Bronx Beautiful 

Faculty Information 

Dr. Sarah L. Hoiland 

Office Location: B-346 

Office Hours: By appointment only

Phone: 718-518-6874 

Email: shoiland@hostos.cuny.edu 

Course Description 

Pre-requisite: ENG 110, 40 credits 

Co-requisite: MAT 100 or higher 

This liberal arts capstone course will engage students in an in-depth study of the Bronx and challenge students to question and re-evaluate their perceptions of the borough. The course will explore questions such as: What reputation does the Bronx have? How did it get this reputation, and is the reputation grounded in reality? Are the needs of the people of the Bronx, in terms of the environment, health, infrastructure and education, met by the resources of the borough? How can we contribute in shaping the future of the Bronx? Studying the Bronx from various disciplinary perspectives will enable students to understand how their education can help them become more aware, educated, and involved members of their communities, and therefore empower them to become agents of change.  

Course Meetings 

Sections:

000B: online/ synchronous, 7.5 week extended summer session 2023

Course Books and Materials 

This is a Zero Cost class. All required reading and viewing materials will be provided on the CUNY Academic Commons site for this course. A three-ring binder or folder, loose-leaf lined paper, and a writing utensil are required and should be brought to each class.  

Grading 

A = 93-100, A- = 90-92 

B+ = 89-89, B = 83-86, B- = 80 – 82  

C+ = 77-79, C = 70-76 

D = 60-69 

F = 00-59 

Grade Configuration: 

Capstone Research Project (50%): A project of this magnitude (50% of the course grade) will require time and dedication. It is designed to help students delve more deeply into an issue that might be connected to themselves, their community, and/or the Bronx. Research projects must include a minimum of three academic sources and can also include qualitative OR quantitative data. Students are strongly encouraged to collect their own data (i.e. surveys or interviews) to enhance the research project in addition to the traditional academic research.

• The project proposal (5%) provides an outline of the proposed plan for the CAP Research Project through a structured proposal template. Students must submit a project proposal before beginning the CAP Research Project and will receive detailed feedback from the professor.
• Literature Review/ Results (10%) will include the types of citations that will be included in the final paper (i.e. statistics, direct quotes from experts, and/or unique information from an academic source) with a full citation and an in-text citation for each source. Results should also include transcribed interviews and/or survey results.
• Rough drafts (10%) will be written as academic papers with the following sections: introduction, methodology (how did you do your research), literature review/ results, discussion, and conclusion. The professor will provide detailed feedback in addition to a scored rubric. Students will be expected to revise and to utilize the Hostos Writing Center during a revision process.
• Final drafts (25%) are expected to be polished college-level capstone project papers that meet the stated course learning objectives, specifically related to critical thinking and problem solving.

NOTE: Each component of the SL CAP Project is required and must be submitted sequentially. All students must submit a Proposal, Data/ Results, Rough Draft, and Final Draft and cannot submit other elements of the SL Project without having submitted what came before.

Double Entry Discussions (50%): Students must complete a minimum of five (5) double journal entries in the semester. A double-entry journal invites close reading and interpretation and application to selected passages from assigned texts. Students are expected to follow the suggested two column format provided in the syllabus with 1-2 entries per reading with a minimum of five entries per unit. Students MUST substantively reply to at least two of their peers’ posts.

Posts (double entry posts) are due by 5 p.m. on Sunday and replies are due by 11:59 p.m. on Sunday. Discussion Forums will close at 11:59 p.m. each Sunday night.

Capstone Learning Objectives:  This course will include learning units and the learning outcomes for each unit appear below. Through this work, students will arrive at a deeper understanding of the forces and factors that have shaped our perceptions of the Bronx. 

• To give students an introduction to the philosophy of concept of beauty. This will then promote a discussion of students’ perceptions of the Bronx. Students will investigate and discover how these perceptions are shaped, and begin to think about how they can contribute to changing these perceptions. 
• To introduce students to the cultural assets of the Bronx by looking at the historical trajectory from Salsa/Mambo Music and Hip-Hop, and Bronx artists. 
• To expand students’ personal views of their communities and natural environments. This wider perspective will help students to understand what it takes to live healthy lives in harmony with the environment. The unit will help student to understand how knowledge of nature and their local environment influences decisions regarding their personal lives and well-being. 
• To introduce students to strategies for assessing access to health care through the use of statistical data. In conjunction with the previous unit student will use the gained knowledge to do a quantitative analysis on sample districts from the “Beautiful Bronx”. This overview will help student to understand what is happening in their communities and answer questions like, how healthy is my community? Do we have sufficient access to health care, and if not, why not and what can be done about it. 
• To introduce students to and develop their understanding of the planning and development of the Bronx’s infrastructure. This unit is aimed at helping students understand what is necessary to the creation of a community, and how those decisions shape their neighborhoods and personal lives. 
• To understand the importance of education, and master the basic research tools to find statistical data relating to education issues on the Internet, and be able to conduct research about educational opportunities in the Bronx and beyond. 

Student Responsibilities 

• Use Blackboard (to check grades) and the CUNY Academic Commons Bronx Beautiful course site (CAP materials).  
• Check your Hostos email regularly.   
• Communicate with faculty using your Hostos email. 
• Complete and hand in all assignments on or before their due date. 
• Demonstrate proficiency with all written assignments, including college-level writing. 
• Demonstrate a significant amount of critical thinking and analysis. 
• Utilize office hours! I am on campus all summer, so if you want to see me in person, just send me an email and make an appointment. If you want to Zoom, let me know what days/ times work for you. 
• Ask questions. Make the most out of this capstone experience.  

Attendance and Late Work Policies 

Attendance: Your presence in this online class is vital to your own learning as well as everyone else’s. Attendance in the online environment means submitting your work on time and participating in the Discussion Forum; this is also essential to a good grade!

Late Work:  Each student will be given 1 “Late Pass” that allows them to submit an assignment up to a week after the due date for full credit with no questions asked. The Late Pass can be applied to the SL CAP Project (proposal, data/ results, rough draft) OR a Double Entry Discussion. In order to invoke the Late Pass, it must be done BEFORE the due date or the scheduled class via email. The late pass cannot be used for the Final CAP Research Paper. 

Feel free to copy and paste the sample email below and edit to include the correct information. 

Subject:  CAP 200 Late Pass 

Dear Professor, 

I am writing to invoke my late pass for the _________________[name of assignment], which is due _____________[due date]. I will submit it by _______________________[one week after the due date]. 

Sincerely, 

[your name] 

  

Academic Integrity 

Academic dishonesty is prohibited in The City University of New York and is punishable by penalties, including failing grades, suspension, and expulsion, as provided within the College Catalogue. Students are responsible for upholding the academic integrity of the program by not participating either directly or indirectly in acts of cheating and by discouraging others from doing so. Here are some additional points of clarification:  

• Written assignments must be the product of the student’s own research. 
• No student shall submit work that has been written by someone else or copied from an outside source. 
• No student shall submit work that has been previously submitted in either whole or part for academic credit. This is termed “self-plagiarism.” 
• Late assignments may not be accepted; if accepted, points will be deducted. 
• Students who engage in academic dishonesty will receive a grade of zero for the assignment. 
• All violations of the academic integrity policy shall be referred to the Disciplinary Committee to determine if negative incentives or additional sanctions – including suspension or dismissal from the program – are warranted.   

The way this course is structured makes plagiarism very difficult! Students will practice citing direct quotes and summarizing with the double entry journals. The SL project is done in several stages with instructor feedback provided at each stage. ALL students are encouraged to attend HCC Library workshops on research and citations, especially if you are continuing your education at a four-year college.  

Tutorial and Counseling Services 

The Hostos Academic Learning Center (HALC), located in C-596, is a complete learning environment that allows students to receive the academic help they need in a setting that is rich in resources and supports academic success. Throughout the academic year, HALC schedules activities that focus on the skills development of students, including tutorial support, self-guided tutorials, Basic Skills Preparatory workshops, and in-center workshops, some of which are offered through the Writing Center.  

Hostos Counseling Center offers a variety of services in English, Spanish, French and German, including individual and group counseling, crisis intervention, consultations and referrals to on- and off-campus resources.  Please call (718) 518-4351 if you are in need of any counseling support. 

Students with Disabilities 

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits discrimination based on disability and requires the College to be physically and programmatically accessible. Beyond the basic requirements of the ADA, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and New York State and New York City statutes, the college has created an office, Services for Students with Disabilities (SSWD) that provides services to help each student with a disability maximize his or her potential for success. Based on an intake interview and documentation provided by a student, a variety of accommodations may be provided to assist qualified students to attain their academic objectives. Intake and counseling are provided in English and Spanish.  As provided within the College Catalogue http://www.hostos.cuny.edu/sswd/txt/html/geninfo.html. 

As required by section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, reasonable accommodations are provided to ensure equal opportunity for students with verified disabilities.  

If you have a disability that requires accommodations, contact the  

Accessibility Resource Center (ARC)
Raymond Perez, Director 

Maria Pantoja, Disability Services Coordinator 

Savoy (D) Building   
120 Walton Ave, Room D-101L
Bronx, NY  10451
Phone:  (718) 518-4454 

E-mail: rmperez@hostos.cuny.edu 

 mpantoja@hostos.cuny.edu 

If you are already registered with Accessibility Services and have a letter from them verifying that you are a qualified student with a disability, please present the letter to the instructor as soon as possible.  The instructor will work with you and Accessibility Services to plan and implement appropriate accommodations.