A minority studies class is being planned for the fall, the coordinator said.
By Andrea Moreno
sac-ranger@alamo.edu
For students interested in learning how behavior can change society, sociology is the right field of study, sociology Coordinator Bea Perez said Feb. 21.
Students interested in sociology can seek an Associate of Arts degree from this college before transferring.
Most students in this field transfer to the University of Texas at San Antonio or Texas A&M University-San Antonio, Perez said.
This field is very broad, Perez said in an interview.
Students who choose a sociology degree have multiple career choices, she said.
“Sociology provides a background for various careers including research, education, business and industry, government, justice system, community nonprofits and social services, public health, consulting, as well as preparation for advanced training in professional fields,” Perez said.
“We study the people, we solve social problems, we study and do the research,” she continued.
Courses teach methods of research, ways to construct research and the importance of ethics and research.
Through the courses, students learn about poverty, gender, race and inequality, Perez said.
Sociology majors are required to take SOCI 1301, Introduction to Sociology; and SOCI 1306, Social Problems.
Students will choose one course from SOCI 2301, Marriage and the Family; SOCI 2336, Criminology; and SOCI 2340, Drug Use and Abuse.
SOCI 2319, Minority Studies, may be available as early as fall 2018, Perez said.
“I am developing the course and will teach it,” she said.
The course will provide the understanding of problems minorities face in their lives.
“They will learn the multiple identities such as gender, race and social class,” she said. “When put together, it will impact individuals in society.”
Perez said it will also provide more information of “power and privilege where one group may benefit at the expense of another.”
Students should take a sociology course even if it is not a requirement for the major because it helps to know the background of people, their lifestyles and challenges they may have, she said.
“We do have a lot of nursing students, (and) we have been discussing possibly really taking our intro sociology classes and really crafting it to nursing,” she said.
For example, it would be good if nurses had the knowledge on how to work with the variety of people they deal with daily, she said.
Students in the social problems course will do a project using photographs to create awareness of suicide and then the photographs will be exhibited later this semester.
A date for the exhibit opening has not been set.
“Last semester, the social problems class did a photo voice qualitative method project based off food and insecurity, and students needed to take photographs that are used to draw attention to social issues,” Perez said.
For more information, contact Perez at 210-486-1327.