Winter Quarter Courses on the American West

A statue of Sacajawea, guide to Lewis and Clark, by sculptor Alice Cooper in Portland, Ore.

This winter quarter, Stanford students interested in studying the American West have an exciting array of 37 courses to choose from across many departments on campus. We've collected a full listing of more than 100 courses on the West offered each year at Stanford.

Each year, postdoctoral scholars at the Bill Lane Center for the American West also offer special courses of their own design that rise out of their own original research. This winter, historian Brenda Frink will teach "Women, Race, and the American West, 1849-1950," a course offered in the History Department and the program in Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity. The course offers students an innovative opportunity to examine the history and myths of the West through the lived experience of real western women and the pervasive myths that continue to shape our conceptions of race and gender in western history, as they cast a critical eye on Hollywood westerns, historical novels, public artwork, and immigration records from Angel Island, the gateway to the West in the San Francisco Bay.

Other courses offered this winter include "The California Gold Rush: Geologic Background and Environmental Impact," "Specialized Writing and Reporting: Covering Silicon Valley," and "Ecology and Natural History of Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve," among many others.

For the full listing of winter courses, click here.