MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY

University Committee on Undergraduate Education

 MINUTES

Thursday, January 12, 2017

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

Board Room, 4^th Floor Administration Building

Attending:  Rich Bellon, Giles Brereton, Sekhar Chivukula, Andrew Corner, Jan Eberle, Kathy Forrest, Carolyn Loeb, Sheng-Mei Ma, Richard Miksicek, Laura Nelson, Matt Pontifex, Fred Rodammer, Jessica Sender, Cassandra Shavrnoch, Jordan Stomps, Emily Tabuteau

Absent:  Eva Almenar, Marcos Caballero, Nicole Geske, Mary Kay Smith, Jacob Snyder, Colleen Tremonte

The agenda was approved.

The minutes were approved for December 1, 2016.

Comments from the Chairperson

Chairperson Miksicek gave brief updates from the Steering Committee meeting that was held on January 10. 

• On January 17, the University Council will present to Faculty Senate an action to adopt a message of inclusion in the form of a brief statement based on a note from President Simon in response to concerns about the current political climate.  Chairperson Miksicek asked UCUE members to encourage their faculty to attend the Faculty Senate meeting. 
• Rob McCurdy, Interim CIO, gave a preliminary report on the actions that MSU took on the cyber security breach that occurred last November.  A 2-year credit monitoring program was implemented at no cost to faculty and staff.  For enrollment information, visit https://msu.allclearid.com.  For further information, visit https://www.msu.edu/datasecurity.
• Provost Youatt commented that MSU has completed the first cycle of academic program reviews and encouraged faculty to plan for future developments.

Chairperson Miksicek reported that UCUE will address the process for the current student evaluation of teaching.  A subcommittee of five to seven members will be formed to include members from University Committee on Undergraduate Education (UCUE), University Committee on Faculty Affairs (UCFA), University Committee of Graduate Students (UCGS), University Committee of Student Affairs (UCSA), Associate Students of MSU (ASMSU), and Council of Graduate Students (COGS).  The scope of the subcommittee will be to review best practices and limitations related to student evaluations of teaching.  Several meetings will be held during January through March and a draft report will need to be prepared and presented to UCUE in March.  Chairperson Miksicek asked UCUE members to contact him if they would like to serve on the subcommittee.

Comments from the Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education

Associate Provost Chivukula stated that as follow up to a presentation by Assistant Dean Lucas last semester, a request will be submitted to create a UGS 110 course.  This is being done to provide a distinction from a “topical” versus a “transition” based freshmen seminar.  UGS 110 will be the transition-based seminar specifically benefitting students new to MSU.

The Academic Orientation Program (AOP) has been moved from the Office of Admissions to the Office of the Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education (APUE).  This move will be an opportunity to rethink AOP and the freshmen experience overall.  It was noted that all students arrive on campus with different experiences, knowledge, and degrees of readiness.  The goal is to meet the needs of all students and provide support to help them succeed.

Request for a New Minor in Computational Mathematics, Science, and Engineering (Action Item)

Brian O’Shea, Associate Professor, College of Natural Science

The committee granted voice to Dr. O’Shea.

Dr. O’Shea indicated that this is the first curricular offering from the new Department of Computational Mathematics, Science, and Engineering (CMSE) at the undergraduate level. He explained that the point of the minor is to provide undergraduate students with a supplement to their primary major by giving them a broad introduction to computational and data science.  Discussion took place around the structure of the minor which includes a two-semester sequence of introductory courses and an additional nine credits.  It was noted that since the department is new, course offerings are limited and are expected to grow over time.  Students are encouraged to work with advisors to evaluate courses they have already taken to determine if certain courses can be counted toward the nine credits for the minor.  Over time, a list of courses will exist that will automatically be accepted.  A brief discussion followed on what constitutes “big data.”

Voice was removed from Dr. O’Shea.  

The following motion passed unanimously.

The University Committee on Undergraduate Education duly considered and endorsed the request for a new Minor in Computational Mathematics, Science, and Engineering.

Request for Follow Up regarding Request for a New Minor in Insurance and Risk Management from 12/1/16 UCUE meeting (Action Item)

Mark Schroder, Professor, Department of Finance, Broad College of Business

Chairperson Miksicek stated that at the Provost’s request, two curriculum requests are being brought back to UCUE for additional information that were originally approved at the 12/1/16 UCUE meeting.

The committee granted voice to Dr. Schroder.

Dr. Schroder provided information on how cultural understanding and the University’s learning goals would be included in the curriculum for the course. A brief discussion followed on potential social consequences of predatory and unethical lending and the effects of this practice on the economy.  A brief discussion also took place on the importance of the word, “contract” and how the context can differ among people.

Voice was removed from Dr. Schroder.

The following motion passed unanimously.

The University Committee on Undergraduate Education moved to accept the explanation and rationale on how social and ethical consequences are contemplated and incorporated into the new Minor in Insurance and Risk Management. 

Request for Follow Up regarding Request for a New Bachelor of Science Degree in Advertising Management from 12/1/16 UCUE meeting (Action Item)

Ann Hoffman, Assistant Dean, College of Communication Arts and Sciences

Linda Good, Professor, College of Communication Arts and Sciences

The committee granted voice to Assistant Dean Hoffman and Dr. Good.

Assistant Dean Hoffman provided reasons why this new degree program is being offered as a BS and not a BA degree.  She stated that there is no institutional policy on determining if a course should be offered as a BS or a BA.  Peer institutions were researched and alumni in the field were interviewed.  It was determined that there was no competitive advantage to offer the degree as a BA opposed to a BS.  Based on the development of the curriculum, with an increased emphasis on analytics, the College determined it should be a BS. 

Voice was removed from Assistant Dean Hoffman and Dr. Good.

The following motion passed unanimously.

The University Committee on Undergraduate Education moved to accept the explanation and rationale for a BS degree in Advertising Management as presented.

Request for a New 3 + 3 Option for College of Communication Arts and Sciences Majors in Collaboration with the MSU College of Law (Action Item)

Ann Hoffman, Assistant Dean, College of Communication Arts and Sciences

Therese Enders, Executive Asst. to Kristi Bowman, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, College of Law

The committee granted voice to Assistant Dean Hoffman and Therese Enders.

Assistant Dean Hoffman stated the intent of the option is for students to complete 91 credits in their undergraduate major, take the Law School Admission Test (LSAT), apply to the College of Law, and if admitted, a student would complete 29 credits in law school during the first year, which would then count towards the student’s undergraduate degree.  The total of 120 credits at that point in time would enable conferral of a student’s undergraduate degree.  It was noted that a student must fulfill college, major, and University requirements within the 91 credits.  A discussion followed on the fact that the College of Law is not a part of MSU and therefore, the 29 credits are considered transfer credits.  Due to the special circumstances of a 3 + 3 program, the normal number of transfer credits at MSU are waived. However, rules for repeating courses are the same for MSU courses and for courses within the College of Law.

Assistant Dean Hoffman stated that the 3 + 3 option is a good recruiting tool.  Although it is a small program, it allows the College to retain strong talent who may otherwise apply to different law schools.  It was noted that a 3 + 3 program currently exists at James Madison College and several more colleges are considering this option.  Handouts were discussed that Assistant Dean Hoffman made available to the Committee.

Voice was removed from Assistant Dean Hoffman and Therese Enders.

The following motion passed unanimously.

The University Committee on Undergraduate Education duly considered and endorsed the request for a new 3 + 3 Option for College of Communication Arts and Sciences Majors in collaboration with the MSU College of Law.

Request to Change the University’s Graduation Requirements–Writing Requirement (Action Item)

Malea Powell, Chairperson, Writing, Rhetoric, and American Cultures

The committee granted voice to Chairperson Powell.

Dr. Powell indicated that this request is to revise the University writing requirement through changes to the WRA 1004/0102, Preparation for College Writing (PCW) sequence as outlined in the Course Proposal Changes for WRA 1004 and WRA 0102 currently pending in the Course Request system.  These changes delete WRA 0102 (previously a corequisite to WRA 1004) from the system, and change WRA 1004 to eliminate the corequisite WRA 0102.  One reason for this request is to eliminate the additional credits charged for WRA 0102 that students are required to pay but cannot count towards their graduation requirements. 

It was noted that similar changes are being requested with University mathematics courses.  Best practice has shown that if a student has to take a course that is tagged as “remedial,” it usually is not successful.  It was stressed that support is not being removed for students, it is being repackaged.  Discussion took place regarding the confusion around what constitutes a course that ends in a “3” versus a course ending in a “4” in the context of university policy regarding the classification of R-P-D courses.

Voice was removed from Chairperson Powell.

The following motion passed unanimously.

The University Committee on Undergraduate Education duly considered and endorsed the revised catalog language for the request to change the University’s Graduation Requirements – Writing Requirement.

Note:  This request was subsequently withdrawn at the request of the Department of Writing, Rhetoric, and American Cultures and the College of Arts and Letters to permit consideration of further changes that might be necessary to maintain compliance with university policy on the classification of R-P-D courses (see https://reg.msu.edu/AcademicPrograms/Text.aspx?Section=110#s235). 

Roundtable

Chairperson Miksicek asked for volunteers for the subcommittee on the student evaluation of teaching.

Fred Rodammer reported that Greg Ianni, Deputy Director of Athletics, gave a facilities update at the recent Athletic Council meeting. 

Meeting adjourned at 11:30 am.

Respectfully submitted by Lynne Frechen.