Elective Courses - Graduate Certificate in Participatory Research

Fall 2024 Electives

To qualify as a GCPR elective, a course must have a significant participatory research component and/or significant content addressing the theory, method or practice of participatory research. In addition to the courses listed below, independent studies with a significant focus on participatory theory or methods may also qualify as electives. Please contact the Curriculum Chair (Sara Smith, shsmith1@email.unc.edu) and Advising Chair (Dane Emmerling, dane.emmerling@unc.edu), for formal approval of particular courses. Students are also encouraged to consult the list of past electives in planning their coursework, as departmental course offerings sometimes change after the website has been published and elective-qualified classes may be offered without being listed here.

ANTH 850: Engaging Ethnography. 3 credits. (Dr. Angela Stuesse).

Wednesdays 12:20pm – 3:20pm, Greenlaw Hall Room 526A
What is engaged ethnography? We often speak of engaged research, but what does it look like on the ground? How is it represented through textual narrative? And what difference does it make in the “real” world? In this seminar students “engage” these questions in an examination of ethnographies produced by politically- and community-engaged researchers, exploring how methodologies, epistemologies, and the products of research are transformed by various forms of engagement.

GEOG 543: Qualitative Methods in Geography. 3 credits. (Dr. Sara Smith).

Tuesdays and Thursdays 12:30pm – 1:45pm, Carolina Hall Room 104)
This course teaches qualitative methods in geography for graduate and advanced undergraduate students. We will cover interviews, focus groups, visual, and other methodologies. We will also discuss modes of analysis, coding, and writing up qualitative research for publication.

FOLK 790: Public Folklore. 3 credits. (Dr. Glenn Hinson).

Tuesdays and Thursdays 2:00pm – 3:15pm, New East Room 305
This graduate seminar addresses the world of public folklore, exploring theory and praxis in public sector cultural work. Focusing on the ways that cultural workers bring their understandings to broader publics, and the ways that we can both reach and convey these understandings in full collaboration with the communities being represented, this course explores broad issues of representation, cultural politics, touristic display, and anti-hegemonic/antiracist cultural programming. While so doing, it remains eminently pragmatic, drawing participants into conversation with public folklorists, inviting them to attend (and assess) public folklore events, and charting the ways that public cultural outreach translates in the 21st century. At the seminar’s close, each participant will have written a fundable proposal for a public folklore project.

PLAN 727: Community Engagement. 3 credits. (Dr. Danielle Spurlock).

Meeting time and place TBD
This course covers the conceptual foundation of public participation and community engagement, the processes and institutions involved in urban planning and design decision-making, and professional skills necessary to conceptualize and implement high quality community engagement activities. It is a hands-on, skill-building course focused project design; and inclusive presentation. In addition to completing readings selected to build theoretical knowledge, students will engage in 1) in-class exercises to expand their facilitation and engagement skills, 2) regular writing assignments to improve the quality of their professional writing; and 3) semester long projects to develop their critical analysis of real-world cases and the acquisition of crucial management skills.