SOC 275 - Charlotte: Problems and Promises

This course uses Charlotte and its surrounding areas as a case study for studying social problems. Each iteration of the course will focus on the most pressing social issues that face the City of Charlotte. The course instructor will identify two problems. By consulting with local experts and reading (listening and watching) the local news, students will identify and recommend two more areas of focus. These can include (but are not limited to): migration, climate change, transportation, public health, education inequalities, and criminal justice. A second unit will investigate the sociological roots of the problem, including the historical foundations of each of the identified problems. We will also read the most recent social scientific research to determine the mechanisms that ensure the reproduction of the identified social issues. Through this, students will encounter the various sociological theories (macro, mid-range, and micro) that scholars use to understand social problems. The third unit focus on theories of social change. It examines the solutions that researchers, activities, and policy experts propose for the problems that we identify. Students will explore how some of these ideas are being used in the City of Charlotte; they will also engage with some of the change-agents.

Satisfies Sociology major requirement
Satisfies Social-Scientific Thought requirement.