2008 Woodie Awards
Majors and Minors Committee Stays on Task
Evaluation of Lakeland's programs continues
Sherri Daus
Issue date: 11/20/03 Section: News
- Page 1 of 1
The Majors/Minors Task Force has successfully completed its first task of deciding which programs to eliminate or change. Now it will focus on re-evaluating existing program offerings in order to ensure Lakeland is giving the students what they pay for.
Earlier in the year, the task force evaluated and eliminated various major offerings on campus, including: theatre, fine arts music and art administration, ethnic and gender studies, liberal arts, and philosophy. They are currently evaluating the possibility of revamping the hospitality management program. The task force, which meets every month, will meet again on November 21 to review its first set of programs active on campus.
Currently there are 34 majors being offered at Lakeland. According to Kathy Rath-Marr, associate professor of biology, the task force will consider 11 classes and programs every year, to be rotated every three years. Division heads will assess their programs and choose two which will go before the task force for evaluation. The committee will then decide which courses of study to focus on for that year. By doing this, the task force hopes to balance the departments that come up for review, so they are not the same ones every time.
"We will be looking at four criteria when evaluating these programs," explained Rath-Marr, a member of the committee. "We will be asking ourselves: how does this program contribute to Lakeland's identity and the centrality of the college's mission?"
Lakeland's mission statement, which can be found on page seven of the newest course catalog, explains that Lakeland is "committed to educating men and women of diverse backgrounds, enabling them to earn a living, to make ethical decisions, and to lead purposeful and fulfilling lives distinguished by intellectual, moral, and spiritual growth."
"We also want to ask ourselves: is it of high enough quality?" Rath-Marr continues. "That is, do we have enough faculty members to teach it; do they have the proper credentials, and how does it compare to other colleges? Does it offer a student as practitioner component, or is it comprised mainly of lecture with little or no field experience offered? What is its fiscal health? Can we afford to support it adequately? And does the program meet market demands? Do we graduate students who get jobs in that field?"
"We want to make sure the majors and minors are doing what they are supposed to do," she emphasized. "Lakeland College wants to offer its students quality programs."
Earlier in the year, the task force evaluated and eliminated various major offerings on campus, including: theatre, fine arts music and art administration, ethnic and gender studies, liberal arts, and philosophy. They are currently evaluating the possibility of revamping the hospitality management program. The task force, which meets every month, will meet again on November 21 to review its first set of programs active on campus.
Currently there are 34 majors being offered at Lakeland. According to Kathy Rath-Marr, associate professor of biology, the task force will consider 11 classes and programs every year, to be rotated every three years. Division heads will assess their programs and choose two which will go before the task force for evaluation. The committee will then decide which courses of study to focus on for that year. By doing this, the task force hopes to balance the departments that come up for review, so they are not the same ones every time.
"We will be looking at four criteria when evaluating these programs," explained Rath-Marr, a member of the committee. "We will be asking ourselves: how does this program contribute to Lakeland's identity and the centrality of the college's mission?"
Lakeland's mission statement, which can be found on page seven of the newest course catalog, explains that Lakeland is "committed to educating men and women of diverse backgrounds, enabling them to earn a living, to make ethical decisions, and to lead purposeful and fulfilling lives distinguished by intellectual, moral, and spiritual growth."
"We also want to ask ourselves: is it of high enough quality?" Rath-Marr continues. "That is, do we have enough faculty members to teach it; do they have the proper credentials, and how does it compare to other colleges? Does it offer a student as practitioner component, or is it comprised mainly of lecture with little or no field experience offered? What is its fiscal health? Can we afford to support it adequately? And does the program meet market demands? Do we graduate students who get jobs in that field?"
"We want to make sure the majors and minors are doing what they are supposed to do," she emphasized. "Lakeland College wants to offer its students quality programs."