In this Part 3 assignment, you will do for an institution what you did for a person in the Part 2 assignment—you will tell the story of that institution as a way to reveal the times in which it came into being, grew in importance and, where appropriate, declined.

As with the biographical essay, you should begin with an introduction that lays out your thesis about the significance of this organization in history; a body of your essay, which tells the key events in the history of the organization; and a conclusion that sums up how the events in the body of the essay demonstrate your thesis. (See the Part 2 assignment rubric for more detail on how to shape this essay.)

With this assignment, you have a choice of five institutions that were critical to the history of America in the second half of the 20th century and beyond.

You will find a few things about them in the text but this paper will require you to do research online as well. 

INSTITUTIONS

BLACK PANTHER PARTY—an African American political party and organization of the 1960s and 1970s

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY—a cabinet level branch of the federal government established in 1970

MICROSOFT—a computer software corporation founded in 1975

MORAL MAJORITY—a conservative evangelical organization founded in the 1970s

NATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR WOMEN (NOW)—an advocacy organization founded in 1966. 

This paper should run 800-1,000 words in length. It should be footnoted in either MLA or Chicago style. It is due by Thursday, December 3. Please submit it as an MS Word or PDF file on Blackboard. 

As always, if you have any questions about what I am looking for in the assignment, you are more than welcome to come see me during office hours.