The following procedures come directly from the Curriculum Committee Rules and Procedures, revised February 2005.  

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IV. NEW COURSE AND NEW PROGRAM PROPOSAL

A.  Proposals for all new courses are to be submitted to the Curriculum Committee for approval prior to their being offered.   

Proposals for courses using a distance learning modality (Telecourse or on-line) for the first time, should follow the procedures in section V.   Proposals for courses that will be delivered in the traditional classroom setting should follow the procedure in Section B below.

B.  Format for New Course Proposals

1.  Include a memorandum from the department chair stating whether or not the proposal has been reviewed and approved by the department. 

2.  Catalog Description – In addition to the narrative information, include prerequisites and co-requisites, credit hours, lecture hours, lab hours, and suggested course number. 

3.  Course Objectives – Specify the particular skills and competencies students are expected to master.

4.  Rationale – Provide an explanation of the perceived need for the course.

5.  Transferability – Provide a survey of four-year institutions to which a significant number of UCC graduates transfer and show how the course will satisfy degree requirements (as applicable), as well as the General Education status of the course.

6.  Resources and Costs – Identify what faculty will need for the course, what is available with existing resources (including library resources), the cost of resources to be obtained (including costs to the libraries), and what the students will require outside of the traditional texts (such as TV/VCR, home computer specifications, tape rental, etc.).

7.  Course Outline – Provide a topical or thematic course outline and tentative weekly schedule of student activities. 

8.  Suggested Criteria for Student Evaluation – Identify how the course grade will be determined (exams, papers, student presentations, etc.). 

9.  Required/Recommended Texts – List the text for the course. 

10. Bibliography – List any resources used for preparation of the course proposal.

C.  Format for New Program Proposals (Including Degree and Certificate Programs, and Options to Existing Programs)

1.  New program proposals require New Jersey Presidents’ Council action.  This process requires the submission of a Program Announcement (PA).  Proposers of new programs requiring state approval shall submit to the Curriculum Committee supporting documentation required for a PA as part of their proposal package. 

2.  Any faculty member wishing to create a new program should first consult with all departments (including the Library and IT) affected by the program, and secure the approval of his/her department and the signature of his/her department Chairperson.  They should then work closely with the Vice President for Academic Affairs (VPAA) to create a Program Announcement, which will contain the following (forms to be obtained through the VPAA):

a.  Basic Information

1)  Name of Institution and Date
2)  Title of Program and Degree Designation
3)  Classification for Instructional Programs Code (CIP)
4)  Campus Site of Proposed Program
5)  Proposed Starting Date
6)  Licensure Required
7)  Articulation Agreements/Transferability of Courses
8)  Accreditation

b.  Descriptive Information

1)  Objectives - Briefly summarize the program and indicate its objectives; e.g., the nature and focus of the program, the knowledge and skills students will acquire, any cooperative arrangements with other institutions or agencies in offering the program, etc.

2)  Need

a)  Provide justification of the need for this program. If the program falls within the liberal arts and sciences and does not specifically prepare students for a career, then provide evidence of student demand and indicate opportunities for students to pursue advanced study (if the degree is not terminal with regard to further education). If the program is career-oriented or professional in nature, then in addition to student demand give evidence of labor market need and results of prospective employer surveys.  Report labor market need as appropriate on local, regional, and national bases. Specify job titles and entry-level positions for program graduates, and/or indicate opportunities for graduates to pursue additional studies.

b)  Describe the relationship of the program to the institutional master plans and priorities.

c)  List similar programs within the state and in neighboring states.  Show how this program compares to those currently being offered.

3)  Students
Estimate anticipated enrollments from the program's inception until a steady state or optimum enrollment is reached.

4)  Program Resources and Costs
Briefly describe the additional resources and costs needed to implement and operate the program during its first five years; e.g., in personnel (the number of full and part-time faculty), in computer and laboratory equipment, in library materials, in advertising, both print and non-print.

5)  General Education Course Descriptions
List and describe all required general education courses in the program.  In addition, proposers of new Degree programs must clearly show under the four General Education categories (“Communication”, “Social Sciences”, “Mathematics, Science and Technology”, and “Humanities”) the courses offered with accompanying credit appropriate to that category.  As well, the diversity course requirement must be met.  The distribution of GED courses must be consistent with College policies.  Course prerequisites and basic skills requirements must be met, where applicable.

6)  Course Descriptions of all Technical (Program Specific) Courses.  If new courses are being created, each of them must be submitted to the Curriculum Committee and approved.

7)  A Semester-by-Semester Curriculum

D.  Procedures for New Course and New Program Proposals

1.  Before submitting a course or program proposal, a faculty member should seek ideas from interested colleagues and the administration to ascertain the course or program’s viability. The originator(s) should consult with all departments which are affected by the proposal.

2.  Members of the administration should forward proposals through the VPAA, who will forward them to the Chairperson of the Curriculum Committee with his/her recommendations.

3.  If a department does not approve a course/program proposal, and the faculty member still desires to submit the course to the Curriculum Committee, the department Chairperson shall forward the proposal along with the department's comments.

4. The originator(s) of a new course or program is to complete the New Course Guideline and Checklist or New Program Guideline and Checklist and submit it along with the proposal.

5.  The originator(s) of a new course or program is to submit, through his or her Department Chairperson, an electronic copy (preferred) or eighteen (18) printed copies of the proposal and checklists, including supporting documentation, to the Chairperson of the New Course/New Program Subcommittee by the deadline for submission posted on the Curriculum Committee webpage.  The originator is expected to attend the New Course/New Program Subcommittee meeting.

6.  In its investigation, this subcommittee will discuss the proposal among its members.  Any faculty member proposing a new course or program must present the proposal in person to the subcommittee. The subcommittee may discuss the proposal with appropriate administrators and any other person deemed appropriate before submitting its recommendation to the full Curriculum Committee.

7.  If the Subcommittee approves the proposal but requests minor changes, additions, etc., the originator must send confirmation of these changes to the Chair of the Curriculum Committee so that they may be sent to the members of the full Curriculum Committee.

8.  After the full Curriculum Committee has completed its work, the Chairperson will notify the originator, department Chairperson and the VPAA that the course/program was either approved or disapproved with reasons for the latter.

9.  If approved, the originator must provide the Chairperson of the Curriculum Committee with an electronic copy of the proposal for distribution electronically to the faculty, the VPAA, and the Director of Institutional Research at least five (5) working days before the next faculty meeting for faculty discussion and vote.   If the proposal is too large to send electronically, then the originator will provide the Chairperson with fifteen (15) hardcopies of the proposal for distribution to the three campus libraries, the department secretaries, the VPAA, and the Director of Institutional Research.     

10. In the case of approved new program proposals, all final PA’s prepared by the College should be submitted to the Curriculum Committee for information and possible discussion prior to their submission to the State.  No vote will be taken on these informational items.

 V. DISTANCE LEARNING COURSES: NEW COURSE PROPOSALS and  CHANGE TO DISTANCE LEARNING FORMAT PROPOSALS

A.  All courses that will be offered in a Distance Learning format (Telecourse or Online) must be reviewed by the Academic Technology Committee and approved by the Curriculum Committee.  This applies to new courses and existing courses that will be offered in the Distance Learning format for the first time. 

The proposal for all Distance Learning Courses should be reviewed by the Academic Technology Committee (ATC) prior to being submitted to the Curriculum Committee.  The ATC will only review the proposal as it relates to the technology required to deliver the course.  Contact the Chair of the ATC for the specifics of their procedure.

B.  Format for Distance Learning Courses: New Course Proposals and Change to Distance Learning Format

1.  Include a memorandum from the department chair stating whether or not the proposal has been reviewed and approved by the department. 

2.  Catalog Description – In addition to the narrative information, include prerequisites and co-requisites, credit hours, lecture hours, lab hours, and suggested course number. 

3.  Course Objectives – Specify the particular skills and competencies students are expected to master.

4.  Rationale – Provide an explanation of the perceived need for the course. Provide an explanation as to why a distance learning format is being proposed (i.e. student enrollment).

5.  Transferability – Provide a survey of four-year institutions to which a significant number of UCC graduates transfer and show how the course will satisfy degree requirements (as applicable), as well as the General Education status of the course.

6.  Resources and Costs – Identify what faculty will need for the course, what is available with existing resources (including library resources), the cost of resources to be obtained (including costs to the libraries), and what the students will require outside of the traditional texts (such as TV/VCR, home computer specifications, tape rental, etc.).

7.  Course Outline – Provide a topical or thematic course outline and tentative weekly schedule of student activities.  Highlight any changes that will result from using the distance learning modality.

8.  Suggested Criteria for Student Evaluation – Identify how the course grade will be determined (exams, papers, student presentations, etc.).  Explain how/if the evaluation criteria will change with distance learning offerings.

9.  Required/Recommended Texts – List the text for the course.  Specify the requirements for distance learning modality (e.g. text with CDs for online access).

10. Bibliography – List any resources used for preparation of the course proposal.

11. Technical Issues Appendix – This section will be reviewed by the ATC.    Address the technical issues related to administering the course via a distance learning modality.   Consult with the Academic Technology Committee for specifics.

C.  Procedures for New Course Proposals and Change to Distance Learning Format

1.  Before submitting a course proposal, the faculty member should seek ideas from interested colleagues and the administration to ascertain the course’s viability. The originator(s) should consult with all departments which are affected by the proposal.

2.  Members of the administration should forward proposals through the VPAA, who will forward them to the Chairperson of the Curriculum Committee with his/her recommendations.

3.  If a department does not approve a course/program proposal, and the faculty member still desires to submit the course to the Curriculum Committee, the department Chairperson shall forward the proposal along with the department's comments. 

4. The originator(s) of a new course should submit, through his or her Department Chairperson, an electronic copy of the proposal to the Academic Technology Committee (ATC).  Ideally, review of the proposal’s technical issues by the ATC should be completed prior to submitting the course proposal to Curriculum since the ATC review is required before Curriculum can approve the proposal, but reviews can be concurrent if necessary.

5.  The originator(s) of a new course is to submit, through his or her Department Chairperson, an electronic copy (preferred) or eighteen (18) printed copies of the proposal, including supporting documentation, to the Chairperson of the New Course/New Program Subcommittee by the deadline for submission posted on the Curriculum Committee webpage.  The originator is expected to attend the New Course/New Program Subcommittee. 

6.  In its investigation, this subcommittee will discuss the proposal among its members.  Any faculty member proposing a new course must present the proposal in person to the subcommittee. The subcommittee may discuss the proposal with appropriate administrators and any other person deemed appropriate before submitting its recommendation to the full Curriculum Committee.

7.  If the Subcommittee approves the proposal but requests minor changes, additions, etc., the originator must send confirmation of these changes to the Chair of the Curriculum Committee so that they may be sent to the members of the full Curriculum Committee.

8.  After the full Curriculum Committee has completed its work, the Chairperson will notify the originator, department Chairperson and the VPAA that the course/program was either approved or disapproved with reasons for the latter.

9.  If approved, the originator must provide the Chairperson of the Curriculum Committee with an electronic copy of the proposal for distribution electronically to the faculty, the VPAA, and the Director of Institutional Research at least five (5) working days before the next faculty meeting for faculty discussion and vote.   If the proposal is too large to send electronically, then the originator will provide the Chairperson with fifteen (15) hardcopies of the proposal for distribution to the three campus libraries, the department secretaries, the VPAA, and the Director of Institutional Research.     

VI. SPECIAL POLICY STATEMENT AND PROCEDURES FOR PILOT COURSES, THEME COURSES & LAB HOURS

A. All courses governed by Section VI must still conform to the review requirement listed in Section VII.

B.  Pilot Courses

1.  All faculty members have the right to develop and offer pilot courses  (AAUP Contract Article IX).  The Curriculum Committee requests that a faculty member developing a pilot course will: 

a.  develop the pilot course following the guidelines for new  course proposals so as to meet the same requirements of all credit courses offered by the College.

b.  secure the permission of the VPAA to run the pilot course, inform his/her department Chairperson, and place a copy of the syllabus is on file in the department secretary’s office.

c.  send an electronic copy (preferred) or eighteen (18) printed copies of the pilot course proposal  with the VPAA’s written approval to the Chair of the Curriculum Committee for informational purposes and  input.  The Chair will then distribute the proposal to the full Curriculum Committee; it will be included in the minutes of the Curriculum Committee, and the faculty will be informed.

d.  run the pilot course for at least one semester.  If the course is to become a regular part of the College curriculum, the originator or another faculty member who has taken on the responsibility of the course must follow the guidelines for new course proposals. In addition, an evaluation of the pilot course must be included in the proposal package.  Since a pilot course may only be offered a maximum of three semesters, the originator or another faculty member who has taken on the responsibility for the course is responsible for following the timetable established by the Curriculum Committee.

C.  Theme Courses

A theme course is one which provides alternative studies within a single course offering.  The general course itself must meet the standard criteria for approval.  Once such approval is granted, the individual theme proposal must be made to the full Curriculum Committee at least thirty (30) days prior to advance registration, and is considered a priority item.  An electronic copy (preferred) or eighteen (18) printed copies of the proposal must be submitted at that time.  The proposal must contain Title, Rationale, Course Description, and Course Outline.  If the Curriculum Committee does not object, the course can be offered.  If a proper amount of time is not given, then a positive vote from the Curriculum Committee is necessary for approval.

D.  Lab-Hour Policy

The basis for relating lab to classroom credit has been tied to education tradition, and hence, varies among colleges and disciplines.  In most disciplines the preferred ratio for laboratory to credit hours is three to one.  This allows for awarding of one semester credit for two, three, or four laboratory hours per week, two credits for five, six or seven, etc.  Other ratios for awarding credit for laboratory type activities may be considered if deviation from the three to one ratio can be justified.  This may particularly apply to some clinical settings and to field work.  In programs where accrediting agencies or professional associations have established guidelines for awarding college credit for laboratory, studio, clinical or field activities, these may be used as sufficient justification for ratios other than the “norm”.

This committee website was last updated on Friday, April 27, 2007, and is maintained by B. Ivan Strom  (strom@ucc.edu)