Inter-Departmental Programs

 

Liberal Arts Program Committee: Dave Cavanagh

Co-Chair (EDP);Glenn Sproul, Co-Chair (Math/Science); Gina Ritscher-Winters, Co-Chair (Education);Paul Silver, Co-Chair (Humanities); Clyde Stats, Co-Chair (Fine and Performing Arts); Tony Whedon Co Chair (English)

 

Bachelor's Degree Program

• Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts

The Liberal Arts major seeks to give students the tools to explore and understand connections and patterns:  within and among disciplines; between self and the world; among different cultures.  It seeks to give students knowledge of how great thinkers in various fields have sought to understand experience and use their learning to address problems and engage fully with life.

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Requirements

Total of 42 credits, at least 21 of which must be upper-division, as follows:

• 18 credits in a primary domain;

• 12 credits in a secondary supporting domain;

•  9 credits in a third domain; and

•  3 credits for a capstone or Senior Seminar course.*

In addition:

• An extended classroom experience, which may be credit or non-credit bearing. It may be through an existing course,

internship, practicum or service-learning experience.

• At least 21 credits, including at least 12 of the 42 credits required within the Liberal Arts major, to be done after approval of the plan of study.

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Additional Stipulations: 

*  Capstone:  Subject to the advisor's approval, the capstone course may be:

1. an existing Senior Seminar course in a discipline reflecting the student's focus, preferably within the 18-credit domain, possibly the 12-credit domain; if no appropriate Senior Seminar exists, then

2. an appropriate existing upper-level course, preferably from within the 18-credit domain, possibly from the 12-credit domain; if no appropriate existing course exists, then

3. an appropriate independent study, with choice of topic and faculty mentor to be approved by the Liberal Arts Program Committee (LAPC) members.

Whatever the choice of capstone course, the outcome of the experience should in some way reflect and demonstrate the

synthesis of domains described in the student's initial degree proposal.

*  Education majors seeking licensure who are using Liberal Arts as their second major will need to choose their major and secondary domains in a fashion that meets state licensure requirements.

*  A grade of C- or higher must be earned in all courses counted toward the 42 credits for the major.

*  Courses in the major cannot be used to fulfill the General Education Core Curriculum or the External Degree Program

General Education requirements.

*  In general, courses such as a Practicum in Education, which are specifically aimed at career preparation, are not appropriate for inclusion in the 42 credits for the Liberal Arts degree.

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• Becoming a Liberal Arts Major

A student interested in becoming a Liberal Arts major on campus will first contact the Liberal Arts Program Committee (LAPC) and be assigned an advisor on the LAPC.  In the case of the External Degree Program (EDP), the student will be assigned an advisor in his or her community upon entering EDP.  The student and advisor will initially explore together the student's interests and identify relationships between different disciplines or clusters of disciplines, which the student would like to explore more deeply.  With the advisor's assistance and support, the student will write a program proposal that describes in detail the relationships between two or more domains of study which the student wishes to pursue.  Members of the LAPC, who may recommend clarifications or changes, will review the written program proposal, together with the student's transcript and a completed Plan of Study.  Once the program proposal has been approved, the student is officially a Liberal Arts major.  The advisor and/or other members of the LAPC or EDP staff will continue to work with the student during her/his progress toward a degree.

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Learning Outcomes for Liberal Arts Majors

Students graduating with a B.A. in Liberal Arts will be able to:

1. Plan ways to explore connections by developing an

ambitious, interdisciplinary program of study that is in keeping with personal goals.

2. Notice connections and patterns within and across disciplines.

3. Follow through by exploring connected domains in depth.

4. Bring to fruition a major project that demonstrates knowledge, connections, and synthesis of material in the chosen domains of study.

5. Explore connections between learning in the major and life outside the classroom.

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• Bachelor of Science in General Studies

The B.S. in General Studies is available only to students in the External Degree Program. This major offers adult learners the option of designing a plan of study to pursue a special interest not available through JSC's other majors. It also allows EDP students, who may have college credits from a number of institutions and life experience, to weave together the threads of their prior learning into a coherent degree program.  Students are asked to declare and explore an area of special emphasis while meeting the EDP general education and other requirements for a bachelor's degree.

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Requirements

• At least 60 credits required before entrance into EDP and the major.

• Completion of the EDP's general education program (see p. 18).

• During the student's first semester, development and submission of a degree plan, including a narrative, that declares a focus of study and demonstrates integration of prior learning and proposed courses.

• Successful completion of the coursework in the degree plan and other requirements for earning  a bachelor's degree through the EDP.

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Minor

• Gender Studies

The gender studies minor combines courses in various departments in order to consider the issue of gender from different perspectives. It is designed to engage men and women students in a wide-ranging level of inquiry that combines historical and contemporary analysis of issues and problems.

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Required courses                                                                  Credits

POS-3040

The Politics of Gender

3

SOC-3050

Gender and Society

3

 

Electives  (Select 4 courses)

ENG-2510

Women and Literature

3

HIS-2210

Women in U.S. History

3

HIS-3450

Women in European History

3

POS-3030

Contemporary Political Theory: Race, Class & Gender

3

SOC-2040

Race/Ethnicity/Class and Gender

3

SOC-3060

Sexuality and Intimacy

3

SOC-3170

Power, Politics, and Inequality

3

 

Total                                                                                                 18

 

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