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Gonzaga’s Jesuit, Catholic, Humanistic education will challenge and inspire you.
FALL 2026
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BENG 193, FYS: Instructor: Sargent
BUSN 193, FYS: The Catholic Ethic of Business LLC. In this class, students will encounter a perspective on the business world through the lens of Catholic Social Teaching. Such exposure will provide a basis to learn about and interact in the marketplace as consumers, employees, entrepreneurs, and community members guided by principles (i.e. subsidiarity, solidarity, etc.) necessary for the market economy to uphold the dignity of the human person and promote the common good. Instructor: McNellis
CENG 193, FYS: Nature Based Solutions. As stated by the European Commission, nature-based solutions are: “solutions that are inspired and supported by nature, which are cost-effective, simultaneously provide environmental, social and economic benefits and help build resilience. Such solutions bring more, and more diverse, nature and natural features and processes into cities, landscapes, and seascapes, through locally adapted, resource-efficient and systemic intervention. Nature-based solutions must therefore benefit biodiversity and support the delivery of a range of ecosystem services.” Essentially, Nature Based Solutions are actions that work with and mimic nature to address societal challenges, while providing economic, social, and environmental benefits. Learning about nature-based solutions empowers students to become environmentally conscious individuals, equips them with problem-solving skills, and prepares them for a sustainable future. The goals of this seminar are to foster a sense of responsibility, connection with nature, and the ability to contribute to positive environmental change. This course explores nature-based solutions from an interdisciplinary perspective, focusing on the construction of knowledge across multiple disciplines. Students will examine how personal and cultural perspectives influence knowledge generation and a deeper understanding of nature-based solutions. The course also emphasizes integrating the principles of Gonzaga's mission with academic, personal, and spiritual aspirations as they relate to nature-based solutions. Instructor: Niezgoda
CENG 193, FYS: Infrastructure & Society. Through the exploration of civil engineering's many sub-disciplines, the course emphasizes the societal connections through mix of real-world project examples and activities. At the heart of this work is the recognition that equitable service to society requires that we seek to understand and incorporate the perspectives of those served by our work as well as understanding the past decisions and practices that have led us to where we are today. The course will emphasize the importance of community engagement, ethical considerations, sociology, public health, and sustainability in the design and implementation of engineering infrastructure. Fulfills a Social Justice (SJ) designation*. Instructor: Young
CLAS 193, FYS: Breaking Bread. Communal meals have a long and varied history in cultures across time and place. When people come together around shared meals, they often end up sharing far more than food. In this course, we will study the history of “breaking bread” (and all sorts of other foods as well!), beginning with the worlds of the ancient Mediterranean—Greece, Rome, Egypt, the Near East, and more. As part of our shared journey in this class, we will also be thinking about what functions shared meals serve in our contemporary world. Some of this will involve readings by historians, anthropologists, and chefs, but some of this will involve participating in shared meals with our local community. This course is what’s called a Community Engaged Learning course, which means that we will not just be learning with one another in the classroom, but also out in our local community, with community members we might not otherwise have the opportunity to dine and talk with. Over the course of the semester, we will partner with Campus Kitchen, Gonzaga Family Haven, Feast World Kitchen, and Manzanita House to spend time with one another and with members of our Spokane community. Instructor: Pistone
COMM 193, FYS: Relationshipping LLC. People need each other. Repeated studies show that relationships and feelings of connectedness are the keys to better mental health, improved cognition, and a longer, more joyful existence. So, if relationships can save us, then why is being with other people so… complicated? Drawing on a range of disciplines, this course will explore the ways relationships teach us how to love, how to grieve, how to live more emphatically, and how (and why) to establish boundaries. Most importantly, we will learn how other people not only sustain us but contribute to our growth. Since mediated relationships are part of our socialization, we will see how pop culture and celebrity inform us—teaching us relational norms of both what to do, even more likely, what not to do—when in the company of others. Course for students in first year Living Learning Communities. Instructor: Morehouse.
COMM 193, FYS: Mediated Politics. Instructor: Donaway.
CPEN 193, FYS: Computers, Robots, AI & Society. Today’s world is filled with electronic devices and computers. Driven by the ubiquity of these two basic technologies, disruptive advances in various fields, including internet, robotics, and artificial intelligence have emerged and are causing all aspects of the physical world in which we live to undergo a major transformation. In this course students will address the question of how to pursue knowledge and cultivate understanding in such a fast-changing world and how to predict and adapt to the uncertain societal impact of these transformations. Through the interwoven histories of science, technology, and art and their critical examination, we will try to shed light on how people see and experience the world of technology and its purpose in building a better future. The course will employ active learning through student presentations, student-led discussion, and sustained dialogue with other students, faculty and members of the academic and business communities. Students will be expected to be active participants, reading and listening carefully, and contributing to class discussion by bringing their unique perspective. Instructor: Talarico.
CPSC 193, FYS: Behind the Screens. Every time we use an iPhone, we use the interface that Apple made available to us. Every time we use Windows, we use the interface that Microsoft made available to us. Every time we use Chrome, we use the interface that Google made available to us. As you can imagine, this list goes on and on! Every day we use interfaces to access tech like phone apps, operating systems, and the web, but how does it all work and who makes it possible? From coding to cybersecurity to machine learning/AI, this class peeks “behind the screens” of the apps we use all the time. As we will see, it isn’t magic that makes it all work – it’s decades of algorithms and protocols exposed via clever interfaces designed by Software Engineers, Data Scientists, Security Engineers, UI/UX Designers, and other tech-savvy people. In this First Year Seminar (FYS) course, students will learn, at a high level, how these algorithms and protocols work. Instructor: Sprint
CRES 193, FYS: Satire, Race, & Social Critique. This First-Year Seminar puts satire at the center of intellectual curiosity, asking how cartoons, surrealist film, and viral media work to undermine systemic racism, empire, and other structures of colonial domination. By pairing viewings of The Boondocks, Atlanta, I’m a Virgo, and The Hunger Games with readings from sociologists, historians, critical-race theorists, public health experts, lawyers, and economists, students will learn to wield multiple disciplinary tools to dissect white supremacy, European mythmaking, and colonial legacies. Weekly discussion reflections, group facilitation, and creative capstone projects ask students to think rigorously, create boldly, and act in solidarity across lines of race, gender, class, and nation. In true Jesuit fashion, the classroom functions as a supportive, dialogue-rich community where intellectual rigor and humane care grow together. Instructor: Hodge
EDSE 193, FYS: Why Do I Do What I Do? (Sec. 01 LLC) This course introduces students to why we behave the way we behave. The basic principles of behavior analysis will be explored as well as discussions on how behavior is shaped by the environment and the science of learning. Students will examine how these fundamental behavioral principles such as reinforcement, punishment, and motivation apply to everyday life. Throughout the course, students will develop critical writing skills. Students will be asked to evaluate social justice issues through the lens of a behavior analyst and consider contingencies of behavior that maintain social justice issues as well as propose potential solutions to move toward the common good. Fulfills a Social Justice (SJ) designation and a Writing-Enriched (WE) designation* Instructor: Basile
EENG 193, FYS: Computers, Robots, AI & Society. See CPEN 193 description above. Instructor: Talarico.
ENGL 193, FYS: Laughing Til We Cry. In this survey of comedy, we’ll explore the history, philosophy, rhetoric, and craft of laughter. Along the way, we’ll challenge assumptions we have about comedy, the physical effects of giggling, and how to listen to a joke. The course revolves around the analysis of our examples, ranging from ancient texts to contemporary essays, from Shakespearean plays to modern films, and everything in between. By the end of the course, students will be able to articulate a nuanced definition for comedy and the ways in which a sense of humor may affect an epistemological practice. The course will culminate around the interaction between comedy and tragedy—and the thin line that separates the two. Instructor: Anthony
ENGL 193, FYS: 1960’s in 21 Songs. Before there was Black Lives Matter, there were the Black Panthers, Malcolm X, and Martin Luther King. Before Megan Rapinoe, there was Stonewall and Muhammed Ali. Before the War on Terror, there was Vietnam. And before the fracturing of audiences with Netflix, TikTok, and YouTube, 73,000,000 Americans watched four lads from Liverpool start a revolution on their televisions. The 1960s was a decade of mass movements and mass media, one when a “new generation” imagined better worlds… and, by the end, faced deepening nightmares. This class will examine the decade at the intersection of media and society, using the popular music of the day – artists such as Bob Dylan, the Beatles, James Brown, and Aretha Franklin -- to frame interdisciplinary discussions on civil rights, women’s and gay liberation, art, religion, war, and what it means to be American. Students will be expected to be active participants, reading and listening carefully, and contributing to class discussion. A number of controversial and difficult topics will be featured, and students are cautioned that the language and topics may be challenging. Engages
with issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Fulfills a Social Justice (SJ) designation*. Instructor: Cooney.
ENGL 193, FYS: Unsettling the West. This is a FYS that asks and seeks to develop nuanced answers to a seemingly simple question: What/where/why is the American West? We will investigate the American West as an actual as well as imaginary place that has been produced and sometimes obscured by: stories, histories, diverse peoples and lifeways, land uses, cultural encounters and collisions, ideas, ideals, politics, art. Our study of the West will thus be multi-disciplinary; ultimately we’ll turn our attention to Spokane – city, history, land, peoples, place -- and its relationship to an American West which we have learned to see more complexly. As a seminar, this course foregrounds collaborative inquiry via readings, active-discussion, regular writing, and two major projects. Engages with issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Instructor: Easterling.
ENGL 193, FYS: What is a Book? “[A] book is simultaneously a thing, a force, an event, [and] a history” writes historian Joseph Dane, offering a pretty striking set of claims about books, including what they ARE and what they DO. In this seminar we will explore books as a very old as well as very contemporary technology that is always complex: Where and when did books appear? How were they made, and why? What were and are the uses of books? What makes books powerful, even dangerous? How many other kinds of knowledge connect to the book? And, of course, what is the future of the book in this digital age? In this class we will be working to find out. Instructors: Easterling, Plowman.
ENGL 193, FYS: Civilization Reconsidered. (Sec. 01 LLC) Is civilization worth it? It is likely a question few of us have considered since we’ve never known anything else. But this seminar will ask whether living in a civilization is conducive to human flourishing. We will look back at the long sweep of history since humans have established sedentary, hierarchical societies; we will chart the differences and changes that have ensued; and we will establish a value system by which we might evaluate such changes. To facilitate this inquiry, this course will investigate diverse perspectives from a variety of disciplines such as psychology, anthropology, literature, and human ecology, among others. Instructor: Tagnani.
HEAL 193, FYS: Religion and Medicine. See RELI 193 description below. Instructor: Tran
HIST 193, FYS: Pompeii, Fact & Fiction. Can we truly reconstruct the past? How do we differentiate between historical fact and fiction, as we explore and interpret events of the past? This course will pursue answers to these questions through examining one of the most fascinating (and deadly) episodes in ancient history: the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 CE and the subsequent destruction of Pompeii and its neighboring cities. Using archaeological, anthropological, art historical and textual/historical evidence (e.g., everyday objects, ancient graffiti, skeletal remains, world-class art and monuments), this seminar will investigate what we both do and do not know about the Pompeii’s origins, its vibrant culture, its downfall, and its rediscovery nearly 250 years ago. Furthermore, we shall employ that knowledge to understand the ways in which Pompeii and its people – women and men, citizens, slaves and foreigners – have been received and reinterpreted within modern historical fiction and current public imagination, through the critical analysis of books, films and other media. Instructor: Goldman.
HIST 193, FYS: Chernobyl. This course examines the causes and outcomes of the Chernobyl nuclear accident of 1986. Further, it introduces students to the means by which the Chernobyl nuclear accident has been interrogated by scholars in a diverse array of academic disciplines. What has been the impact of Chernobyl on human beings, animals, and the natural environment? How did it impact the economy and politics of the Soviet Union? How did people experience the catastrophe at the time? How have historians tried to make sense of the meaning and impact of Chernobyl? Instructor: O’Connor
HONS 193, FYS: Spokane as Text. Spokane as Text uses Spokane as a case study for contemporary urban life in America. Students read widely in Philosophy, Sociology, and History, with some Political Science, Economics, and Civil Engineering. Topics covered in the course range from the impact of the placement of I-90, the balance between economic progress and displacement seen in Kendall Yards and the West Central neighborhood, the historical causes of the current housing crisis, and the history of indigeneity in the Columbia Plateau. Course designed for Honors Students. Fulfills a Social Justice (SJ) designation*Instructor: Tredennick
HONS 193, FYS: The Depths. This First Year Seminar engages Gonzaga’s Core question, “How do we pursue knowledge and cultivate understanding?” through a multidisciplinary close reading of selected psalms from the Hebrew Bible. In the spirit of Jesuit education, students practice attentive reading, reflection, and dialogue as they place ancient texts in conversation with contemporary questions of identity, community, justice, spirituality, and human relationships. The Psalms give voice to the full range of human experience—lament, trust, conflict, praise, and hope—inviting students to reflect on their own lives and relationships with honesty and humility. Through practices of interpretation and discernment shaped by cura personalis and the search for the magis, the course explores how these ancient prayers can deepen empathy, cultivate wisdom, and help students listen for the depths of human experience where, in the words of the psalmist, “deep calls to deep.” Fulfills a Social Justice (SJ) designation* Instructor: Starbuck
INMD 193, FYS: Resonate Fearlessly. This First-Year Seminar is an introduction to public speaking, including techniques to lessen speaker anxiety and the use of effective visual aids to enhance speaker presentations. With an emphasis on storytelling and persuasion, students will present two Ted Talk-related assignments in addition to other speeches and written assignments. This course reinforces skills in critical thinking and thoughtful verbal and written expression in an activity-filled interactive environment. Instructor: Prindle
MATH 193, FYS: Ways of Seeing.Instructor: Stover
MDLA 193, FYS: In Search of Joan of Arc. The search for the historical Joan will be followed by a study of how successive eras have imagined Joan through literature, television, art, music, and politics. We will explore why Joan has been such a compelling figure in the collective memory and how her ability to stimulate the imagination has given her a posthumous existence that goes far beyond her influence on 15th century events. Instructor: Semple
MENG 193, FYS: Instructors: Baumgardner, Dame-Griff, Fitzgerald, Sheveland
MUSC 193, FYS: Social Justice and Music.With music and social movements as our primary source, this First- Year Seminar focuses on how rap and hip-hop have been a means to communicate complex cultural, social, and political issues of Western culture from the 1970s to the present. We will journey through the vast landscape of Black musical traditions that will come to influence the cultural and musical phenomena known as hip-hop. The main questions we will explore include: 1. How has race been constructed in Western music history, in music criticism (of African diasporic music and musicians) 2. How has the commercialization of rap and hip-hop aided in the personification of antebellum stereotypes and imperialistic/capitalistic agendas? 3. How has hip-hop impacted social movements in the Americas and abroad? At the completion of this course, students will be able to (1) articulate how their own personal and cultural views affect their empirical and
theoretical knowledge and understanding, (2) appreciate various music genres and how they intersect with current and popular music, with an emphasis on Black music traditions, (3) think about how music has impacted social movements and they can be agents of change with music, (4) understand social factors related to resilience and how to foster resilience, (5) reflect on their role in creating a better world. Finally, (6) integrate the principles of Gonzaga’s mission with their academic, personal, and spiritual aspirations. Engages with issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion and fulfills a Social Justice (SJ) designation*. Instructor: Tarver
PHIL 193, FYS: Conversion & Transformation. Conversion is a process in which a person's core beliefs are significantly altered or replaced. This course will examine multiple forms of conversion—philosophical, existential, religious, antireligious, and aesthetic—and will seek to understand the nature of the conversion process. Using intellectual tools from a variety of disciplines, we will explore the roles that evidence and counter-evidence play in alteration of belief, and will consider extra-evidential factors such as emotion, group identity, and self-perception. Instructor: Calhoun.
PHIL 193, FYS: Care, Listening, & Health. (Sec. 03 LLC) This course explores the connected practices of listening, care, and healthcare as they relate to healthcare environments and personal vocational discernment. Through philosophical inquiry and practice, students will examine fundamental questions: What does it mean to listen? How do we understand and practice care? What constitutes health and healing? Students will engage with philosophical frameworks of care and health in order to offer substantive answers to these questions. In addition to theoretical analysis, students will gain insight from practicing healthcare professionals who will visit to share their experiences and reflect on listening and care in their work. Students will practice empathetic listening skills and examine how presence contributes to healthcare relationships. Instructor: Kulp.
RELI 193, FYS: Indigenous Peoples and Global Issues. This course explores contemporary issues of indigenous peoples throughout the world. We begin by examining the concept of a "Fourth World." Who are indigenous peoples, and how have they been categorized about "ethnic groups," colonization, and the international system of states? We examine current debates within the United Nations about indigenous peoples and human rights. We look at the law and economics of colonialism and emerging issues of globalization. Through films, literature, and social science readings, this course looks at those issues and focuses on how indigenous peoples actively oppose their oppression and create sustainable futures. Engages with issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion and fulfills a Global Studies (GS) designation*. Instructor: Baraza
RELI 193, FYS: The Problem of God. The Problem of God explores the various ways in which human beings have asked and attempted to answer questions about the origin of existence, about the meaning and purpose of life, about the experience of suffering and death by appealing to God. Students will examine different methods for answering these questions through texts in theology, philosophy, and the sciences, as well as through the arts, spirituality, and ritual practice. Engages with issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Instructor: Mudd
RELI 193, FYS: Difference and Dialogue - Bridges to Civic Pluralism. (Sec. 02 LLC) Americans are perhaps more polarized than ever, political, ethnic, and religious others being portrayed as agents of irrationality and evil. Most people are siloed in their echo chambers with news and social media algorithms just repeating back to them what one already believes. Those we disagree with we quickly dismiss by assigning simplistic, disparaging labels. Even if we avoid politics and religion in conversations, previously “safe” topics like the weather or one’s health can quickly become an angry monologue to the other about climate change or the merits of vaccines. Yet if we are going to solve real problems, we need to learn to talk to one another, be in authentic relation with each other across seemingly ocean wide chasms of difference in ways that affirm the dignity and infinite value of each other, as we grow friendship and stand for justice for all people, not just our own tribe. In this course we will support each other to practice dialoguing to learn about, from and with each other, and consulting together to better solve important issues. Dialogue topics include majors and careers, religious diversity, partisan politics, race, social class, gender, sexuality, disabilities, ageism, and the environment. Most classes will require preparation of a personal reflection on one’s background with an issue and an individual response to a short reading (2-4). Students are invited to become “bridgebuilders” in which they too become intentional protagonists of building unity in diversity in community. The crowning project is working in a small team to organize, advertise, facilitate, and reflect upon two “bridgebuilding” gatherings related to one of the above topics. Grades are not on a curve; students who conscientiously complete each requirement can expect full credit for the course. Instructor: Pschaida
RELI 193, FYS: Violence and the Humanities.What insights and tools do the humanities disciplines offer students who wish to grapple with the problem of violence today? Students In this course explore various academic perspectives from the humanities, enter into discussion about different kinds of education, and apply humanities insights to unresolved conflicts. Engages with issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion and fulfills a Global Studies (GS) designation*. Instructor: Sheveland
RELI 193, FYS: Religion and Medicine. Are religions and medical science compatible? How do they relate, support, and challenge each other over the history? What are the tensions that can be quite destructive between them at times? What opportunities can they bring to humanity if we can find a good way to utilize both properly? This course will examine questions such as these. The course aims at helping students to go beyond their preconceptions and develop a critical analysis to (1) concretely identify issues that need to be resolved, (2) avoid falling into the trap of exclusivity or extreme, (3) recognize elements that help to enrich rather than impoverish our ability, and (4) view everything through a humanistic and wholistic lens.Instructor: Tran
THEA 193, FYS: Theatre & Neurodivergence, LLC. An ensemble-based interdisciplinary service-learning course in which students are trained in the Hunter Heartbeat Method, a series of theatrical games originally designed by Kelly Hunter (formerly of the Royal Shakespeare Company) to remediate common difficulties for children on the autism spectrum. This work has since been developed as essential training and foundational skill- building for all performers, and provides an embodied, physical “vocabulary” that is inclusive of members of neurodiverse communities. While students will be engaged in performance, this is not specifically an acting course, as students will engage with the course material through the lens of their own primary field of study. No prior experience with Shakespeare or theatre is required." Engages with issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Instructor: Edwards
WGST 193, FYS: Love. In All About Love, bell hooks states, “to begin by always thinking of love as an action rather than a feeling is one way in which anyone using the word in this manner automatically assumes accountability and responsibility.” This first-year seminar examines both the concept and practice of love from a feminist perspective. We will also draw on historical, sociological, religious, and philosophical research to shed critical light on a variety of questions, including: What is love? Why does society continually associate love with happiness? How does our understanding of love shape gender and other social identities such as race, class, sexuality, and ability? Is love performative? How does love manifest in structures of power-making? What is decolonial love? How is social justice and politics of love tied together? How do we use love as a tool for social justice? What is moral, what is normal, and who gets to decide? What is the truth about love? Through the discussion of readings in the classroom, analyzing films, writing response papers and a research essay, we will apply the principles of Gonzaga’s mission with their academic, personal, and spiritual interests. Engages with issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Instructor: Rodriguez-Coss
* To fulfill university core requirements, students must complete 2 Writing-Enriched (WE) designated courses (in addition to Writing), 1 Global Studies (GS) designated course (in addition to World/Comparative Religion), and 1 Social Justice (SJ) designated course. Designations double-count. That is, students completing an FYS with a designation, get credit for the FYS and fulfill the designation it carries. Transfer students with 45 or more credits have a reduced designation requirement (1 WE, and 2 total of either 1 WE, 1 GS, and/or 1 SJ), and students with 60 or more credits, including AA/AS-T degree holders, are not required to fulfill the designation requirements.