Core Outcomes

Students will be able to communicate, investigate, inquire, and evaluate and integrate the liberal arts. In addition they can practice professionalism and ethical behavior, understand multiple perspectives, value ongoing intellectual curiosity and balance personal goals with community needs.

Overview of Core Requirements

Level One (100-Level) – Essential Skills and Competencies (15 credits)

Students take each of the following courses: (See Approved Core Curriculum Substitutions Table regarding math/science substitutions for several majors.)

FY100 – First Year Seminar

This course provides a semester-long introduction to the college academic experience including emphasis on development of inquiry and communication skills. Seminar topics will vary. This course is required of all first-year students. 3 credits

MA180 – Applied Math Concepts

This is a general education mathematics course for students of all majors. The course emphasis is on consumer mathematics and statistics and their applications. Course topics are consumer mathematics (to include percent, applied percent, interest), metric system and dimensional analysis (to include metric system and non-metric system), and applied statistics (to include descriptive and inferential statistics covering topics such as measures of central tendency, measures of variation, probability, regression and correlation).

Prerequisite: Testing for placement. 3 credits

SC100 – Frontiers of Science

The scientific method will be used to investigate current issues of societal concern. Prerequisite: MA 180. 3 credits

EN100 – College Writing

Introduces students to expository and persuasive writing with particular attention to rhetorical strategies and the writing process. Also includes study and practice of the paraphrase and summary. Accuracy, correct grammar, vocabulary development, and sentence structure are emphasized. Prerequisite: Testing for placement. A grade of C or better in EN100 is required to earn graduation credits. 3 credits

EN101 – College Writing II

Provides continued study and practice of expository writing, with emphasis on research writing, including effective gathering and organizing of materials for critical thinking and writing the library research paper. Students also receive continued practice in writing the summary and the paraphrase and learn correct documentation. Prerequisite: EN100 with a grade of C or better. A grade of C or better in EN101 is required to earn graduation credit. 3 credits

Students must successfully complete FY 100 and EN 100 before moving on to Level Two courses.

Level Two (200-Level) – Breadth of Knowledge (12 credits)

Please check with your academic advisor for an updated list of approved Level Two courses.

Students must choose a different discipline/prefix for each category. Choose one course from each category:

Arts & Culture

This category focuses upon developing an understanding of the arts and other cultural forms, developing skills necessary for individual creative expression, or both. It provides opportunity to explore the aesthetic appreciation and cultural significance of the fine, performing, and media arts, writing, and other modes of expression.

Literature & Language

This category focuses upon developing the skills in textual analysis necessary to interpret works of literature in a variety of forms and genres, both classic and contemporary, and from multiple ethnic and national origins. Furthermore, these courses may include the study of language and literature in a foreign language.

Philosophy & Religion

This category focuses upon expanding intellectual curiosity and developing skills of reflective reasoning with regard to the fundamental questions of human existence. It investigates the assumptions, concepts, and methods pursuant to the goals of knowledge and spiritual self-discovery. Courses will involve the study of religious traditions, philosophical movements, and their contribution to contemporary models of spiritual truth, ethical values, and the human condition.

History & Social Sciences

This category focuses upon developing an understanding of the significance and influence of historical events and how they shape the present. It also explores the complexity of individuals, societies and cultures. It includes study of the development of the self, relationships between individuals and society, and changing political, societal and cultural forces.

Students must successfully complete three Level Two courses and all Level One courses before moving on to Level Three courses.

Level Three (300/400-Level) – Depth of Understanding (9 credits)

Students must choose a different discipline/prefix for each course in the concentration. Choose three courses from one of the following concentration areas:

Identifying with Diversity

This concentration area focuses upon increasing understanding of a variety of perspectives. These perspectives could be (for example) traditional, racial, national, cultural, philosophical, political, religious, or social (among others). Courses in this area should develop skills in understanding and evaluating such perspectives, and in applying them to a breadth of academic disciplines and cultural situations.

Personal, Social, and Ethical Responsibility

This concentration area focuses upon understanding ideas of “right living” and what is good for human beings, and how such ideas affect personal conduct and the structures of society. This could include (for example) examining the nature and adoption of ethical principles, analyzing the application of rules and principles to particular fields, examining how societies are structured to offer guidance for individual or collective behavior, or exploring particular ways personal and social responsibilities can be balanced. Courses in this area should develop skills in understanding and articulating ethical considerations, in understanding the values that support personal and social actions, in articulating ideas about personal freedom and interpersonal relationships, and in recognizing and evaluating the ways in which these issues are handled in real-life situations.

Level Four (400-Level) – Application (3 credits)

Capstone Course (in major)

Approved Core Curriculum Substitutions