United States Studies

The United States Studies requirement may be met with successful completion of either of the following courses. The courses below address the United States Studies competencies.

Advanced Placement (AP) United States History (yearlong):

This course is designed for learners capable of college level work, follows the description put forward by the College Board, and prepares learners to take the Advanced Placement exam. Through extensive experience with document-based and free-response essay writing, learners will move beyond the basic skills of historical chronology and comprehension to develop historical analysis and interpretation skills, research capabilities, and issues-analysis and decision-making skills. A summer reading list or assignments may be required prior to the course. The class follows the advanced placement course description and uses appropriate materials as set forth by the College Board. The AP exam is strongly encouraged.

Recent U. S. History 1 & 2 (two semesters):

• • Recent U. S. History 1: This course reviews the foundations of representative democracy before focusing on the people, cultures, issues, and events that shaped the United States from the Reconstruction era to the 1930s. Learners explore the influences and challenges that have shaped our nation. This course emphasizes the role of democratic principles, civic responsibility, and involvement that have guided the United States.

  • Recent United States History 2: This course focuses on the people, cultures, issues, and events that shaped the United States from the 1930s to the present. Learners explore the influences and challenges that have shaped our nation. This course emphasizes the role of democratic principles, civic responsibility, and involvement that have guided the United States.

United States Civil Rights Experience (one semester):

In this one-semester course, learners will become familiar with the historical civil rights experiences of various marginalized groups, and the rights these groups gained over time. The learner will understand how the notions of equality under the law and popular sovereignty, articulated in the Declaration of Independence, have expanded throughout history by the actions of the legislative and judicial branches, as well as through grassroots civic engagement. The learner will explore the expansion or contraction of the rights of these various groups in areas such as housing, voting, marriage, property, access to public and private services, education, economics, criminal justice, etc. The learner will select one strand to explore throughout the semester, which may be different from what others in the class select. The following are some suggestions, but the list of strands is not limited to this selection: women, Indigenous peoples, Latinos, African Americans, disabled persons, LGBTQ, and other marginalized groups. U.S. Civil Rights Experience may be substituted for Recent United States History 2.