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The Program in
Culture, Advocacy, and Leadership

Sports & Society Minor

Sports bring people together and split people apart; sports distract us, excite us, and give us a location to argue over values and meanings. Nationalism, globalism, citizenship, gender, race, sexuality, and much more, all influence and are influenced by sports. Sports have also been at the forefront of various social and political movements. By examining the role that sports have played, and continue to play, in society, we can gain a deeper understanding of the challenges and opportunities before us.

The interdisciplinary Sports and Society minor, offered through the Program in Culture, Advocacy, and Leadership, focuses on the intersection of sports, discourse, and culture. Courses explore the ways that athletes, journalists, public figures, team owners, fans, and many others, contribute to one of the most influential aspects of the modern world. Indeed, the study of sport can help us understand the way individuals and teams make meaning and advance a host of related causes—finance and investing, music and fashion, gender and immigration, data analytics and technological development, rivalries and celebrations, and much more.

The minor is perfect for students who are passionate about sports and interdisciplinary learning, who are currently (or have been) athletes, and who hope to have careers in (or adjacent to) sports.

MINOR REQUIREMENTS

The minor in Sports and Society consists of five courses, totaling a minimum of 15 credit hours:

1. CAL 2100: Sports, Culture, and Society (3 hours)

2. Four other approved courses from the following list:

  • ECON 2180: Sports Economics
  • MUSL 1340: Music, Sports, and Society
  • PSY 3560: Sports Psychology
  • CMST 2432/GER2432: Soccer: Media, Art, and Society
  • HIST 1469: Fútbol-Soccer: Latinx, Gender, and Belonging
  • SOC 3224: Sociology Through Baseball
  • CMST 2750: Communication, Sports, and Society

A student who is doing a 3-credit-hour internship with a sports organization, an immersion project dealing with Sports and Society, or an Independent Study dealing with Sports and Society may petition for 3 hours toward the minor in place of one of the courses above.

A student can only utilize a 3-hour internship, 3 hours of independent study, or 3 hours of immersion credit toward the minor. Note that if this 3-hour exception is to count toward the minor, the student must be enrolled in the graded option (not P/F).

The replacement should be approved in advance by Professor John Sloop, director of the Sports and Society minor, or Professor Gabriel Torres, Director of Undergraduate Studies for Culture, Advocacy, and Leadership. We especially encourage internships and projects that involve students in public-facing endeavors and research (e.g., podcasts, work with local sports franchises).

In addition, if a department offers a special-topics course that fits the purposes of this minor, a student can petition to count it toward the minor.