ROYAL OAK, Mich. (Michigan News Source) — Following the recent assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, Oakland Community College (OCC) has received renewed attention for its JFK Assassination course—a class tailored to encourage “effective communication,” as outlined in its General Education (GE) outcomes.
The JFK Assassination course, listed under HIS 1654, is a three-credit hour course that analyzes with one of the most scrutinized events in American history: the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Taught by Ron Burda, an attorney based in St. Clair Shores, and Michael Vollbach, a full-time history professor, it is structured in a format that encourages active participation and analysis of historical events (The Detroit Free Press).
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Reflecting on the recent conspiracy theories surrounding the Trump assassination attempt, Burda told The Detroit Free Press that he sees the relevance of the OCC class in teaching younger generations how to evaluate news reports and the media.
“People believe what, emotionally, they want to happen, I guess,” Burda said. “It’s crazy, but it makes it more important, as far as we’re concerned, to try to develop some critical thinkers to go out there and take a look at things.”
The 12 week course, which has been a staple at OCC for over three decades, is set to begin again this fall on September 19. It is divided into two main sections, as reported by The Detroit Free Press:
- The first half of the course provides a comprehensive overview of President Kennedy’s life and the events leading up to and including his assassination on November 22, 1963. Students examine the findings of the 1964 Warren Commission Report, which concluded that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone, and the 1979 U.S. House Select Committee on Assassinations Report, which suggested a probable conspiracy.
- In the second half, students conduct a mock trial of Lee Harvey Oswald, as described in the course syllabus. Burda informed The Detroit Free Press that the course includes two weeks of prosecution witnesses followed by two weeks of defense witnesses, simulating a trial that never occurred because Jack Ruby killed Oswald two days after the assassination. The mock trial ends with a jury deliberation, where students must reach a verdict based on the evidence.
“It’s the back-door way to get students to be critical thinkers,” Burda said. “If we can get them interested in this topic—and usually every class, we can get at least a few of them really interested in the topic—then they’re on the path to becoming lifelong active learners and critical thinkers. That’s really our goal.”
Burda continued: “We need to stimulate more of this kind of thinking in students, so that when they go out into the so-called real world, they’re better equipped.”
The course’s approach garnered recognition in November 2023, with Burda and Vollbach presenting their methods at a symposium on the 60th anniversary of the JFK assassination held by the Cyril H. Wecht Institute of Forensic Science and Law at Pittsburgh’s Duquesne University.
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