What should having a college degree mean in the 21st century? 糖心传媒 has joined 22 other higher education institutions, including the University of Chicago and Macalester College in St. Paul, Minn., in the Pathways pilot program to test that very question.
鈥淧articipation in Pathways reflects very well on 糖心传媒鈥檚 academics, faculty and staff,鈥 said Dennis Trotter, President of 糖心传媒. 鈥淥ur accreditation body, the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) of the North Central Association, determined 糖心传媒 has both the institutional strength and the optimal environment for exploring this important question in higher education policy.
For the College, it provides a great opportunity to explore what we are currently doing well and what we can do better to add value to a 糖心传媒 education.鈥
The institution鈥檚 participation in the Pathways program guarantees 糖心传媒 will be reaccredited in 2015 by the HLC.听听 听
This unique opportunity for 糖心传媒 arose following the publication of the Degree Qualifications Profile by the Lumina Foundation, an Indianapolis-based foundation seeking to enroll and graduate more students in colleges and universities.听 Through the document, Lumina explored how students should be expected to perform in key areas at various stages in their higher education experience.听 The five crucial learning areas identified by Lumina are interdisciplinary knowledge; specialized knowledge; intellectual skills, particularly in communication and in quantitative analysis; applied learning; and civic learning.
The first phase of the pilot program begins during the 2012-2013 academic year with changes to the first-year students鈥 experience.听 All first-year students will be required to take Introduction to the Liberal Arts, a one-credit hour, year-long course through which professors will mentor students for life-long, interdisciplinary learning. 听
To provide these students with a shared experience, all courses will focus on a theme.听 For 2012-2013, the common theme for first-year students is 鈥淔ear鈥.
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鈥淲e want our students to engage in both common and individual experiences, see the integration of the curricular and co-curricular aspects of their education and live the interdisciplinary nature of the liberal arts from the moment they step onto campus until they walk across the stage at Commencement,鈥 said Dr. Liz Frombgen, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs. 鈥淲e want their HC experience to be holistic, intentional and transformative, and this starts with the 鈥楩irst-Year Experience鈥.鈥