Meeting Date: 
January 12, 2022
Date: 
01/12/2022 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm
Location: 
Zoom Meeting
Agenda: 
  1. Reflection on revised mission and goals

  1. Presentation on Gen Ed Reform at other institutions

  1. Breakout rooms discussion of what OSU needs to meet the mission and goals

  1. Break

  1. Report out from Breakouts

  1. Planning time for subcommittee workgroups.
Minutes: 

Members present: Ivan Arismendi, Patrick Ball, Erin Bird, Sherman Bloomer, JoAnne Bunnage, Mary Chuinard, John Edwards, Brandi Fuhrman, Troy Hall, Laura Hampton, Heath Henry, Selina Heppell, McKenzie Huber, Tim Jensen, Lori Kayes, Nana Osei-Kofi, Todd Palmer, Sarah Perrault, Lori McGraw, Hannah Rempel, Kara Ritzheimer, Patti Sakurai, Inara Scott, Karen Watte, Kaplan Yalcin
Members absent: Hunter Calvert, Daniel Faltesek, Alix Gitelman, Khawater Hussein, Kerry Kincanon, Dwaine Plaza

Reflection on Revised Mission and Goals

  • The workgroup drafted out some mission and goals and it was brought to the committee on January 6. After discussion, the goals were revised and sent to the sub-committee for review.
  • Revised Mission:
    • Oregon State University’s Baccalaureate Core is a universal educational experience for the 21st century learner that promotes economic, social, cultural, and environmental progress for the people of Oregon, the nation, and the world. The curriculum strives to develop students’ intellectual capacities and resiliency to be critical agents who transform knowledge into action. Through deep and integrative experiences, OSU’s general education meets students where they are in their educational journey and equips them for meaningful, lifelong learning. Our Baccalaureate Core is designed to foster student potential to innovate and change the world by solving complex problems, adapting to change, and becoming community members in a global society.
  • Revised Goals for General Education at Oregon State University:
    • Foundational Modes of Inquiry and Innovation – Students will use multiple modes of inquiry, within and across a variety of disciplines, to develop fundamental skills and breadth of knowledge that promote lifelong learning and creative problem solving.
    • Social and Environmental Justice – Students will examine evidence from a variety of perspectives to grow their cultural and environmental awareness and increase their capacity to enact social and environmental justice.
    • Navigation of a Complex Global World – Students will apply necessary skills for productive, civil discussion for navigating a world with multiple perspectives and global interconnectedness.
    • Launch from Here to Career – Students will gain professional skills and competencies designed for adaptability, longevity, and integrity in a global workforce.
      • There is some concern that the Health and Well-being goal was removed. The member would just like the committee to be certain that removing that goal is in the best interest of the university. There is a lot of data that shows that between 60-80% of students believe the requirement is important. Health and Well-being is a discipline and can be a defining feature of OSU’s student experience.
        • Data was collected via survey by a fitness course who reached out to students who previously took the course to see how they felt about it.
      • Data collected via a different survey by the Bacc Core indicated students felt otherwise about the fitness requirement – it was unwanted by the majority of students and the course is often waived by military students. The course itself also often had issues related alignment with Bacc Core goals and outcomes.
      • Previous discussion related to Health and Well-being was not that the course wasn’t important, but whether or not it belonged in gen ed.
  • No further changes were made to the Mission and Goals. They will be presented during the roadshow.

Presentation on Gen Ed Reform at Other Institutions

  • Clemson University’s Clemson Crossing
    • Changing the name of their General Education (Gen Ed) model
    • Communication
    • Ways of Knowing
      • Arts & Humanities
      • Math
      • Natural Sciences
    • Global Challenges
  • University of Alabama Birmingham’s Blazer Core
    • Changing the name of their Gen Ed model
    • Focus of curriculum is their geographical region
    • On-ramp (0 credits)
      • Experience designed to immerse students in university values and principles
    • Local Beginnings
    • Academic Foundations
      • Writing
      • Quantitative Literacy
      • Reasoning
      • Communication
    • Thinking Broadly
    • City as a Classroom
      • High-impact experiential learning
    • Flags
      • Another way to integrate certain ideas
  • The Ohio State University General Education (more context if you would like to explore)
    • Launch and Reflection Seminars – bookend courses
    • Foundations
    • Thematic Pathways
  • Questions?
    • All are from relatively conservative states. Is there any information about Gen Ed from more liberal states?
      • These are just examples of broader structures and offer some inspiration on how OSU can be more creative in restructuring the Baccalaureate Core (BC)
      • Washington State University
        • First-year experience
        • Foundational Competencies
        • Inquiry – Way of Knowing
        • Diversity
        • Integrative Learning
    • What is the goal for the roadshow? What should be prepared by then?
      • Rough proposals for models that faculty can provide feedback on.
      • Official Roadshow’s have not yet been scheduled so there is still some time to work on the proposals.
      • We are doing our best to plan throughout the year but we have to be nimble and flexible with the plan based on the outcomes from our road shows and recommendations from the workgroups.

Breakout Rooms Discussion of What OSU Needs to Meet the Mission and Goals

  • The committee broke out into four work groups to respond to the prompts provided by the co-chairs.
    • What does OSU need to meet these goals?
    • What does OSU currently have in our Bacc Core that aligns to these goals?
    • What might we need to add?
    • What other things should be considered? (high impact practices, etc.)

Break

Report out from Breakouts

  • Groups will add their reports to BOX.

Planning Time for Subcommittee Workgroups

  • Committee broke into subcommittees for planning and discussion.