing about Place in Alabama	Mwenja	10
ENG 472	PJS 470	Decolonizing the Mind: Caribbean Literature from (Post)colonialism to Transnationalism	Rickel	5
FCS 386	PJS 370	Family Policy	Smith, J.	15
HIST 303	PJS 370	Robert E. Lee and the Lost Cause Myth	Day, J.	10
HIST 303	PJS 370	Robert E. Lee and the Lost Cause Myth	Day, J.	10
SOC 360	PJS 370	Social Change	Lowry	7
SWK 373	PJS 370	Social Policy	Tetloff	10
THEA 450	PJS 470	Performing the Promise Land	Pitchford	5

ENG 456 / PJS 470 Writing About Place in Alabama, Mwenja

MWF 1 – 1:50 pm

The goal of the class is to have students question their often-stereotyped impressions of Alabama—from both sides of the political spectrum—to better understand the vexing dichotomies we live with in this state. Such dichotomies include:

• having some of the poorest health outcomes in the nation while boasting world-class medical facilities
• having a low median income while having one of the richest zip codes in the nation
• being a state rich in biodiversity while having very few meaningful environmental protections
• being a state with very few Indigenous people—thanks to forced removal—but with one of the most significant Indigenous archaeological sites in the US
• Being a state that offered meaningful leadership in both the Confederacy and the Civil Rights movement
• And not a dichotomy, but an aspect of the state that isn’t widely recognized—we have an incredible variety in our geography that allows a great range of outdoor experiences as well as industries

Students who have taken this class all agree that they have a new appreciation for the incredible aspects of Alabama that aren’t represented by either left or right stereotypes.

ENG 472 / PJS 470 / AAS elective Decolonizing the Mind: Caribbean Literature from (Post)colonialism to Transnationalism, Rickel

TR 3:30–4:45 pm

This course considers the role that literature plays in decolonizing the mind. From Caribbean, American, and African American literature to Commonwealth and Anglophone literature, multiple literary fields often claim the influential writers whose works we will read in this course. As these authors and many of their characters move in and across the Caribbean, Africa, England, and the Americas, they problematize the cultural narratives that have supported slavery, colonialism, and continued cultural and economic exploitation. This course will examine how the selected texts deal with the paradox of challenging imperialism while using the language and literary forms that have been integral to its construction. It will pay particular attention to depictions of the Middle Passage, slavery, colonial education, anti-colonial nationalism, migration, and tourism. In doing so, the course will analyze how colonialism, inequitable postcolonial “development,” and contemporary economic and cultural imperialism produce transnational subjects in and beyond the Caribbean.

HIST 303 / PJS 370 Robert E. Lee and the Lost Cause Myth, Day

W 5:30 – 8 pm

This course will facilitate a close reading of various sources covering the American Civil War, Reconstruction, Jim Crow, and the aftermath of slavery.  Students will understand historical context from 1860 to the present, apply historical events to contemporary issues, and contemplate the impact of this historical thread to their world view.  In addition, an understanding of historiography will be crucial – how have historians depicted the war, its aftermath, and key military/political leaders over time?  Related topics such as the institution of slavery, lynchings, the Modern Civil Rights Movement, and the Equal Justice Initiative may be discussed as well.

SOC 360 / PJS 370 Social Change, Lowry

MWF 12 – 12:50 pm

Theories and processes of social change in advanced societies, with emphasis on demographic development, social movements, and collective behavior.

SWK 373 / PJS 370 Social Policy, Tetloff

MWF 12 – 12:50 pm

An introduction to the study of social policy with emphases on:  1) how social policy influences the lives of citizens; 2) how social policy influences the practice of social work, and 3) the resulting responsibilities of social work to try to influence social policy. Utilizing Critical Race Theory, Intersectionality Theory, and Conflict Theory, the course examines historical and structural causes of inequalities, especially based on race, ethnicity, and gender, and explores policy-based solutions for social problems such as poverty, systemic racism, and barriers to social needs.

THEA 450 / PJS 470 Performing the Promise Land, Pitchford

Performing the Promise Land would analyze and evaluate the conflict from a local and global perspective. First we would look briefly at the modern history of the land and people. Then we would read and discuss plays by Israelis and Palestinians living in the borders while writing their plays. Then we will explore plays written from a global perspective about the conflict. This will lead to either an individual evaluation of plays by Israeli and Palestinian playwrights that we did not read OR a class created Socratic Dialogue play considering the conflict and using the plays we study as support for arguments.

FCS 386- Family Policy, Joelle Smith

MWF 11 – 11:50 am

This course will explore the legal issues, policies, and laws influencing the well-being of families. Through the study and analysis of family policies and laws, students will gain an understanding of how families contribute to and are affected by social problems, as well as their role as Family and Consumer Science (FCS) professionals in the shaping of public policy. Restricted to students with junior or senior status.

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2024-2025 Peace and Justice Studies Committee Members

The charge of the Peace and Justice Studies Committee is to guide and support the interdisciplinary Peace and Justice Studies Program. Peace and justice studies at University of Montevallo will examine causes and consequences of economic disparity, institutionalized inequality, and strategies of peace building and conflict resolution. Specifically, committee members will develop and approve peace and justice course curricula; teach, co-teach, or guest lecture courses for credit in the Peace and Justice Studies Program; assist with creating, utilizing, and maintaining community partnerships; and serve as ambassadors of the Peace and Justice Studies Program on the University of Montevallo campus and in the community. The committee will approve by consensus the courses accepted for credit in the Peace and Justice Studies Program on a semester-by-semester basis. The committee member structure is designed to collaborate with and enhance other programs on and off campus and to co-sponsor events and activities related to peace and justice scholarship and practice. The committee reports to the Provost.

Committee Member	Term*	Term #	Position
Jennifer Rickel	22-25	NA	Co-Coordinator, ex officio, & Co-Chair
Meredith Tetloff	22-25	NA	Co-Coordinator, ex officio, & Co-Chair
Andrea Eckelman	22-25	2	CAS, representing ES
Maxine Morgan	24-27	1	CAS, representing African American Studies
Deb Lowry	22-25	2	CAS
Leonor Vazquez-Gonzalez	22-25	2	CAS, representing LAS
Amiee Mellon	24-27	1	COB, representing Nonprofit Studies
Latofia Parker	22-25	1	CEHD
Catherine Walsh	22-25	2	CFA
Joyce Jones	23-26	1	Community Outreach
JaKobe Walker	24-25	1	Student (non-voting)