Maymester 2023

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Registration opens April 6, 2023

This spring, we're bringing you a new way to boost your GPA, earn more Saint Joe's credits, and spend less. Following Commencement, SJC will offer five Maymester courses, all online, in a six-week intensive format. Each course will feature one synchronous session and two asynchronous discussions per week, as well as other assessments determined by each instructor. And we're making Maymester more cost effective than ever - sign up now for just $150 per credit hour (that’s about $600 per course).

Registration opens April 6, 2023, and courses run from May 15, 2023 to June 26, 2023. Mark your calendar to secure your spot!

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Courses

(4 credits) Professor Wendy Galgan

Stephen King has spent his career scaring people, but at the heart of his stories lies the most important issue human beings face, the problem of good and evil. In this course, we will read about supernatural beings and bullies, hauntings and violence, and everyday people facing the most important moral decisions of their lives. Over it all hangs the question King continually asks his readers to consider: Who are the real monsters?

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

  • Analyze and interpret Stephen King’s work, including its purpose, method, and ethical/moral dimensions;
  • Conduct literary research using a variety of critical perspectives and apply that research to both written and oral communication
    Describe and discuss King’s literature;
  • Identify, describe, and discuss ethical and political issues in, and surrounding, King’s work and its criticism;
  • Demonstrate good communication skills, revealed in both writing and speaking.

(4 Credits) Professor Jake Thibault

Ethics & The Good Society offers a unique approach to the age-old question of what makes a life good, drawing from philosophy, psychology, and spirituality to provide practical insights and actionable steps. Whether you're seeking to improve your relationships, become a better citizen, or simply live a more meaningful and contented life, Ethics & The Good Society is a valuable class for anyone looking to lead a genuinely magnanimous life in modern society.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

  • Identify different views on contemporary ethical issues.
  • Explain key arguments for competing positions on contemporary ethical issues.
  • Demonstrate critical thinking and reasoning skills.
  • Apply philosophical concepts from ethics to contemporary issues.
  • Demonstrate writing proficiency appropriate for a mid-level undergraduate course.

(4 Credits) Professor Dale Brooker

The best ways to respond to crime and criminality has long been a debate in societies across the world. This course takes the learner deeper into the annals of history to examine the philosophical and sociological underpinnings of punishment. From the barbaric mutilation of the body, to banishment, and to the incarceration of the soul, this course considers where humanity has come from in responding to crime and what pathways may lay ahead.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

  • Examine themes of justice from a socio-historical perspective.
  • Discuss the various types of and responses to criminal behavior throughout history.
  • Assess the various forms and philosophies of punishment.
  • Examine the consequences of various forms of victimization throughout history and the impact on both local communities and larger nation states.
  • Differentiate between various legal systems and their impact on societies throughout history.
  • Analyze artifacts, artworks, primary sources and literary contributions from around the world and discuss how they have shaped our understanding of justice.

(4 credits) Professor Jeffrey Morgan

This course examines ethical issues in health care by placing theological perspectives in dialogue with a wide range of viewpoints and stakeholders, from medical practitioners, philosophical bioethicists, legal experts and policy makers, and beyond. We will consider a diversity of issues, such as health care at the beginning and end of life, the ethics of clinical research, and socio-economic and racial inequities in clinical settings. Providing a backdrop to these and other concerns will be fundamental theological views about the dignity of the human person, the meaning of suffering, sickness and death, and the purpose of medicine in a good life. Real medical case studies will facilitate weekly discussions and written assignments.

Learning Outcome

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

  • Understand human suffering and disease and medical care as theological issues; to gain competence in theological evaluation of these issues from a perspective informed by the teachings of the Catholic Church and the writings of Catholic and other Christian theologians; and to understand how these perspectives relate to non-theological (including secular) approaches.
  • Gain familiarity with major ethical issues in the current practice of biomedicine and competence in the ethical evaluation of these issues. Students will become competent in understanding and applying bioethical concepts, principles, and arguments. The lectures and examinations are designed for students to achieve this competence.
  • Gain competence in relating concepts and principles to the scientific and clinical factors and cultural contexts in which these issues arise. To this end the course includes weekly sessions devoted to the discussion of actual and hypothetical cases.
  • For oneself as a reflective theological and ethical practitioner of medicine. To this end each student will formulate ethical guidelines that in his or her judgment express the moral and theological commitments of medicine.

(3 Credits) Professor John Kenneally

This graduate level course will require students to integrate strategy with marketing and apply a systems-thinking approach to the development of a brand that aligns with organizational strategy and core ideology.  Significant focus will be placed on sustainability and innovation, as well as the impact of dynamic environments and hypercompetitive markets.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

  • Assess the risk involved in creating a brand image and the consequences of gaps between ideals and reality.
  • Consider the consequences and side-effects of strategic choices.
  • Evaluate marketing plans through multiple lenses, including a variety of stakeholders, including customers, complementors, employees, and government.
  • Apply a case study methodology to solving business problems through written submissions and in-class or online dialogue.
  • Engage in civil discourse through challenge, defense, and respectful disagreement.
  • Apply marketing concepts and theories to practice through thought papers and face-to-face or online dialogue.
  • Complete a semester project involving creation of a marketing or branding plan that applies concepts and theories through an integrative approach.
  • Develop marketing plans consistent with sustainability and informed by conscious capitalism with its ethos of balancing the interests of people, profit, and planet.
  • Create a marketing or branding campaign based on the synthesis of strategic direction and organizational ideology with strategic marketing techniques and approaches in a dynamic business environment.

Registration opens April 6, 2023

FAQ

Check back here on April 6th to fill out the online registration form and submit payment. Non-SJC students will need to submit a transcript from their current institution that includes their Fall 2022 grades.

The reduced tuition rate for these courses will be $150.00 per credit hour.

For both high school and non-SJC students taking the courses for credit, a transcript is required and can be sent electronically to registrar@sjcme.edu.

All courses listed are four credits, except for MK500 which is three credits.

Yes, of course! However, we do suggest taking only two courses because of the intensive six week format.

The intensive six-week format will require learners to be actively participating in at least two (2) asynchronous discussions as well as one weekly, one-hour synchronous lecture/discussion. Learners should expect weekly assignments or other assessments. For more detail, please contact the professor of record for each course.

Learners should expect to be actively involved at least four days during the week. This does not include time devoted to reading and reviewing learning materials assigned.

Yes, of course. However, it is always best to contact the professor of record to discuss expectations.

Yes, learners can audit a course if interested in the topic.

Courses will be capped at 20 learners who are seeking credit. Those seeking to audit the course can be added beyond this.

Need Help?

Questions regarding academic programs?
Email Registrar at registrar@sjcme.edu.

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About Saint Joe’s

Saint Joseph’s College of Maine is where community grows – on campus, online, and around the world. Since its founding in 1912 by the Sisters of Mercy, the College has transformed learners into leaders who sustain their communities. Our mix of classroom, experiential, and professional learning offers immersive career readiness on a liberal arts foundation.

The College is located on 474 idyllic acres overlooking Sebago Lake, one of Maine’s most beautiful spots and a popular four-season recreation area. A critical community resource for the Lakes Region of Maine, our campus is easily navigated on foot. Scenic paths connect campus buildings to a forest trail system and our own private sandy beach. Come for a walk, and stay for the panoramic view of the lake with the White Mountains as a backdrop on the horizon.

In the other direction, coastal Portland is only  20 miles to the southeast of Saint Joe's. Just one hour north of Portsmouth and two hours from Boston, Portland is a foodie haven known for incorporating the best of Maine's farms and waters. It was recently named the #1 Ranked Food City in America.