In the Outer Rim, allies of Leia Organa’s Resistance are gathering. After the death of Supreme Leader Snoke, and the growing schism between Kylo Ren and Armitage Hux, many see an opportunity. Several dozen systems are sending representatives to a reconstituted senate, which must face a number of complex issues, including:
- Trying stormtroopers for war crimes.
- Addressing issues of gender among alien species and cultures.
- Condemning the terroristic tactics of the Resistance.
- Managing relations with the Jedi.
- Constructing a “Peace Star” to defeat the First Order.
- Emancipating droids.
- Dealing with crime syndicates.
- Designing a permanent new government.
This course will involve role-playing as representatives from systems around the galaxy. We will begin the semester by reading Bloodline, which describes Leia’s experiences with galactic politics before Episode VII. As the semester progresses, we will read a number of other texts, which should allow us to draw parallels between the issues we face in the Star Wars universe and the contemporary world.
Meet Your Professor
Professor of History
Before deciding upon History as my major, I thoroughly explored the liberal arts, considering Art, English, and Botany. I finally settled on a History major during my third year, which was spent abroad at Oxford University. In the end, I was drawn to History, as it seemed to be the discipline that would be most helpful in figuring out why things were the way they were.
Moving forward in History seemed daunting, as I was concerned that I would tread too closely along the path forged by my grandfather, Dee A. Brown, a renowned historian. Changing direction a bit, I enrolled and completed a master’s program in diplomacy and international commerce at the University of Kentucky. Unsure about proceeding along this path, I took a year off to work in a bookstore and read novels.
After that, I completed my degrees from Emory University with an emphasis on the nineteenth-century South. This work allowed me to publish my first book Bathed in Blood: Hunting and Mastery in the Old South. Since joining the faculty at Simpson, I have been awarded Simpson College’s Distinguished Teaching Award and the Faculty Research Award.
Soon after joining the faculty at Simpson my research interests became caught up in the Reacting to the Past series of historical role-playing games. In addition to serving as the chair of the Editorial Board, I am also author or co-author of several games in the series including:
- Forest Diplomacy: War, Peace, and Land on the Colonial Frontier
- Kentucky, 1861: Loyalty, State, and Nation
- Modernism vs. Traditionalism: Art in Paris, 1888-89
- Self-Determination, Empire, and Security: Yalta, 1945
I recently traveled to several colleges and universities in China and Japan to teach faculty there about RTTP.
While these games are rather serious and pedagogically intense, I also enjoy games that are simply fun. I especially like the absurdity of Simpson’s Humans vs. Zombies club, so I have served as its faculty adviser since its inception. As a spinoff of this, I worked with students to publish A History of the Great Zombie War: The Simpson Experience.
Meet Your SC Leader
Hey Everyone!
I am Elliott Meyer and I am the SC Leader for the upcoming SC 101: The Galactic Senate class taught by Professor Proctor. I will be a sophomore in the 2018-2019 school year.
I am from a small town called Edgewood, up in Northeast Iowa. I attended Edgewood-Colesburg High School, where I was involved with numerous activities like Football, Basketball, Track and Field, Large Group and Individual Speech, Musical and Play, Student Council, FBLA, and National Honors Society. In addition to all of this, I also was involved with the Boy Scouts of America organization, where I attained the rank of Eagle Scout. Beyond the classroom and extracurricular activities, my hobbies and interests include hanging out with my friends and family, playing Xbox, and most importantly Star Wars!!
At Simpson, I am majoring in History and Political Science. After finishing my education at Simpson, I plan to go to law school and hopefully one day become a lawyer. Along with my studies, I am also involved in Track and Field here at Simpson, where I do hurdles and short sprints. In addition to this, I am also a Community Assistant over at the Buxton Residence Hall.
Last fall I had the privilege to participate in the previous SC 101: The Galactic Senate taught by Professor Proctor and it was one of the most amazing and exiting experiences I have had. Star Wars has been a passion of mine for almost my entire life, so I jumped at the chance to take a class that was based around it. Some of my fellow classmates and I decided that we liked the Galactic Senate class so much that we created a club here on Simpson which uses the background of the Star Wars universe to create political crisis games for students to work through. All in all, the Galactic Senate class was a super great experience for me that I hope to share with all who sign up!
I cannot wait to meet all the perspective Senators and I look forward to speaking and negotiating with all of you more this fall! If any of you have questions or need to contact me, you can by emailing elliott.meyer@my.simpson.edu. Also, feel free to add me on Facebook! And as always, May the Force be with you, always.
Meet Your Writing Fellow
Soon!