Viking Launch Courses

Is it true that we use only about 10% of our brain? Of course not! Weighing approximately 3 pounds, the human brain may be our last and most complicated biological frontier. So effective and efficient are the brain’s 100 billion neurons that, as long as things are working properly, we rarely stop to think about how this complex mass of tissue gives rise to our every thought, action and perception. However, when brain function is impaired people’s lives can be dramatically altered. This course will introduce you to behavioral neuroscience in Western’s state-of-the-art neuroscience research facility, where you will learn about the role that the nervous system plays in normal and abnormal behavior, thought and emotion. Lab activities include a sheep’s brain dissection, to help you learn about brain-and-behavior relationships hands-on!

2 credits

(will be applied to your fall quarter bill):  No additional course fee.

Instructor: Dr. Jeff Grimm

Poetry, Prose, and Popular Culture is a two-credit Viking Launch course introducing incoming WWU students to elements and techniques of creative writing craft and invite you to engage in generative exercises, drafting, workshopping, and revising to produce your own short collection of poetry and prose. Other course activities will include reading, discussing, and responding to the work of published poets and writers with a focus on how their work intersects with popular culture including music, visual media, urban legend, and others. You will meet and interact with your instructor in a small seminar, create a strong bond with other first-year students, and take part in occasional excursions around and off campus. You will become familiar with Canvas and nuances of WWU educational expectations to prepare you for success in your WWU courses.

2 credits

(will be applied to your fall quarter bill):  No additional course fee.

Instructor: Kami Westhoff

Explore and engage with some of our region's most exciting community gardening and farming projects. Get your hands dirty alongside community leaders who are using healthy, local food to address pressing social issues like unemployment, depression, and climate change adaptation. We will learn about projects on campus, around town, and in the surrounding countryside. Ready to work outside, get inspired, explore, and play? 

2 credits

(will be applied to your fall quarter bill): $75. The course fee is tentative based on a potential field trip. Fee will only be charged if actual field study takes place.

Instructor: Travis Tennessen

Interested in learning about the history of Bellingham’s local volcano? In this class you'll learn about the origin, geology, and hazards associated with this active volcano, and discover how geologists study volcanoes. The class will some engaging lab and classroom activities.

2 credits

(will be applied to your fall quarter bill):  No additional course fee.

Instructor: Dr. Bernard Housen

Everyone’s a photographer, right? We can all take photos on our phones and post them to Instagram or Tumblr. Now, delve further into photo practice, history, creative meaning, and ethics through presentations, photo assignments, visits from photographers, field trips, and in-class production in a design lab. To prepare you to do profile, stop motion, and self-expression projects, we will cover SLR cameras and do a tutorial on Photoshop. A field trip to a local magazine publisher (possibly remote) will discuss editorial decision-making in publishing outdoor photos as narratives, as well as the career of freelancing; a second field trip to a local newspaper (again, possibly remote) will cover how to make ethical editorial choices in local coverage. This course helps you build media literacy, as we will discuss design standards and visual creativity. The material covered is useful to prospective Journalism majors as well as any student who wants to learn how to produce photos with an understanding of the technical and creative aspects of photography, as well as the history and ethics of photo practice.

2 credits

(will be applied to your fall quarter bill):  No additional course fee.

Instructor: Sheila Webb

Introduction to and critical examination of select virtues and character strengths associated with leading responsibly. Topics studied in class will be applied in a service learning experience.

2 credits

(will be applied to your fall quarter bill):  No additional course fee.

Instructor: Frederick Collins

Are you considering business as your academic and professional pursuit but unsure as to which area to study or where to begin? This course is designed to introduce students to the College of Business and Economics (CBE) help students explore and understand the distinct areas of study and professional practice that business has to offer. The course will include a survey of the primary disciplines in business as offered at WWU in the CBE. You will become acquainted with Accounting, Decision Sciences, Finance and Marketing, Economics and Management. Students will learn from experienced faculty, meet department teams and have the chance to visit local businesses. This course is a great way to understand the opportunities offered at the CBE and get a head start on planning your degree in business at Western.

2 credits

(will be applied to your fall quarter bill):  No additional course fee.

Instructor: Lucas Senger

Spanish is the fourth most commonly spoken language in the world, and, with more than 40 million speakers, the United States is part of the wildly diverse Spanish-speaking world. Studying Spanish can help us better understand the United States, and it’s also an avenue for exploring the world beyond our borders. Whether you’re interested in economics or environmental science, math or music, incorporating language study will broaden your perspective on the world and help you gain valuable academic and personal skills.

This course focuses on developing conversational Spanish skills, while also studying popular culture and historical contexts. As we learn about Spanish-speaking communities in a local and global context, we will explore campus resources to learn about study abroad and volunteer opportunities.

This course is open to students with varying levels of Spanish and/or an interest in studying Spanish.

Note: For questions about language level, prior experience with Spanish, or suitability for this course, please contact the instructor directly.

2 credits

(will be applied to your fall quarter bill):  No additional course fee.

Instructor: Kirsten Drickey - Kirsten.Drickey@wwu.edu