College of Humanities and Behavioral Sciences

Dr. Katherine Hawkins Dean
132 Russell, (540) 831-5149

Dr. Tod W. Burke Associate Dean
133 Russell, (540) 831-5149

Deborah L. Kitts
Advising Coordinator
127 Russell, (540) 831-6366

The College of Humanities and Behavioral Sciences offers a variety of majors and minors designed to prepare students both as thinking and involved citizens and as highly trained professionals. The curriculum emphasizes a strong liberal arts foundation through its focus on critical thinking, both oral and written communication knowledge and skills, philosophical analysis, an understanding of religious expression, literature, foreign languages and literatures, social problems and issues, the characteristics of individuals and groups, historical understanding and the nature of political life. The more professionally oriented programs prepare professionals as consumers and producers of media, effective and ethical public relations practitioners, counselors and criminal justice professionals. The curriculum is innovative and continually developing to meet new needs. It emphasizes an intelligent blend of traditional classroom learning with new educational technologies, group and team learning, and student research activities.

Faculty members are dedicated teachers and scholars. Many have been recognized at the highest levels for their dedicated and highly successful work with students. Members of the College have won the prestigious Virginia Outstanding Faculty Award, the Radford University Foundation Award for Excellence in Teaching, the Donald N. Dedmon Distinguished Teaching Professor Award, the Radford University Foundation Distinguished Creative Scholar Award, and the Radford University Distinguished Service Award. Many faculty are also highly successful researchers, writers, poets and authors.

Students in the college are themselves highly successful with many continuing on for graduate degrees at highly rated and nationally recognized programs. Students regularly present their research at a variety of state, regional, national, and international conferences in conjunction with faculty members, including the National Conference on Undergraduate Research, The Big South Undergraduate Research Symposium, Virginia Association of Teachers of English, the Phi Alpha Theta Conference, Southeastern Psychological Association, The Industrial/Organizational Psychology Graduate Student Conference, the American Mental Health Counseling Association, the Southeastern Women’s Studies Association, the Virginia Psychological Association, the Mid-Atlantic Regional Conference of Undergraduate Scholarship, and the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, the Southern Sociological Society, and many others. They are also recipients of a variety of honors and awards. Graduates from the college move on to responsible positions in a variety of fields.

Undergraduates in the college may earn a Bachelor of Arts or a Bachelor of Science degree. The college offers bachelor’s degrees in 11 undergraduate majors, the master’s degree in four areas, and the Educational Specialist degree in School Psychology. Many of the majors offer several concentrations from which the student may choose. (These degrees are listed below.)

This academic year marks the second year of Radford University’s first doctoral program. The Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D.) in counseling psychology is focused on rural mental health. The Psy.D. degree in counseling psychology is designed for persons interested in careers as psychologists in mental health settings and institutions where clinical supervision and the direct application of counseling, therapy, and psychological assessment are required. The program follows a practitionerscholar model with an emphasis on clinical training and the application of research to practice.

The School of Communication, which resides within the College of Humanities and Behavioral Sciences, began its first year of operation with the start of the 2008-09 academic year. This academic unit emphasizes the role of communication as central to the health and well-being of our nation, its media, institutions, organizations, groups, cultures, and individuals.

The College of Humanities and Behavioral Sciences includes eight academic departments and one school:

Criminal Justice
English
Foreign Languages and Literatures
History
Philosophy and Religious Studies
Political Science
Psychology
Sociology
The School of Communication

In addition to the programs listed above, there are nine specialized areas within the college:

The Interdisciplinary Minor in Cinematic Arts, jointly supported by the College of Humanities and Behavioral Sciences and the College of Visual and Performing Arts, provides students with a solid foundation in the historical, critical, and aesthetic aspects found in the area of cinema. (See here .)

The Interdisciplinary Studies major is offered to students who find that their educational goals cannot be met through a specific degree program. This major does not provide teaching licensure, however, provides breadth and flexibility through Core Curriculum, an interdisciplinary core of courses, and depth in two different academic concentrations. (See here for B.A.  or B.S.  )

Students who desire to complement their foreign language skills with a cultural focus may obtain an Intercultural Studies minor. (See here .)

The International Studies Program, which offers a minor in international studies, prepares students to participate in an increasingly interdependent world. The program emphasizes understanding other countries through studies of their arts, language, history, and geography as well as their political and economic systems. (See here .)

The Peace Studies Program offers an interdisciplinary minor in the study of world conflicts and explores strategies for creating a more peaceful world. (See here .)

The ROTC Program, staffed by Army commissioned and noncommissioned officers, offers students an opportunity for scholarships and a career in the regular Army, the Army Reserve, or the National Guard. This program offers a minor in Leadership and Military Science which is available to all university students. (See here .)

The Women’s Studies Minor allows students to explore interdisciplinary perspectives on women’s experiences and to use gender as a way of analyzing a variety of social and interpersonal issues. ( See here .)

Of approximately 120 faculty members in the College of Humanities and Behavioral Sciences, more than 80 percent hold the doctoral degree.

Both undergraduate and graduate programs within the college provide close student-faculty relationships designed to meet the needs of individual students.

Advising

Advising Center
127 Russell, (540) 831-6366

Each student in the College of Humanities and Behavioral Sciences is assigned an advisor. Students who are freshmen and sophomore majors in Criminal Justice, Psychology and the School of Communication (Communication and Media Studies) are assigned an Academic Advisor in the Advising Center and meet with that person for registration advising during the Fall and Spring semesters. All other students are assigned a faculty advisor within their respective departments.

In addition, the College Advising Center (Russell Hall 127) provides professional assistance for all students in the college and across the university. We provide support and guidance to those who have questions or concerns about such things as curricula, academic procedures, grade point calculations, referrals to other academic and student support services, or graduation requirements. It is the student’s responsibility to verify that all graduation requirements are met as specified by his or her program and we are here to help support that process through a dynamic relationship.

Degree Requirements

All students majoring in fields of study in the College of Humanities and Behavioral Sciences must meet university Core Curriculum requirements. (See here .)

Requirements of individual academic majors are listed under department headings.