2011-2012 FACULTY SENATE
California State University, Sacramento

AGENDA
Thursday, December 01, 2011
Foothill Suite, Union
3:00 - 5:00 p.m.

 

MOMENT OF SILENCE

 

WLADYSLAW TROKA

Emeritus faculty

Department of Physics & Astronomy

 

 

OPEN FORUM

 

CONSENT ACTION

 

FS 11/12-48/Ex.

COMMITTEE APPOINTMENT – SENATE

 

Faculty Policies Committee

Rodney McCurdy, At-large, 2013

 

FS 11/12-49/GSPC/Ex            SECOND BACHELOR’S POLICY, REVISIONS TO

           

            The Faculty Senate recommends revising the “Second Bachelor’s Policy” as proposed in Attachment A.

 

FS 11/12-50/GSPC/Ex            SECOND BACHELOR’S DEGREE CATEGORIES, REVISIONS TO

 

            The Faculty Senate recommends revising the “Second Bachelor’s Degree Categories” as outlined in Attachment C.

 

REGULAR AGENDA

 

FS 11/12-51/Flr.

MINUTES OF NOVEMBER 17, 2011

 

INFORMATION ITEM:

 

APC/FPC STRATEGY FOR RE-INTRODUCTION OF PROPOSALS RELATED TO STUDENTS AND FACULTY RIGHTS/RESPONSIBILITIES

 

FIRST READING

 

FS 11/12-52/APC/Ex.

MINIMUM GRADES FOR UNDERGRADUATE PREREQUISITE COURSEWORK, AMENDMENT TO

 

The Faculty Senate recommends amending the “Minimum Grades for Undergraduate Prerequisite Coursework” as proposed in Attachment D-1.

 

Note: The side-by-side comparison can be found in Attachment D-2.

 

BACKGROUND:

Academic Affairs referred the issue of minimum grades required for prerequisite coursework. Currently, there is no university policy on satisfactory completion of prerequisites. However, there is a policy that provides that a grade of “C-” be considered a “C” for the purposes of satisfying prerequisite coursework. Last year, there was an inquiry from Geography regarding our policy regarding a minimum grade requirement for prerequisite coursework.  This past summer, we had a similar inquiry from Physics. In CMS, the default setting for a prerequisite is “C-”; however, our actual policy is ambiguous as to whether or not a grade below a “C-” (i.e. “D”) is sufficient to fulfill a prerequisite requirement.

 

The Academic Policies Committee voted unanimously on October 7, 2011 to refer the item to the Executive Committee.  At the same meeting, a motion to endorse the item failed: 4 Yes, 4 No, 3 Abstentions On October 14, 2011, the Academic Policies Committee voted unanimously to recommend the attached policy language.

 

The following issues were raised by APC on Minimum Grade of C- or better in prerequisite coursework

·         The absence of a University policy allows individual departments to enforce minimum grade requirements without Faculty Senate approval/review.  Some departments may assume the enforcement of a specific grade.

·         If there is uncertainty in how grades in prerequisite coursework are enforced, this may create difficulties in student course plans and advising.  Having a university baseline, or default, would alleviate this uncertainty because it would require that departments explicitly state their prerequisite grade requirements, if they differ from a university standard.

·         There is no evidence that the lack of a university minimum grade requirement is problematic.  The question of how many students would be affected, and therefore the need for such a policy, was raised by the committee.

·         Establishing a minimum standard for prerequisites at the university level makes sense based on the definition of grades in academic policy (e.g., passing with a C grade versus passing with a D grade).

·         There is ambiguity in the current catalog language, which suggests that some change to the policy is needed to eliminate this ambiguity.  The current catalog language is based on the assumption that before the introduction of  “+/-” grades, a “C” was required in order to satisfy a course prerequisite.

 

 

FS 11/12-53/GSPC/Ex.           ACADEMIC RENEWAL, REVISIONS TO INCLUDE GRADUATE STUDENTS

 

            The Faculty Senate recommends revising the “Academic Renewal Policy” to include graduate students. The proposed policy can be found in Attachment E.

 

FS 11/12-54/CPC/Ex              BA AND BS POLICY CHANGE (UPPER DIVISION UNITS IN MAJORS)

 

            The Faculty Senate recommends amending the BA and BS Policy as follows:

 

Bachelor of Arts Degree majors require a minimum of 24 semester units in the major with at least 12 units at upper division. Bachelor of Arts Degree majors are limited to 48 units in the major field, including lower division prerequisites.  The comprehensive liberal studies degree program which includes both major and general education requirements is currently exempt from the 48 unit limitation.  Exemptions to the unit limitation are granted only upon the recommendation of the Academic Senate's Curriculum Committee and approval of the school dean and the Vice President, Academic Affairs.

 

The Bachelor of Science Degree has the same primary objectives as the Bachelor of Arts Degree but is grounded in scientific methodology and emphasizes applications in a wide range of technical and professional fields.  Bachelor of Science majors require a minimum of 36 semester units in the major with at least 18 semester units at upper division, and are limited to no more than one half the total degree unit requirements in the major field, inclusive of both lower and upper division units, but exclusive of co-requisite requirements.  Exemptions to the unit limitation of Bachelor of Science programs are made in the same fashion indicated for Bachelor of Arts programs.

The complete background information and side-by-side comparison can be found in Attachment F.

 

SECOND READING

 

FS 11/12-46/ GE/GRPC/EX.

AREA B LEARNING OUTCOMES, REVISIONS TO

 

The Faculty Senate recommends revising the “General Education Area B Learning Outcomes” as proposed in Attachment B.

 

Note: The side-by-side comparison can be found in Attachment B-1.

 

BACKGROUND:

In November 2009 new Baccalaureate Learning Goals (BaLGs), aligned with EO 1033, were passed by the Faculty Senate (http://www.csus.edu/acse/09-10_actions.htm#FS%2009-74). In Spring 2011 the process of revising Area Learning Outcomes (ALOs) to align with the new BaLGs began with Area B: The Physical Universe and its Life Forms.

 

Faculty who taught in Area B along with the Dean of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, the Dean of Social Sciences and Interdisciplinary Studies, the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies, and the Chair of the GE/GRPC convened and worked throughout Spring 2011 on revising Area B Learning Outcomes. This work concluded with the attached draft Area Learning Outcomes dated September 19, 2011. These ALOs were circulated to Deans and departments for comment and endorsed by Area B stakeholders.

On October 31, 2011, the General Education/Graduation Requirements Policy Committee reviewed the revised Area B Learning Outcomes. After discussion with the Area B faculty representative and deliberation, the committee voted unanimously to refer them to the Executive Committee and thereafter to the Faculty Senate for their endorsement. The GE/GRPC acknowledges the work of those involved with the Area B process, especially the Area B working group, for their collegial and consultative efforts in arriving at new Area B Learning Outcomes.

 

 

SENATE FALL SCHEDULE:

 

(1st and 3rd Thursdays, 3:00-5:00, Foothill Suite, Union, unless notified otherwise)

December 8, 2011 – tentative

December 15, 2011 – Senate meets