Faculty Handbook 2020-2021

I.3. Curriculum Issues

Curriculum Proposals

Curriculum proposals should be submitted in the fall semester, except for exempt courses created to accommodate newly hired faculty.  Chairs should send proposals to the appropriate Area Chairs on, or before, October 18, 2018.  Curriculum area meetings are scheduled during the convocation period on November 1, 2018.  Please keep the following items in mind:

  • Chairs should work out schedules for the initial curriculum work that occurs in the departments so that the Area Chairs receive proposals on time.
  • The current forms for proposals are available on the web at Faculty Resources.
  • Chairs should email final proposals to the area chair.  This is the signal that the proposal has been approved by the Department or Program and is ready for the Area(s).
  • Each proposal should be attached as a separate document using a file name like MATH 160, MATH Major, MATH Minor, or MATH 2xx, to keep them organized.

The following sections of the Faculty Handbook guide the process:

Graduation Requirements for Majors and Minors

Department and program chairs should submit proposals for new majors and minors as well as proposed changes in existing majors and minors using the Curricular Revision Form found online. The signature of the chair on the proposal forms signifies that the department or program has approved the proposals.  These proposals are first submitted to the appropriate Area(s) for approval.  If approved by the Area(s), the proposals are then submitted to the Committee on Curriculum which evaluates these proposals and submit them to the Council on Academic Policy with one of three notations:  recommended, not recommended, or submitted without recommendation.  Proposals that span more than one Area must be approved separately by each of the Areas involved in order for the proposal to move forward. The Council on Academic Policy places proposals on the agenda for the forthcoming faculty meeting and circulate them to the faculty to be voted up or down.  In faculty meetings these proposals are presented by the Chair of the Committee on Curriculum, who may call on others to present supporting arguments.

New Course Proposals

Department and program chairs should submit proposals for new courses in their departments (or programs) using the Curricular Revision Form found on-line. The signature of the chair on the proposal forms signifies that the department or program has approved the proposals.  These proposals are first submitted to the appropriate Area(s) for approval.  If approved by the Area(s), the proposals are then submitted to the Committee on Curriculum which evaluates these proposals and submits them to the Council on Academic Policy with one of three notations:  recommended, not recommended, or submitted without recommendation.  Proposals that span more than one Area must be approved separately by each of the Areas involved in order for the proposal to move forward. The Council on Academic Policy places proposals on the agenda for the forthcoming faculty meeting and circulates them to the faculty to be voted up or down.  In faculty meetings the curriculum committee chair presents these proposals and may call on others to present supporting arguments.

Exempt Courses 

In certain cases when new courses needed to be added to the schedule at a time when the Curriculum Committee cannot review the course and send it on to the faculty for approval, these courses are called exempt courses.  Examples include courses taught because of faculty hires that occur late in the academic year and courses attached to off-campus programs that change late in the academic year or during the summer.

Exempt courses are approved on a one-time basis using the following procedure.  Department or program chairs should complete a course proposal form and obtain approval, if possible, from the appropriate Area Chair(s) and the Curriculum Committee chair.  (In this case, the signature of the chair may not represent the decision of the department or program.)  The signed form should be sent to the Provost for final approval with copies going to the Registrar and the Associate Provost.  Exempt courses do not appear in the Catalog and cannot have Collegiate Center codes attached to them..  Exempt courses must follow the regular acceptance procedure before being offered in subsequent years as regular courses.  In the case that an exempt course is later approved as a regular course with Collegiate Center codes, then those codes are added to the student records for those students who completed the original exempt course.

Changes in Existing Courses

Proposed changes in course titles, prerequisites, or catalog descriptions of existing courses must be submitted by the appropriate department or program chair using the Curricular Revision Form to the Curriculum Committee Chair, the Associate Provost, and the Registrar. If these persons believe the change is relatively minor, meaning that it would not significantly alter the course as it was originally approved, then the change is considered approved and will be listed on the Curriculum Committee Chair’s final report. If any one of these persons believes the changes are more significant, the Curriculum Committee Chair will take the proposal to the committee and follow the regular process. The same process should be followed to remove from the Catalog courses no longer being offered on a regular basis.  Changes in course numbers must be submitted to the Registrar for approval.

General Education Codes

The Committee on Curriculum is responsible for assigning general education codes to proposed courses and for making changes to codes for existing courses with one exception:  The Writing Across the Curriculum Committee is responsible for W2 codes.  Exempt courses as described in an earlier section cannot have any Collegiate Center codes assigned to them. 

Other than the exception, proposed codes and changes in codes must be submitted by the appropriate department or program chair for evaluation using the Curricular Revision Form found on-line.  The signature of the chair on the proposal forms signifies that the department or program has approved the proposals.  These proposals are evaluated in the same way as described in the earlier section on graduation requirements for majors and minors. No course may receive more than two Learning Domain codes.

Odyssey Codes for Courses and Modules 

New Courses with Odyssey Codes. The course proposal with code requests is submitted to the Curriculum Committee.  The signature of the chair on the proposal forms signifies that the department or program has approved the proposals.  The Curriculum Committee forwards the code requests to the Engaged Learning Committee. The Engaged Learning Committee sends codes recommendations back to the Curriculum Committee. The Curriculum Committee forwards course and codes recommendations to Academic Policy for discussion and vote by the faculty.  Exempt courses cannot have any Collegiate Center codes assigned to them.

Odyssey Codes for Existing Courses. Code requests are submitted to the Engaged Learning Committee. The Engaged Learning Committee then sends codes recommendations to the Curriculum Committee. The Curriculum committee forwards codes recommendations to Academic Policy for discussion and vote by the faculty. Exempt courses cannot have any Collegiate Center codes assigned to them.

One-Time Odyssey Credit Proposals based on Courses or Modules within Courses. Proposals are submitted to the Engaged Learning Committee. The Engaged Learning Committee notifies the Curriculum Committee of Odyssey credit decisions. The Engaged Learning Committee notifies persons submitting proposals of Odyssey credit decision.

Managing Degree Requirements

It is the responsibility of the Registrar to maintain degree progress records toward graduation.  Requirements for each major and minor can be found in the Catalog.  Exceptions or substitutions to these requirements for a major or a minor can be approved by the department or program chair of the department in which the major or minor resides.  In the case of exceptions or substitutions agreed to by the members of the department, the chair should inform the Registrar by email stating and explaining the exceptions or substitutions.  The Registrar uses these exceptions or substitutions in the student’s academic audit.

Through Campus Web, chairs have access to some student record information including lists of majors and minors as well as student course histories.  To access these forms, sign into Campus Web and select the Faculty Tab and then choose Faculty Chair Reports.  

Registration

Chairs are expected to be available on Confirmation and Schedule Change days each semester to answer enrollment questions from the Area Chairs or the Registrar concerning faculty in the department who cannot be contacted.

On the Friday before the fall semester confirmation day, department and program chairs should be in touch with their Area Chair by 9 am to discuss issues with enrollments in their courses.  That discussion should take into consideration room size, student interest, graduation requirements, minimum enrollment limits as well as other department or individual interests.  [The policy on class size appears below.  CoF understands that enrollment is still fluid at that time since there will be a lot of student shuffling on Monday.]

Possibilities for courses where student interest exceeds course limits: 

  • Bump.  This is when the number of students exceeds the course limit.  The number of students greater than the limit will be removed from the course and these students will have to find an alternative course.  Students are selected randomly.
  • Keep.  This is when the number of students exceeds the course limit but all students are allowed to remain in the course.  The Registrar can keep the course limit as it is and enroll the extra students manually.  The department chair is responsible for working with the Registrar if the room size is an issue.
  • Move.  This is when the number of students exceeds the course limit but student slots are available in other sections of the same course in the same semester.  On your request, the Registrar will attempt to move students to other sections that fit into the student schedule.

We need to minimize the move students, since the process is very time consuming.  Also, before deciding whether to request bumping or keeping, remember to keep in mind what likely other options students will have.  

Examples:

  • Course X has students over the limit:   The request can be made to keep 2 of the additional students and bump the others to maintain the limit as is.
  • Course X has students over the limit:   The request can be to bump the additional students and the students can try another similar, or similarly coded, course.
  • Course X has students over the limit and there are two other sections of the course that are under the limit:  The request can be made to move the extra students, if possible.  After all possible moves, then bump the extra students.
  • Course X has students over the limit and there are two other sections of the course that are under the limit:  The request can be made to move the extra students, if possible.  After the possible moves, then keep the extra students.

A similar process occurs during returning student registration in March.

Guidelines for Courses with Low Enrollment

The Committee on Faculty may request that undergraduate courses at the lower level may be cancelled if enrollment levels are below eight.  Upper level classes may be cancelled if enrollments are below three.  The department or program chair may be asked to justify running a course below these limits.  If courses are cancelled, the chair is responsible for helping the faculty member fill the empty slot, possibly by adding a new course or by splitting an existing course with a large enrollment.  In the case of upper level courses, the chair may be asked to request the faculty member teach these students as an overload independent study.