College of Humanities and Social Sciences

This is an archived copy of the 2023-2024 catalog. To access the most recent version of the catalog, please visit http://catalog.shsu.edu.

Administrative Officers

Title/Department Officer
Dean Chien-pin Li, Ph.D.
cxl085@shsu.edu; (936) 294-2200
Senior Associate Dean Leif French, Ph.D.
lmf027@shsu.edu; (936) 294-2455
Associate Dean, Student Success James Crosby, Ph.D.
crosby@shsu.edu; (936) 294-2202
Associate Dean, Academic Programs Carroll Ferguson Nardone, Ph.D.
cfnardone@shsu.edu; (936) 294-2203
Department of Communication Studies Frances Brandau, Ph.D., Chair
scm_feb@shsu.edu; (936) 294-1356
Department of English Jake Blevins, Ph.D., Chair
jblevins@shsu.edu; (936) 294-1402
Department of History Brian Jordan, Ph.D., Chair
bmj018@shsu.edu; (936) 294-4460
Department of Political Science Jason Enia, Ph.D., Chair
jason.enia@shsu.edu; 936) 294-1467
Department of Psychology and Philosophy Jorge Varela, Ph.D., Chair
jgv002@shsu.edu; (936) 294-4161
Department of Sociology Jason Konefal, Ph.D., Chair
jtk007@shsu.edu; (936) 294-1514
Department of World Languages and Cultures Maria Barker, Ph.D., Chair
mhb015@shsu.edu; (936) 294-4584

About the College

The College of Humanities and Social Sciences consists of seven academic units, the Departments of :

  • Communication Studies
  • English
  • History
  • Political Science
  • Psychology and Philosophy
  • Sociology
  • World Languages and Cultures

Mission

The College of Humanities and Social Sciences provides an essential component to a liberal arts education: understanding human beings in their diversity as expressed in their literatures, histories, ideas, values, oral and written expressions, and behavior. By promoting analytic, interpretive, interpersonal, research, and communication skills, the College of Humanities and Social Sciences facilitates personal growth, competent professionals, and responsible citizens.

Contact Information
Phone: (936) 294-2200
Fax: (936) 294-2207
CHSS Building 290

Website
College of Humanities and Social Sciences

Highlights

  • Faculty in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHSS) are committed to teaching excellence, curriculum innovation, research/scholarship, and community and university service.
  • Faculty in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences have been recognized for their research and scholarship with national awards. Among these awards is a finalist for the 2016 Pulitzer Prize in History, a National Endowment for the Arts Fellow in Literature, and a National Endowment for the Arts Fellow in Creative Writing. 
  • Faculty in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences have been recognized for their teaching excellence with national and local awards.  CHSS is home to five Minnie Stevens Piper Professors.  Only 10 Piper Professors are identified each year across Texas.  
  • A national survey ranked the Psychology Program at Sam Houston State in the top ten of emerging Clinical Psychology Doctoral Programs.
  • Courses in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences exceed the national norms in teacher effectiveness and course excellence.
  • CHSS is home to many student organizations, both honorary and professional, to help build student resumes with active learning opportunities. Several of these clubs have been recognized regionally and nationally.
  • A student in the Clinical Psychology PhD program received the David Pilon Scholarship for Training in Professional Psychology from the American Psychological Association of Graduate Students.  This national award is made to one graduate student in psychology each year.
  • CHSS houses two Research Centers:
    • The Center for the Study of Disasters & Emergency Management (CDEM)
    • The Center for Multi-cultural Rural Development (CMRD)

Master's Degrees

Departments Programs
College of Humanities and Social Sciences History and Political Studies, MA
Communication Studies Communication Studies, MA
English Creative Writing, Editing, and Publishing, MFA
English English, MA
English Technical Communication, MA
English English, MA/Creative Writing, Editing, and Publishing, MFA (Dual Degree)
History History, MA
Political Science Political Science, MA
Political Science Public Administration, MPA
Psychology and Philosophy Psychology, MA
Psychology and Philosophy Psychology - Clinical Psychology, MA
Psychology and Philosophy Psychology - School Psychology, SSP
Sociology Sociology, MA
World Languages and Cultures Spanish, MA

Doctoral Degrees

Departments Programs
Psychology and Philosophy Clinical Psychology, PhD

Certificates

Departments Programs
Communication Studies Communication Studies
English English
History American History
Political Science Political Science
Psychology and Philosophy General Psychology
Sociology Community Development
Sociology Sociology

CHSS Graduate Scholarship

This enrollment-based scholarship awards $1000 per semester for full-time students and $500 per semester for part-time students. Application is located in Scholarships4kats. 

Other

Departments within the college have numerous scholarships accessible through the Scholarships4kats application process.

Several of the department graduate programs have academic clubs that support students' integration into graduate studies and provide networking opportunities for students and faculty.

Departments often provide internship/practicum experience in the application of academic work to worlds of practice.