Members present: Virginia Clark Johnson, Michael Christoffers, Bob Harrold, RaNelle Ingalls, Marina Ioudina, Sudhir Mehta, Char Myhre, Larry Peterson, Doug Rymph, Orv Swenson, Cindy Urness, Robyne Williams, and Kristi Wold-McCormick.

Unable to attend: Kate Haugen

The meeting was called to order at 8:05 a.m. by Larry Peterson with a welcome to new members, followed by introductions as the first agenda item. Bob Harrold served as recorder for this meeting.

Agenda items discussed , following the sequence that had been distributed for this meeting, were:

A) Five-year reviews: Department chairs have received notification of courses eligible for review after approval or re-approval in 1999. A sample letter was electronically distributed to committee members prior to this meeting. Materials for renewal of courses for General Education categories are be received by December 15, 2004 with reviews to start in January, 2005. Kristi Wold-McCormick will review her spreadsheet to assure that her records and the spreadsheet distributed by the Committee Chair are consistent. The updated information, expanded to permit tracking of submitted materials, will be posted to the committee's website.

B) Review of existing committee (subcommittee) structure: There was extensive discussion of the subcommittee structure used in previous years and of alternative models. There was general agreement that the three major subcommittees be retained and that one non-member of the committee be invited by each subcommittee to participate in its review process. Reasons for inviting external parties to participate in the review process included the number of reviews and using the reviews to familiarize faculty with procedures used by the General Education Committee.

Subcommittees established for the current academic year were:

   Arts, Humanities, and Communication:
       Mike Christoffers, Larry Peterson, and Doug Rymph
   Science and Technology:
       Bob Harrold, Char Myhre, and Orv Swenson
   Social and Behavioral Sciences, Quantitative Reasoning, and Wellness:
       Marina Ioudina, Cindy Urness, and Robyne Williams

“189" Subcommittee:
       Members of the Social and Behavioral Sciences, Quantitative Reasoning, and
       Wellness Subcommittee, Larry Peterson, a representative from Student
       Affairs, and a representative from the NDSU Libraries.

C) Reviews to be completed for new course submissions: Course materials distributed for review by subcommittees included: BIOL 111/111L (Concepts of Biology), CSCI 159 (Computer Design Problem Solving), and PHIL 215 (Contemporary Moral Issues). Revised materials are expected to be resubmitted for CDFS 182 (Wellness and Aging) and EDUC 489 (Native American/Multicultural Instructional Practices).

D) Five year reviews of course materials submitted after previous deadlines:
Materials were distributed for MICR 202/202L. Materials received by December 15, 2004 for ME 189 (Skills for Academic Success) and MUSC 103 (Introduction to Music Theory) will be reviewed for possible renewal. The respective departments will need to file for consideration as new courses if renewal materials are not received by December 15, 2004.

E) Review of General Education Categories integrated into the major: One-page summaries describing the integration of embedded Categories 9 (Computer Usage), 10 (Communication Activities), 11 (Comprehension of Personal and Professional Ethics), and 12 (Capstone Experience) have not been received from Animal and Range Sciences, Biological Sciences, Computer Sciences, Geosciences, and Fine Arts. The initial letter requesting information on embedded Categories was dated June 3, 2003 with a deadline of December 15, 2003. Provost Schnell will send a letter of reminder to the Chairs/Heads of these departments. The letter will specify a deadline of October 15, 2004.

F) Evaluation of the Academic Profile Test for seniors (Given in April, 2004):
Bill Slanger (Institutional Research and Analysis) will be invited to attend a future meeting and discuss the results with this Committee.

G) Completion of rubrics for the individual content-area categories and
implementation of a formative assessment tool: Larry will distribute electronic copies of the five rubrics that have been developed. The Committee will review the five existing rubrics and develop rubrics for the two remaining categories. Each rubric will be posted on the Committee's Web-site after approval by this group. These rubrics will become a foundation for developing a Web-based formative assessment tool for General Education Outcomes.

H) Preparation for the regional accreditation visit (February 13 - 15, 2006):
Larry reminded the group that General Education is an area of emphasis by the Higher Learning Commission.

I) Examination of GERTA review policy: Kristi Wold-McCormick reviewed the General Education Review and Transfer Agreement (GERTA), the Gold and Silver Pages, current NDSU procedures in accepting transfer credits as meeting our General Education requirements, and procedures at other institutions. Following some discussion, there was general agreement that transfer courses identified as General Education classes at other institutions should be reviewed when no equivalent exists at NDSU.

J) Major agenda items for this academic year include:
       * Complete rubrics for Outcomes 1 (Communicate Effectively ) and 6
          (Integration of Knowledge).
       * Review the five completed rubrics and post all rubrics on the Web.
       * Implement a formative assessment tool.
       * Invite key individuals to participate in selected meetings:
          - Bill Slanger (to discuss the Academic Profile)
          - Dale Sullivan (English) for a meeting to discuss vertical integration of
             requirements in the Communication Category.
       * Distribute course materials received from departments.
       * Discuss and act upon recommendations from subcommittees.
       * Review embedded General Education Categories embedded into the major.
       * Act upon student petitions, as received.

K) Student Petitions: RaNelle Ingalls presented one petition to waive UNIV 189. After reviewing the petition a MOTION (Williams/Myhre) to approve the petition was passed.

The meeting was adjourned at 9:30 a.m.

Respectfully submitted: Bob Harrold