COHE is the Internet's first website offering interactive courses in humanist thought. COHE is a service of the Institute for Humanist Studies, a non-profit U.S. organization promoting nonreligious perspectives on social, political, and ethical issues and serving as a resource for and about the humanist community.

What is humanism, anyway? Find out now in our free demo course.
Introduction to Humanism: A Primer on the History, Philosophy, and Goals of Humanism

HAO Catalog    HAO Overview

SCH Catalog    SCH Overview

How can humanists be more effective at protecting secular government and gaining respectability for their point of view? Is it possible to bring the humanist movement into the mainstream? Dr. Steven Goldberg, Activism Chair for the Washington Area Secular Humanists (America's largest grassroots humanist organization), offers hands-on help for you and your group in HAO 100: Humanist Activism..

What does the evolution - creation controversy reveal about the nature of science? Is there merit to the creationist position called "Intelligent Design"? How can we improve science education? Evolutionary biologist and science writer Dr. Massimo Pigliucci offers his insights in SCH 100: Evolution, Creationism and the Nature of Science.

PSH Catalog    PSH Overview

The mind...the soul...the psyche....do these mysterious concepts exist in any meaningful sense, or can we understand and predict human behavior empirically? Delve into the latest scientific findings about memory, emotions, and more with Dr. Reid Johnson in PSH 100: Understanding Ourselves and Our Universe.

LAP Catalog    LAP Overview

What do the Free Exercise and Establishment Clauses of the First Amendment really mean? Is the law truly neutral to both religious and nontheistic world views? The Institute's own Public Policy expert, Dr. Tim Gordinier, charts a course through the serpentine world of church-state separation in LAP 100: Religion and the Constitution.

RSP Catalog    RSP Overview

Is humanism a religion? How does it differ from other world views? Where does spirituality fit in? Dr. Jeaneane Fowler, author of several books on world religions and on humanism, provides one humanist response to these questions and more in RSP 100: Developing Human Potential Without Religion.

ETH Catalog    ETH Overview

How are ethical values formulated? Do we need religion to be moral? Can humans be held responsible for their actions? Lewis Vaughn, humanist author, editor, and philosopher, explores the boundaries in ETH 100: Sacred vs. Secular Ethics.