In the College of Social Sciences, the world is our classroom. We offer a broad and exciting range of majors, minors, and certificates that help our students understand our world through the study of history, political, social, and cultural issues. Our degree programs are designed to develop essential skills necessary to adapt to a constantly-changing world and to provide leadership for the new millennium. We educate students who go on to serve our community as judges, teachers, city planners, elected officials, bankers, business people, lawyers, police officers, and government officials.
Students majoring in the Social Sciences can learn through practical experience. They study anthropology by conducting archeological fieldwork, and engage in sociological data analysis and geographic information tracking by working in our student computing labs. We study and teach cultural diversity in its broadest sense, but also be work on projects with our Jewish Studies Program, African American and Chicano Research Centers or by participating in performing groups such as the folklorico dance group Los Danzantes de Aztlan or the Gospel Choir. Many students have the chance to observe Fresno city and county board meetings, attend lectures by visiting professors, take field trips to the San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank or the Museum of Tolerance, or learn about non-profit organization management while doing community service. Whatever road they travel toward their degrees, students with a background in the social sciences graduate with the knowledge needed for their careers and a broader understanding of our world.
Please consider a gift to one of our following top priorities this year:
Student Internships and Experiences
Some of the most valuable experiences for our students happen outside the classroom
We are proud to have so many of our students participating in internships within the community, presenting their research at academic conferences, or matching their skills against other universities in Mock Trial, Moot Court, or Criminology competitions. Your gift to our student experience fund will help more students gain valuable real-world experience that better prepares them to be productive graduates in our community.
American Humanics Students4Giving
Preparing the next generation of philanthropists
Our Humanics@FresnoState Students4Giving Philanthropy Project is part of an innovative course specifically designed to prepare the next generation of philanthropists and community leaders by teaching students how to contribute to the success of the community. Students learn firsthand about grant making and community investment by working with local community benefit organizations. Your gift will directly fund student grants to local organizations, benefitting the community threefold. First, our students learn how to invest in the community. Second, the organizations benefit from the gifts. Finally, the community served by the organization benefits from the investment. This is truly a meaningful gift!
Jewish Studies
Exploring the diverse experiences, contributions and challenges of the Jewish people
The Jewish Studies Program encourages Fresno State students from all backgrounds to study the many dimensions of Jewish heritage and its contemporary contexts. Students explore the diverse experiences, contributions and challenges of the Jewish people, from ancient to modern times in Israel, and across the global locations of the Jewish diaspora, including the wider Middle East, Europe, North Africa, and the Americas. This focus heightens sensitivity to minority perspectives, encourages interdisciplinary thinking, and sheds light on the impact of cross-cultural contact and exchanges. The Jewish Studies Program provides information, concepts and approaches that can aid understanding about a range of comparative ethnic and religious minority identities. Your gift will help this program grow and provide an even wider range of learning experiences for our students.
We appreciate your support of both our programs and our students.
Sincerely,
Dr. Michelle DenBeste, Interim Dean
College of Social Sciences
