Courses

THE PROGRAM OF STUDY: Students choose any two courses from the offerings. The courses make every effort to use the resources of the city of Rome in their curriculum. All courses in Rome satisfy the University Scholars program seminar requirements. The courses typically offered in the Summer Rome program are listed below.

1) General program courses that meet Xavier University core requirements:

ARTS 112 The Aesthetic Experience: Rome in Film - Prof. Kelly Blank
Creative Perspectives/Explorations In this course, students will discuss and analyze cinematic representations of the City of Rome in Italian and American film. We will assess the ways in which the urban, social, cultural, and political history of the Eternal City have influenced the portrayal of Rome as a “character” in film. We will consider representations of Roman monuments and locations constructed in film studios vs. on-location shooting. In this course, we will examine five main topics regarding Rome in film: Images of Ancient Rome; Neorealism; Americans in Rome; Fellini’s Rome; and Urban Angst. Students will visit important film locations in the city both in class and on their own. The class will visit the film studios of Cinecittà. Films will be shown in Italian with English subtitles.

HIST 199 /265 Medieval Rome - Prof. Marita von Weissenberg
Historica Perspectives/Foundations (Hist 199) or Humanities Elective/Integration (HIST 265)

This course examines the social, economic, political, and religious history of the city of Rome from Late Antiquity (ca. 500 CE) to the Protestant Reformation (1517 CE) through scholarship, primary sources, as well as art and architecture. Students can take the course either as HIST 199 (Historical Foundations/Perspectives) or HIST 265 (Humanities Elective/Integration) course.

Medieval Rome was a city where tensions and collaboration between the papacy and the Roman nobility, as well as the claims to power by invading groups such as Goths and Huns, but also Emperors, were major engines of change. The development of the papacy into “monarchy” and the administrative and theological core of the Catholic church colored all aspects of the city. As one of the most important locations for the medieval, and modern, Catholic Church, Rome was a city of pilgrims, tourists, and guest-services already during the Middle Ages. All of this took place in the shadow of Ancient Rome’s ruins.

These tensions—Rome vs. outside powers, Church vs. nobility, visitors vs. locals—as well as the magnificent mosaics, frescoes, and edifices that decorated medieval Rome are the core of the course

PHYS 126/127 Science or Art and Architecture - Prof. Marco Fatuzzo
Natural Science Elective/Integration or Scientific Perspectives/Explorations - both carry the QR flag
How can a church be used to make astronomical measurements? What does a statue in Campo de Fiori and a painting in the Sistine Chapel have to do with the structure of our Universe? How can you use a particle accelerator to read ancient writings from a scroll that was charred in the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD, or to reconstruct hidden portraits? These are just some of the questions we will explore in this course designed exclusively for the Rome program. And our exploration will include trips to the Pantheon, the Forum, St. Peter's, Brunelleschi’s Dome in Florence, the Sistine chapel, the Church of Santa Maria degli Angeli, and who knows where else.

THEO 366 Early Christianity in Rome - Prof. Anna Miller

Theological Perspectives/Explorations or Humanities Elective/Integrations,

Solidarity and Kinship Flag, Gender and Diversity Studies

This course is a hybrid class that is conducted partly as an on-line course, and partly on site with lectures and site visits conducted in Rome. Rome is a uniquely rich environment to study the art, architecture, literature, and burial practices of the early Church in Rome. We will explore these elements in order to illuminate the developing theology and community practices of these early Christians. This theology class also establishes the place of Rome itself in the imagination of the early church, drawing on primary and secondary texts that relate the city, and its status as imperial capital, to the evolving experience and identity of the earliest Christians. The class’ textual work is enriched and complexified by visits to ancient Roman and Christian archaeological sites in Rome. While we intensify our understanding of the ancient Roman context with visits to locations like the Forum and ancient Ostia, we will also visit early Christian sites unique to Rome. Among these sites, the Christian catacombs are particularly useful for challenging accepted wisdom about these earliest communities. In our last weeks in the course, we will explore the art and archaeology of these catacombs as we consider questions of identity and communal practice among Christians. As part of our work together, we will also consider the ways in which archaeology in Rome may expand our understanding of early Christian women’s roles, showing women as active participants alongside men as martyrs, teachers, patrons, and celebrants at common meals.

2) Courses for Early, Middle and Special Education Majors:

PHYS 114/115 Our Universe: Physical Science - Prof. Marco Fatuzzo
Scientific Perspectives/Explorations and QR flag

Requires a minimum of 3 students to be offered.

This course has been designed specifically for pre-service teachers. Students explore properties of matter, electric circuits, magnetism, kinematics, forces, and laws of motion through inquiry - a method that asks questions and requires students to seek answers and to acquire an understanding of basic scientific concepts, without relying on authority or the memorization of facts and formulas. Students perform their own experiments and develop scientific models using scientific and mathematical reasoning. Intended for Early and Middle Childhood Education, and Montessori Education Majors with an emphasis placed on the Ohio Academic content Standards.

3) Course for Italian Studies students:

ITAL 258 Language and Culture in Italy - Prof. Kelly Blank
Prerequisite: recent completion of ITAL 102 or above.
This communicative course will provide students participating in the Xavier summer program in Rome with an opportunity to use their language skills in context as well as learn and use other high-frequency structures and vocabulary. Through conversational practice, vocabulary building, and task completion, students will build on their language skills and cultural knowledge of Italy while being able to communicate more comfortably in everyday situations. The class will also have the opportunity to discuss culturally relevant themes while reinforcing new grammar and vocabulary through the reading of short stories, articles, and essays.