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agenda status: approved

Agenda:

MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY

University Committee on Undergraduate Education

AGENDA

Thursday, April 25, 2013

10:15 A.M. to 12:00 P.M.

Boardroom, 4^th Floor, Administration Building

 

 

1. Approval of the Agenda (Action Item)

2. Approval of the March 28, 2013 UCUE Minutes (Action Item)
   
   
3. Comments from the Chairperson
   
   
4. Comments from the Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education
   
   
5. Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education Performance Review (Information Item)
   Terry Curry, Associate Provost and Vice President, Academic Human Services
   June Youatt, Acting Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs

 

6. Request to Eliminate the Award Type of ‘Specialization at the Undergraduate Level and Convert existent Undergraduate Specializations to Minors (Action Item)
   
   Request to Change the Policy Definition of a Minor (Action Item)

Gary Hoppenstand, Chairperson, University Curriculum Committee

Linda Stanford, Associate Provost for Academic Services

 

7. Election of 2013-14 Officers (2013-14 UCUE Members may vote)

 

UCUE Chairperson
One year term, represents UCUS at Steering Council, University Council, and Faculty Senate meetings

Most Tuesdays  - 3:15 pm

UCUE Vice Chair (Ryan Sweeder, incumbent)

One year term, represents UCUS at Steering Council and University Council and Faculty Senate meetings if Chairperson is not available

UCUE faculty liaison to Athletic Council
(Jan Brady, incumbent, volunteered to serve again next year)
One year term, meets one Thursday per month from 7:30 – 9 AM

UCUE liaison to University Committee on Liberal Learning
One year term, meets once a month on a Wednesday (usually 3rd week) afternoon from

3 pm to 4:30 pm

UCUE liaison to Military Education Advisory Committee
One year term, meets once each semester, dates to be determined

8. Roundtable

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minutes status: approved at the 9/12/2013 meeting

UCAP Minutes for meeting held on 04/25/2013

Attendees: Eric Aronoff, Mark Axelrod, Emily Bank, Henry Beckmeyer, Jan Brady, Laura Dillon, Justin Droba, Doug Estry, Fred Fico, Mitchell Goheen, Seung Hyun Kim, Chris McClain, Coretta Patterson, Ron Perry, Matt Pontifex, Lynmarie Posey, Fred Rodammer, Ryan Sweeder, Cynthia Taggart, Mark Tran, Abraham Wheeler

Absent: Nicole Dandridge, Phylis Floyd, Ann Rabello, Ashton Shortridge

The agenda was approved.

The minutes of the March 28, 2013 meeting were approved.

Comments from the Chairperson
Chairperson Dillon welcomed incoming committee member, Fred Rodammer and thanked outgoing members for their excellent service to the committee.

Comments from the Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education
Associate Provost Estry expressed his appreciate to the departing members for their service to the committee.

Associate Provost Estry reported that Acting Provost Youatt had selected four groups of faculty and staff to develop suggested strategies for MSU regarding MOOCS and Online Education, Closing the Graduation Gap, Healthy University, and Interdisplinary Research. The groups have completed their work and submitted their suggested strategies.

Associate Provost Estry mentioned that Associate Provost Curry and Acting Provost Youatt would be asking the UCUE to manage his 5-year review in the position of Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education and Dean of Undergraduate Studies.

Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education Performance Review (Information Item)
Terry Curry, Associate Provost and Vice President, Academic Human Resources
June Youatt, Acting Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs

Acting Provost Youatt indicated that, although a dean is reviewed annually, a more comprehensive review of a dean’s performance is conducted every five years. She stated that Dr. Estry had already provided a statement of his performance and objectives.

Associate Provost Curry described the dean’s review process to the committee.
Information gathering stage:

1. A sub-committee should be selected to develop a survey and determine whom to survey.

a. During the review process, the Office of the Provost will be available for private conversations regarding the performance of the dean.

b. Both the sub-committee and the dean will identify individuals outside of the University to ask to provide letters regarding the dean’s performance. These letters will not be shared with the committee.

2. After all information has been gathered the sub-committee will meet with the Provost and Associate Provost for Academic Human Resources to discuss the preliminary assessment. The Provost will then meet with the dean to review the assessment. The Provost will have a final meeting with the sub-committee after the Provost’s meeting with the dean..

3. After the final meeting with the subcommittee, the Provost and Associate Provost for Academic Human Resources will meet with the full UCUE and with administrators reporting to the dean. The plan is to have the final meeting with UCUE and administrators reporting to the dean in December.

4. The process is relatively standardized and should be done in the course of one semester. A draft plan designed to get things started early in the fall semester and to guide toward completion at the end of the semester was distributed to the committee

5. It is recommended that a sub-committee be formed to design the survey and begin working on identifying who should be consulted outside of the University to work over the summer.

6. The University has a standing relationship with a provider who will administer the survey online, provide summary statistics and open ended comments for the committee’s use.

The committee asked to be provided with a position description, adjustments made to the job description since the hire of the dean, additional responsibilities not included in the original job description, and any specific expectations the Provost might have.Eric Aronoff, Ryan Sweeder, Fred Rodammer, and Cynthia Taggart volunteered to constitute the subcommittee to work over the summer on survey construction.

Request to Eliminate the Award Type of ‘Specialization at the Undergraduate Level and Convert existent Undergraduate Specializations to Minors (Action Item)
Request to Change the Policy Definition of a Minor (Action Item)
Gary Hoppenstand, Chairperson, University Curriculum Committee
Linda Stanford, Associate Provost for Academic Services

The committee unanimously granted voice to Associate Provost Stanford and UCC Chairperson Hoppenstand.

UCC Chairperson Hoppenstand stated that specializations are unique to MSU and are a holdover from the time when MSU did not have minors. There are no other AAU or CIC institutions that use specialization to describe a course of study on a transcript. The request to eliminate the award type and to convert existing undergraduate specializations to minors is an initiative to bring MSU in line with its colleague institutions. The change will standardize the credit hour requirement to 15 hours, eliminate inconsistencies in double counting courses, increase clarity in understanding why unique credits might be required by academic unit, and might enhance student interest in taking a minor.

Associate Provost Stanford added that MSU initiated minors at the request of students as employers were not familiar with the term specializations. Policy states that 12 of the 15 credits required for a minor could not be double counted for University or college requirements. Students have complained that the policy is not being enforced and there is a lack of equity among specializations and minors. Simplifying the taxonomy for curriculum is another reason for the proposal.

Dr. Stanford reported that there are currently 55 undergraduate specializations. Of those, there are five that require less than 15 credits and would need to add three or four credits to become a minor. Students currently enrolled in those specializations would not be affected as students graduate with the requirements of the program they started. If the proposal is approved, students will have the opportunity to convert their specialization to a minor, the opportunity will be university-wide and clear rules will be set.

This change will not have an impact on whether a unit may choose to offer a minor in a similar field (i.e., students cannot have a minor in Spanish and also have a Spanish major). There is no institutional policy about whether programs are open to others or not. Individual units will control whom they allow into a minor. The decision about unique credits will be left to the department offering the minor as well. A major is a primary field of study; the minor is a secondary field of study.

In response to committee member’s questions, Associate Provost Stanford reiterated that unique credits and determining which credits will double count will be at the discretion of the unit running the minor.

Voice was removed from Associate Provost Stanford and UCC Chairperson Hoppenstand.

The motion by Mark Axelrod was unanimously approved.

The University Committee on Undergraduate Education (UCUE), in its consultative capacity to the Provost, has no concerns about the requests. However, UCUE recommends that the University Curriculum Committee clarify the constraints on the relationship between a major and a minor (see page 5 of the proposal, the 4th sentence of Minor definition: “Minors are not open to students who are in majors in the field of study represented by the minor, and minors may be limited to students in particular majors or colleges.”).

Election of Officers for 2013-14

The University Committee on Undergraduate Studies officers for 2013-14.

UCUE Chairperson
Cynthia Taggart

UCUE Vice Chair
Matt Pontifex

UCUE faculty liaison to Athletic Council
Jan Brady

UCUE liaison to University Committee on Liberal Learning
Abraham Wheeler

UCUE liaison to Military Education Advisory Committee
Ryan Sweeder


After Roundtable, the meeting was adjourned.

Respectfully submitted by
Sandra Walther