Minor in global cultures comes to UM-Dearborn

Stephane Spoiden recently created Facebook and Twitter accounts.

But Spoiden, an international studies professor at University of Michigan-Dearborn, won’t be using the accounts to reconnect with old friends and family members. Instead, he’s trying to spread the word about a new global cultures minor on campus.

“I get emails every day,” said Spoiden, who added that many students expressed excitement about the new minor.

The 15-credit global cultures minor will be available next semester, and was created because Spoiden contends college students across the country must be more aware of what happens beyond U.S. borders.

“American campuses have to globalize,” he said. “Dearborn has to be more global. I thought I would go a little further and implement this.”

The global cultures minor especially benefits those students who plan to study or work abroad, or simply want to expand their horizons on a more global scale, Spoiden said. Some classes already were offered on campus, while faculty created new courses and tweaked current ones. Spoiden said he hopes to bring prominent speakers to campus to discuss global affairs, thus increasing the University’s international appeal.

He wanted to create a global cultures major, but said “to implement a major is a large process.” Spoiden plans to survey how much popularity the minor attracts, then decide whether to implement a major.

Spoiden will teach an introduction to global cultures course next semester, a class he said is a gateway to the new minor program. During that course, he will introduce students to the various concepts and notions of globalization. Spoiden also plans to lead an in-depth examination of globalization and its ideologies, the consensus and controversies it engenders. The course will focus on the relationship between globalization and culture.