Goals Fulfilled:

CTZN 110, Inquiry into Citizenship, which I satisfactorily completed during the Fall 2019 semester, fulfilled the first of my eight Honors course requirements as well as my Civitae First Year Foundations Level course requirement for Inquiry into Citizenship. I previously fulfilled my Civitae First Year Foundations Level course requirement for Writing and Rhetoric through a dual enrollment course offered through Liberty University, ENGL 101, Composition & Rhetoric, while in high school.

Reflection:

When I first discovered one of my degree requirements at Longwood University was a “Citizenship” course, I was perplexed. I initially imagined it would be some sort of enhanced Social Studies or generalized Political Science class, but I could not have been more wrong. What I ultimately came to find through this aptly described “Inquiry into Citizenship,” as well as through Longwood’s Civitae course curriculum as a whole, was that every aspect of it served a singular purpose: shaping well-rounded and fully informed citizen-scholars and inspiring them to one day change America and the world.

CTZN 110 was one of two Honors courses I took during my first semester Freshman year. My particular section centered around Suzanne Collins’ Hunger Games trilogy, through which we explored and compared Katniss Everdeen’s experiences with the authoritarian government of Panem to our own experiences in modern-day America. My professor, Jennifer Beach, is a librarian on campus who works extensively with students in the History, Political Science, and Philosophy Departments (i.e. me), so our class focused primarily on the political institutions of Collins’ future dystopia. Alongside our readings, we learned invaluable skills and techniques for writing and research as students in the Cormier Honors College (CHC).

Professor Beach was one of the most supportive teachers I have ever had. While much of her class revolved around discussions of Collins’ Hunger Games, Catching Fire, and Mockingjay novels, an equal amount of time was spent by each student preparing and presenting two informal speeches through which we summarized previous nights’ required readings as well as three formal presentations on citizenship issues of our choice. I was incredibly nervous to write five speeches, even more so when I discovered I had to record myself presenting two of them for the entire class to view, and my fear of failure was debilitating. Professor Beach graciously offered to view my drafts and gave me tips for improvement; by the time I presented my final speech live in front of the entire class, I was more than comfortable speaking to an audience and received an unfathomable “A.”

As I have continued to embark upon various academic pursuits, Professor Beach has consistently provided priceless advice and assistance, and I am eternally grateful for her kindness.

My first presentation was an informational speech entitled “Authoritarianism and Bias in Our Educational System and Panem’s,” in which I explored the nationalistic biases embedded into public school curricula by American state and federal legislatures, comparing and contrasting them to the propaganda and misinformation campaigns undertaken by the oppressive Capitol regime in The Hunger Games. My second presentation was a persuasive speech entitled “The Shameful Institution of Capital Punishment in America,” in which I advocated for an end to the death penalty and capital punishment in the United States. My third and final speech, entitled “Congressional Authority over Surveillance Classification,” was presented in person as part of a panel discussion on privacy and surveillance, in which my group discussed contemporary efforts to surveil American citizens and the societal implications raised by the implementation of such efforts by the federal government.

All three of these speeches may be found in document or video form below.