Message from the Dean

Welcome to NCSSM’s Department of Humanities!  We invite you to join us on an exciting intellectual and imaginative journey of discovery.

The humanities—literature and languages, history, social science, and the fine arts—are an essential complement to the study of mathematics and the sciences. NCSSM’s Department of Humanities plays a vital role in helping our institution fulfill its mission to educate a new generation of leaders for our state, nation, and world. Our department’s longstanding commitment to interdisciplinary approaches to teaching and learning empowers students to become the kind of leaders who have the flexibility of mind to think “outside the box” of discrete areas of knowledge, the keenness of vision to make connections, the confidence to challenge received wisdom, and the imagination, ingenuity, and energy to create original solutions to complex problems.

NCSSM’s humanities courses challenge students to think carefully, critically, creatively, and for themselves; to be open and receptive to new ideas and ways of thinking; and to express their understanding in clear, effective, and engaging writing and speech. Our courses also encourage students to see beyond themselves—to empathize with others—, qualities that are essential for citizens who will play active roles in a healthy democracy.

Our goal is that our students leave NCSSM rich with possibilities and confidence, ready to fly out into the future to translate their many gifts into service for the world.