Curriculum

Whereas the Board of Governors should adopt the improved Title 5 regulations on telecourses, and

Whereas the quality of course offerings must be the province of the appropriate departmental or divisional faculty and the curriculum committee, and

Whereas the attached (See Appendix A) Title 5 changes recommended by the Chancellor's Office eliminate departmental faculty review, and

Whereas the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges recognizes the viability, potential quality and necessity of telecourses and other means of distance learning, and

Whereas California community college faculty are committed to rigor in all general education courses and eager to provide instruction that assures successful transfer, and

Whereas community college faculty are particularly well-situated to design courses which increase successful transfer for diverse students, and

Whereas the strongest transfer curricula result from in-depth discussion on a case-by-case basis, among colleagues across segmental lines, and

Whereas the CSU is currently considering changing the membership of its GE Course Review Subcommittee which would exclude community college representation, and

Whereas the California Community Colleges have been represented on the CSU GE Course Review Subcommittee for many years and have thus been able to consult freely with our CSU colleagues,

Resolved that the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges direct the Executive Committee to oppose any CSU General Education curriculum review process changes that exclude California Community College representation.

Whereas the needs of the student should be uppermost in the minds of all educators, and

Whereas many students who have transferred and/or graduated from community colleges have not been accepted as upper division students, and

Whereas this action creates both a financial and psychological hardship on many students, and

Whereas the community colleges of California provide lower division courses for most disciplines, and

Resolved that the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges support and endorse a statewide California community college uniform course numbering system (C.A.N. or some other reasonable system) and course content description for all basic skills courses.

Whereas there is increased interest, especially due to the work of the Commission on Innovation, in distance learning and instruction via television in general, and

Whereas other technologies are also being used to deliver faculty services more effectively or more inexpensively, and

Whereas the usual hiring, evaluation, and curriculum review processes are established based on what is appropriate for the customary face-to-face modes of dealing with students,

Whereas there has been rapid growth in credit programs abroad, and

Whereas the lessons learned from individual programs should be shared among all the colleges, and

Whereas to ensure that the quality of these programs is comparable to regular college programs,

Resolved that the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges direct the Executive Committee to prepare a paper on credit international education/study abroad for a future session.

Whereas the needs of the student should be upper- most in the minds of educators in the community colleges, state university and California university systems, and

Whereas many students who have transferred and or graduated from our community colleges have not been accepted as third year (junior) students in many disciplines, and

Whereas this action creates both a financial and psychological hardship on many students, and

Whereas the community colleges of California are capable of providing lower division courses for nearly all disciplines, and

Whereas the primary mission of California Community Colleges is to prepare individuals for work and citizenship, and

Whereas the global economy of today's business is set in a rapidly changing environment of political, economic, social, technological, and ecological forces, and

Whereas employees in today's businesses are faced with an environment shaped by the information age, and

Resolved that the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges reaffirm its position that curriculum committees are committees of local senates as required by Title 5, 55002, and 53200 to 53203.

Resolved that the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges reaffirm its position that the chair of the curriculum committee be a faculty member selected by the senate, and

Resolved that the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges urge that the local curriculum process be supported by appropriate reassigned time and clerical support.