University Senate voted to approve the addition of three new majors and three new minors and the deletion of the Physical Education major. Senate also approved bylaws for the faculty assembly.
The meeting occurred on April 21 and it was held to cover issues not addressed in the past meeting on April 8. In the April 8 meeting, Senate approved staff assembly bylaws but lost quorum after discussion on part-time staff representation on the faculty assembly.
At the April 21 meeting, faculty assembly bylaws were approved after changes were made to the bylaws. These changes included an increase in the percentage of faculty required for quorum from 15 to 20 percent and a change in the language that clarifies the makeup of the faculty assembly.
A Criminology major and minor, an Equine-Assisted Activities and Therapies minor, an Educational Studies major and minor and a “Business and Organizational communication” major were each proposed and approved in separate senate bills by the Curriculum Committee.
A representative from the health and sports sciences department speaking on behalf of the curriculum committee said the deletion of the Physical Education should take effect because of diminishing students in the major. The deletion will take effect in the fall of 2017. The bill states that all seven students with PHED majors are on schedule to graduate this spring.
A representative from the sociology and anthropology department speaking on behalf of the curriculum committee said, “All of our research the data indicates some pretty solid support for bringing forward the major particularly considering that it doesn’t require any additional faculty, it doesn't require any additional funding, it’s the evolution of a concentration that commands the majority of our sociology majors.”
The criminology major and minor will require one additional course on prisons for the major to be put in place. The action will take effect in the fall of 2015.
Steffanie Burk, assistant professor in the equine science department, said that the major would require 20 credits, 11 of which are new. The program will bring in an adjunct every other year from PBJ connections, an organization that offers equine-assisted psychotherapy. The minor will take effect in the spring of this year and will include course fees to offset its cost.
A representative from the education department speaking on behalf of the curriculum committee said the education studies major was submitted because of interest among students. The representative said the major will not license its participants and it will appeal to international students who don’t require a license, students who wish to study educational fields but do not want to become teachers and students from other departments. The representative said the proposal will require no more resources than what the education department currently utilizes.
The education studies major and minor will take effect on August 24, 2015.
John Ludlum, professor in the communications department and a senator, spoke about the business and organizational communication major.
“First, we were asked by the adult degrees task force to create a major that would include both business and communication and could potentially be attractive to those adults that are currently working and are seeking to return to get a college degree. Second, we were asked by the provost to find ways to reduce the number of sections that we teach and reduce costs, and that’s right, this is a major that will actually reduce costs, so it has a net profit the day it starts.”
Ludlum said that students have asked for a major that combines communication and business. The major will require courses from both communications and business and will appeal particularly to transfer and adult students.
