While we find the topic of American democracy to be both interesting and imperative, the primary purpose of the course is to give you the opportunity to practice college-level reading, writing, discussion, and support-seeking in a real-life college setting, and through which develop the skills and habits of mind necessary for a successful college transition. The course objectives are as follows:

• Develop critical thinking skills by learning how to analyze different types of texts and by engaging in discussions of and deep thinking about complex topics

• Understand why and how to apply different scholarly lenses to learning complex topics, specifically the application of historical, philosophical, sociological, and political lenses to understanding the foundations and preservation of democracy

• Learn how to examine primary and secondary source readings to identify arguments, analyze evidence, and evaluate conclusions

• Synthesize knowledge gained from readings and discussions to develop a scholarly argument about American democracy, applying lessons learned about college-level reading, note-taking, and writing

• Gain confidence in academic skills and intellectual contributions

• Situate military experiences within broader social, political, and historical contexts

• Understand how to access and use digital, campus, and community-based resources

• Build community through exposure to faculty, staff, fellows, and peers

The College Readiness course is composed of the following four components:

• Seminars are 2-hour lecture- and discussion-based sessions that focus on an aspect of American democracy. Seminars are designed to replicate college-level classes and are taught by expert faculty at our partner institutions. In these sessions, you will engage in debate and discussion with members of your cohort to help you understand the readings and develop your ideas.

• Writing workshops are 3-hour instructional and activity-based sessions that teach about the writing process and how to apply it to the readings and discussions to develop a college-level academic essay. Writing workshops are taught by professional writing instructors at our partner institutions.

• Tutoring sessions are 2-hour blocks of time for participants to meet 1:1 with writing tutors who are undergraduate or graduate students trained in helping students develop and articulate their ideas.

• College Success Sessions are 1.25-hour discussion-based classes led by WSP fellows. Each session focuses on a different topic related to accessing and succeeding in college.

• Readings from core texts (above), book chapters, and primary sources (see Schedule below)

• Daily reflections posted to the online classroom in WSPConnect

• Daily College Success activities posted to the online classroom in WSPConnect

• A 3-5 page academic essay that presents an argument about American democracy based on evidence from assigned readings; the writing assignment and all writing workshop activities will be posted to the online classroom in WSPConnect

The College Readiness boot camp course uses readings from the following books. All other readings listed in the schedule below are book chapters or articles and are posted to your online classroom.

• Allen, Danielle. (2014). Our declaration: A reading of the Declaration of Independence in defense of equality. W. W. Norton.

• Graff, Gerald & Birkenstein, Cathy. (2021). They Say, I Say: The moves that matter in academic writing. W. W. Norton.

• Tocqueville, Alexis de. (2000). Democracy in America (trans. By H. C. Mansfield & D. Winthrop). The University of Chicago Press.

• Pavel, Ryan & Sanchez, Cassie. (2024). The Warrior-Scholar’s Field Guide.

To view the a sample schedule, please use this link.