Core Curriculum Task Force Meeting
MINUTES
DATE AND Friday, September 8, 2006
TIME: 1:00 p.m.
LOCATION: SU 80, Room 223
Member(s) Present:
Marina Banchetti; Fred Fejes; Jeff Galin; Paul Hart; Mark Jackson; Lee Klingler; Tim Lenz; Anthony Lombardo-chair; Debbie Raines; Allen Smith; Don Torok
Member(s) Absent:
Susannah Brown; Oliver Buckton; Mary Ann Gosser-Esquilin; Robin Jordan; Cliff McCue; Maria Petrie; Don Ploger
Chair Tony Lombardo reported at the BOT enrollment management workshop on the plans for a freshman reading, freshman convocation and evaluation of the core curriculum, all items which the CCTF has dealt with. He also suggested to them that we shift our focus from “retention” to a broader focus on “excellence in undergraduate education,” especially at the lower division. These ideas were well received by the Board, the president and provost. There is strong support for the work of the CCTF at the highest levels of the university.
The work of the CCTF will continue in 2006-07 by addressing and implementing the following actions.
- Get the “purpose of the core curriculum” statement and the “transition paragraph” into the new catalog copy. Tony will work on a final draft from Cliff’s composite purpose statement. He will send it to the CCTF members for approval before submitting to catalog.
- Secure approval from the UUPC to require each course in the core to have in its syllabus a statement explaining how it contributes to meeting the purpose of the core. Determine process for review as to compliance.
- Come up with a name for the core.
- Request at the next meeting of the Council on Excellence in Undergraduate Education that it issue a charge to the CCTF granting authority to evaluate the core curriculum and make recommendations on how it might be improved. Tony will put this item on the CEUE September 15 meeting agenda. The existing charge to the CCTF has no identified author.
- Engage faculty in evaluating the core by getting departments to assess the strengths and weaknesses of their contributions to it – in particular, to identify areas of excellence (suggested by Fred Fejes and supported by the members). Ask Sharron Ronco and Steve RiCharde (IEA) to develop a template for the departments to use in carrying out their assessments. Invite Sharron and Steve to our next meeting.
- Get necessary approvals from the appropriate faculty governance bodies as the work proceeds.
Meeting adjourned at 2:00 p.m.
Added to minutes by Tony: Consider reactivating CCTF web page.
