FRSM 1100: Freshman Seminar I (1.

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Spring 2018
Section 04: Mondays at 11am
Administration 213

Instructor information:
Dr. Wendy Gaudin
Director, Freshman Seminar Program
Office location: Administration 303A
Phone: 520-7272
Email: wgaudin@xula.edu
Office hours: MWF 8:30 – 10:50am and by appointment

Required text:
Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

Course description:
Freshman Seminar II is a second-semester, required, 1 credit course that – along
with FRSM I – serves as the foundation of the Xavier academic experience. The
course continues to connect students to Xavier, New Orleans, and world
communities by using academic-based service learning as a means to focus
specifically on Xavier’s historical mission of working toward a more just and
humane society.

Course goals:
 Demonstrate effective written and oral communication skills, while
utilizing appropriate technologies;
 Adapt and apply appropriate academic strategies to their courses and
learning experiences;
 Demonstrate a deep understanding of the relationship of self to the larger
human experience;
 Actively engage with Xavier’s Mission Statement and critically examine the
connections between social justice and a liberal arts education;
 Appreciate and respect different perspectives within an age-diverse, class-
diverse, and race-diverse population;
 Demonstrate Xavier’s mission to promote a more just and humane society
through a selected service-learning project.

Course theme:

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During this second half of Freshman Seminar, we will revisit some of the college-
ready skills that we introduced in the fall semester in order to ensure that we are
all successful in this critical second semester. We will also focus on Homegoing
and the themes associated with social justice that are present in that text.
Specifically, we will focus on race and identity, and racial justice. We will also
have a Service Learning project during this semester. The Service Learning project
will ask all of us to interact with our elders in a meaningful way. Details
forthcoming!

Attendance:
Xavier’s attendance policy for 1000-level courses applies to FRSM, which means
that you can only miss 2 classes this semester, regardless of reason (illness,
personal problems, family issues, etc.). If you miss 3 or more classes, your final
grade will be an FE (failure due to excessive absences) and you will have to repeat
the course. Don’t make this mistake!

Academic integrity:
In line with Xavier’s policies, if you engage in academic dishonesty (such as
plagiarizing a paper by copying and pasting from an Internet site), you will receive
a grade of zero for the assignment (in the best-case scenario). In the worst-case
scenario, the dean will be notified of your academic dishonesty and you will
receive an “F” for the entire course and you will have to repeat the course. You
should become familiar with the University’s policy on academic integrity, which is
available at: http://www.xula.edu/cas/documents/cas_academicIntegrity.pdf.

The Mentor-Student relationship and responsibilities:

As your Freshman Seminar instructor, I look forward to also serving as a mentor to
each of you. This means that if you have any questions or concerns, you are free to
bring them to me and we will work toward an understanding and a solution; I will
also assist each of you with finding the resources that you need to help you to
succeed and remain healthy during your time here at Xavier. My office hours are
for you to come and see me; we can also agree to meet at another time, or you can
call me, or you can email me and we will address your concerns. We will also
agree to respect each other’s backgrounds, beliefs, and opinions expressed in class.
I, too, agree to this fundamental aspect of our class. I know that we will all learn a
great deal from each other.

Classroom conduct:
Students are expected to fully engage in the activities of the course. Participation
will be measured through class discussion, class activities, and group participation.
The course is designed to stimulate interaction between students, which
necessitates regular attendance and participation for two reasons: 1) to listen to the
ideas of other members of the class, and 2) to voice your own ideas for the benefit
of others. If a student misses class, he/she/they cannot always expect to ‘get the

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notes’ from a classmate or otherwise ‘make up’ the work because the social
dynamic of the class period cannot be reconstructed. Thus, full participation in
class (meaning arriving on time, with phone put away, with mind and body in the
same place) is expected of all of us – including myself.

Coursework and grading:

Students are expected to complete the following requirements:
 A group oral presentation…………………….……………..…….……50 points
 Ten weekly online reflective writings….…….…….……30 points (total)
 One 4-page essay..……………………………………...………….…..…..30 points
 An end-of-the-year student portfolio…………………….…….…40 points
 Class participation…………………………………….………………...….50 points

All work will be graded on a point system. The number you receive on your
assignment is the number of points that you have received for that assignment.
The final grade will be determined by the total number of points a student
accumulates via the total number of points that were attainable through class
assignments. The percentage will be 100-90%=A, 89-80%=B, 79-70%=C, 69-
60%=D,

Your midterm grade will consist of class participation (50%) and weekly reflective
writings (50%).

We will discuss the details of all assignments in class, and guidelines for each
assignment will be posted on Blackboard. However, do keep the following in
mind:
1. All members of the group must be present for the oral presentation; this
assignment cannot be made up.
2. All assignments must be turned in on time. It would be wise to turn
assignments in one day early. I will only accept late assignments with a
documented excuse.
3. Online reflective writings, while informal, are still to be taken seriously.
They will be graded on the following criteria: (a) Did you think deeply
about the question asked? (b) Was your answer thorough? (c) Was your
writing intelligible and clear? (d) Did you complete the assignment by the
due date? The weekly writing assignments are due no later than 8am on
Monday morning.
4. The end-of-the-year portfolio will require you to construct a Powerpoint
presentation. If you don’t know how to use Powerpoint, seek out assistance
early in the semester.

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In case of emergency…:
In the event of an evacuation, please go on Blackboard as soon as possible to
retrieve announcements and/or assignments, and then continue the course as
instructed.

COURSE SCHEDULE

Remember:
 This schedule may change at my discretion. Notice will be given in class and
posted to Blackboard.
 Reading is due for the class period it is assigned. Thus you must have it read
before attending class. Reading assignments are listed with writing
assignments on a separate handout and on Blackboard.
 *ORW=Online Reflective Writing—due no later than 8am Monday
morning.

Week of Class Topics and Assignments Due

Exercises
Week 1: Starting the none
Mon Jan 8 semester on a good
foot

Week 2:
Mon Jan 15

NO CLASS
TODAY
Week 3: Effie chapter from
Mon Jan 22 Homegoing
ORW #1 due
Week 4: Esi chapter from
Mon Jan 29 Homegoing
ORW #2 due
Week 5: Quey, Ness
Mon Feb 5 chapters from
Homegoing
ORW #3 due

Week 6:
Mon Feb 12

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NO CLASSES THIS
WEEK
Week 7: Library training
Mon Feb 19

Week 8: James, Kojo

Mon Feb 26 chapters of
Homegoing
ORW #4 due

Week 9: Abena, H chapters

Mon Mar 5 of Homegoing
ORW #5 due

Week 10: Akua, Willie

Mon Mar 12 chapters of
Homegoing
ORW #6 due

Week 11: Yaw, Sonny

Mon Mar 19 chapters of
Homegoing
ORW #7 due

Week 12:
Mon Mar 26

NO CLASSES THIS
WEEK
Week 13: Marjorie chapter of
Mon Apr 2 Homegoing
ORW #8 due
Formal essay due
Week 14: Marcus chapter of
Mon Apr 9 Homegoing
ORW #9 due
Week 14: Discussion: ORW #10 due
Mon Apr 16 Portfolio, preparing
for finals
LAST DAY OF
FRSM

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