UNDERGRADUATE COUNCIL MEETING                            

November 1, 2007

Johnson Hall Conference Room

 

Present:

Andrew Bonamici, Hilary Gerdes, Dave Hubin, Elizabeth Jarvis, Dean Livelybrooks, Alexandra Marcus, Lyllye Parker, Steven Pologe, Karen McLaughlin, Ron Severson, Karen Sprague, Bill Rossi, Elizabeth Reis, and Jim Imamura

 

Absent:

Gavin Bruce, Herb Chereck, Anne Laskaya, Andrew Leavitt, Arkady Vaintrob, Kate Wagle, Malcolm Wilson, Alan Kimball, and Paul Engelking

 

Minutes:

           

            The motion was made to accept the minutes from the October 18, 2007 meeting.

            Moved:           Bill Rossi

            Seconded:       Karen McLaughlin

            The motion to accept the minutes passed unanimously.

 

Agenda

The Chair announced that there was only one item for the agenda and that was to conclude the review of the Multicultural courses needing the full Council discussion and to begin forming recommendations based on the Council’s review. 

Four remaining courses were reviewed by the Council.  Of 18 courses that were forwarded for full Council discussion, 2 were found to fit the Multicultural criteria, 15 were found to not fit the Multicultural criteria, and 1 course remained unclassified until more information could be obtained from the department regarding the course.           

 

·         Discussion

The history of the development of the criteria for Multicultural courses was reviewed.  Council raised several points of concern during the ensuing discussion:

- In general, there has been poor communication of criteria for      designating a course as satisfying the Multicultural requirement in      the General Education curriculum;

- What is to be done with Multicultural courses that are “topical;

- Syllabi should state clearly how a particular course meets            multicultural criteria;

- It is important to be transparently clear in explaining the Multicultural   intent of a course in the spirit intended by the academy.  Unless      these expectations are clear, then students’ learning in these             courses cannot be assessed;

- Instructors of Multiculturalcourses might create “portfolios” of student             work samples as one means of assessment.

 

The Chair asked the Council to consider where the Undergraduate Council’s comments and recommendations should go. Several ideas surfaced:

                         - Comments and recommendations should go to the Provost’s Office and                                      to deans and department heads, as well as to the Committee on                                               Courses.  Any recommended actions should             be introduced to the                                        University Senate;

                        - The Committee on Courses should review courses that do not appear to                                        fit the Multicultural criteria. A deadline for response from the                                      Committee on Courses could be included;

                        - Issue a memo of intent to make recommendations to the University                                              Senate;

                        - Deans should review Multicultural courses that do not appear to fit the                                         criteria ;

            Other suggestions:

                        - An updated syllabus for a Multicultural course should be required each                                        year it is taught;

                        - The specific relationship of the course to the Multicultural category                                               in which it is placed should appear in the course description.

 

The Chair noted that the Undergraduate Council needs to make clear, definite recommendations. These recommendations need to be seen as regular updates of the curriculum, and not as an irregular, destructive intrusion..

Questions raised by Council members were:

                        - What are advisors’role in transmitting an understanding of the                                                      Multicultural requirement to students?

                        - Should individual faculty members be contacted in advance if their                                              courses are among those that appear not to meet the Multicultural                                        criteria?

                        - Could a question asking whether students taking a course                                                              satisfied the Multicultural requirement (or a Group-satisfying                                               requirement) be incorporated into the new electronic course                                       evaluations?

                         - Can examples of courses that do and do not meet the                                                                    Multicultural criteria be included with the Council’s                                                             recommendations for improved course information (syllabi and                                                 course descriptions)?   (These would not have to be “real”                                                         courses).

 

            The Chair stated that he would draft a proposal for action based on the Council’s identification of courses that don’t meet Multicultural criteria. The draft will provide context for the recommended actions and will incorporate key points raised during today’s discussion.  The Chair also encouraged members to think about Council recommendations to address broader issues that arose during the review process.

 

The meeting was adjourned.

 

The next UGC meeting is scheduled for Thursday, November 15, 2007, 11:00am at Johnson Hall Conference Room.