Students at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh are earning college credit by taking “Sneakerology 101.” The hour-long weekly course explores the impact of sneakers on identity and culture. In doing so, it straddles the worlds of hip-hop, fashion and basketball. The course is so popular, not only does Sneakerology sometimes have a wait list, those who complete it sometimes come back the next semester for more. Some of the 45 students sitting in this spring aren’t even from campus.

Since its debut last year, Sneakerology has developed an Internet following among sneakerheads.  The course takes a serious look at topics including early hip-hop roots and New York City street fashion, footwear advertising and consumerism, shoe design and technology, and the effect of boutiques and limited-edition releases. Naturally, a whole lecture is devoted to the history of the Nike Air Jordan.

As a mid-term assignment, students must design their own sneaker and compose a 200-to-300 word description of its makeup and what inspired it.

For their final exam, Sneakerology students take part in “Kicksburgh,” an April 15 campus event with vendors and artists that celebrates the city’s urban fashion and footwear.

Courtesy of:
http://www.scrippsnews.com/