General Education Committee
Meeting Minutes
January 26, 2004

In Attendance:
L. Peterson (chair); P. McClean; O. Swenson; B. Dougan; J. Wageman; M.; Ioudina; J. Larson; G. Striemer; R. Ingalls; and K. Wold-McCormick

Approval of Minutes:
Minutes from the December 5, 2003, meeting were approved as distributed.

Election of Chair:
Postponed until next meeting.

Committee Membership:
The committee discussed the length of member terms, particularly for those who were named to replace past committee members. Senate Constitution and Bylaws does not address this issue. There was discussion that this is based on how their colleges appoint them (either to complete the unexpired term or to begin a new term). Wold-McCormick will try to confirm this before our next meeting. Committee membership for 2004-05 needs to be confirmed at the May Senate meeting.

Web-based Formative Assessment Tool:
Peterson met with Sudhir Mehta to discuss this issue. Mehta agreed that a Likert scale tied into the General Education database may be feasible. He advised that we visit with colleges beforehand to reinforce that this tool will be voluntary. The committee discussed the level of IRB involvement and student accessibility to this data. The committee would like to get a composite of the results, if possible.

Academic Profile:
Provost Schnell agreed to fund (approximately $6700 for two years) the academic profile from ETS for 50 seniors who completed their general education requirements. Discussion ensued on age and classification control in order to appropriately assess general education knowledge and preparedness of NDSU students. Students will be compensated for their participation.

University 189 Review:
Provost Schnell sent a letter to the committee asking for us to review UNIV 189 and its continuation in its present form in future NDSU curricula. The committee discussed, at length, the evolution and purpose of the course, other campus resources, its benefits to students, and feedback received to date on the effectiveness of the course. Peterson sent a follow-up email to Carolyn Schnell and William Slanger for historical information from which the committee may further evaluate this course.

Mid-Year Report:
No feedback has been received to date on the Mid-Year Report.

Distribution of New Course Materials:
Materials were distributed for review. Peterson also distributed a report indicating the departments that have and have not responded to the General Education Courses Integrated Into Majors request. He will contact some of the colleges/departments, including Engineering, which have not responded.

Student Petitions:
Three petitions were reviewed: 1) waiver of 189 for senior; 2) cultural diversity waiver for a student who resided abroad and married an individual from another country; and 3) a TCU course that included travel abroad to be counted as Humanities. All three petitions were approved by the committee.

Subcommittees:
Subcommittees are to work on courses and rubrics.

English Proposal:
Nothing new on this proposal at this time.

Meeting adjourned at 4:00 p.m.

Respectfully Submitted,
Kristi Wold-McCormick