College credit is the new black.
Higher education institutions are offering many more course options based on popular media. Syracuse University is offering a course on "Doctor Who." Rutgers University offers a class on "Politicizing Beyoncé," a course exploring "American race, gender, and sexual politics." The University of South Carolina has offered a "Lady Gaga and the Sociology of Fame" course. Georgetown University has also offered a course "Philosophy and Star Trek."
But now, a handful of students will be able to purchase a subscription to Netflix as part of their required materials for a new course on the Netflix original series "Orange is the New Black."
Starting in January 2015, Michigan institution Saginaw Valley State University will offer two sections of the course examining the series, where students will watch the two released seasons in their entirety.
The comedy-drama series, created by Jenji Kohan, focuses on the life of Piper Chapman, a woman from New York City who is sentenced to 15 months in a women's federal prison for transporting a suitcase containing drug money to her former girlfriend Alex Vause.
This Michigan university course focuses on writing about oppression on TV, emphasizing processes of critical reading and writing, as applied to several modes of communication. The course involves frequent writing assignments for different audiences with attention to disciplinary conventions and rhetorical strategies for argument in academic discourse.
Taught by Assistant Professor of English Kimberly Lacey, the English 212 course is part of the university's general education requirements.
"I always try to incorporate pop culture into any course I teach, and I've become so obsessed with the show, so I want to keep talking about its important themes as much as possible," Lacey said in an article published in the university's student-run newspaper The Valley Vanguard. "I feel a lot of these themes are gaining more attention, but many still don't know how to talk about them yet."
Featured textbooks include Piper Kerman's "Orange is the New Black," the book that inspired the series, and "Media Messages: What Film, Television, and Popular Music Teach Us about Race, Class, Gender and Sexual Orientation" by Linda Holtzman.
The course coincides with the semester that student organization Program Board will host "Orange is the New Black" star Laverne Cox for a speaking engagement on Tuesday, February 17.
Both offered sections of the course are filled, but interested parties may contact Kim Lacey at krlacey@svsu.edu for more information.
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