Core Curriculum: HEART

The Heart, where tradition and change meet. To set you on a path to success, you'll participate in a rich interdisciplinary first-year experience where you'll begin making connections (both socially and academically). 

HEART (10-11 credits)

  • First-Year Seminar (Fall): You'll select a seminar topic based on a theme connected to Hood's four columns--Hope, Opportunity, Obligation, and Democracy (3 credits)
  • English Composition (Fall) (3-4 credits, depending on placement test)
  • In the spring, you'll stay with your seminar cohort and complete a theme-linked course. The linked course includes service-learning, which means you'll connect what you're doing in the classroom with a meaningful project in the community (3 credits)

HEART Examples with Possible Themes

 

Hood ColumnExample Theme & CoursesExample Theme & Courses
HOPE

Future Generations

  • English Composition
  • Fall seminar: Students and 
    Teachers in Popular Culture
  • Spring seminar: Communities, Culture, and Children’s Books

Local Lore and Legends

  • English Composition
  • Fall seminar: Local Lore and Legends
  • Spring seminar: Spaces and Places: Frederick's Built Environment
OPPORTUNITY

Character Quest

  • English Composition
  • Fall seminar: Nomads, Pirates, and Outlaws
  • Spring seminar: Heroes and Monsters

Education for All 

  • English Composition
  • Fall seminar: Perceptions of Disability in Media and Culture
  • Spring seminar: Disability Visibility
OBLIGATION

Global Citizenship

  • English Composition
  • Fall seminar: Wealth and Society
  • Spring seminar: Numbers that Matter

Sustainability

  • English Composition
  • Fall seminar: Business Skills for Sustainable Impact
  • Spring seminar: Environmental Sustainability Challenges and Perspectives
DEMOCRACY

Human Milestones

  • English Composition
  • Fall seminar: Global Rites of Passage
  • Spring seminar: Human Lifespan

Democracy and Disinformation

  • English Composition
  • Fall seminar: Democracy and Disinformation
  • Spring seminar: The Art of Skepticism