Current Students

• "Rashomon"
• "Gaslight"
• "The Matrix"
• "Fight Club"
• "Whiplash"
• "Ex Machina"

• What is ultimately real and why is understanding it so elusive?
• What is the nature of knowledge and why are we so prone to ignorance?
• What explains personal identity across time?
• How do subconscious psychological drives manifest in our moral lives?
• Can machines be conscious and do we have moral obligations to them?

Students will read philosophical texts to help develop and defend their own answers with clarity and logical rigor. The course also encourages reflection on how the aesthetic and narrative aspects of film can enrich artistic interpretation and moral reflection.

What was St. Petersburg like 50 years ago? What will it be in 50 more years? And what will people remember about this moment in time when our population is booming, skyscrapers are rising, and our community is in flux? In this collaboration with local preservation non-profit Preserve the ‘Burg, students will seek to answer these questions in a variety of interactive and hands-on ways — from interviewing local residents to taking documentary photography, or exploring the library archives to creating 3D scans of historic structures at risk of demolition. Our collective course project will be the installation of a multimedia exhibit at Preserve the Burg’s headquarters, focused on the past, present, and future of this city we call home. Though we will be experimenting with new forms of technology, visual representation, and story-telling, no experience is needed! This class is great for all students, but especially those with interest in journalism and digital communication, history, graphic design, GIS, policy, urban planning, English/creative writing, or environmental/sustainability studies.

This course explores two titular political-economic systems (capitalism and socialism) with an eye towards two sets of questions. The first set of questions is descriptive: What, fundamentally, are these two systems of political economy and how do they operate? The second set of questions is normative, or about what ought to be the case: Which system is preferable, for whom, to what extent, and why?

The course offers an opportunity for sustained and methodical exploration of these questions, and it helps students formulate their own answers with clarity, depth, and logical rigor. The primary objects of study include foundational texts of the study of political economy, such as those of Adam Smith’s "Wealth of Nations" and Karl Marx’s "Kapital"; major developments of 20th century scholarship on the principles underlying capitalism and socialism, such as the work of Friedrich Hayek and Milton Friedman; and modern research on applied topics, such as on sweatshop labor, CEO pay, and price gauging. Along the way, we will consider perspectives from economics, sociology, psychology, and philosophy.

This course examines the theory and practice of Buddhist meditation from its inception through modernity. We will pay particular attention to the historical origins and developments of various Buddhist meditative practices and their interpretations. We will also investigate the causes, implications, and possibilities of the popularization and proliferation of mindfulness meditation in mainstream U.S. culture.

Central questions to this examination will be: 

• What have been the aims and functions of Buddhist meditative practices in their historical, social, and religious contexts?
• Is “secular” meditation practice possible, and relatedly, can one be Buddhist “without beliefs,” as one author recently put it?
• Finally, what are the potential dangers and pitfalls associated with meditation?

Materials for our study include ancient meditation manuals and expository treatises, as well as contemporary writings by religious studies scholars, psychologists, and philosophers — all this alongside influential Buddhist artworks and recent films.

Note: This is a Gulf Scholars Program course, but open to any Honors student.

Taught by the nation’s leading chronicler of modern Florida history, Professor Emeritus Gary Mormino, this course will explore the incredible transformation of Florida over the past 150 years — with a special focus on the past 50, and the environmental, social, political, economic, and local implications of the changes to our Sunshine State. Blending history with personal reflection, this course will consider how the myth of Florida compares and contrasts with the reality.

We will interrogate Florida’s role in popular culture and national emotional sentiment, watching films made in/about Florida and reading a famous Florida novel, "The Yearling." In addition to readings/viewings and discussion, we will observe and experience Gulf coast culture through field trips to St. Pete Beach and Ybor City. A final paper will ask students to research a Gulf-themed history topic of personal interest. Ultimately, by understanding our past and present, this course hopes to create a sense of hope for the future of our Gulf coast communities — Florida needs optimists!

Note: This is a Gulf Scholars program course, but open to any Honors student.

Note: Gulf Research Program (GRP) funding supports education in both urban (heat and flood mitigation) and aquatic resilience education.

This course will guide students through assessment- and solution-building exercises related to urban design and heat mapping, by examining the upstream and downstream consequences of development and the built environment in Florida, including success stories in local watershed restoration and community-centered pilot projects. Students will develop place-based observation and research skills related to Heat Mitigation Pilot projects, while improving graphic communication that applies to their own discipline. Your unique perspectives will enrich the outcome of data questions that we will develop together, as well as the assessments and the solutions. Research components will incorporate USF library archives and community engagement with the potential for environmental design/build as a backdrop for public space campaigning and education.

A permit is required to register; please email Honors advisor Brandon Kroll to request a permit.