Baccalaureate Core Committee

Voting members present: Nancy Barbour (remote), Kathy Becker-Blease, Natalie Dollar (remote), Patrice Dragon, McKenzie Huber, Bob Paasch, Weihong Qiu, David Roundy, Dana Sanchez, Inara Scott, Rorie Spill Solberg, Kaplan Yalcin
Voting members absent: Pat Ball, Filix Maisch
Ex-Officio members present: Faculty Affairs – Heath Henry, Ecampus – Rayne Vieger, WIC Director – Vicki Tolar Burton (remote)

• Category II Reviews
  • Discussion Needed
    • HST 470/570
      • The student conduct link is incorrect.
        • Send back and request a matrix to be placed in the syllabus that explains the student learning outcomes (SLOs) and how they are assessed.
    • HST 366
      • The Baccalaureate Core (BC) statement is there, but is not verbatim.
        • Difference, Power and Discrimination (DPD) outcomes are listed and there is nothing misleading in the wording.
      • There is an explanation on how critical thinking is assessed in the course form, but it’s not clear in the syllabus
        • How critical thinking is assessed is not a syllabus requirement for DPD courses, but it’s suggested that it is put in so that the information is clear and available to students.
          • Send back for minor revisions.
    • SYS 331
      • How course assignments relate to the SLOs needs to be explicitly stated on the syllabus.
      • The course forms addresses the critical thinking requirements, but it is not clear on the syllabus how students are assessed.
        • The committee suggests that the originator simply take their answer from the form and place it in the syllabus.
        • How critical thinking is assessed is not a syllabus requirement for DPD courses, but it is suggested that it is put in so that the information is clear and available to students.
      • The outcomes are numbered, and those numbers are placed into the course schedule for students to see which assignments relate to which SLOs.
        • The committee agrees that this is somewhat bare, and suggest that the originator add more details on how the assignments relate to the SLOs.
      • The committee believes adding a matrix will make the connections between outcomes and assignments more clear to the students.
        • The matrix is not a requirement but the committee has been leaning more towards it over the year.
          • Should the committee add the inclusion of a matrix as a minimum syllabus requirement?
          • Some members prefer a narrative explanation on how the SLOs connect to assignments.
            • The committee did not vote on the matter at this time.
              • Send back for some revisions.
    • HST 490
      • Disability Access Services (DAS) statement needs updating
      • The course is required to have one writing assignment that is a minimum of 1,250 words.
        • It is noted that the course does have three writing assignments, but none of them meet the minimum word requirement.
          • Send back with a request that the instructor adjust one of the writing assignments so that the minimum word count is met.
    • PAC 309
      • It is noted that this is not necessarily a lower-division course.
        • Because pre-requisites can be met via prior experience, the courses are still available to lower-division students, so it is not restrictive in who can take the course.
      • None of the answers to the BC course form are specific to the course. The responses are vague and generic.
        • Send back with a request for the originator to change their answers to the BC form so that it accurately reflects the program.
    • WLC 339
      • DPD and BC statements are not verbatim
        • The fulfilment is clear and there is no misleading verbiage.
          • Approve.
    • WR 250
      • The course is being proposed for the WR II category.
        • There does not seem to be enough of a writing element to the course for it to meet the category requirements.
          • Students do some script writing for podcasts.
        • No assignments are listed other than readings and listening to podcasts.
        • There is no discussion on SLOs are assessed.
        • A grading rubric is present, but without assignments, there is no way of telling how the rubric will relate to student assessment.
        • The committee wonders if this course would be better suited as a communications course.
        • Based on what is available in the syllabus, there is no way to determine how much writing is actually being done.
          • Send back with suggestions for major revisions.
    • NUR 413
      • This is an Ecampus course for the Cultural Diversity category
      • Has a lot of detail and weekly readings, but is lacking the verbatim BC statement.
      • There is no alignment in the syllabus on how students are meeting the SLOs for Cultural Diversity.
        • The answers in the form are good and can be copy and pasted onto the syllabus.
      • The way the course is set up, it feels like it is walking the line between Cultural Diversity and DPD.
        • There are a lot of DPD-like reflections that meet the critical thinking outcomes.
        • DPD is focused primarily on the United States, but this course focuses on other countries, as well.
      • The course is clearly developed for the major and does not necessarily meet the BC goal of giving students a wider perspective.
      • The reviewer has many concerns about the content of the course, which is about working with people in healthcare who are from other nationalities. The assignments seem to come from a heavily euro-centric view and there is concern that some of them may actually reinforce negative stereotypes.
        • While not being a DPD course, it is believed that the originator may benefit from taking the DPD information course.
        • The course is clearly intended to be positive, but the committee strongly believes it needs to be reworked so it does not have a potentially negative affect on students taking it.
          • Send back with suggestions for major revisions.

• Discussion
  • Upcoming Category Reviews
    • More will be distributed shortly.
  • Should a policy and exceptions be set for some colleges and BC requirements?
    • Political Science students will take many Social Processes and Institution (SPI) courses as part of their major, should the committee then force them to take an SPI course outside of their major to meet the BC requirement? Or can students in that or similar situations apply their major courses to the BC requirements?
      • Does making this exception go against the spirit of the BC?
        • The committee will continue to discuss the possibility of exceptions at a later date.