Political Science
Dr. Stephen M. Krason, chair
The Department of Political Science answers the call given by the Church of articulating a true understanding of the integration of faith, reason, and culture. The study of political life and more broadly of social, economic, legal, cultural, scientific, and human life questions, which is done in the Department’s programs, proceeds from a Catholic understanding of the human person, his social relationships, the natural law that governs his conduct and his final end in God.
Assessment Learning Goals
At the completion of the required coursework for the Political Science major, graduates will:
- Demonstrate an understanding and appreciation of the proper philosophical and ethical bases of politics;
- Develop a familiarity with the greatest works of Western political philosophy;
- Demonstrate a good, basic understanding of the discipline of political science and the means of doing sound research in the discipline;
- Demonstrate a strong background in American politics and government and in the political philosophy undergirding them;
- Demonstrate a strong basic understanding in the other major fields in the discipline: international politics, comparative politics, and public law;
- Demonstrate basic knowledge in papal social and political teachings;
- Demonstrate an increased understanding of political developments in the world around them; and,
- Exhibit an overall intellectual understanding in the highest traditions of the liberal arts so as to better enable them to challenge the prejudices and ideologies of the world and see truth more clearly.
Political Science Course Descriptions