Your First-Year Course

By Talia Bank ’23

Transitioning to college as a first-year student can be both exciting and challenging. At Macalester, that transition includes a first-year course (FYC) specifically designed to build a strong foundation by introducing students to campus resources and academic advising.

Although FYCs provide a rigorous academic experience across a variety of subjects like other Mac courses, several components make them distinctive. FYC professors, for example, become academic advisors to their students, working one-on-one to help students identify and pursue their goals. Many FYCs also have a preceptor, or teaching assistant, available for homework help and guidance on college. Professors set aside time in class for visits from library and wellness center staff who cover how to conduct research, check out books, deal with procrastination and stress, and seek support. And with class sizes capped at sixteen students, FYCs help first-years find community, including through the residential element of some courses, for which students live together on the same residence hall floor.

Take a look at four of last fall’s FYCs:

Psychology of Right and Wrong

What makes an act immoral? How can we hold people accountable for immoral acts? How do we think about immorality on the societal level, when it results in social inequality? Class discussions in Professor Steve Guglielmo’s course tackle these questions and more, covering concepts like morality, blame, accountability, and empathy. An ideal introduction to the Psychology Department, course materials also bring in readings from philosophy, sociology, and artificial intelligence. By grappling with this interdisciplinary material, students gain an appreciation for applying knowledge from different sources to tackle real-world issues. 

Soultracking Brazil: Shuffling Through the Sounds of a Musical Nation

“You cannot understand Brazil without understanding Brazilian music, because it is like a glue that brings together national identity,” Professor Ernesto Ortiz-Diaz says. “This class uses music to invite students into this Brazilian cultural universe.” Through the country’s soundtrack, or “soultrack,” Ortiz-Díaz teaches Brazil’s history and culture, selecting the first several songs and asking students to choose the songs that guide the class for the rest of the semester. Students also performed Brazilian singer Chico Buarque’s “Apesar de você,” a 1978 song protesting Brazil’s dictatorship, as part of Macalester’s 2021 International Roundtable. 

Introduction to Creative Writing

Professor and novelist Peter Bognanni teaches creative writing by balancing study and practice. While learning writing technique and literary history, students produce their own creative writing, drawing on works of poetry, fiction, and personal essays to develop their voice. One key goal: provide students with a space to explore creative writing as a craft, but also as a means of engaging with the world and connecting with others. 

Dynamic Earth and Global Change

Geology faculty Kelly MacGregor and Jeff Thole familiarize students with the physical materials that make up the planet and the forces and processes that act on its physical structures, such as waves, landslides, and glaciers. “Our enthusiasm for the material is part of what we want to get across, especially regarding Earth hazards,” MacGregor says. “We want students to feel equipped to think about the dangers the planet poses—and to think about how humans interact with the planet, too.”

The course also includes a lab component and a trip to Northern Minnesota to collect and analyze the materials they learn about in class. Back on campus, Thole leads the lab section and encourages students to use the Keck Lab’s resources and equipment. “It really opens your eyes up to some of the nuances and details of the things that we’re trying to show,” Thole says. In addition to material from the trip, students used the Keck Lab to share and analyze rocks from their homes and see firsthand the building blocks of the Earth from vastly different locations.