Course Descriptions for the Interdisciplinary Graduate Certificate in Urban Food Systems
Core Courses
UFS 791 - Urban Agriculture*
2 Credit Hours
Students will become familiar with a wide variety of urban agriculture types and production systems utilized in urban settings. The course will include background readings, case studies, guest speakers, student-facilitated class discussion and lectures.
*cross-listed as HORT 791
UFS 794 - Urban Food Systems*
2 Credit Hours
This course will cover all components of urban food systems through the lens of food security, food justice, access, policy, and community planning. Students will gain skills in grant-writing, non-profit planning and management, and working with urban policy and planning boards.
*cross-listed as HORT 794
UFS 796 - Professional Development in Urban Food Systems*
1 Credit Hour
A team instructed seminar course that provides urban food systems students with a suite of skills complimentary to their research experience but still necessary for professional career success. Urban Food System students will be expected to enroll in this course 4 semesters.
*cross-listed as HORT 796
UFS 798 - Urban Food Systems Field Experience
1 Credit Hour
Students will engage in a work experience at Willow Lake Student Farm, Olathe Horticulture Research and Extension Center or another approved site. Three hours per week of field experience work is required.
Elective Courses
Plant and Agricultural Sciences
AGRON 605 - Soil and Environmental Chemistry
3 Credit Hours
A study of inorganic and organic chemistry of soils with a detailed examination of the solid, liquid, and gaseous phases. Includes discussions of mineral solubility, electrochemical and adsorption phenomena, acidity, salinity, and fertility. Emphasis is placed on the biogeochemical cycling of plant nutrients and important soil contaminants.
AGRON 615 - Soil Problems
0-18 Credit Hours
Studies may be chosen in: chemistry, physics, conservation, fertility, genesis, morphology, or classification.
AGRON 635 - Soil Conservation and Management
3 Credit Hours
Principles, prediction, and effects of soil erosion from water and wind. Conservation practices for erosion control and promoting soil, water, and air quality. History of soil and water conservation and the Dust Bowl. Past and present government agencies and policies for soil and water conservation.
ENTOM 612 - Insect Pest Diagnosis
2 Credits Hours
Diagnosis of plant damage by insects and mites, recognition of harmful insects and mites and beneficial insects. Emphasis on field crop pests but pests of other crops will be considered if there is sufficient interest.
ENTOM 799 - Problems in Entomology*
3 Credit Hours
*For ENTOM 300 Economic Entomology
For nonthesis or nondissertation studies. Work in various fields of entomology. (ENTOM 300 Economic Entomology Classification, biology, ecology, and principles of management of economically important insects)
HORT 725 - Postharvest Technology and Physiology of Horticultural Crops
3 Credit Hours
A study of the principles and practices involved in the harvesting, handling and storage of horticultural products. The relationship of plant structure and physiology will be emphasized in discussing effects of postharvest handling and storage to maximize quality and shelf life of products.
HORT 780 - Health-Promoting Phytochemicals: Fruits and Vegetables
2 Credit Hours
The course deals with various aspects of phytochemicals in plant-based foods including fruits and vegetables and their impact on human health and well-being. It includes potential effects of phytochemicals in promoting human health, preventing various diseases and fostering wellness. It also includes biosynthesis and metabolism of phytochemicals in plants. Emphasis is placed on developing strategies to improve the phytochemical content of food crops through approaches involving crop management, environmental and biotechnology tools. Two hours lecture per week.
HORT 790 - Sustainable Agriculture
2 Credit Hours
Historical perspectives of the sustainable agriculture movement in the U.S. and world-wide will be examined and critiqued. Components of sustainable agriculture such as agroecosystem theory, permaculture, energy use efficiency, and organic standards will be compared and evaluated. Students will demonstrate their understanding and application of the material by conducting research on a topic within sustainable agriculture and presenting the topic to the rest of the class.
HORT 793 - Farm to Fork Produce Safety
2 Credit Hours
This course will cover all aspects of food safety for fresh produce grown in urban and rural environments, including pathogen ecology and production aspects as well as pre- harvest and postharvest factors that influence the risk of microbial contamination. More specifically, we will discuss ways to minimize the risk of human pathogens on fresh produce using strategies such as the implementation of Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) and Good Handling Practices (GHPs). The course will cover postharvest interventions that are currently used (chemical sanitizers) as well as innovative technology applications like physical treatments, irradiation, and biological control techniques. Additionally, students will explore the impact of foodborne outbreaks on public health and the fresh produce industry in terms of economics, consumer acceptance and legal aspects.
HORT 795 - Urban Food Systems Study Tour
1 Credit Hour
Faculty-led trip for students to explore leading examples of urban agriculture. Each year, a trip will occur within North America, lasting approximately 7 days. The study tours will focus on urban food system development in major cities and will highlight examples of how food is being grown in urban areas and the impacts that it has on the community.
PLPTH 765 - Integrated Plant Disease Management*
2 Credit Hours
Advanced topics in integrated plant disease management will be examined, including: epidemiological concepts, disease loss assessment, fungicides, resistance traits, on-farm research trials and utilization of precision agriculture technologies to measure disease impacts.
*has a pre-requisite
Leadership and Management
AGCOM 845 - Approaches to Public/Community Engagement*
3 Credit Hours
The course will provide students a survey of key concepts and theoretical frameworks associated with deliberative democracy and public engagement. A specific focus will be given to how forms of community-engaged scholarship intersect course content in both theory and practice.
*cross-listed COMM 845 and LEAD 845
CDPLN 633 - Grant Writing
3 Credit Hours
The intricacies of grantsmanship provide the focus of this course. Topics covered will include identification of fund sources, procedures for proposal preparation, composition of grants, and the effects of organizational and personal linkages. Students will prepare a grant application based upon an RFP or to a continuous funding source.
CDPLN 700 - Foundations of Community Development
3 Credit Hours
This course introduces the online Master of Science degree in Community Development. Initial topics include getting comfortable in the online learning environment and succeeding in graduate school. Students will be expected to develop concrete plans for succeeding in the program and to demonstrate graduate level writing and communication skills in assignments related to community development. The bulk of the course will provide foundations to community development as: (1) an academic discipline; (2) a science-based profession; and (3) a skills and knowledge-based practice.
CDPLN 704 - Community Leadership and Capacity Building*
3 Credit Hours
*GP IDEA
In this course, students define leadership and apply it to work. Students achieve understanding of the potential link between leadership and community capacity, and they identify strategies for leadership development in communities.
CDPLN 713 - Nonprofit Management*
3 Credit Hours
*GP IDEA
Topics of this course include unique management issues in terms of policy setting, participation, administrations, and accountability of non-profit organizations.
CDPLN 720 - Community and Regional Economic Policy and Analysis
3 Credit Hours
The course introduces concepts of communities and regions, theories of economic growth, drivers of economic growth, the economic base of a community, sources of growth or decline in the community, roles of local government and institutions, analytical tools, and strategies for local economic development.
DMP 815 - Multidisciplinary Thought and Presentation
3 Credit Hours
Training in critical thinking, writing, and speaking for the food, veterinary, plant, health, and related sciences. With emphasis on writing, students prepare technical reports, news releases, abstracts, and commentaries. Students prepare meeting agendas and present seminars. Committed students will emerge with enhanced critical-thinking and written-presentation skills.
LEAD 801 - Foundations of Leadership
3 Credit Hours
Study of the key issues in the theory, research, and application of leadership in organizations. This includes defining leadership, understanding situational characteristics that facilitate / hinder effective leadership, understanding effective / dysfunctional leadership, and gaining greater insight into one’s own leadership style and functioning.
POLSC 740 - Nonprofit Financial Management
3 Credit Hours
Introduction to the major issues in nonprofit management. Highlights the unique nature of the nonprofit sector with government (public) and business (for-profit) sectors. Issues may include governance roles and responsibilities, ethics and risk management, financial management and resource generation, managing staff and volunteers, performance measurements, and the emerging trends that threaten nonprofits' tax-exempt status.
Sociology, Economics, Health
CDPLN 711 - Immigrants in Communities*
3 Credit Hours
*GP IDEA
International migration has historically impacted rural and urban communities around the world. Taking a comparative approach, this course examines community-immigration interactions and how that influences community development and immigrant inclusion. Students will read and relate theories of immigrant and community change to case studies of immigrants and communities and gather primary data to assess the capacity of communities to include new international immigrants.
CDPLN 712 - Sustainable Communities*
3 Credit Hours
*GP IDEA
Content of this course links management of natural capital to other community-based actions around resource allocation and the impacts on quality of life. Students examine literature on community-based natural resource management and assess alternative ways of valuing natural capital. Students contrast theories of natural capital in communities and human society as the theories relate to community sustainability with regard to economic vitality, social well-being and ecosystem health.
DMP 650 - Fundamentals of Public Health and Food Safety
3 Credit Hours
Organization and function of food inspection services; principles of disease transmission; diseases transmitted to humans through the food chain.
DMP 845 - Food Safety Risk Analysis
3 Credit Hours
Three hours of lectures on interwoven roles of risk assessment, management and communication – defined as risk analysis – will be applied to problems and policy development in food safety. This course will aid students in developing the ability to critically examine food safety risk issues from various stakeholder perspectives, leading to risk management and communication activities to reduce the impact of foodborne disease.
A significant portion of the course will focus on the importance of thorough research and good communication skills, as well as the suitability of communication efforts. The course will be presented through lectures, case study presentations, and Internet-based support material including text, audio and video through the extensive database maintained by Dr. Douglas Powell of Kansas State University and colleagues (foodsafety.ksu.edu; barfblog.com).
FDSCI 630 - Food Packaging
2 Credit Hours
This course covers the functions of a package; the materials and technology used in packaging development; and the relationship of packaging to the corporation, the consumer and society. Objectives and Instructional Goals: The objective of this course is to provide introductory knowledge about the functions of packaging and an overview of various packages and materials used in the industry, including the technology and concepts in developing packages.
FDSCI 630 - Food Law and Regulation
3 Credit Hours
Students will explore the various regulations pertaining to food production and the federal regulatory enforcement agencies. A variety of topics will be covered, including: labeling standards, health claims, adulteration, food safety, food terrorism, dietary supplements, inspection of food, enforcement of food law, and international trade of food. Students will understand how food law is codified, and recent food-related legislation, including the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) will be investigated. Current regulations related to pet food safety, and responsible agencies therein, will also be explored.
FDSCI 730 - A Multidisciplinary Overview of Food Safety and Security
2 Credit Hours
Multidisciplinary food safety and security perspectives provided by numerous subject matter experts. Topics include food safety policy, ag bioterrorism, border security, animal ID, food defense and site security, risk analysis, crisis communication, epidemiology, HACCP, and more.
FDSCI 731 - Food Protection and Defense-Essential Concepts
2 Credit Hours
This course presents foundational concepts relevant to protecting the food supply from intentional contamination, including the nature of the food and agriculture system as a critical infrastructure, threats to food and agricultural systems, as well as concepts and strategies related to response and mitigation of food protection incidents.
FNDH 703 - Food Across Cultures and Countries
3 Credit Hours
Exploration of food across cultures in the US and the world with emphasis on the effects of geographic, social, economic, religious and other issues. Lecture.
LAR 741 - Problems in Landscape Architecture*
3 Credit Hours
*for LAR 322 Ethics in Environmental Dilemmas
Specific problems and/or reports in the area of landscape architecture. (LAR 322 Introduction to environmental ethics and significant local and global dilemmas. Students will learn about how humans have impacted the environment through time and the implications of those actions, and environmental/social movements and justice.)
MPH 818 - Social and Behavioral Bases of Public Health
3 Credit Hours
The role of behavioral, social, psychological, economic, environmental and social structural factors in both the occurrence of health problems in groups and populations, and in the development of the risk factors that contribute to these problems. Principles of health behavior change and the application of these principles to a variety of health issues as well as an emphasis on how social structural factors impact health are examined to better understand health behavior and health inequities in contemporary society.
SOCIO 831 - Sociology of Agriculture
3 Credit Hours
Provides a survey of the subfield of sociology of agriculture, including an examination of its roots, growth and current theoretical and substantive directions. Explores the linkages between agriculture, commodity systems, food and the environment.
SOCIO 832 - Sociology of Community
3 Credit Hours
A survey of theoretical perspectives and current research on the sociology of community in the U.S. and other countries. Examples of issues covered include community growth and decline, social inequality, community power and politics, social implications of community economic change, urbanization and the global context of local change.
SOCIO 835 - Environment and Society
3 Credit Hours
The interrelationships among population, technology, environment, and social organization. An examination of the origins and development of human ecology in sociology, and recent attempts to redefine the area. Special emphasis on current theoretical and research efforts focusing on the history and uses of ecological ideas.
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