Liberal Studies
The Department of Liberal Studies introduces students to the rich and challenging intellectual tradition of Western Civilization. Students majoring in History, Latin American Studies/Spanish, Philosophy/Religion and Political Science are encouraged to pursue academic excellence and professional expertise in their chosen area of study. Additional minors such as international studies, pre-law and youth ministries provide specific focus to students interested in these fields. The various majors and minors offered by the Department of Liberal Studies assist students preparing for graduate school as well as for careers in education, law, business, politics and ministry.
Internships are offered for those majoring in philosophy/religion and are under consideration for other majors.
Contact the Liberal Studies Department:
Email: liberalstudies@flagler.edu
Telephone: (904) 819-6266
Majors
Minors
- History
- International Studies
- Latin American Studies/Spanish
- Philosophy
- Political Science
- Religion
- Spanish
- Youth Ministries
Pre-Professional Programs
Courses
Courses for the Liberal Studies majors and minors are found in theCourse Catalog. Note also that geography courses are included within this department.
Read about the summer 2003 field trip on which Department Chair Dr. Timothy Johnson took his religious studies class to a South Carolina monastery.
Study Abroad
The Liberal Studies Department offers a summer study abroad experience in Italy every other year. Latin American Studies/Spanish majors also may arrange study abroad experiences on an individual basis. More-detailed information about studying abroad is available here:
(credentials are listed in the Catalog)
Dr. J. Michael Butler is Assistant Professor of History at Flagler College. He obtained his Bachelor of Arts in History from Spring Hill College, a Jesuit college in Mobile, Alabama. At Spring Hill, Butler became a “President's Scholar” and graduated Magna Cum Laude. He received both his Masters and Doctorate in History from the University of Mississippi, where he specialized in 20th century Southern history with an emphasis on the civil rights movement. Dr. Butler has authored Victory After the Fall: The Memories of Civil Rights Activist H. K. Matthews, published essays in the Journal of Southern History, the Florida Historical Quarterly, Southern Cultures, Popular Music and Society, and the Journal of Mississippi History, and written over 40 book reviews and encyclopedia entries for various academic journals. He is currently working on a book that examines the aftermath of legal desegregation in Pensacola, Florida, which is tentatively titled Beyond Integration: Race and Justice in Pensacola, 1960-2000. In his spare time, Dr. Butler loves to spend time with his family, travel, and follow his beloved (yet beleaguered) Ole Miss football program.
Dr. Rachel Cremona is Assistant Professor of Political Science at Flagler College. She holds a Masters degree in American Politics from the University of Essex in the UK and received both a Masters degree and PhD in Comparative Politics from Binghamton University in New York. Her dissertation, A Meaningful Majority: Rediscovering Government by the People, provides an empirical examination of the potential and limitations of modern democratic governance. She is also a contributing author in Borders, Nationalism and the African State (Lynne Reinner, 2005). While her areas of specific interest include democratic representation, political parties and electoral behavior, she teaches a wide variety of courses in both American and Comparative Politics.
Dr. John F. Diviney is the coordinator for the Spanish and Latin American Studies program at Flagler College. He was on the faculty of the Department of Modern Languages and Linguistics at the Florida State University for three years. Specializing in colonial Hispanic Florida History and literature, he teaches classes in Hispanic literature, composition and grammar as well as in the history of Latin America and current Latin American cultural and social issues. He has numerous publications of the translations of Hispanic and Brazilian poets in journals, magazines and newspapers throughout Latin America and the U.S. He currently is translating his doctoral dissertation into English for publication and is working on other transcription/translation projects of colonial Spanish Florida historical documents from the period of 1700-1720.
Agnieszka (Aggie) Johnson is Assistant Professor of Spanish and Coordinator of the Language Lab at Flagler College. She holds a Master’s degree in Spanish from Middlebury College, Vermont. After completing language study programs in France, Italy and Spain, Ms. Johnson worked in Poland and Peru in the areas of teaching, translating and social outreach for various ecclesial and civil organizations. In addition, she has studied American Sign Language and worked at the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind. Her wide cultural experience and passion for languages add a practical aspect to teaching within the context of real-life situations.
Dr. Timothy J. Johnson is Professor of Religion and Chairperson of the Liberal Studies Department at Flagler College. A German-American Fulbright Scholar, he holds a Doctorate in Sacred Theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, Italy. While his primary area of expertise is the history of Christian spirituality and theology, he enjoys teaching courses as diverse as Religion and Film and Contemporary Theological Thought. Dr. Johnson has taught in Europe and Africa, authored or edited several books, and published in various North American and European journals. He is senior theology co-editor for Franciscan Studies. A member of the Bonaventure Texts in Translation Editorial Board of the Franciscan Institute, he completed an English translation of Bonaventure’s Latin Sunday Sermons in 2008. His latest project is an edited volume on Franciscan Preachers for Brill Academic. Dr. Johnson is an academic board member of the Research Centre for the Comparative History of Religious Orders at the Catholic University in Eichstätt, Germany. Please CLICK HERE for Faculty Web Page.
María José C. Maguire is Assistant Professor of Spanish at Flagler College. Currently a PhD candidate, she holds a Master's degree in Spanish from the Florida State University. Professor Maguire's area of specialization is 19th and 20th Century Latin American Literature. She currently teaches both upper and lower division courses in Spanish language and culture. Professor Maguire serves as the faculty advisor for the Spanish Club and is a member of several professional associations: MLA, LASA, and FFLA. Professor Maguire, is also an avid traveler. She has studied in Valencia Spain, and has visited several Latin American countries including Nicaragua, Peru and Mexico. Her outside interests include acting and reading.
Dr. Hugh Marlowe is Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Flagler College. He received his Ph.D. from the University of California, Riverside where he wrote his dissertation on the Problem of Freedom. It investigates two-standpoint style arguments as a means of preventing our notion of ourselves as agents from disappearing into the event-causal flow. In doing so, it also explores issues involving reflective evaluation, identity, and moral realism. He received his M.A. from New York University where he wrote his thesis on the Mind-Body Problem. In addition to teaching classes in his primary areas of research, Dr. Marlowe also teaches classes in comparative philosophy, religion, and eastern mysticism. He recently gave a series of talks at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock on the Taoist notion of wu-wei or “actionless activity.” In contrast to standard western approaches to agency, which emphasize notions such as the agent being “the source of his action” or autonomous, Taoism seems to contend that such ideas are more or less illusory and – in fact – an obstacle to enlightenment. Dr. Marlowe has also trained deeply in the Taoist internal arts of T’ai Chi Ch’uan, meditation, and Nei Kung. His email address is: hmarlowe@flagler.edu
Chris Moser is Assistant Professor and Assistant Director of the Pre-Law Program at Flagler College. Ms. Moser received her Juris Doctor from University of Florida Levin College of Law where she received Academic Honors and High Honors in 1999 and 2000 respectfully. After graduation, Ms. Moser joined the staff of Capital Collateral Regional Counsel doing appellate work for death row inmates in Florida. In 2002, Ms. Moser joined the Office of the Public Defender in Jacksonville, Florida, where she handled complex criminal cases, gained valuable trial experience, and headed the Juvenile Division in Clay County, Florida. While her areas of expertise include Criminal Law, Constitutional Criminal Procedure, and Legal Ethics she teaches a wide variety of courses relating to the law including International Law and Politics, Civil and Political Liberties, Legal Writing, and Death Penalty Analysis. Ms. Moser is an active member of the Florida Bar, Florida Association of Criminal Defense Attorneys, and is Vice-President of the St. Johns County Bar Association.
Judge Richard Poland is Professor of Liberal Studies and Director of the Pre-Law Program. After retiring as the Somerset County Probate Judge for the State of Maine in September 1994, Poland assumed the position of Assistant Academic Dean and Pre-Law Program Director at Flagler College. In September 1996, Judge Poland joined the Flagler faculty where he continues to serve as a Professor of Law. He has chaired a number of committees at Flagler including the Academic Program Accessibility Committee, Faculty Welfare Committee, and the Truman Scholarship Committee. He has also served as the President of the Southern Association of Pre-Law Advisors and as a member of the Pre-Law Advisors National Council. Judge Poland teaches Introduction to U.S. Law, Legal Method and Process, Advanced Legal Method and Process, Justice and the Judicial Process, Contemporary Legal and Political Issues, and a number of Special Topics courses on a regular basis. Judge Poland has also written a number of articles for the SAPLA Handbook For Pre-Law Advisors and is listed in Marquis' Who's Who in the World and Who's Who in American Law. CLICK HERE for faculty web page
Wayne Riggs is Assistant Professor of History at Flagler College. A PhD candidate at Marquette University, where he holds a Masters Degree in Modern European history, Professor Riggs received a BA in history from Grove City College. He specializes in modern Britain, and his dissertation focuses on British religion during the First World War. Professor Riggs’ teaching interests include modern European history, Britain and Empire, and the modern Middle East. He is particularly keen to discuss the role of religion in the evolution of social structures and national identities. Professor Riggs is an amateur musician, who has experience in classical piano and as a church music director. He is also an avid fan of Steelers’ football and the Marquette Warriors (Golden Eagles).
Dr. James L. Rowell is Assistant Professor of Religion.Dr. Rowell’s research pursues the line of comparative religion, politics, and philosophy in the pursuit of understanding ethical and political problems of modernity. Beginning in the fields of anthropology and political science, he has a Masters Degree in Political Science and a PhD in the field of Comparative Religion and Politics. Recently he has been published in prestigious journals such as Theology Today and the Journal of Conflict Studies, and is an active participant in the American Academy of Religion. Currently he is pursuing research including a book project on radical religion, violence and non-violence.
Christopher Sarver is an Assistant Professor of Political Science. Mr. Sarver received his Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy and Political Science from Ohio Wesleyan University in 1992, his Master of Arts in Political Science from SUNY Albany in 1999, and is currently a PhD candidate at SUNY Albany. Mr. Sarver’s areas of specialization are in International Relations and Comparative Politics, with an emphasis on U.S. foreign policy, international political economy, and politics and economics of the developing world, specifically Africa and Latin America. Mr. Sarver has taught a wide variety of courses in international relations and comparative politics, including Politics of the Developing World, Latin American Politics, African Politics, Global Poverty and Hunger, Comparative Foreign Policy, and U.S. Foreign Policy. Mr. Sarver has also taught American Government, Introduction to Political Science, and Political Theory. Research interests include multinational corporations, international petroleum and mining, and the impact of economic development on human rights. Mr. Sarver also served as a United States Peace Corps Volunteer in Guatemala, Central America and a medical social worker and health educator for Farmworker Health Services, Inc., a Washington D.C.-based non-profit that provides medical outreach, advocacy, and translation services for migrant farm laborers in the Eastern United States.
Martha Shinn, Coordinator of the Young Life/Youth Ministry Program, teaches classes for the Youth Ministry Minor. She is a graduate of Flagler College and earned her Master’s of Theology from Fuller Seminary. She and her husband came to start the Young Life/Youth Ministry Program in 1975. Since its inception, there has been a unique and ongoing relationship with Young Life (an international Christian youth organization whose purpose is to reach out to middle- and high-school-aged people). Mrs. Shinn served as an area director for Young Life and became Coordinator of the Flagler Program in 1990. She brings many years of experience in Youth Ministry to the program.
Art Vanden Houten is Associate Professor of Political Science. He earned a PhD in Political Science and a Master’s Degree in International Relations from the University of South Carolina. His primary teaching interests include courses at the introductory and upper level in the history of political thought and international relations.
Steve G. Voguit is Assistant Professor of History and Geography at Flagler College. He enjoyed a thirty year career in public education as a social studies teacher, coach, and department chairman. He received a Masters in Education from Millersville University of Pennsylvania and taught in the southeastern region of that state. While in Pennsylvania Mr. Voguit also taught as an adjunct member of the faculty at Alvernia College and was for a short time an administrator at Reading Area Community College. Mr. Voguit continues his career at Flagler College by teaching American History and Geography. He was twice nominated for the Pennsylvania Teacher of the Year, has won numerous awards for his teaching, and is in Who’s Who among American College Teachers. Since coming to Flagler College he was awarded the outstanding educator award by the Flagler College chapter of Kappa Delta Pi and has won the Faculty Member of the Year Award from the Flagler College Student Government Association three times in 2006, 2007, and 2008. Mr. Voguit also serves Flagler College as the NCAA Faculty Athletics Representative.
John D. Young is Assistant Professor of History at Flagler College. He holds graduate degrees from the University of Oxford and the University of Notre Dame. His research interests lie in the cultural and religious history of the Middle Ages, with particular emphasis on Jewish-Christian relations, ecclesiastical politics, and religious communities. His doctoral dissertation focuses on the monasteries of Germany as a locus point for both Jewish-Christian interaction and the transmission of ideas about Jews. In the classroom, Professor Young enjoys teaching African history in addition to various courses on the pre-modern European world. Outside of work, he finds fulfillment in woodworking, cooking, volunteer service, Notre Dame football, and, most of all, his wife and children.
Student Clubs
Several clubs are available for students interested in Liberal Studies Department majors, minors and programs. These include the Political Guild, the Philosophy Symposium, the Pre-Law club (Phi Alpha Delta), Young Life, ARIEL (the Spanish club) and On Religion.
More information about these clubs is available in the Student Life section's club page>>.