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2017-12-05 Minutes

MINUTES
MEETING OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE BOARDS
of the General College and the College of Arts and Sciences
Tuesday, December 5, 2017
3:30–5:00 PM, 3020 Steele Building

Members in attendance: Rita Balaban, Amy Cooke, Mara Evans, Beverly Foster, Jennifer Larson, Lauren Leve, Lee May, David Mora-Marin, Ted Mouw, Abigail Panter, Valérie Pruvost, Nick Siedentop, James Thompson, Frank Tsui, Charlie Tuggle, Jonathan Weiler

Absent: Claude Clegg, Kelly Giovanello, Kevin Guskiewicz, Richard Langston, Cary Levine, Christian Lundberg, Doug MacLean

Guests: GerShun Avilez, Jessica Brinker, Mary Floyd-Wilson, Jason Kinnear, Chris Nelson, Adam Versenyi, Lianne Cartee

Staff: Ben Haven

1. Curriculum Committee Reports (3:30 PM)
James Thompson, Associate Dean for Undergraduate Curricula, Office of Undergraduate Curricula
The Boards approved the following reports and proposal.

2. Undergraduate Program Proposals (3:35 PM)
Nick Siedentop, Curriculum Director, Office of Undergraduate Curricula

The Boards approved the curriculum changes as distributed.

3. Undergraduate Programs in English and Comparative Literature (3:50 PM)
GerShun Avilez, Associate Professor, Department of English and Comparative Literature
Mary Floyd-Wilson, Professor and Chair, Department of English and Comparative Literature
The Department of English and Comparative Literature (ECL) seeks to discontinue the Comparative Literature B.A. degree program. The Department merged the English and Comparative Literature into one department in 2006 and the last step is the establishment of a single B.A. degree program in English and Comparative Literature.

ECL is also proposing changes to the B.A. program requirements to facilitate student focus in one of seven concentrations. If elected, students have the option to focus in 1) English and American Literature or 2) Comparative and World Literatures, or one of five new concentrations: 1) Science, Medicine, and Literature; 2) Writing, Editing, and Digital Production; 3) Film and Media Studies; 4) Creative Writing; and 5) Social Justice and Literature. Part of the goal is to help undergraduate students establish connections to different areas and careers through their major, including the health professions, professional writing and editing, media production, teaching, film journalism, film library and archive work, law practice, social work, non-profit organizing, education, etc. Each concentration will also have a designated faculty adviser. Students also have the option to pursue a general track if no concentration is chosen.

The Department will continue to support students in the current Comparative Literature and English majors and will offer required courses for these majors. Students may elect to switch to the new version of the major starting in Fall 2018 (pending approval by the UNC System).

The Boards approved the proposal as distributed.

4. Biomedical and Health Sciences Engineering (B.S.) Program Changes (4:05 PM)
Lianne Cartee, Director of Undergraduate Studies and Teaching Associate Professor, Department of Biomedical Engineering
These program changes help to align the curriculum and courses with the North Carolina State courses and curriculum. In addition, it will reduce the number of credit hours by three for the major. The Boards approved the proposal as distributed.

5. (4:20 PM) Undergraduate Minor Proposals

  • Conflict Management (revised)
    • Five items were changed to revise the structure of the minor per Boards recommendations at the November 7, 2017 meeting: 1) two required courses, DRAM 175 and PCLY/PWAD 330 have been moved to a course list; 2) the descriptions of the two preceding courses have been removed; 3) students will select three courses from the practical-based courses list, one from a list of courses on human behavior and brain function, and one from a list of domestic and international courses; 4) elective courses were added in history, linguistics, and religious studies; and 5) a statement was added to address the review and approval process for courses not on the approved list.
    • The Boards approved the new minor proposal.
  • Food Studies
    • This undergraduate minor is a legacy idea stemming from the UNC-Chapel Hill food theme. The new minor will be an interdisciplinary honors program, but it will be housed in the Curriculum for the Environment and Ecology. The program is available to students accepted into Honors Carolina and to any undergraduate student who has achieved and maintains a minimum GPA of 3.0. The gateway is NUTR 175, which will be offered once per year as a 60-70 person class, and it will be cross-listed with other units.
    • The Boards approved the new minor proposal as distributed.
  • Health and Society
    • The curriculum for this minor brings together courses that look at linkages between health and society and courses focused on sociological approaches, concepts, and theories. The goal is to provide students with insights into the ways that societies define health and illness and how social contexts influence population health trends.
    • The Boards expressed concern that there may be some overlap between this proposal and the medical anthropology minor. They approved the new minor proposal with the following recommendations: 1) provide a more explicit explanation in the Undergraduate Catalog of how this differs from the medical anthropology minor and 2) consider adding some relevant geography courses.
  • Heritage and Global Engagement
    • Through this minor, students will gain a better understanding of culturally aware approaches to studying the role of globalization and heritage in the modern world. This minor also has a qualitative methodology focus, and each student must complete at least one course offering training in hands-on anthropological research.
    • The Boards approved the new minor proposal as distributed.

6. Study Abroad Proposals (4:45 PM)
Jason Kinnear, Interim Associate Dean for Study Abroad
The current batch of study abroad proposals were established with the aim of reaching new areas (Croatia; Malawi), and in one case, targeting student athletes (UNC English in Dublin – Minimester).

The Boards approved the study abroad proposals as distributed.

The meeting adjourned at 5:00 PM.

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The Administrative Boards of the General College and the College of Arts and Sciences are responsible for advising the Dean of the College about the undergraduate curriculum, including changes in that curriculum, approving individual courses offered in Departments and Curricula of the College, and making decisions when requested on specifications for degrees.