Professor Dennis Doyle has a bold new class this semester. It has taken a year and a half to bring his idea into fruition.
This semester at JJC, for the first time ever, students have the opportunity to take a sociology class on the studies of war, peace, and conflict taught by a former JJC student. Doyle was inspired by the parlance of his times.
The cold war, the Reagan 1980s, and the militarization of the United States were a common thread among his peers. His father was a Navy "Beachmaster" and owned a lot of history books that Doyle read growing up.
Doyle has helped put JJC on a short list of community colleges throughout the country to offer such a class. It was not always a smooth road to the class though.
"There was a lot of bureaucracy involved," said Doyle.
The class had to pass through many committees and the state of Illinois before he was able to begin teaching it, though he says it was definitely worth it. Being a former JJC student, he has a lot of pride and hope for this school.
"Students at JJC have a great advantage being offered 10 different sociology courses," said Doyle.
Before coming to JJC, he did a lot in the community, working for charities, helping at-risk youth, adamantly trying to keep kids in school.
He is also a student himself seeking his second masters in history through American Public University. Doyle has been at JJC for 10 years and sees himself here in the future.
Doyle’s extensive knowledge and the brevity of the curriculum are both apparent in the lectures. For anyone that is interested, the new class being offered is SOC 265 and it is a new opportunity that Doyle would love people to explore.