Prospectus DUE:	On or before 5 p.m., Friday, March 2
Group Presentations DUE:	April 16 – April 23
	(15% of your final grade)
Individual Paper DUE:	On or before 5 p.m., Monday, April 30
	(20% of your final grade)

Introduction:
By the time you present your group presentations and individual papers, we will have investigated a wide variety of ways that the culture of big business impacts our value systems and expectations for life, often for the worse.  In their quest for profits, McDonaldized businesses can dehumanize, homogenize, and disenchant our world (Ritzer, ch. 7); in their search for larger markets, globalized businesses diminish choice and threaten democracy (Barber); to protect capitalism, governments often collude with big business to threaten democratic ideals (Cradle will Rock; Zinn); and, finally, these issues often appear in cultural productions produced by those sensitive to such problems (dramatic texts and art tours).  This assignment is designed to draw many of these facets of the course together for you in your own creative way.

Assignment:
Your final assignment will consist of two parts, an oral group presentation and a final paper.  There are two options:

I. Solve a real-world problem related to the issues discussed in the course.
 
A. Your group should decide on a problem or issue – preferably one close to home – and propose a solution.  You should divide the work so that the four group members take on different, but complementary aspects of the issue.  Although each person is responsible for a different aspect of the issue, you should plan to discuss and share your research so that your oral presentation will be cohesive and complete.  Regardless of role, each person should consider the ideas covered in our course as she or he does the research and prepares his or her part.  Here’s a suggestion for roles:
a. Investigator: This person does the research behind the problem or issue.
b. Proponent  Solution A: This person investigates and advances one solution to the problem or issue.
c. Proponent Solution B: This person investigates and advances another (probably conflicting) solution to the problem or issue.
d. “Special Project”: This person looks into and represents a special area unique to the topic chosen.  Typically, this person would represent the interests of a large group of people impacted by the problem or issue.
B. Individual papers (6-8 pages long) will synthesize the research you do for your portion of the project and draw in the main ideas covered in our course (esp. Ritzer and Barber).
C. Examples of Topics
a. The Interstate 69 debate:  Should a new I-69 (to connect Indianapolis with Evansville) be constructed?
b. Collegiate Athletics: What should be done about the way collegiate athletics is overrunning the main purpose of universities (academics)?


II. Start a new business with a conscience
 

A.  Your group will start a new business that is both profitable and socially conscious.  Your models are businesses such as Starbucks, Marvelous Market, and Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream (all in Ritzer, ch. 10).  As with option I, each group member should plan to take on a different aspect of launching a successful business, but regardless of the aspect chosen, all group members should prepare their work with an eye to the ideas we have covered in our seminar.  Here’s a suggestion for the roles:
 
a. Product line developer:  you develop the product(s) the company will sell.
b. H.R. (human resources) executive: you propose the benefits and working conditions for your employees.
c. Marketing Director: you should come up with the image the company wants to promote and an ad campaign to promote that image
d. “Special Role”: this person could assume a role that is unique to this company.  Perhaps you would represent the interests of the environment or of the public?
B.  Individual papers (6-8 pages long) will narrate your thought processes and explain how you arrived at the business decisions you made.  Your work should draw heavily on the ideas we have surveyed in our seminar, especially Ritzer and Barber.


Other Details:
 Groups should meet as often as necessary outside of class to discuss and plan their collaborative presentations.  Groups will have 30 minutes to present their work; props of all kinds – posters, charts, graphs, video tapes, slides, etc. – are welcome and encouraged.  You will be graded on the smoothness, completeness, and credibility of your presentation (that is, how well you convince your audience of your point).

 This project should be student driven.  I am loosening the reins as much as I can to allow for the highest level of creativity possible.  The most important goal with this project is to encourage you to use the concepts and ideas we have learned over the course of the semester and to apply them to your own thinking.