University of Southern California School of International Relations
From Open Encyclopedia
The University of Southern California School of International Relations, a subdivision within the College of Letters, Arts, and Sciences, is the third oldest, and one of the most highly regarded, schools of international relations in the world. The school is known for teaching, and hiring faculty who concentrate in, a variety of worldviews, in contrast to many other schools of international relations in the United States.
Contents |
History
The school was founded in 1922, under the direction of then University of Southern California president Rufus von KleinSmid. The founding occured during the liberal-internationalist reaction to World War I; during this so called Grotian moment, many in international relations desired to end war, and thought education was the best means to that end. According to the school's website, its founding mission was "to furnish opportunities for the training of statesmen for consular and diplomatic service, of businessmen for commerce and business administration, and of teachers in departments related to world affairs in colleges and universities" [1]. The school continued to grow during the Second World War and the Cold War. It was one of the first schools of international relations in the country to offer a Ph.D, became a charter member of the Association of Professional Schools of International Affairs (APSIA), and helped to found the International Studies Association (ISA).
Areas of study
Contemporarily, the school offers concentrations in the following courses, of which international relations majors must chose
two:[2]
- International Politics and Security Studies
- International Political Economy
- Foreign Policy Analysis
- Culture, Gender, and Global Society
- Regional concentrations:
- European Union
- Post-Soviet and Eastern Europe
- Latin America
- The Middle East
- The Pacific Rim
- Africa
Director
- Main article: Steven Lamy
Image:Stevenlamy.jpg Currently, Professor Steven Lamy is the Director of the school. He earned his Ph.D from the University of Denver, and specializes in the foreign policy of Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Western Europe. He also is interested in alternatives to Realist thinking, including communitarian theory and the questions raised by the World Order Models Project.
Professor Lamy is, perhaps, best known to undergraduates for teaching International Relations 210 Introductory Analysis, the gateway course for the school of international relations.
Affiliated programs and institutions
In order to further the study of international relations, the school has created number of affiliates:
- Center for International Studies - CIS was established by the School of International Relations to promote advanced research and sustained discussion of theoretical and policy issues in international political and economic affairs.
- Center for Active Learning in International Studies - CALIS is a K-12 outreach program sponsored by the East Asian Studies Center (EASC) and the School of International Relations (SIR)
- Teaching International Relations Program - TIRP is a community outreach program operated by the School of International Relations
- USC Center on Public Diplomacy - The University of Southern California Center on Public Diplomacy is a joint academic research, teaching and training Center created and run jointly by the USC Annenberg School for Communication and the USC College of Letters, Arts and Sciences School of International Relations
