Core Curriculum Fields of Study Associate's Degree What’s it all about? Council of Undergraduate Advisors Tuesday, April 7, 2009

Core Curriculum - The Basics Since 1987, every student who received a baccalaureate degree from a Texas public institution of higher education has been required to complete the state’s general education core curriculum as part of their degree requirements The Texas General Education Core Curriculum assures students high-quality undergraduate educational experiences across a broad range of intellectual and practical areas of inquiry.

Core Curriculum - The Basics Far from being those "basics" that students are frequently advised to "get out of the way," the Texas General Education Core Curriculum embodies a carefully-designed set of significant intellectual skills and content intended to contribute in specific ways to excellence within the undergraduate experience for all students.

Core Curriculum - The Basics Every institution of higher education is required by law to adopt a core curriculum of no less than 42 semester credit hours (up to 48 with special permission) which is consistent with the Texas Common Course Numbering System and the statement, recommendations, and rules issued by The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. Chapter 4. Rules Applying to All Public Institutions of Higher Education in Texas - Subchapter B. Transfer of Credit, Core Curriculum and Field of Study Curricula

Core Curriculum - The Basics Coordinating Board Rules, Chapter 4, Subchapter B Institutions must evaluate the effectiveness of their core curricula at regular intervals (usually once every five years) and report the results of those evaluations to the Board.

Transfer of Core Courses (a)All successfully completed lower- division academic courses that are identified by the Texas Common Course Numbering System (TCCNS) and published in the Lower Division Academic Course Guide Manual (ACGM) shall be fully transferable among public institutions and shall be substituted for the equivalent course at the receiving institution.

Texas Common Course Numbering System (TCCNS) A voluntary, co-operative effort among Texas community colleges and universities to facilitate transfer of freshman- and sophomore-level general academic coursework. The TCCNS System provides a shared, uniform set of course designations for students and their advisors to use in determining both course equivalency and degree applicability of transfer credit on a statewide basis. When students transfer between two participating TCCNS institutions, a course taken at the sending institution transfers as the course carrying, or cross-referenced with, the same TCCNS designation at the receiving institution. To date, 110 institutions of higher learning in Texas participate in the TCCNS project

Upcoming Evaluation of the Core Coordinating Board rules specify that each institution’s evaluation must, at a minimum, address four issues: ▫the extent to which the curriculum is consistent with the elements of the core curriculum recommended by the Board; ▫the extent to which the curriculum is consistent with the Texas Common Course Numbering System; ▫the extent to which the curriculum is consistent with the elements of the core curriculum component areas, intellectual competencies, and perspectives as expressed in Core Curriculum: Assumptions and Defining Characteristics adopted by the Board; and ▫the extent to which the institution's educational goals and the exemplary educational objectives of the core curriculum recommended by the Board are being achieved (to be fully addressed in the 2009 evaluation).

Lower Division Academic Course Guide Manual (ACGM) The official list of approved courses for general academic transfer that may be offered by public community and technical colleges in Texas for state funding.

For example, AGRI 1315 Horticulture (3 SCH version) AGRI 1415 Horticulture (4 SCH version) (Also see HORT 1301 or 1401) Structure, growth, and development of horticultural plants from a practical and scientific approach. Environmental effects, basic principles of propagation, greenhouse and outdoor production, nutrition, pruning, chemical control of growth, pest control, and landscaping. (Crosslisted as HORT 1301 or 1401) Approval Number CIP Area Agribusiness & Agriculture Production maximum SCH per student maximum SCH per course maximum contact hours per course

Transfer of Complete Core If a student successfully completes the 42-hour core at an institution of higher education, that block of courses must be substituted for the receiving institution's core curriculum. A student shall receive academic credit for each of the courses transferred and may not be required to take additional core curriculum courses at the receiving institution unless the Board has approved a larger core curriculum at the receiving institution.

Transfer of Partial Core Students who transfer without completing the core curriculum shall receive academic credit in the core curriculum of the receiving institution for each of the courses that the student has successfully completed in the core curriculum of the sending institution, with certain exceptions noted in the rules [Chapter 5, Subchapter S, Section (h)].

Transfer and Native Students (b) Nothing in this subchapter restricts the authority of an institution of higher education to adopt its own admission standards in compliance with this subchapter or its own grading policies so long as it treats transfer students and native students in the same manner.

Components of the Core I.Communication (6 required / up to 6 optional) (composition, speech, modern language) II.Mathematics (3 /3) III.Natural Sciences (6 /3) IV.Humanities and the Visual & Performing Arts (6/3) V.Social and Behavioral Sciences (15/3) VI.Institutionally Designated Options (0/6)

The Texas General Education Core Web Center

§4.26 Penalty for Noncompliance with Transfer Rules If it is determined by the Board that an institution inappropriately or unnecessarily required a student to retake a course that is substantially equivalent to a course already taken at another institution, in violation of the provisions of §4.25 of this title (relating to Requirements and Limitations), formula funding for credit hours in the repeated course will be deducted from the institution's appropriation.

And, finally … (j) Substitutions and Waivers. No institution or institutional representative may approve course substitutions or waivers of the institution's core curriculum requirements for any currently enrolled student.

Next … Fields of Study

Fields of Study Field of Study Curricula are designed to assist students by facilitating transfer of academic credit from institution to institution. As of December 2002, the Board has approved field of study curricula in 37 individual program areas to help meet the need in high demand areas

FoS High Demand Areas Coordinating Board staff identified any general degree program areas that had produced at least 1,000 bachelor’s-level graduates for each year from cross listed with general degree areas with more than 1,000 transfers from community colleges to universities each year during the same period were identified

Fields of Study at EPCC - 14 Business Communication/Advertising/Public Relations Communication/Journalism/Mass Communication Communication/Radio & Television Broadcasting/Broadcast Journalism/Cinematic Production Computer Science Criminal Justice

Fields of Study at EPCC Civil Engineering Computer Engineering Electrical / Electronic Engineering Industrial/Mechanical/Metallurgical/Materials Engineering Music Nursing Child Development/Early Childhood Education Grade 4-8 Certification

Fields of Study A field of study curriculum is comprised of “a set of courses that will satisfy the lower division requirements for a bachelor's degree in a specific academic area at a general academic teaching institution.” The Coordinating Board was charged in the statute to develop field of study curricula, which include the lower-division courses in the major (exclusive of core curriculum and free elective courses) that a student would complete to be allowed to register for upper-division courses.

Completed Field of Study Curriculum A completed field of study curriculum (FOSC) is transferable as a block, and must be accepted in lieu of the lower-division courses in the specific academic area of a student’s intended “major.” Students who have completed a FOSC should not be required to complete additional lower- division courses in their specific academic area, or “field of study,” before being allowed to register for upper-division courses in the field of study, also known as the “major.”

FOSC When a student has successfully completed the courses that fulfill a Board approved core curriculum and a Board-approved FOSC, the student is guaranteed that those courses will transfer and that FOSC courses will apply to the degree program to which the FOSC has been designated to apply.

What does that mean for us? For the identified FOSC areas: ▫Must accept the full core of 42 SCH as transfer ▫Must accept the SCH as fully transferable and applicable lower-division courses ▫Must offer 60 hours of coursework to complete the degree

Next: Associate’s Degrees

Associate’s Degrees d/5307/Default.aspxhttp:// d/5307/Default.aspx Not required to accept the 15 – 18 content hours as in a Field of Study but certainly encouraged to do so

Associate’s Degrees at EPCC 227/Catalogs/Catalog pdfhttp:// 227/Catalogs/Catalog pdf Core Curriculum + 18 hours Art Dance Drama English General Studies Philosophy Psychology Speech Communication

So, what’s next? Field of Study areas need a transfer plan Associate Degree areas are strongly encouraged to develop a transfer plan How do we do that?

Field of Study & Associate’s Degree EPCC / UTEP Alignment Procedure Goals: Develop a procedure that standardizes our ability to align EPCC and UTEP degree plans Promote the efficient transfer of courses for our students Meet all state and institutional guidelines Inform all appropriate parties

Proposed Procedure: Departments which intersect with a Field of Study and/or Associate’s Degree should appoint a working group of at least two individuals: ▫The Chair or Associate/Assistant Chair of the Department ▫A faculty member in the relevant discipline ▫An Academic Advisor or additional Faculty member (optional)

Proposed Procedure: In addition, the working group should include a UTEP representative from the EPCC / UTEP Articulation committee who can be the liaison to the Committee. Contact Donna Ekal or Amanda Vasquez

EPCC / UTEP Articulation Committee Meets once per month (4/22/09) Comprised of faculty, advisors, administrators Co-chaired by EPCC and UTEP representatives Mission is to resolve these kinds of transfer issues Presidents are signed an MOU last week formalizing the efforts

Proposed Procedure: This Working Group will use the THECB approved Field of Study degree plan or the EPCC Associate’s Degree plan to develop a proposed Course Transfer Alignment for the Department. The proposal will then be sent to the College Dean for approval. Then to the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee

Proposed Procedure: Once approved, the Course Transfer Alignment will be sent to: ▫the EPCC / UTEP Articulation committee so it can be entered officially into the minutes ▫Enrollment Services so that it can put into Banner and the online catalog ▫The appropriate Academic Advisors at both EPCC and UTEP so that they can accurately advise students

Role of CAPP Helps students stay on track Will change the conversation with students from prescriptive to developmental advising Degree plans MUST be up to date for CAPP to be effective Meetings with your college CAPP contact

How can we help? DoNot Do Facilitator Intermediary Resource Make your curricular decisions

Transfer of Academic Credit Transferring more than Lower Division Coursework What can we do?

THECB No institution of higher education shall be required to accept in transfer, or apply toward a degree program, more than 66 semester credit hours of lower-division of academic credit. Institutions of higher education, however, may choose to accept additional credit hours

SACS At least 25% of the credit hours required for the degree are earned through instruction offered by the Institution awarding the degree.

Our Catalog 1.A total of at least 25% of the semester hours (a minimum of 30 semester hours) 2.Twenty-four of the last 30 semester hours* 3.Twelve semester hours of advanced courses in the major subject must have been completed not more than three years prior to the date of graduate

Questions?