Faculty responsibility
The GE CLAS Core has a special place in the college’s educational mission since every student must complete the program's requirements to receive a degree from the college.
Courses approved in the various required core areas have a broader role than other courses in departments or programs, with responsibility for these courses extending beyond the departments in which they are taught. The program has special oversight by the Undergraduate Educational Policy and Curriculum Committee (UEPCC) and the General Education Curriculum Committee (GECC). Careful attention is paid to all details of a proposal requesting GE Core status for a course to ensure that CLAS guidelines for the program are met in every approved course.
Committee roles
The Undergraduate Educational Policy and Curriculum Committee (UEPCC) provides primary oversight for the GE CLAS Core as specified in the college’s Manual of Procedure, Article VII. In relation to the program, the UEPCC has responsibility for the following tasks.
- Appointment of members of the General Education Curriculum Committee (with the advice of the Dean).
- Development of policies and procedures governing the program in consultation with the General Education Curriculum Committee.
- Consideration of major changes to the program and recommendations of changes to the faculty of the college.
Members of the General Education Curriculum Committee (GECC) are appointed by the Undergraduate Educational Policy and Curriculum Committee (UEPCC) with the advice of the Dean and serve in an advisory capacity to that committee and to the Dean.
The committee has six faculty members, two appointed from each of the college’s three voting divisions. The term of appointment is for three years and these terms are adjusted so that two members are newly appointed every year. The committee includes a student member with a term of one year, which may be renewed.
Others are invited to attend as appropriate in order to facilitate communication about the CLAS GE Program across offices and colleges. Faculty members wishing to serve on the committee are encouraged to contact the Associate Dean to see if a position is vacant.
The General Education Curriculum Committee has as its principal duties the following:
- To review and make recommendations on proposals requesting GE Core status for a course.
- To make recommendations to the Undergraduate Educational Policy and Curriculum Committee (UEPCC) concerning courses that should be approved or removed as part of the program.
- To educate instructors about the purpose, outcomes, and guidelines of the program.
- To develop, review, and recommend modification to outcomes and guidelines that define the standards for courses to be approved in each requirement area.
- To undertake special review tasks as requested by the Dean or the Undergraduate Educational Policy and Curriculum Committee.
- To advise the Undergraduate Educational Policy and Curriculum Committee on possible improvements to the GE Core Program and to prepare an annual report on its work for the Undergraduate Educational Policy and Curriculum Committee.
- To help assess the outcomes of the program and related courses.