Number 11
March 25, 2009
   
M I N U T E S

CURRICULUM COMMITTEE
College of Letters and Sciences
Meeting of March 5, 2009

    PRESENT:  Ellen Davis, Paul House, Pilar Melero, Jennifer Thibodeaux, Trudy Witonsky, Geetha Samaranayake, Steve Sahyun,  Jolly Emrey, Elizabeth Olson, Larry Neuman, Debra Heiber and Elizabeth Hachten, Chair.
 
  1. The minutes of the January 22, 2009  meeting were approved on a Davis/House motion.
  2. Announcements:
    1.  The chair announced that next fall is a new catalog year and that departments should review their programs and make any corrections needed.  The deadline for getting changes in the catalog is our first meeting of the Fall semester, September 3rd.  The committee was also reminded that we have 3 more meetings is semester in which to get changes made.  They are April 2, April 16, and April 30.
    2. The chair announced that the 498R has been approved.  The question was asked if the 498R would be available in the fall and if so what needs to be done to activate it. Also when can departments start adding it to the curriculum and can the addition of this course to all programs in a department be done on one form.  The chair will check on this.
  3. Olson/Emrey moved to approve the new course PSYCH 407  "Psychology of Emotion and Motivation."  The motion passed unanimously.
  4. Melero/Neuman moved to approve the new course SPANISH 484 " Women Writers of Spain and the Americas."  The motion passed unanimously.
  5. Emrey/Olson moved to approve the new course POLISCI_ASIANST 480 "Government and Politics of Japan."  The motion passed unanimously.
  6. Thibodeaux/Neuman moved to approve the new course RELIGST 304 "Contemporary Islamic Thought and Practice."  The motion passed unanimously.
  7. Sahyun/Olson moved to receive and record the following informational items:
    1. Number change and requisite change for the "Introduction to the Scientist-Practitioner Disciplines in Psychology" course FROM PSYCH 446 TO PSYCH 327.
    2. Requisite change for PSYCH 345_545 "Abnormal Psychology."
    3. Delete PSYCH 646 "Introduction to the Scientist Practitioner Disciplines in Psychology."
    4. Change in the Psychology submajor "Scientist-Practitioner Graduate School Preparation Emphasis."
    5. Add the new course POLISCI 480 to Area 3 in the following Political Science majors and submajors:
      1. Political Science Major (BA_BS)
      2. Political Science Major (BSE)
      3. Political Science - Honors (BA_BS) Emphasis
      4. Political Science Minor
      5. Political Science Education Minor 
The motion passed unanimously.
  1. The chair requested that we add discusson of the super majors vs. the traditional major/minor  to the agenda.  The committee approved.  Thus the issue was again discussed.   It was the consensus of the committee representatives that minors add breadth and depth to a student’s educational experience.  However, a super major could have a place in the curriculum given an adequate justification for it.   It was then suggested that we should clarify what constitutes adequate justification at a future meeting.   It was brought out that there seemed to be several possible justifications: 1) To prepare students for graduate or professional studies in the discipline (e.g.  Scientist-Practitioner Graduate School Preparation Emphasis) or 2) to provide a multidisciplinary program through a unique combination of courses not found in existing major/minor.  There was also discussion on whether a super major would be justified as a marketing tool for an existing major/minor.  Most of the committee felt that the purpose of a degree in an L&S program was to provide the student with a broad liberal education rather than skill development.  The question was raised as to whether or not requiring a minor was the only path to insuring a broad education.  It was suggested that the super major could possibly fulfill that role if it was distinct from a combination of a major and a minor in the same discipline
  1. The meeting adjourned on a Davis/House motion.
Respectfully Submitted


  Elaine Wagner, Secretary