Principles for Appraising the Contributions of Departments and Programs to the St. Olaf Curriculum as a Whole
A department or program makes a significant contribution to the curriculum as a whole when:
Mission, History, Identity:
It offers courses in a distinctive field that is closely related to the mission and identity of the college.
General Education:
Its courses contribute significantly to the general education curriculum of the college.
Interdisciplinary Collaboration:
Its courses and its faculty participate significantly in the college’s commitment to interdisciplinary research and teaching (exemplified in interdisciplinary programs, majors, and concentrations; in interdisciplinary research and teaching collaborations among faculty; and in the structure of many general education requirements).
Support for Faculty Scholarship:
The work of its faculty improves scholarship and teaching by faculty in other departments and programs.
Support for Students’ Learning:
It serves many student constituencies, including the department’s own majors, students seeking general education, and students seeking necessary foundations for work in other majors.
Student Engagement:
Its students make significant contributions to classes they take in other departments and programs.
Assessment:
It models the effective use of inquiry in support of student learning to improve teaching and learning.
Attracting Students:
Its subject attracts to the campus students whose presence contributes to other established goals of the college (academic excellence, diversity, etc.).
College Reputation:
Its high reputation among peer programs at other institutions serves to attract excellent faculty, students, and resources to the college, or when its absence would harm the college’s standing among peer institutions.
Curriculum and Educational Policies Committee (CEPC)
May 2004
