M.A.H.P. Core Courses

HP 601. INTRODUCTION PT I. FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS IN HERITAGE PRESERVATION (3)
Provides an introduction and initiation into the critical concepts and inquiries of historic preservation practice in the United States, challenging students to think critically about how practices and policies might evolve to serve additional constituencies in the future. Students explore how the work of preservation serves various American groups, supports the maintenance of a varied built environment with a sense of place, and contributes to the varied agendas of collective memory.

HP 602. INTRODUCTION PT II. POLICY AND PRACTICE IN AMERICAN HISTORIC PRESERVATION (3)
Addresses the existing historic preservation policy and practice, emphasizing what they are and how we use them in preservation; how policy functions at the national, state, and municipal levels; the extent to which policy and practice address the issues of what to keep and what to let go; and how policy can and does address pertinent current topics.

HP 614. AMERICAN ARCHITECTURE AND BUILDING (3)
Examination of the American built environment defined broadly, with the goal of placing buildings, structures, and landscapes into their social, political, economic, aesthetic, technological, and religious context to understand the built environment as an expression of time and culture. Students develop visual analysis skills and familiarization with the terms and concepts that are used in the study of the built environment.

HP 630. PERSPECTIVES IN PRESERVATION (1.5, 3 required, repeatable to 4.5)
Exploration of timely topics in preservation that reflect the current discourse and the varied areas of professional expertise expected of the 21st century preservationist. Seminars are offered during Residency and take full advantage of the historic preservation "laboratory" of Baltimore. The 1.5-credit seminar topics vary from year to year based on students' needs and interests. Past offerings included:

  • Cultural Heritage Conservation: A Global View
  • NRHP Section 106 Effects Analysis for Historic Properties
  • American Urban History
  • Preservation by Design: Thoughtful Guidelines and Thorough Design Reviews
  • Tools and Incentives for Financing Rehabilitation Projects
  • Connecting People, Places, Heritage and Culture: Project Management, Facilitation, and Mediation
  • Nonprofit Management for Historic Preservation
  • Business Essentials for Preservationists

HP 631. HISTORIC PROPERTY DOCUMENTATION (3)
Consideration of why we have the U.S. documentation framework we have now, what its core concepts are, and how it is changing. Students learn through an independent project how to gather information about historic places using archival research, survey, and talking with people; interpret findings to make a case for historic significance; and employ ethical thinking and prioritize accurate data gathering to devise defensible work that is more inclusive, equitable, and socially just.

HP 633. CULTURAL LANDSCAPE THEORY (3)
Exploration of the cultural landscape idea as a complex of understandings of societies’ interrelationship with the physical and social world. Students are challenged to use that understanding within American preservation practices to address a central question: How will individual and social human interaction inform the identification, protection, and ongoing use of the landscape? Prerequisites: HP 601 and HP 602.

HP 637. RESEARCH SEMINAR (1)
Introduction to framing a research project in the field of historic preservation in preparation for writing a thesis. Students learn how to develop a topic, select research and analytic frameworks, contextualize the topic, and develop actionable recommendations related to practice.

HP 638. THESIS PROPOSAL (1.5)
Proposal of the topic, content, and focus of the thesis, including literature research and proposed committee members. Prerequisite: HP 637.

HP 641. THESIS (4.5)
Culmination of the program of study incorporating a stated hypothesis to examine a preservation issue germane to the student's interest. Students may select additional faculty for HP 641 with the approval of the thesis director. The thesis committee examines the thesis and hears an oral defense. Prerequisites: all degree requirements but HP 641.

 

“Goucher focuses a lot on how [the field has] changed from being focused on the built environment and high architecture, and now it’s moving toward people and place-based preservation. That’s something I had no idea about and it makes a lot of sense. Learning about that was really new and important to me.”


Liz Cohan, M.A.H.P. ’22

environmental scientist and architectural historian