UNDERGRADUATE COUNCIL MEETING April 10, 2008
Rowe Conference Room, Knight Library
Present: Andrew Bonamici, Gavin Bruce, Hilary Gerdes, Dave Hubin, Anne Laskaya, Dean Livelybrooks, Alexandra Marcus, Steven Pologe, Karen McLaughlin, Ron Severson, Karen Sprague, Kate Wagle, Malcolm Wilson, Alan Kimball, Paul Engelking, and Jim Imamura
Absent: Herb Chereck, Elizabeth Jarvis, Andrew Leavitt, Arkady Vaintrob, Bill Rossi, and Elizabeth Reis
Minutes: The minutes of the March 10, 2008 meeting of the Undergraduate Council had been distributed electronically prior to the meeting. The Chair invited a vote on the minutes. The motion was made to accept the minutes from the March 10, 2008 meeting.
Moved: Dean Livelybrooks Seconded: Steven Pologe The motion to accept the minutes passed unanimously.
Announcements: Steven Pologe announced a trio piano concert that will be presented at Beall Hall by School of Music & Dance faculty on April 15, 2008. The music to be performed is by Robert Kahn, a composer who worked with Johannes Brahms in the 19th century. This will be the first known public performance of the music, which was given to the Music School by Robert Kahn’s grandson who lives in Eugene.
Dave Hubin presented a brief report on the ceremony awarding honorary degrees to 20 Japanese-Americans who were enrolled at the UO in 1942, but who were removed from the University by the Internment Act of 1942. He recounted the backstory of the event which was originally inspired by an idea of two students from OSU.
Agenda Overview: The Chair presented an overview of the work the Council will focus on during the Spring 2008 term. 1. The Council will finish the review of the Multicultural requirement and present a final report with recommendations to the University Senate in Fall 2008. 2. The Council will finish its work on Grade Inflation.
Several program proposal reviews will be delayed as the campus Program Review process is revised and clarified. The proposal from OIP for multicultural credit for international experiences will be presented at the April 24th meeting as it has direct bearing on the Council’s review of Multicultural courses.
Multicultural Review: In preparation for the meeting, two statements had been electronically circulated to the membership and were distributed in hard copy. Recommendation statement: The Chair acknowledged that a recommendation regarding syllabi and course descriptions for multicultural courses had been previously passed by the Council. However, after reviewing the Recommendation, the Chair concluded that the statement would be more effective if the wording paralleled the statement for Group-satisfying courses. The Chair asked the members for their thoughts. Council members offered several suggestions: - the wording of the recommendation would benefit from a more positive approach; - it is important to avoid contentious language in the recommendation; - clarity in describing the relationship of a course to the multicultural requirement needs to be emphasized. The Chair suggested that discussion of the Purpose statement
for the Multicultural requirement would help with the emendment of the
Recommendation statement. Purpose statement: At the previous Council meeting, the decision was made that a Purpose statement for the multicultural requirement was needed to provide a context for explaining the requirement to students. Over the Spring break, it was discovered that such a statement already was published in the Student Handbook. The Council discussed the broad generality of this statement; a few members felt the statement required more specificity. However, a majority felt the general nature of the statement was ideal for publishing in the University Catalog at the beginning of the section on the Multicultural Requirement courses. Some wondered about the process for including the statement in the new University Catalog for Fall 2008. Paul Engelking noted that the Committee on Courses submits changes in catalog text re. curriculum and he felt confident the Committee would be able to submit the statement for inclusion in the new catalog. One member expressed concern that it was not the purview of the Council to establish a rationale or purpose for the multicultural requirement. In response, it was pointed out that the primary purpose of the Undergraduate Council is to oversee the General Education curriculum, of which the multicultural requirement is a part. The Chair called for a motion on the Purpose statement for the Multicultural requirement
Motion: The Undergraduate Council will accept the following Purpose statement for the Multicultural requirement and forward the statement to the Committee on Courses for their approval and possible inclusion in the Fall 2008 course catalog.
Purpose statement for Multicultural requirement The purpose of the Multicultural requirement is to introduce students to the richness of human diversity and to the opportunities and challenges of life in a multicultural society. The requirement asks students to complete a minimum of two courses that engage these issues.
Moved: Anne Laskaya Seconded: Gavin Bruce
The motion passed with 11-Ayes, 1-No
The Council resumed discussion of the Recommendation statement. An addition to the original statement was quickly agreed upon and, with a small amendment, the Chair called for a motion.
Motion: Recommendation on course descriptions for Multicultural courses: Students and advisors need to know what courses meet the multicultural requirement and specifically how the courses address multicultural issues. Therefore, for all multicultural courses to be offered during a particular term, faculty or departments will post electronically, in the Schedule of Classes, course descriptions that are substantially expanded over those provided in the catalog. A course description should be full enough to give students and advisors, who are not experts in the field, a clear understanding of the course content. Moreover, the description should show how the course is related to the general purpose of the multicultural requirement and how it fits the particular multicultural category in which it is offered. Beyond the Schedule of classes, an expanded course description should be included in each course syllabus.
Moved to accept: Anne Laskaya Seconded: Kate Wagle
The motion passed unanimously.
Council members agreed that more specificity would enhance the Purpose statement for the multicultural requirement. The appropriate place for this information was felt to be in the Student Handbook. Since the new handbook is currently being edited, Steven Pologe, Hilary Gerdes, and Gavin Bruce were delegated to develop a revised Purpose statement to go into the 2008-09 handbook. A motion for this action was not deemed necessary.
The meeting was adjourned.
The next UGC meeting is scheduled for Thursday, April 24, 2008, 12:30pm at the Rowe Conference Room in the Knight Library. 
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