Rationale: Though the debate about College Seminar is vibrant, and many on campus question the academic viability of the course, CLA felt overall that, though not perfect, it is an important program to retain for the present time. Suggestions have been made transform College Seminar in many different ways. CLA initially recommended the Schools take over responsibility for College Seminar. Not all Schools took the challenge, and rather than eliminate it, CLA thought it wise to retain it for now, until a viable alternative could be developed that retained its strength while creating more consistency in its delivery.

Description: Incorporating the intercultural mission of the institution, each section of this course will have a distinctly different course description that includes an exposure to various cultural groups and traditions on campus and in the surrounding community. Presentations may be made by various on-campus bodies, for instance, the Latin American, Asian and African Studies minors. This course is also designed to provide students with an introduction to their intended majors. Students will also participate in presentations and discussions on important personal development issues to ease the transition from high school to college. This course is for new incoming freshmen.

Rationale: The CLA Committee considered requiring 2 College English courses, but due to resource issues, did not recommend a change at this time.

Rationale: CLA felt this was an important core course to retain. It provides students with the language and perspective to discuss issues and understand the world around them.

Social Issues: The purpose of this course is to provide a forum for the historical, academic and personal exploration of race, class, ethnicity and gender and the ways in which these become forms of oppression that impact on college students and American Society. It will cultivate in-depth conceptual approaches to these key areas.

Perspectives in Business: The purpose of this course is to explore modern American business. The course will examine the evolution of our economic system from historical, political, sociological, economic, and cultural perspectives, and will discuss current issues that involve industry within a changing social framework.

Rationale: Intellectual inquiry often begins with a curiosity about a subject, which can only be satisfied by examining data. In order to meet this need and improve our students’ skill repertoire we combined 2 of the current Gen Ed categories (Math and Quantitative) to this one lower level requirement. As statistics, genetics, and global finance become ever more powerful forces in our environment, CLA considered it essential that students be given tools to critically assess data.

Category Definition: Courses in this category should advance students’ understanding of the creation, use, and interpretation of empirical information. This may include assessing data, presenting numerical information, and performing statistical tests, and it should always include a healthy skepticism of the use of numbers in advancing a particular point of view.

Example: 100 level Math courses that provide applied problem solving, statistics courses or journalism courses could be included in this category.

Rationale: CLA felt it was important for students to have at least one experience in their college education that applied science in a practical and physical way. Understanding the physical world through direct experience with it, either by observing the effects of man on the environment or through manipulating materials in a classical lab setting.

Category Description: Courses in this category should be 100 level Science or Environmental Studies courses that provide a significant experiential component. The experiential component could be a lab or a fieldwork experience. The experiential component should, however, allow students to create and analyze data these courses address the experiential aspect of the mission

Rationale: Much discussion was devoted to this area of Gen Ed. Initially CLA discussed the effectiveness of offering only one semester of world history, and debated the merits of such an attempt. CLA was strongly in favor of strengthening the historical basis of our students' education and moved this offering around in different ways. Having created the "Readings in…" categories below, it was recognized that this "History" category could be an excellent introduction to what is the centerpiece of our proposal. The value of offering students 'the broad sweep' came to be evident as we developed this program.

Category Description: 100 Level Course in western civilization, world cultures and/or American history. These courses are designed to provide students with a historical context from which to understand historical process and method. Courses in this category should provide a 'broad sweep' of history.

Rationale: CLA considered the level of student preparedness in understanding the world around them as limited to their own life experiences which begin in 1980. Much anecdotal information bemoaning students' lack of knowledge of key historical events was shared in our meetings, and CLA recognized an opportunity to re-orient the 100 level offerings to provide students with the context of the various disciplines over time. Recognizing that all attempts to divide categories into disciplinary areas are often outmoded, that reinventing theme based categories for such study ran the risk of creating cumbersome, and eventually meaningless categories, CLA none the less created 3 categories of courses. The "Readings in…" idea was inspired by "Readings in Humanities", the 'great books' core course that inspired many on the committee. We hoped that faculty would be inspired to transform current courses and even create new ones that introduced students to the great works, great films or great writings of their own disciplines. The key ideas that inspired us to become facutly could be shared with our students in such courses, while providing students with the major grounding ideas of various disciplines.

Category Description: "Readings in…" should provide students historical and intellectual grounding of thought as seen through the prism of the discipline. The great works and important historical figures who influenced the evolution of the area of study would be emphasized, along with the social/political context of their work. Courses would address subject matter in historical context, focusing on texts and materials demonstrating changes in thought over time. In addition courses in this new category would incorporate six information literacy goals:  framing the research question, accessing sources, evaluating sources, evaluating content, using information, and understanding ethical and legal issues affecting the use of information.  (as per middle states report) be writing intensive.

Note: Certain College Mission goals will be required in several "Readings in…" Categories.

Category Description: Courses in this category focus on the human and aesthetic experiences through analysis and interpretation of great artistic, literary or philosophical movements through time. Offerings should offer an international or multicultural context for understanding the discourse in the discipline from which the course emerges.

Example: Courses such as Survey of American Lit, Theater in Society, Music in our Time, History of Jazz, Latin American Literature, Existentialism, Critical Thinking, etc. could be offered in this category.

Category Definition: These courses should provide students with an understanding of the social forces which shape human experience and society over time through the application of the scientific method to social groups and social processes. Courses in this category should have an intercultural perspective.

Example: Courses such as Gender Work and Family, Environmental History, Global Workplace and Social Movements could be included in this category.

Category Definition: Courses in this category provide students with a historical perspective on scientific thought and/or environmental literacy. They focus on Science in a cultural context and provide an ethical perspective on issues in science such as sustainability, biological warfare, cloning, AIDS, hormones and behavior within a social, geographic and political context through time.

Example: Courses in this category could include Energy and Society, Ecology Economics and Ethics and Appropriate Technology.

Rationale: As the College is ever striving to enhance its international mission, CLA felt it was very important to provide an area specifically focusing on international education. Students need to broaden their perspective and be encouraged to go outside their comfort zone. To gain specific insight into a region or culture outside of the US is essential to becoming an educated person in our world.

Category Definition: Courses in this category should provide students with specific insight or experience in a culture, history or politics of regions outside of the United States.