1. How do I propose a new GE course?
(or revise and propose an existing course for GE credit?)

CONSULT with both your Department Chair and the appropriate GE Area Chair in the initial planning stages.  The Department Chair must support your GE course proposal, and the GE Area Chair will provide you with assistance on how to meet the the specific GE Educational Objectives and Criteria.

Please allow plenty of time to develop your course, and follow the appropriate GE deadlines. Deadlines vary for courses proposed during the catalog cycle and courses proposed between catalog cycles. Phone calls, e-mail exchanges and personal meetings may be necessary to resolve questions and concerns.

2. What do the GE committees look for in reviewing my course proposal?

The GE Committees are concerned primarily with Section IIA of the Course Proposal Form.  To complete this section, you will need to refer to the General Education Program Standards document approved in 1998.  This document explains the mission of the GE program and lists all the educational objectives and criteria by GE area.

In reviewing your course proposal, the GE Committees will be looking to see whether your course will make a valuable contribution to the GE program. 

• Is your course of high quality, with depth and rigor? 
• Is your course truly a general education course of benefit to students outside the major? 
• Is it accessible to students from many different majors and does it offer real breadth of knowledge? 
• To answer these questions, the GE Committees will be looking to see if your course fulfills the Educational Objectives and Criteria specified for its particular GE Area (e.g., D1, D5). 
• Proposals for lower-division courses should be foundational.
• Proposals for upper-division GE courses should be specific about how they build on the knowledge gained from lower-division GE courses in the same GE Area.

3. How do I work with the Course Description Form to write my GE proposal?

You can download the Word version of the Course Description Form, which is in a fill-in format where you tab to the different sections.  The GE Committees are concerned primarily with Section IIA of the Course Proposal Form. However, because this Form does not enable you to spell check or perform other functions, you might find it easier to write your proposal in your own version of Word, and then cut and paste it into the Form.  Doing so will ensure a cleaner and more accurate copy.

4. How is the regular curriculum review related to the GE review?

• Regular curriculum review is by the Department, College,
  and Senate Curriculum Committees
• GE review is by the GE Area Committee and GE Governance Committee. 
• The GE curriculum cycle for the 09-11 catalog has not been finalized.
  Use the experimental course deadlines in between catalog cycles.

5.. What is the GE course approval process?

See the for a general overview.