Coming back to campus, itching for a class to replace an ungodly eight am H&SS elective, which was needed to fulfill the requirements for my major, I decided I would like to take a history class. Looking through the Rensselaer catalogue, I found some interesting classes, but the lack of any available at registration was quite frustrating. As RPI is trying to broaden its range of offerings and expand its diversity of students, I believe it is logical for RPI to create a history department.
In order to break away from the “tech school” classification (as most people dub RPI) we need to get rid of overly complex, and inefficiently broad institutions and go back to simple basics. If a course is history, put it in a history department, not one abbreviated by the baffling and unnecessary initials STSS. We need to stop covering up our shortcomings with incomprehensible acronyms and start dealing with them through simple solutions. This year RPI hired over 50 new faculty, surely some can go to a new department of quality.
Many people enjoy history, including a large number of stereotyped “techies” here at Rensselaer. Though a variety of courses are offered at Russell Sage in Troy, in order to cross-register, you have to be either a female or a really good imitation of one. Having such a department would encourage people to take interesting courses for their requirements that would chall-
enge themselves and not just take the easy way out with a psychology course.
As well as the pursuit of minors, many people would just like to expand upon what they learned in high school. If they were lucky, the most a person spent on an individual topic in a high school history class was two weeks, even at the AP level. If that person got a kick out of Ancient Greece, they should be able to take it here for the fun of it and their own benefit.
