U.W. Colleges Department of History
Curriculum
Policy
Ref: U.W. Colleges Constitution, U.W. Colleges Senate Policy #25
Statement: Both the U.W. Colleges Constitution and Senate policy vest in the department the responsibility for maintaining disciplinary standards with regard to curriculum and the faculty employed to teach history courses. No one shall teach a course carrying history credit without the full review by and authorization of the U.W. Colleges Department of History. In order to insure that the quality of the history curriculum is maintained on all U.W. Colleges campuses, the U.W. Colleges History Department implements the following curriculum policy.
A. Department Chair:
1. The chair shall be responsible for maintaining and updating the
department’s course catalogue.
2. The chair shall maintain a record of all the courses members of the
department are authorized to teach.
3. The chair, along with the department curriculum committee, will annually
review all courses currently offered to determine if they meet the
educational needs of the department and individual campus curricula.
4. The department chair will be notified of any changes in campus history
offerings.
5. All courses taught for department credit must be authorized by the chair.
B. Department Curriculum Committee
1. New Course Proposals
a. All courses, not currently in the department catalogue, must be
reviewed by and receive the positive recommendation of the
curriculum committee.
b. The materials required for departmental review must include, but
are not limited to, the following items.
1. A statement justifying the course, an evaluation of the
impact on the current campus curriculum offerings, and an
estimation of potential enrollments.
2. A listing of formal and informal preparations to teach the
course.
3. A complete course syllabus.
4. An expanded narrative explaining major course themes,
evaluation of materials to be used, assessment objectives,
and methods of student evaluation.
c. The chair of the department curriculum committee shall report to the department chair the committee’s evaluation of the proposal, which shall include, but is not limited to, the following items:
1. The appropriateness of the course for the department’s
curriculum.
2. Suggestions to improve or restructure the course.
3. An evaluation of the impact on both campus and
department curricular offerings.
4. A determination as to the value of the expanded narrative to
answer any questions about the course’s content and
transferability.
5. Evaluation of the proposer’s ability to teach the course at
the university level and whether or not there is need for
special support or training.
6. Will the course involve any special and/or recurring costs?
2. Catalogue Courses.
a. All courses currently listed in the catalogue may be taught by
members of the department after a review and positive
recommendation of the curriculum committee and department
chair.
b. Materials required for the departmental review must include, but
are not limited to, the following items:
1. A statement explaining the campus curriculum needs for
the course, impact on the current curriculum, and
estimation of enrollment impact.
2. A listing of formal and informal preparations to teach the
course.
3. A complete course syllabus.
4. An expanded narrative explaining major course themes,
materials to be used, assessment objectives, and methods of
student evaluation.
c. The chair of the curriculum committee shall report to the
department chair the committee’s evaluation of the submitted
materials, which shall include, but is not limited to, the following
items.
1. The appropriateness of the course for the department’s
curricular offerings on the affected campus.
2. Suggestions to improve or restructure the course.
3. A determination as to the value of the expanded narrative to answer any questions on the course’s content and transferability.
4. Evaluation of the proposer’s preparation to teach the course
at the university level and whether or not there is need for
special support or training.
5. Will the course involve any special and/or recurring costs?
3. Interdisciplinary Studies Courses:
a. All interdisciplinary course proposals will undergo the same
review as that required for new course proposals.
b. The department chair, with the advice of the curriculum
committee, shall be responsible for negotiating appropriate
catalogue listings, breadth classification, and workload
compensation with the appropriate department and campus for all
IS courses.
4. Special Courses:
a. All 255 and 256 new course proposals and/or content
modifications will be reviewed as required for new course
proposals.
b. History 299 course forms shall be submitted to the chair for his/her
signature and may be reviewed by the curriculum committee at the
chair’s discretion.
c. Courses may be offered for honors credit after review by the
curriculum committee and the chair.
5. Distance Education Courses
a. Department approval is required for all Distance Education courses
receiving U.W. Colleges History credit.
b. Faculty and Teaching Academic Staff developing new D.E.
Courses or D.E. courses already in the catalog will follow as
closely as possible the provisions of sections B.1 and B.2 of this
policy.
c. Faculty developing Distance Education courses are encouraged to
submit materials to the department chair and curriculum committee
as they are being developed for suggestions and assistance.
Approved by Department: 4/10/98
Amended by Department: 8/30/01
Webpage Updated: April 16, 2005