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December 11, 2017

Academic Futures Open Forum:

Academic Administration:  From Departments to Degrees.  From Colleges to Certificates

Moderator:      Jeff Cox

Listener:          Russ Moore

Points made and issues raised included:

1. Flexible majors and interdisciplinary education
   1. We should investigate and create more flexible majors and paths for students as they discover what they want to do.
   2. What if we approached learning from a perspective of behaviors, belief systems, prejudices, and culture?
   3. We still need to provide some guidance to students – we can create and “mark” some paths with the ability to go “off-path”.
   4. We could create a “core” for a major with endorsements, e.g., a core in teaching with endorsements in math and chemistry.
   5. Can a student be interdisciplinary if they are not disciplinary?  The benefits of interdisciplinary is more apparent once you have some knowledge and depth of thinking to recognize and value the differences and commonalities.
   6. We need to help the students think about their discipline and what is needed as a foundation for possible interdisciplinary work beyond “course with lab”.
   7. A&S needs to market the “distributed major”.  Historically, this has been used as a “last resort”, but it could actually be an asset.
   8. We could look at a “hybrid major”, for example, two majors that can be combined into a major when endorsed.
2. Campus-wide common core
   1. We could define campus-wide core themes, for example, sustainability.  This would include financial sustainability, human sustainability (equity, justice), environmental sustainability, etc.
   2. We would need to look at defining core experiences to go along with core a core curriculum – these would likely need to be different in the various schools and departments.
   3. We need to focus on what students need to know, not just where we are going to put students.
   4. Many students do not write well, more emphasis should be put on developing writing skills.  This does not have to be the same for each major, but would be focused on writing skills needed within their major, finding synergy between academic and career skills.  For example, learning to write grants would be useful for many disciplines.
   5. A common core should include common skills (e.g. writing), common themes (e.g. sustainability, global citizenry), and common experiences (to build confidence and “grit”).
3. First-year and undergraduate experience within a flexible-major model
   1. Most undergrads, especially freshmen, are overwhelmed by all the choices they already have to make.  Trying to figure out their path in a flexible major environment could create stress and frustration.
   2. Identity matters, including identity and community defined by majors.
   3. First-year seminars – students need to find their passion about something as early as possible rather than discovering it in their junior/senior years when it becomes difficult to change course. �鶹��Ժ need more time to engage in the areas of their passion.
   4. We need to bring back the role of the RAPs – repurpose and expand.
4. Impactful experiences
   1. We should investigate the AAU “signature work” model – each student creates a “signature work” that demonstrates knowledge, skills, etc.  This holds a student accountable to not just taking a course, but taking something away from the experience.  This could be internships, group capstone projects, etc.  The student should have a choice in what their signature work will be.
   2. When students are able to express themselves about the knowledge they are carrying forward, they gain confidence, resiliency, and personal power. 
   3. We should change our terminology and use “signature work” instead of “capstone project”.  “Signature work” creates a more personal connection for the student.
5. Student success and resiliency
   1. This generation of students is experiencing more stress and anxiety due to many factors - political and divisive environment, threat of war, health care, planetary sustainability, the cost of education, student debt, no job security when obtain a degree, etc. �鶹��Ժ are feeling crushed.  We need to find ways to identify students who are struggling, reach out, nurture, and teach resiliency skills.  We all need to check-in about our basic assumptions of students.
   2. We need to teach students how to learn rather than just “knowing the answer”.  They need experiences to show them how to work through it, being accountable to themselves, and developing discipline rather than just “cramming” to get an A.
   3. We need to create space for students to slow down and think.  Mindfulness requires time to reflect.
   4. We need to talk about the value of education, not just as a vehicle to get a degree/job.  At the same time, we need to recognize that some students, especially those paying out-of-state tuition, have real pressures to get out and get a job that will pay the bills.  This is a real life stressor for students.
6. Rethinking how we teach
   1. Our job as faculty is changing.  School was originally designed to give info.  Now, students have access to information and can get it faster than we can give it.  We as faculty need to rise to the challenge and redefine the purpose of instruction.
   2. Faculty expectations are all over the map when it comes to teaching and projects, from no guidance (“it’s up to you, you figure it out”) to too much structure (no room for exploration and creativity).  We need to come up with some standards and provide guidance to students on expectations and how they will be evaluated.
   3. We need to acknowledge the speed at which things are changing in the world and we, as faculty, need to keep up.  Typically, changes at the university come slowly.  We need to adjust and find a way to be more responsive.  This is especially true in the area of climate change – we need to respond quicker in both teaching and research to do our part in preserving life on the planet.
7. Opportunities to use technology
   1. We should look at using data to augment advising similar to what we all experience online today (“if you liked that class, you may also like this one”).  This would be especially useful if we are considering a more flexible approach to degrees.
   2. The entire campus needs to embrace the Canvas tool in managing the student portfolio.  We are getting positive feedback from the students.
8. We need to move forward with a solid understanding of our role and responsibility within our state and community, and not just rely on our reputation.  We need to be brave enough, bold enough, and confident enough to do it.