Submitted May 2, 2006
1. Committee chairperson: Betsy A. Bowen
2. Committee membership
Betsy A. Bowen (English)
Suzanne Campbell (SON)
Christopher Huntley (DSOB)
Laura McSweeney (Mathematics & CS)
Rose Rodrigues (Sociology & Anthopology)
Emily Smith (GSEAP)
Edna Wilson (Dean UC, ex officio)
3. Meetings
attended:
All members of this committee attended and participated
reliably. When a committee member
could not attend a meeting, he or she typically sent comments on the scheduled
agenda items. Specific attendance
follows:
Bowen [5]
Campbell [5]
Huntley [4]
McSweeney [5]
Rodrigues [4]
Smith [5]
Wilson [4]
4. Dates of
meetings:
September 19, 2005
October 20
November 10
February 2, 2006
March 9
5. List of principal topics considered by the committee:
Status of displaced students from New Orleans: Most students displaced by Hurricane Katrina enrolled in Fairfield through University College. The UC committee consulted with Dean Wilson on their status and needs at Fairfield.
Registration for one-week courses: Students who registered for one-week courses by phone or through the Web were not consistently receiving the course syllabus and reading packets. As a result, they were unprepared for class. [see section 6]
Concerns regarding on-line courses: Committee members observed that the popularity of on-line courses, taught largely although not exclusively by part-time faculty, appear to be jeopardizing courses taught by full-time faculty. If this is the case, it works against the goal of integrating full-time faculty more fully into UC.
Search for new Associate Dean of University College: With retirement of Marge Glick, a vacancy was created in UC.
Proposed corporate cohort M.A. program in Communication: The committee consulted with Dean Wilson on moving this M.A. proposal through committees.
Proposed M.F.A. program: The committee consulted with Dean Wilson on plans for a proposed low-residency M.F.A. program, which would be offered, if approved, by the English Department in conjunction with University College.
Suggested revision of the Handbook description of the UC committee: The current charge of the UC Committee limits its work to undergraduate programs in UC. [see section 6]
Jesuit & Catholic mission in UC: Fr. Walter Conlan, S.J., made a presentation to the committee on efforts to make integrate the Jesuit, Catholic mission of the University more clearly into UC.
Change in affiliation for the Florence program: The UniversityŐs study abroad program in Florence, offered through the office of international programs in UC, recently changed the institution with which it is affiliated. That has affected the curriculum.
6. List of
decisions taken by the committee:
Registration for one-week courses: In conjunction with Dean Wilson, the committee developed new procedures designed to ensure that all students registering for one-week courses would receive the needed materials at registration.
Search for new Associate Dean of University College: The committee approved a motion commending Marge Glick for her twenty-two years of service to UC. The Chair of the UC Committee served on the search committee for an Associate Dean for UC. Dr. Aaron Perkus was hired for that position and began in January 2006.
Suggested revision of the Handbook description of the UC committee: The committee voted to recommend a revision of the General Purpose and Specific Duties of the committee. That proposal has been sent to the Academic Council for consideration.
7.
Anticipated effects of these decisions:
Registration for one-week courses: We expect that the procedures will work well; preliminary experience (Winter Intersession) suggests that this is the case.
Suggested revision of the Handbook description of the UC
committee: If the proposal is accepted by the General Faculty
and the Board of Trustees, it would align the Handbook description the
CommitteeŐs current practice of discussing both undergraduate and graduate
programs offered through UC.
8.
Unfinished business:
Concerns regarding on-line courses: This
is the primary issue to be continued into next yearŐs committee
discussions. The issue brings
several goals into conflict: increasing revenue streams in UC, expanding access
for students, encouraging full-time faculty to teach in UC, and respecting
departmental oversight.
Proposed M.F.A. program: The committee expects to continue consulting with Dean Wilson on the progress of the MFA proposal.
Jesuit & Catholic mission in UC: The committee should receive updates on continuing efforts in this area in UC.
Change in affiliation for the Florence program: The committee should receive an update from the Dean on curriculum in Florence.
9. Future
agenda items:
At meetings next year, the UC committee plans to deal with two of the items listed above: online courses and the Jesuit mission in UC.