The Council on Academic Affairs approved all executive action items Oct. 10, including 14 items added to the agenda the day of the meeting. The addition of the 14 items prompted a discussion about reminding Eastern of deadlines to get onto the calendar.

One item proposed combining two geology courses to create a new course (GEO 2200). The GEO 2200 course will be integrated into the curriculum for the geology major and minor.

Another proposed changing the name of the “Department of Theatre Arts” to the “Department of Theatre.” The name will change in Spring 2020.

Another item proposed revising the CSM 3870: Data Structures course’s prerequisites to allow access to students from the College of Business and Technology.

CAA also approved proposals to add two new political science courses: PLS 3263: Politics of War & Conflict and PLS 3773: Religion & Politics in the US.

Another proposal revises HIS 3200: Islamic History: From Origins to the 14th Century to divide it into two different courses.

HIS 4275: Pre-Professional Internship was a proposed new course. The course includes students finding professional internship opportunities and working with coordinators.

Another proposal revised the English studies minor to restore the general English minor, which will give students the ability to study several different subjects within the minor.

There were four Fashion Merchandising and Design proposals that were also approved: revised proposals for the major and minor and two revised courses.

The proposal requested switching the numbering of FMD 3838: Apparel Development and Design and FMD 4772: Sustainability and Social Change in Fashion.

The FMD major and minor revisions include the name changes to FMD 3838 and FMD 4772.

Of the seven items that were already on the agenda, four memorandums from Austin Cheney, dean for the Lumpkin College of Business and Technology, were approved.

One requested that the graduate program for the master’s degree in cybersecurity should include management information systems majors.

Another was to revise the elective list for the engineering technology major.

The other two were requests to update prerequisites for two different courses. One includes “or by equivalent placement” for EGT 1303’s prerequisite and the other includes a new prefix (EGT 3063) and changes restriction to both EGT majors and minors.

The last three executive action items that were already on the agenda were memorandums from Michael Cornebise, interim associate dean of geography.

One memorandum requested allowing listed online courses to be open to on-campus and off-campus students based on department need.

Another requested changing the title of “BIO 3400: Methods of Teaching Biological Sciences in High School” to “BIO 3400: Methods of Teaching Biological Sciences in Middle and High School.”

The last memorandum was to change the title of “PHS 2400: Methods of Teaching Physical Sciences” to “PHS 3400: Methods of Teaching Physical Sciences in Middle School and High School.”

Marita Gronnvoll, CAA chair and communication professor, said the council received the 14 items relatively late. She said receiving items late puts more pressure on the council to vote on them with less time to review.

The council recommended sending a mass email to everyone at Eastern before Jan. 1, 2020, reminding everyone about deadlines.

Claudia Janssen Danyi, vice chair of CAA and public relations professor, said there are two deadlines to get on the calendar. There is one meeting in the spring and one in the fall where the council can approve items.

Logan Raschke can be reached at 581-2812 or at [email protected].