August 23, 2010 Faculty Senate

Core Curriculum Task Force Members

      *Tina Butcher, Co-chair, Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education Ellen Roberts, Co-chair, Interim Dean, College of Education and Health Professions Chris Whitehead, Assistant Professor, TSYS School of Computer Science Glenn Stokes, Interim Dean, College of Letters and Sciences *Tom Dolan, Professor, Political Science Neal McCrillis, Director, Center for International Education        *Brian Schwartz, Professor, Biology Vicky Langston, Department Chair, Accounting and Finance Orion Wertz, Associate Professor, Art Pat McHenry, Associate Dean, College of Letters and Sciences *Ron Wirt, Associate Dean, College of the Arts *Alice Pate, Department Chair, History and Geography Fred Cohen, Director, Schwob School of Music

Overview of Process

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A minimum of one student learning outcome should be identified for each of the following areas within the core: A1, A2, B, C, D, E, F, US Perspectives, Global Perspectives, Critical Thinking; Outcomes should be approved through the appropriate campus curriculum committees; Academic Advisory Committees will specify learning outcomes for each Area F and submit them to the Council on General Education for approval; Upon approval of the institutional student learning outcomes, each institution must develop and implement the assessment of ALL Core learning outcomes; New Core requirements will be implemented Fall 2011.

Timeline for Completion

 Student learning outcomes will be submitted to the USG Council on General Education for approval (Submit October 4 for October 25-26 meeting);  Courses will be identified which meet outcomes for each area;  New courses considered for inclusion in the core must be submitted for approval by the USG Council on General Education;  All programs must go through the CSU curriculum approval process prior to implementation of the new core.

Specifically, we have tried to:

 Develop consistent and measurable learning outcomes that could be measured by a range of courses in each area;  Develop consistent and measurable learning outcomes for the three overlay requirements in US Perspectives, Global Perspectives, and Critical Thinking; and  Consider a focus for Area B: Institutional Options.

Task Force Actions….

 Drafted learning outcomes for each area of the core  Obtained input from and approval of departments  Provided periodic updates to the Faculty Senate and the Provost  Held faculty forums on campus and downtown to discuss and obtain input (reactions were very positive)  Had preliminary discussions about existing courses that might fit into some areas of the core

Recent conversations have focused on:

 Number of learning outcomes in each area (because of direction from the USG Core Implementation Committee)  Number of hours in each area (because of transferability)  Focus of Area B

Core Curriculum Considerations

Current Version

 Area A-1 (6 hours)  Area A-2 (3 hours)  Area B (4-5 hours)  Area C (6 hours)  Area D (10-11 hours)  Area E (12 hours)

Draft Version

 Area A-1 (9 hours)  Area A-2 (3 hours)  Area B (4-5 hours)  Area C (6 hours)  Area D (10-11 hours)  Area E (9 hours)

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Next Steps…

Combined meeting of the Core Curriculum Task Force and General Education Committee on August 26 to discuss the identified issues Tina Butcher and Ellen Roberts will attend a Core Curriculum Workshop on September 17 Additional approvals on campus prior to submission of learning outcomes Decision-making by the committee and approval on campus of using existing courses in the core Development and approval on and off campus of new courses for the core Approval of undergraduate programs of study – departments, colleges, and University Curriculum Committee

Additional Resources

 USG Core Curriculum http://core.usg.edu/  American Association of Colleges and Universities General Education Resources http://www.aacu.org/resources/generaleducation/ index.cfm

 SACS Information on General Education (See principles 3.5.1 and 3.5.3.) http://www.sacscoc.org/pdf/2010principlesofacred itation.pdf