You will pick a topic pertaining to American history after World War II (1945-2001) from the list below and complete a final project (paper, powerpoint, or five-minute video) on some aspect of this topic that will include primary and secondary source research.

Requirements: you must include a works cited list with at least four sources, one of which must be a primary source. Your other sources must be scholarly (meaning from history journals, books, or reputable websites). Papers must be 8-10 pages in length. Powerpoint presentations should be 20-25 slides with substantial text on at least 16 slides. Videos should be five minutes in length and include a transcript.

Topics: Please note that you must post your topic and thesis statement on Blackboard by 10pm on Tuesday, October 6^th. Your project should make some sort of argument. Here are some starting points for your searches: Cold War, Korean War, Vietnam War, Civil Rights movement, 1968, 1960s protest movements, Watergate, Great Society, War on Drugs, US-Iranian relations, US immigration after World War II. Please note that all of these are too broad on their own. You should complete a project that looks at a narrow subtopic and makes an argument about it.

If you would like to pursue a cultural history topic, a good starting point is the Billy Joel song “We didn’t start the fire.” If you perform a google search for the lyrics, you will find many potential topics, but note that not everything the song mentions is American history, while your project must be rooted in US history.

Deadlines: Topic and thesis statement due Tuesday, October 6^th via Blackboard submission (worth 5 points). Project outline (topic and thesis, format, list of sources) due Tuesday, November 3^rd via Blackboard submission (worth 15 points). Final project due Tuesday, December 8^th via Blackboard submission (worth 80 points). All items are due at 10pm.

Late projects are unacceptable and will be penalized as follows. You will lose one letter grade for each day past the due date (i.e. after two days, an A paper becomes a C). No student who fails to submit a final project will pass the course.

Other general guidelines: All quotations from the texts must be cited. This includes the author’s name and page number. For the purposes of this assignment, MLA format is fine. Please see me if you have questions about what constitutes proper citation.

Writing style/grammar will be taken into consideration for grading. Make sure that you proofread your papers for spelling and grammar mistakes. Ask a friend or roommate to look it over for you and if you have concerns, don’t be afraid to use the writing center. They are a great resource!