Curriculum Committee

• Log into CourseLeaf Course Inventory Management (CIM) here.
• In the Search field, enter the subject code and course number of the course to which you wish to add an OLE Core attribute (e.g., BIO 150, MUSIC 131); click the green Search button.
• Click the green Edit Course button.
• Enter your identifying information: name, email, and phone.
• Scroll to the bottom of the form and click the Save Changes button.  IMPORTANT: Be sure to click the Save Changes button frequently as you work on your proposal.  This will help to ensure that you do not lose information you are entering.
• Many fields will be pre-populated.  Please provide responses for any prompts that have not been pre-populated or that need to be updated.
• Be sure to provide information for all prompts, including:
  • First term and year course will be offered (with the new OLE Core curriculum attribute)
  • Rationale for modification: just enter text indicating you are updating an existing course to carry a OLE Core attribute
  • Offering (year/term)
  • Anticipated enrollment
• Be sure to upload an extended course description or syllabus.
• If the course fulfills one or more of the current general education requirements, enter NA in each prompt field requiring text.  For prompts that require ticking a checkbox or entering a percentage, you must enter a response.
• When you are ready to submit your proposal for consideration by the Curriculum Committee, click on the Save Changes button, and then click on the green Start Workflow button.  The proposal then goes to your department chair or program director for approval.

The proposal portal can be found here: https://nextcatalog.stolaf.edu/courseadmin/

Please follow these steps in completing your proposal to repeat an existing off-campus January Term:

• If the program asks you to log in, please do so with your St. Olaf user name and password. After logging in, enter the appropriate department/program code in the box next to the green “Search” button (for example: ART, ECON, or MATH).
• Select the course you wish to offer from the list that is returned from your search, then click the “Edit Course” button on the right-hand side of the screen.
• Enter your name, email, and phone extension at the top of the form; select the next year and term the course will be offered.
• For “Course Location,” the field should already be pre-populated with “Domestic” or “International.” You will need to enter or update responses to the prompts that follow.
• Please upload the following documents where indicated:
  • Your rationale for conducting this course off-campus.
  • A copy of your anticipated itinerary.
  • A copy of the preliminary budget you have developed in consultation with IOS.
  • A copy of the syllabus from the last time the course was offered. If you are anticipating changes to the course learning outcomes, itinerary, activities, and/or assessments, an updated draft syllabus is preferred.
• If the course has already been approved to carry one or more GE/OLE Core attributes, enter “NA” in response to any of the prompts pertaining to that/those attributes.
• When you have completed your proposal, begin the workflow process by clicking on the “Start Workflow” button at the bottom of the screen.
• Workflow typically follows this path:
  • Department Chair/Program Director
  • Director of International and Off-Campus Studies
  • If approval is requested for the addition of WRI and/or WAC, the proposal will then go to the Writing Program Director
  • The Associate Dean for the department/program
  • The Continuing Programs Subcommittee
  • The Curriculum Committee.

Ideal Course Description — Revised 9/26/22

Course descriptions offer students a brief overview of course content. They summarize course focus and may present central questions.  Descriptions should engage readers while reflecting the college’s style and standards. To that end, descriptions must achieve these goals:

• The summary offers a broad idea of the course focus but does not specify details that may confine course development
• Style speaks to students as the primary audience and reflects the instructor’s or department’s personality and approach to teaching
• Sentences are written in present tense and active voice  (e.g., “This seminar emphasizes . . . ,” “Students read and discuss . . . .”)
• Pronouns establish a common level of formality with third person plural (e.g., “students” and “their”) instead of “we” and “our”)
• “Nuts and bolts” define credit grading (P/N only), prerequisites and/or recommended precursor courses, additional fees, and, finally, times of year the course is offered
• Titles include the name of the course, credit information (when other than 1.0 credit), and study abroad or away status (when applicable)
• Sentences are complete, expressed with an engaging style, grammatically accurate, and free of misspellings.

Word count: Course descriptions must be no more than 75 words, not counting the “nuts and bolts” information at the end.

Additional Advice: Avoid specific reading lists or assignments unless a course always requires that approach.  Being somewhat generic eliminates the need to update a course description every time an instructor changes elements of a course.

The following descriptions exemplify the above principles:

ASIAN STUDIES

ASIAN 121: Asian Cultures in Comparative Perspectives

This course is a broad introduction to the history of East Asia as a region from the end of the nineteenth century to the 1990s. Through three spatial modules — the Sinophone (Chinese-speaking) World, the Korean Peninsula, and the Japanese Archipelago — students explore the interconnections and divisions between emergent nation-states and empires at a time of rapid social, cultural, and political change. Offered annually. Also counts toward Chinese and Japanese majors.

BIOLOGY/ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES

BI/ES 286: Tropical Ecology and Sustainable Land Use in Costa Rica (study abroad)

This course allows students to study first-hand the most diverse ecosystems on earth. In this intensive field-oriented course students explore lowland rainforest, montane forest, dry forest, and coastal and agricultural ecosystems through projects and field trips. Students read and discuss texts and primary literature specific to ecology, evolution, conservation, and agricultural practices of each area, and keep reflective journals. Offered during Interim in alternate years. Apply through the Smith Center for Global Engagement. Prerequisite: one science course.

CLASSICS

 CLASS 252:  Vergil and Latin Epic

Lord Tennyson called Vergil the “wielder of the stateliest measure ever molded by the lips of man.” Students encounter that stately measure when they translate selections from Vergil’s three major poems (Eclogues, Georgics, Aeneid). They also engage in a spirited discussion of Homer’s influence on Vergil and of Vergil’s influence on Western civilization’s literature, art, and music. Prerequisite: Latin 231 or equivalent. Offered in alternate years.

ECONOMICS

ECON 376: Labor Economics and Employment Relations

What do workers want from work? What do employers want from workers? Pressing policy issues exist for workers competing in the global economy. Unions, unemployment insurance, welfare, and the minimum wage enhance the prospects of many while leaving others even worse off. This course utilizes microeconomic theory, statistics, and institutional analysis to understand labor markets. Offered annually. Prerequisites: ECON 262 and STAT 263 or STAT 316, or permission of instructor.

RACE AND ETHNIC STUDIES

RACE 121: Introduction to Race and Ethnic Studies

This course introduces critical concepts and key readings important to the emergence and flourishing of the field of Ethnic Studies. Students learn about the racial formation and differences in the U.S. and comparative cultural and historical contexts, with attention to how race intersects with class, gender, nation, and sexuality. Assigned readings and other resources acquaint students with interdisciplinary approaches and the role of racial equity and social justice in shaping this academic field. Offered annually. Also counts toward a Latin American studies major and Africa and the African Diaspora and Latin American studies concentrations.

PHYSICS

PHYS 160: Introduction to Engineering Design

This course takes a holistic, process approach to design. Student teams identify human-centered needs, define problems, develop and prototype solutions, test, redesign, and present final recommendations. This hands-on course emphasizes the application of scientific principles, analysis, and design to real-world problems. Students write throughout the course to develop and share ideas. Offered annually during Interim. Prerequisites: MATH 119 or MATH 120 and at least one of the following: PHYS 130, PHYS 124, CHEM 121, CHEM 122, CHEM 125, CH/BI 125, BIO 150, PSYCH 125, CSCI 121, or permission of instructor.

SPANISH

SPAN 232: Latinx Experiences in the United States

Students explore the diverse cultural histories and identities of Mexican-Americans, Cuban-Americans, and Puerto Ricans (among other Latinx groups) by considering how ethnicity, race, language, gender, and social class manifest themselves in U.S. histories of the citizenry, immigration, economy, and education through generations of Latinxs. Class activities foster analysis of historical and autobiographical texts to reflect on how power and privilege intersect and shape students’ own experiences. Attendance at cultural events is required. This intermediate II-level Spanish course is offered every semester and during the Interim. Does not count toward the Spanish major. Prerequisite: SPAN 231 or placement.

Once approved, a course becomes a regular, self-renewing part of a department’s curriculum, unless that course is not taught for four consecutive years. After four years of inactivity, a course is classified as “dormant” and cannot be taught unless re-approved by the Curriculum Committee. After eight consecutive years of inactivity, a course officially expires and is no longer a curricular asset of any department.