CAA to discuss program recommendations

Staff Report

The Council on Academic affairs will discuss its draft document of recommendations for programs being considered for elimination or reorganization.

It is scheduled to meet 2 p.m. Tuesday in room 4440 of the Booth Library.

The council heard about the programs at its last meeting and conducted its own review of them.

According to the draft letter to Eastern President David Glassman attached to the agenda, the CAA recommends program retention for philosophy, program reorganization for philosophy and a program hiatus for adult and community education.

The focus of the council’s review centered on the centrality of the program to the university’s mission, the impact elimination would have on students in other majors, minors and concentrations and the overall quality of the program.

In their rationale for the philosophy program, the CAA wrote that the program provides opportunities for students to learn “the methods and results of free and rigorous inquiry in the humanities and to refine their abilities to become responsible citizens and leaders.”

“The philosophy program impacts several other interdisciplinary minors and programs, including numerous general education courses provided to the university,” the rationale reads. “The quality of the program is characterized by the offering of comprehensive coverage of both analytic and continental philosophy within all areas and historical periods in the discipline, which is rarely found in other programs.”

For the Africana studies department, they wrote that the centrality to the university’s mission is clear regarding Eastern’s commitment to diversity, but the program has “limited impact” on other students outside of the major.

“It is agreed that if the program was to be reorganized such that more interdisciplinary opportunities exist, it would have a greater overall impact on students and other programs,” the rationale said.

In regards to adult and community education, the CAA wrote that it is an innovative program and if resources become available, it could be revived.

“Although the program has minimal impact on other majors, minors or concentrations, it provides students in education a unique opportunity to become professionally prepared to have a positive impact on communities,” it said in the rationale.

Also on the agenda is a vote on renaming computer science and mathematics and a bachelor’s program in digital media summary.

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