INTD 101-25: First Year Seminar (40254) (4 Cr.)
“Want Power? How to Win a Presidential Election”
Prof. Jeremy Teigen (Office B211, jteigen@ramapo.edu, @ProfTeigen)
Political Science, Salameno School of Humanities and Global Studies
Lecture: Fall 2015, Tue/Fri 3:15-5:05, Temp. Classroom 002
Office Hours: Weds 12-1 & Fri 1-3, or by appointment
“…half the money spent on campaigns is wasted. The trouble is, we don’t know which half.” 1
dr
a
ft
Course Description:
Designed for first-time, full-time, first-year students, First-Year Seminar (FYS) provides a
comprehensive introduction to college-level learning. Seminar courses are developed around an
academic theme or topic that is based on one of Ramapo College’s academic pillars. First-Year
students will have the opportunity to select a seminar that best suits their interests while learning
about Ramapo’s academic foundation. The First-Year Seminar course helps students in their
transition from high school to college life both in and out of the classroom. The common learning
outcomes of FYS are: critical and creative thinking, college-level writing, oral communication,
information literacy, and technological competency. FYS classes are small to emphasize open
discussion and experiential learning within the context of the theme of the seminar course. Peer
facilitators play an essential role in each FYS class ensuring that first-year students have guidance
from a more experienced student. FYS is also the home of the Ramapo Summer Reading Program;
all first-year students read the same book and discuss and write about it in their seminars. FYS
encourages new students to participate in a community of learners, to strengthen their critical
thinking skills, and to communicate effectively both orally and in writing.
My FYS, “Want Power? How to Win a Presidential Election” examines electoral forces, candidate
and party behavior, campaign dynamics, presidential and congressional elections, local politics,
campaign finance, and the media. We shall harness the news for part of our learning: this semester
takes place while both major political parties are in the process of selecting their nominee
Students’ goals should therefore entail a deepening and widening of the understanding of
American politics, especially its campaigns and elections, in both theory and specifics. Students
should recognize and interpret political trends bigger than the vagaries of a given election and find
their place in American politics.
How Accomplished
Class, Readings, Papers
Student Goal
Demonstrate the ability to think critically and creatively
Demonstrate proficiency in written communication
Demonstrate proficiency in oral communication
Demonstrate information literacy
Required Texts (at campus bookstore):
 Klay, Phil. Redeployment. New York: Penguin, 2015. Print.
 Hacker, Diana and Nancy I. Sommers. Rules for Writers (7th ed). Boston: Bedford/St. Martins,
2012. Print.
1
Anonymous congressman cited in Fenno, Richard. Home Style. Boston: Little Brown, 1978 (p. 17).
1



Sides, John and Lynn Vavreck. The Gamble: Choice and Chance in the 2012 Presidential Election.
Priceton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2014. Print.
Fisher, Patrick. Demographic Gaps in American Political Behavior. Boulder, CO: Westview Press,
2014. Print.
Readings on course website (new entries as current events warrant).
Peer Facilitators:
As an added resource for first-year students, each section of First-Year Seminar (FYS) will have a
peer facilitator. These upper-level students will attend FYS classes and assist the instructor with the
academic topics covered in this seminar. They will serve as discussion leaders on issues that pertain
to your personal and social development and they will facilitate weekly discussions on the class
readings. Your peer facilitator will be your mentor and will be available to you to provide guidance
on navigating the different personal and social hurdles that you may encounter in your first year at
Ramapo.
dr
a
ft
Course Requirements:
 Students need to be competent users of email with reliable addresses, who also know well
how to access the course website site and check email at least daily. Use your
__@ramapo.edu address with me.
 Students need to spend time outside of class on readings and projects. The general
expectation is that students spend 5-8 hours outside of class every week (though this varies
week to week). Schedule it.
 Students need to be voracious readers. The length of the readings varies week to week
across the semester, so keep your eye on future readings and expectations to keep pace.
 Students need to participate in class discussions. While I technically “lecture” some of the
material, much of the course is an open-ended discussion where difficult issues arise and
concrete answers are elusive. Not only is part of your grade dependent on class attendance
and participation, there is a strong, non-spurious correlation between those that participate
actively in class and those that do well.
 Students will come to class. I believe one of the fundamental requirements of college is that
one actually goes to their college classes. Abundant absences (>3) will result in a D or F for
the course irrespective of grades.
 The skill of taking notes in class and with the readings is an important one that will
translate into better organization of the material and better academic performance. Taking
notes in class demonstrates to me that you are engaged, and failing to take notes
demonstrates the opposite, both of which will influence your participation grade in the
expected direction.
 Students need to be proficient users of word processing, spreadsheet, and presentation
software. Most common of these are Microsoft’s Word, Excel, and PowerPoint programs,
respectively, though others certainly exist, such as Google Docs’ equivalents. Part of this
class will help you improve your skills.
 Short Papers: Students will write a handful of crisp, argument-driven essays this semester.
Sources beyond the readings listed on the syllabus are encouraged, but must be cited and
referenced appropriately. These are written in your own words with citations. Paraphrasing is
far preferable than direct quotation. I want to see evidence of rhetorical skill and substantive
2


o
o
o
o
o
o
o
Students need to respect the other students in the course. Volatile topics will often arise in
political science classes, opinions will likely differ, but the tone and tenor of class shall always
remain cordial and civil. I seek to provide an intellectual environment where students can
feel free to express their views without ideological or partisan oppression from me or other
students. Welcome to the new rude of the 21st century: texting, Facebooking, and other
distractions in class are very bad form, so students will hide their mobile phones and
devices away from all eyes and ears. When I see students on their devices, I infer their
interest in class.
dr
a

Paper 1 (10%)
Paper 2 (10%)
Paper 2 rewrite (10%)
Paper 3 (20%)
Election Chart (10%)
Final Exam (30%)
Quality and Quantity of Class Participation (to include class citizenship & etiquette) (10%)
ft

comprehension, not literacy. Each paper should be at least 3 but not longer than 4 pages
(using MLA’s formatting).
o Paper 1: Connecting Fiction & Reality (Klay)
o Paper 2: Gosnell and 2016 (with a rewrite)
o Paper 3: Demographic Gaps and 2016
Election Chart: Students will create a compelling visual of an electoral time series of each
student’s choosing. Details forthcoming.
Students need to take a final exam. The test comprises a closed-book, in-class essay and
short answer section and an open-book, take-home section. Students will formulate succinct
and cogent response to questions, drawing from media coverage, course discussion, lecture,
and readings. The take-home portions shall be well-groomed copy with appropriate
references, citations, with a premium placed on quality writing.
Grading Policy. I blind-grade the exams in order to provide as fair a grading mechanism as
possible. The grading scale is 60-69 D, 69-70 D+, 70-71 C-, 72-79 C, 79-80 C+, etc. I do not
allocate grades on a curve. Incompletes are undesirable, and will only be given for
nonacademic reasons. The final grade is a weighted mean of the following items:
Academic Integrity: On this subject consider me a zealot. Both I and the institution expect you to
read and understand Ramapo College’s academic integrity policy, located in the College Catalog.
Members of the Ramapo College community are expected to be honest and forthright in their
academic dealings. Violations of any of the four forms of academic dishonesty (cheating, plagiarism,
misconduct, or fabrication) will summarily be reported to the Dean and Vice President for
Academic Affairs. Expect me to press strongly for maximum penalties, which may include expulsion.
Students tend to cheat when they get in desperate situation or if they do not understand citation
protocol—if you find yourself falling behind or in need of help, come see me. I care about your
honest progress in the course and I will be your strong ally unless dishonesty occurs.
Contact Information and Office Hours: My office phone is 201-684-6286 and my email is
Email is the vastly preferred form of contact. My office hours are there for
you; please feel free to use them to ask follow-up questions or seek to disambiguate matters. Also,
the environment in class is quite open so feel free to pose questions in class as well (you are likely
not the only one with a question). If those times are not compatible with your schedule, please send
me an email with some available times for you and we will find a better time. I am available to you.
jteigen@ramapo.edu.
3
Students with religious days, special needs, disabilities, or learning disabilities: If you need
course adaptation or accommodations beyond the ordinary because of a documented disability, you
need to make an appointment with the instructor before the third week of class. Please make an
appointment or register with the OSS before discussing implementation with instructors. If you
have religious conflicts with class, exams, or other important dates that are or are not listed on
Ramapo’s Academic Calendar, I respect that, but please contact me about it well in advance. If you sustain
illness or injury that prevents your attendance or ability to study, please contact me as soon as
practical. In short, let’s communicate.
The Learned Craft of Writing:
Motivation, Content, and
Technical Concerns
Turn in Paper 1: Connect Fiction
and Reality. Write a thesis
statement and paper that takes a
recurring theme in Klay and
connect it to recent news stories
about returning veterans and
challenges they face.



Info literacy session

Presidential Election
Campaigns: An Epistemology
Turn in Paper 2: Choose one
presidential 2016 aspirant Make
an argument (thesis) about what
sort of campaign (from Gosnell’s
typology) that person would run
with “evidence.”
The Birth of Parties Contesting
Elections: 1828 and the Rise of
Jackson and the Democrats

Bird by Bird excerpt
Hacker & Sommers, ch.
dr
a
9/8 &
9/11
Schedule of Topics, Readings, and Deadlines
Topic
Readings
Introduction
 Syllabus
Convocation with Phil Klay
 Klay, Redeployment
(date/time)

First class, 9/4
ft
Date
9/2? &
9/4?
9/15 &
9/18
9/22 &
9/25
9/29 &
10/2


4
µ Campbell, James. 2001. “When Have
Presidential Campaigns Decided Election
Outcomes?” American Politics Research 29:3
437-460.
µ Gosnell, Harold F. 1950. “Does
Campaigning Make a Difference?” Public
Opinion Quarterly 14:3, 413-18.
Parsons excerpt (ch. 4 & 5)?
Visualizing Quantitative Data:
How to present election data
convincingly (Paper 3 due:
Choose one of the Gaps, make a
2016 argument)
Introduce Election Chart
assignment
Winning Presidential Elections in
the 21st Century
How do Parties nominate?
Readings




Fisher
Sides & VAvreck , ch. 7
Tba (Tufte-esque)
Hacker & Sommers

Sides & Vavreck, 3-4



Thanksgiving week (No Friday class)


dr
a
10/20/
&
10/23
10/27
&
10/30
11/3 &
11/6
11/10
&
11/13
11/24
12/1 &
12/4
12/8 &
12/11
12/15
TBA
Topic
Who votes for Whom?
ft
Date
10/6 &
10/9
10/13
&
10/16
Take-home portion of final exam
distributed
College reading day (no classes)
Final Exam (take-home due, students
take in-class portion today)



Important Dates
First Day of Classes: September 2nd
Last day for Schedule Adjustments (on the Web): September 9th
Last day to withdraw from courses with “W” grade: November 13th
Thanksgiving Recess: Nov 25th – 29th
Reading Day (no classes): December 15th
Final Exam Week: December 16th – 22nd
Common Finals: December 19th
Last day to request “I” grades: December 22nd
Final Exam Snow Make-Up Day: December 23rd
5