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Curriculum Committee Guidelines and Procedures

Charleston Southern University
Curriculum Committee
Guidelines and Procedures

Introduction

Curriculum Committee action is required for a new program and/or major, minor, or emphasis and curriculum changes including course descriptions, course numbers, course additions, course deletions, changes in degree and graduation requirements, offering of new Special/Advanced Topic courses, offering of previously approved Special/Advanced Topic courses not offered within the previous three (3) academic years of projected offering, and offering of previously approved Special/Advanced Topic courses offered within the previous three (3) academic years of projected offering and proposing changes requiring Curriculum Committee action.  Course addition proposals must include a plan for course deletions taking into account course allocation and faculty teaching loads.

All proposals requiring Curriculum Committee action will be reviewed twice before being approved or not approved.  A review is defined as a presentation of the proposal during a formal Curriculum Committee meeting.  The merits, implications, and appropriate substantive and editorial changes are discussed with any needed recommendations made to the initiator of the proposal.  A single proposal is considered once in a single meeting.

Catalog editorial and course prerequisite changes do not require Curriculum Committee action.   

Curriculum/Program Review and Changes

Proposal Submission Procedure

Proposals with documentation requested on the appropriate form must be submitted to the Curriculum Committee chair at least one week in advance of a scheduled Curriculum Committee meeting.  The Curriculum Committee meets on the 2nd Tuesday of each month beginning in September.  The Executive Committee, composed of the Curriculum Committee Chair and Vice-Chair, Vice-President for Academic Affairs, and Registrar, will determine the readiness of each proposal prior to the scheduled Curriculum Committee meeting.  The review by the Executive Committee will determine that the proposal:

1. is presented clearly in the required format with the appropriate form (see attached forms);
2. is administratively necessary and appropriate for consideration;
3. has an appropriate effective date;
4. has all similar types of changes that must be considered together such as prerequisites, descriptions, course numbers, course titles, major/minor requirements, etc.;
5. indicates that all appropriate departments, faculty, and staff have been consulted;
6. has met any conditions/changes of the previous review; and,
7. has the department chair(s) and dean’s signature. 

If the proposal meets the criteria in 1-7 above, the department chair submitting the proposal will be asked to provide 18 copies for distribution to the full Curriculum Committee if not already provided.  If the proposal does not meet the criteria, it will be returned to the department chair with comments for future disposition.

Review Procedures

First Review/Reading:

1. For the first review, the full Curriculum Committee will make comments and/or suggest changes to the proposal.
2. A motion/vote with discussion by the full committee will recommend, not recommend, or table the proposal with any changes for final vote at a subsequent Curriculum Committee meeting.

Second Review/Reading:

1. At the second review, the Curriculum Committee will verify that the proposal adequately addresses any changes required at the first review/reading.
2. A motion/vote with discussion by the full committee will approve, not approve, or table the proposal.
3. If approved, the effective date for implementation and publication will be determined.
4. If not approved or tabled, suggestions and additional changes for a future submission of the proposal will be made.          

Special Topic and Advanced Special Topic Courses

A request to teach a new Special/Advanced Topic Course, a Special/Advanced Topic course not taught within the previous three (3) academic years of projected offering, or a Special/Advanced Topic course taught within the previous three (3) academic years of projected offering and proposing changes requiring Curriculum Committee action must be submitted to the Curriculum Committee at least one week prior to the September Curriculum Committee meeting if planning to teach the course in the Spring semester or Maymester, and the January Curriculum Committee meeting if planning to teach the course in Summer I, Summer II, or Fall semester.  A Special Topic course is typically assigned a 280 course number and an Advanced Special Topic course is typically assigned a 480 course number.  The Registrar reserves the right to assign course numbers 280-285 for Special Topic courses and 480-495 for Advanced Special Topic courses as needed on a case by case basis.

Submission Procedure

The form Request to Teach a Special/Advanced Topic Course [ MS Word | PDF ] must be submitted to the Curriculum Committee. A course syllabus on the approved Syllabus Format attached to the Syllabus Proposal Form [ MS Word | PDF ] must also be submitted. 

All information on the forms must be completed with appropriate documentation attached.  The Department Chair and the appropriate Dean’s signatures must be included on the request form and the syllabus form in order for the Curriculum Committee to review the course.

Evaluation by the Curriculum Committee

All Special/Advanced Topic courses will be approved or not approved according to the material presented in the proposal.  Consequently, all proposals should be submitted in as complete a form as possible. The evaluation will include:

1. Does the proposed course offer quality comparable to regular courses?
2. Does the course merit the credit hours requested?
3. Does the project offer innovative, relevant material to the academic experience of the students?
4. Are the stated learner objectives/outcomes realistic?
5. Does the course meet the minimum standards for instruction hours based on the methodology of instruction (i.e. 45 hours for a 3 credit course)?
6. Is the proposal complete and include all information requested?

Maymester Courses

REGULAR COURSES

While the Curriculum Committee does not approve regular catalog courses, the committee reviews them as part of all courses being considered for Maymester offerings and any possible impact for regular semester enrollments of the courses.  Planned Maymester offerings will be reviewed by the Executive Committee. 

General Guidelines for Maymester Regular Catalog Courses and Special/Advanced Topic Courses

1. The instruction hours of regular catalog and Special/Advanced Topic courses taught during Maymester must be equal to the instruction hours taught during regular terms:

3 semester hour course = 45 instruction hours (includes final exam)
4 semester hour course = 60 instruction hours (includes final exam)

1. For Special/Advanced Topic courses not taught in the traditional classroom format, at least two-thirds of the total instruction hours must be in the classroom setting.  The remaining hours should be specified as field trips, directed research, laboratories, internships, etc.
2. Special/Advanced Topic courses may not be challenged.
3. Students may take no more than 4 semester hours per Maymester.

Guidelines for Maymester Class Schedules

Three (3) week Maymester for 3 semester hour course

Class meets 5 days each week (MTWRF)
Class schedule should be 3 hour time period to get the 42 hours of instruction + 3 hour exam = 45 hours.  The schedule includes 2 x 15 minute breaks or 3 x 10 minute breaks = 30 minutes total.  
e.g., 9:00 am – 12 noon, 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm

Class meets 4 days each week (MTWR)
Class schedule should be a 3 hour and 40 minute time period to get the 42 hours of instruction + 3 hour exam = 45 hours.  The schedule includes 
2 x 15 minute breaks or 3 x 10 minute breaks = 30 minutes total.
e.g., 9:00 am – 12:40 pm, 1:00 pm – 4:40 pm, 6:00 pm – 9:40 pm

Four (4) week Maymester for 3 semester hour course

Class meets 4 days each week for weeks 1-3 and 3 days in week 4.
Class schedule should be 3 hour time period to get the 42 hours of instruction + 2.5 hour exam = 45 hours.  The schedule includes 2 x 15 minute breaks or 3 x 10 minute breaks = 30 minutes total.
e.g., 9:00 am – 12 noon, 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm, 6:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Courses extended into the 4th week: Recommend - (1) schedule the class period for the 4 weeks during the afternoon time period, e.g. 1:00 – 4:00 pm, in order to minimize the conflict with Summer I courses;  OR (2) schedule weeks 1-3 in a morning time slot and week 4 during an afternoon time period; OR (3) other creative scheduling to minimize the conflict with Summer I courses.

Note:  Students may take up to 4 semester hours of credit in a Maymester term.  

On-Line Courses

All courses whether new proposals or current regular catalog or Special/Advanced Topic that are proposed for on-line delivery must submit additional documentation to demonstrate comparability to traditional course offerings including (see syllabus proposal form):

1. Projected instruction/learning hours for credit allocated
2. Quantity and level of course requirements for credit allocated and course level proposed
3. Faculty-student and student-student interaction during the course
4. Accessibility of students to faculty

Forms Approved by Curriculum Committee

1. Undergraduate Curriculum/Catalog Change Proposal ... MS Word | PDF
2. Undergraduate Curriculum: New Program and/or Major ... MS Word | PDF
3. Request to Teach a Special Topic/Advanced Topic Course ... MS Word | PDF
4. Syllabus Proposal Form ... MS Word | PDF
5. Syllabus Format ... MS Word | PDF

October 8, 2002   Approved by Curriculum Committee
April 12, 2005  Reviewed, revised, and approved by Curriculum Committee
March 14, 2006 Revised and approved by Curriculum Committee
January 30, 2007 Revised/Reviewed