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SELF STUDY OF THE LIBERAL ARTS AND SCIENCES ASSOCIATE DEGREE PROGRAM (LASAA) Bronx Community College of the City University of New York

Dr. Debra Gonsher, Chairperson, Communication Arts and Sciences Dr. Frederick De Naples, Chairperson, English

Table of Contents I.

Overview & Objectives Organization General Education

II.

The Curriculum

III.

Co-Curricular, Extra-Curricular Activities and Special Programs The Communicator Speech, Drama and Debate Team Theatre Workshop Extra-Curricular Activities Study Abroad Honors Program

IV.

Support Services The Library Academic Advisement Speech Lab Writing Center Tutoring Academic Counseling and Course Advisement Psychological Counseling and Office of Disability Programs and Services

V.

Assessment

VI.

Conclusion and Recommendations

VII.

Appendices A. B. C. D. E. F. G. H.

Abbreviated Faculty Credentials General Education Objectives and Proficiencies at Bronx Community College LASAA Curriculum Pattern Modern Language Course Enrollment by LASAA Students LASAA CUNY Proficiency Exam Results LASAA Transfers to Lehman College LASAA Transfers to Four Year Colleges Assessment Matrices 2004-2005

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LIBERAL ARTS & SCIENCES A.A. SELF STUDY The Association of American Colleges and Universities defines a truly Liberal education as one that prepares people to live responsible, productive and creative lives in a dramatically changing world. It is an education that fosters a wellgrounded intellectual resilience, a disposition towards lifelong learning, and an acceptance of responsibility for the consequences of our ideas and actions.

The term “Liberal Arts” historically comes from studies "appropriate for free men," i.e., the citizens of the republics of classical antiquity who were never expected to train directly for any given trade or pursuit. They received a generalized education thought to be most proper for the social and political elites.

As such, the course of study in the “liberal arts” was almost entirely devoted to the classics—arts, literature, rhetoric, and philosophy.

However, more recently the term “liberal arts” has come to mean studies intended to provide general knowledge and intellectual skills, rather than occupational or professional skills. The scope of the liberal arts has changed with society. Educational missions, especially at community colleges, have, over time, bifurcated into vocational and liberal arts pathways.

At Bronx Community College (BCC), what we conceive of as “The Liberal Arts and Sciences” includes the broad areas of the Humanities and Social Sciences, (which is included in the Humanities Division) along with the Sciences (including mathematics). At this school, The Division of the Humanities consists of a group of academic departments united by a commitment to studying aspects of the human condition and a qualitative approach that generally prevents a single paradigm from coming to define any discipline.

The goals of Liberal Arts and Sciences degree are to facilitate critical and objective thinking, to promote intellectual honesty and candor, to bring to problems and issues a wide and deep historical perspective and understanding, to speak clearly and cogently, to write with grace and maturity, to appreciate works of art, and to work and collaborate with others while maintaining intellectual independence and creativity. The Liberal Arts and Sciences AA program at BCC endeavors to fulfill these goals with intellectual rigor, passion, and a nurturing spirit.

This program is particularly strong at BCC as reflected by an enrollment of over seventeen percent of the 8,500 students at the college, making it the largest degree program at BCC.

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OBJECTIVES OF THE SELF STUDY This self-study is designed to illuminate the missions, goals, and core values of the Liberal Arts & Sciences AA (LASAA) degree at BCC. The main mission of the Liberal Arts and Sciences curriculum is to prepare a student to be an accomplished and productive human being. A Liberal Arts degree opens doors to the professions and to rewarding and responsible careers. Future teachers, lawyers, and film makers (for example) develop themselves as well-rounded individuals in addition to completing their pre-professional work. The academic experiences in BCC’s LASAA provide a well-rounded background and the opportunity to explore a variety of subject areas so that graduates may transfer to the third year of a senior college. In addition, this self-study will review the curriculum, including the General Education statement and proficiencies as well as the organizational structure, co- and extra-curricular activities, the support services, and the efficacy of the program as determined by retention and transfer rates as well as articulation. The scope of this self-study, therefore, goes beyond the curriculum to encompass the totality of the Liberal Arts and Sciences’ students’ educational experience.

ORGANIZATION OF THE LIBERAL ARTS AND SCIENCES AA PROGRAM

At BCC, the Liberal Arts & Sciences AA is overseen by the Coordinator of the Humanities Division, who is elected from among the six Humanities Division Chairpersons. In this capacity, the Coordinator is responsible for insuring the integrity of the program through such means as supervising the advisement of LASAA majors and analyzing and assessing the curricula course offerings. In addition, the coordinator interacts with two other Division Coordinators and the Administration, primarily Academic Affairs, to facilitate the operation of the program as well as to insure that the faculty teaching in this program are of the highest quality. (See Appendix A for Faculty Credentials.)

The Humanities Division Coordinator attends and is a voting member of the Curriculum Committee, the College Senate, the Faculty Council, as well as the Senate Executive Committee.

In addition to the Division Coordinator, the LASAA is guided by the other five chairpersons of the Humanities departments. The six departments in the Division are Art and Music, Communication Arts and Sciences, English, History, Modern Languages, and Social Sciences.

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The LASAA is a broad-based curriculum. Students who desire to take a more specialized program may select one of eleven Liberal Arts and Sciences AA options. (The focus of this self study does not address these options.)

GENERAL EDUCATION

Bronx Community College’s General Education program is goals and proficiencybased. It was designed in this manner to address two groups of students at BCC who have different and distinct needs. One group is enrolled in certificate or Associate in Applied Sciences degree programs, focusing on the skills they will need to enter the workforce. The other group is students enrolled in A.S. and A.A. programs, such as the Liberal Arts and Sciences, who intend to continue their education at four-year colleges.

This goal and proficiency based program does not rely on a series of courses or distribution areas; rather, it identifies proficiencies and goals that all students should acquire or meet by they time they graduate. (See General Education Mission and Proficiencies, Appendix B.) The Liberal Arts and Sciences AA program highlights general education proficiencies such as communications (oral, written, symbolic, aesthetic, etc.), reasoning and analysis, scientific methods, mathematical methods, personal and professional growth and development, and information literacy. The courses in the curriculum, in actuality, mesh and interlink smoothly with the general education courses found in many four-year colleges with distribution- or corecourse-based general education programs.

BCC’s General Education Initiative currently employs exercises embedded in a multitude of courses across the curriculum. These exercises make transparent the general education objectives or proficiencies being addressed as well as contain an integrative element designed to connect course content to a larger context and to knowledge that students have already acquired.

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THE CURRICULUM

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CURRICULUM The LASAA is composed of sixty credits, 24-25 of which cover a range of essential core knowledge. In addition, 32 credits of required areas of study build on the fundamentals of the core. The remaining three to four credits are free electives.

The intent of this course of study is to provide the foundation for later specialization at a four-year college, graduate study, and beyond. In addition, it provides a well-rounded background and the opportunity to explore a variety of subject areas, so that graduates may transfer seamlessly.

Liberal Arts and Sciences Curriculum 60 Credits required for A.A. Degree Core Requirements ENG 11 Fundamentals of Written Composition I... ...3 ENG 12 Fundamentals of Written Composition II ….3 CMS 11 Fund. of Interpersonal Communication….…3 HIS 10 or History of the Modern World or HIS 11 Intro. to the Modern World………………...3 MTH 21* or Survey of Mathematics I or MTH 22* or Survey of Mathematics II or MTH 23* or Probability and Statistics or MTH 26* Mathematics in the Modern World………...3 PEA or Physical Education or HLT 91 Critical Issues in Health ……………….....1-2 SCI Choose two laboratory sciences courses from Astronomy, Biology, Chemistry, Environmental Science or Physics…………………………….....8 Total 24-25 Required Areas of Study ART 11 Introduction to Art……………………….…3 MUS 11 Introduction to Music…………………….…3 HIS 20 American Nation: Political and Social Development of a People………..…..3 Modern Language**…………………………………...8 English***………………………………………….….3 CMS 20 Public Speaking & Critical Listening……….3 SOC SCI-Choose from Anthropology, Economics, Geography, Human Services, Philosophy, Political Science, Psychology and Sociology (select from different disciplines)……………….6 Restricted elective-select from English, History or Social Science……………………………………3 Total 32 Free Electives To complete the 60 credit requirement Total

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Note: At least two courses must be taken from a list designated as “Writing Intensive” as published each semester in the Registration Guide and Schedule of Classes.

See Appendix C for a flow chart of the suggested order of classes.

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The following is a description of each course in the curriculum.

ENGLISH The English Department at Bronx Community College understands that without strong English skills students cannot flourish in an academic environment.

Liberal Arts students must take three English courses: English 11, English 12, and another English course listed in the catalog under “Required Areas of Study.”

They have an option to take a fourth English course from the “Restricted Electives” choice of English, History, or Social Sciences.

ENG 11, FUNDAMENTALS OF WRITTEN COMPOSITION I 3 credits, 3 recitation, 1 conference; Prerequisite passing scores on the CUNY/ACT Written Skills Exam and CUNY/ACT Reading Skills Exam.

Students are expected to develop an understanding of several rhetorical modes in order to write college level academic papers (with and without sources), learn modern bibliographic techniques designed by the Modern Language Association, read college level texts, and understand, in depth, principles of grammar and writing. Readings are diverse and encompass all areas of liberal arts study.

Among the better known writers read in this course are Maya Angelou, E. B. White, Richard Rodriguez, Ellen Goodman, Stephen Crane, Brent Staples, Martin Luther King, Jr., Bruce Catton, and Deborah Tannen.

Most teachers focus on the analytical and critical thinking skills that our students will need in life. This we encourage through college level readings and having the students write in response to those readings. We also teach lessons in summary, paraphrase, and quotation. All students are warned about plagiarism and are taught how to take notes. To assess the students’ competencies in these areas, students are assigned as a final project a research paper with at least six sources. The English Department encourages papers in all areas of the humanities. Students must develop their own thesis and use outside sources to either support or help elucidate their ideas. In addition to the research paper, students are required to take a departmental final exam, which is closely modeled on Task I of the CUNY Proficiency Exam (see below, page 31). When students complete this course, they should be well prepared to analyze, critically review, and write cogently about the content they will encounter in any other BCC course.

ENG 10, Written Composition and Skills, replicates the content of ENG 11 but adds two hours of reinforcement of basic writing skills and preparation for passing the ACT Written Skills Exam. ENG 10 is open to students who have passed the ACT Reading Skills Exam and have a score of 6 (one less than passing) on the ACT Written Skills Exam. Successful completion of ENG 10 is considered equivalent to successful completion of ENG 11.

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ENG 12, FUNDAMENTALS OF WRITTEN COMPOSITION II 3 credits, 3 recitation, 1 conference; Prerequisite ENG 11.

This course further develops and extends the skills students have learned in ENG 11, but is more thematic in nature. In general, teachers choose a particular area and find writings of various types that deepen a student’s understanding of that particular area plus help the student write more complex essays on related topics.

Professors choose course themes and areas of focus that explore critical areas or questions that BCC’s General Education Initiative has highlighted, such as gender studies, nature, and issues of global diversity. To measure and evaluate the acquisition and development of the refined skills taught in ENG 12, all papers for English 12 must include some element of research, the last of which must use at least eight secondary sources, which are presented in Modern Language Association format. In addition, students must write an extensive final exam.

ENG 14, WRITTEN COMPOSITION AND PROSE FICTION 3 credits, 3 recitation, 1 conference; Prerequisite ENG 11.

ENG 15, WRITTEN COMPOSITION AND DRAMA 3 credits, 3 recitation, 1 conference; Prerequisite ENG 11.

ENG 16, WRITTEN COMPOSITION AND POETRY 3 credits, 3 recitation, 1 conference; Prerequisite ENG 11.

The vast majority of Liberal Arts students take one of the above three classes, which are designed to give them even greater exposure to a broad range of authors, styles, topics, and voices while students develop skills in writing about literature. English 14 (Written Composition and Prose Fiction), English 15 (Written Composition and Drama), and English 16 (Written Composition and Poetry), can be survey courses in the broad range of a genre, or more focused courses on a particular aspect of the genre. For example, Modern Afro-American Poetry or Twentieth Century Women Writers. It is here that the Liberal Arts mission is given further exploration by allowing students to compare both their world and the world created by another writer, and to discuss in writing the multiplicity of perspectives that shape and contribute to our lives. It is here also that students deepen their understanding of the connections between disciplines, seeing, for example, politics and culture through the eyes of a literary critic. The students are assessed by writing essays that explore these connections and measure their progress in the specialized realm of literary analysis; in addition they are tested for their understanding of the forms and conventions of the genre under study.

As an alternative to ENG 14, 15, or 16, LASAA students may take any other threecredit English course, with the exception of ENG 23, Scientific and Technical Writing. These courses are ENG 53 (The Black Writer in American Literature), ENG 54 (Black Poetry), ENG 56 (Children’s Literature), ENG 61 (Shakespeare), 9

or ENG 72 (The Bible as Literature). Unfortunately, students are less aware of these courses, which almost never run due to low enrollment; because these courses almost never run, students are less aware of them, and this cycle almost guarantees that courses offering an even richer liberal arts experience are unavailable.

COMMUNICATION ARTS & SCIENCES The Communications Arts and Sciences (CAS) Department focuses on the students’ ability to communicate both intra- and interpersonally as well as in small and large groups. The CAS Department is committed to having students understand the importance of communication in their personal and professional lives. Liberal Arts students must take two Communications courses: CMS 11, Fundamentals of Interpersonal Communication, and CMS 20, Public Speaking and Critical Listening.

CMS 11, FUNDAMENTALS OF INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION 3 credits, 3 recitation; Prerequisites ENG 01 and RDL 01 if required; Corequisites ENG 02 or ENG 10 or RDL 02 if required.

The broad aim of this course is to provide students with an understanding of the process of communication; insights into their own communication skills strengths, and shortcomings; and the opportunity to improve their communication competency. This course develops abilities that not only enhance students' learning in their chosen courses of study but throughout their lives.

The course provides an understanding of communication theory and its application, analyzes and fosters critical thinking, develops guidelines for improving communication effectiveness, and develops competence in accurate and critical listening. CMS 11 includes communication content in areas such as the communication process, perception, listening, verbal and nonverbal messages, intercultural communication, intrapersonal and interpersonal communication uses, communication philosophy, communication ethics and application, attitude formation and change, language and semantics, the symbolic process, and introduction to linguistic theory.

Students are evaluated by a combination of quizzes, full-length examinations and written and oral assignments.

CMS 20, PUBLIC SPEAKING & CRITICAL LISTENING 3 Credits, 3 recitation; Prerequisites ENG 01 and RDL 01 if required; Corequisites ENG 02 or ENG 10 or RDL 02 if required.

CMS 20 prepares students to listen openly yet critically to the views of others, introduces students to the classical tradition of Aristotelian rhetoric, and

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prepares students to present cogent, clear, and coherent speeches that hold an audience's attention.

The course explores rhetorical principles from Aristotle to Bettinghaus to Berke and beyond, with a focus on the nature of persuasion; and it teaches the skills of research, reasoning, analysis, the development of lines of argument, and the nature of evidence, along with presentational skills, and critical reception skills.

CMS 20 is performance-based with evaluation predicated on a combination of written exams covering theory and a series of speaking assignments, such as presentation of informative, persuasive, and commemorative or after-dinner speeches.

HISTORY The study of history lays the groundwork for students to understand their own historical experience, which should be placed within an emerging international context. In addition, our students recognize the ongoing tensions over the nature of identity: ethnic, national, and global. To this end, we develop ways for students to analyze issues that confront them as citizens of their local community, nation, and the larger world. Our students should expect to confront issues of social responsibility and human rights and dignity.

Liberal Arts students are required to take two History courses, History 10, History of the Modern World, and History 20, The American Nation: The Political and Social Development of a People. In addition, students may take a third History course as part of their “Restricted Elective� requirement.

HIS 10, HISTORY OF THE MODERN WORLD 3 credits, 3 recitation; Corequisites ENG 02 or RDL 02 if required.

History of the Modern World (HIS 10, HIS 11) is a one-semester world history survey course that covers significant political, economic, social, and cultural currents of the last 300 years. Its purpose is to introduce students to the major forces and events of the recent past and analyze how these forces and events helped to create the world in which we live today. By exploring the interaction between industrialization, nationalism, and imperialism, decolonization and neocolonialism, technology and warfare; by learning the differences between capitalism and socialism, liberalism and authoritarianism; students will more fully comprehend the origins of the global society in which we live.

In addition to the historical content mentioned in the syllabus, students of History 10/11 develop the ability to read with understanding, to analyze and critically assess conflicting viewpoints, and to express their thoughts clearly.

More specifically, students trace the historical development of critical thinking across the globe in the past three hundred years. Students analyze the impact of 11

the ideological, political, economic, social, and cultural influences on developments of the twentieth century. In this context, students learn to interpret historical events objectively.

Students are evaluated through a combination of written exams and research projects.

History 11, Introduction to the Modern World, replicates the content of History 10, but adds an extra contact hour for the reinforcement of content and basic skills. History 11 is open to students taking ENG 01 or RDL 01 as a corequisite if required.

HIS 20, THE AMERICAN NATION: THE POLITICAL AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT OF A PEOPLE 3 credits, 3 recitation; prerequisite: HIS 10 or HIS 11.

HIS 20 is a one-semester American history survey course that covers significant social, political, and economic developments of the last 400 years. Its purpose is to familiarize students with important themes and values in American history and to examine how they have helped shape the society in which we live today. By analyzing important social, political, and economic themes such as the social integration of different groups, the development of political parties, and changes in economic structures, and by understanding how these histories have shaped the culture and ethics of American people, students will better understand the origins of contemporary American society and values.

Beyond the transmission of historical content, History 20 aims to help students refine analytical skills, enhance reading comprehension, and foster effective communication, both written and oral. To support this process, students write research papers and present a summary of their findings in class.

Students are evaluated through a combination of written exams, essay assignments, and research projects, both written and oral.

SOCIAL SCIENCES The Social Sciences Department is composed of five major disciplines: Psychology, Sociology, Economics, Political Science, and Anthropology. The eighteen courses offered within the disciplines help to develop the student’s ability to investigate and analyze personal and professional relationships, group dynamics and societal behavior, political thinking and economic evaluation, and ideologies related to cultural diversity.

Liberal Arts and Sciences students are required to take two courses out of these five disciplines. In addition, two courses, GEO 10 and PHL 10, which are housed

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in the History Department, are offered under this social sciences requirement. A restricted elective provides an opportunity for students to take another Social Science course.

PSY 11, PSYCHOLOGY 3 credits, 3 recitation; corequisites ENG 02 or RDL 02 if required.

In this preliminary study of psychology, students are encouraged to examine their life experiences and prior learning to understand basic psychological concepts such as growth and development, motivation, emotions and mental health, learning, intelligence, and personality evaluation. Student learning is evaluated through exercises, exams, and essay assignments. Behavior journals and interviews with peer and community members are also required.

SOC 11, SOCIOLOGY 3 credits, 3 recitation; corequisites ENG 02 or RDL 02 if required.

Sociology provides a cross-fertilization of ideas through the study of the global variances of social structures and societal functioning such as courtship, marriage, and family; religious behavior; education and communication; and theories of social stratification and social change. The three major paradigms taught in SOC 11, functional analysis, symbolic interactionism, and social conflict theory, help the student analyze many topics and areas of study at both micro and macro levels. Student learning is evaluated through exercises, exams, and essay assignments.

ANT 11, INTRODUCTION TO ANTHROPOLOGY 3 credits, 3 recitation; corequisites ENG 02 or RDL 02 if required.

The study of anthropology teaches the development of human cultures and societies from early origin to the present day, touching on all major fields of anthropology, such as physical anthropology, linguistics, and archeology, but focusing on cultural anthropology. Student learning is evaluated through exercises, exams, and essay assignments.

PHL 11, INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY 3 credits, 3 recitation; Corequisites ENG 02 or RDL 02 if required.

PHL 11 is a historical survey of the Western philosophical tradition from the ancient Greeks to Existentialism. It introduces students to the most influential metaphysical, epistemological, and ethical/political schools as well as the basic tenets of syllogistic logic. The course content includes fundamental questions of human existence, basic problems of philosophy, as well as a survey of major philosophers, classical and modern. Student learning is assessed through a combination of in-class debates, research papers, and written exams.

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POL 11, AMERICAN NATIONAL GOVERNMENT 3 credits, 3 recitation; corequisites ENG 02 or RDL 02 if required.

An understanding of political thought and ideologies that help the student understand both historical events and current events that affect the economic and social environment. Students examine the structure and activities of the national government, bases of present political systems, pressure groups, political parties, elections, Congress, the President, the Supreme Court, and the protection and deprivation of individual rights. Student learning is evaluated through exercises, exams, and essay assignments.

ECO 11, MICROECONOMICS 3 credits, 3 recitation; corequisites ENG 02 and RDL 02 if required.

Students analyze the nature of the market system via supply and demand as well as prices, costs, and profits for various firms and markets. Students apply economic theory to policy issues such as wage determination, discrimination, education, unionization, government intervention, rent control, and employment of resources. Student learning is evaluated through exercises, exams, and essay assignments.

GEO 10, INTRODUCTION TO GEOGRAPHY 3 credits, 3 recitation; Corequisites ENG 01 or RDL 01 if required.

GEO 10 is designed to provide students with a deeper understanding of the interconnectivity of the physical, political and cultural world in which they live.

The heart of the discipline of geography is the relationship between people and their environment, and the course covers both physical and human geography.

The physical geography component examines the natural processes that have formed and continue to compose Earth’s landscape, including weather and climate; the development of landforms; and the power of the earth’s water. The human geography component includes population; local, regional and global economies; urbanization; the variety and diffusion of culture; migration; and the making of regional and political entities—and the struggle over the borders and definitions of those entities. Assessment of student learning consists of written assignments, exams and a map project.

ART and MUSIC The art and music history and appreciation classes, ART 11 and MUS 11, teach students both a historical and an aesthetic understanding of art and music.

Students are exposed to great works of art and music and develop an appreciation for the creations of artists and musicians. Students visit museums and attend concerts, study acknowledged masterpieces of art and music, and discuss the critical literature of the disciplines.

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Liberal Arts and Sciences students are required to take ART 11 and MUS 11.

ART 11, INTRODUCTION TO ART 3 credits, 3 recitation; Prerequisites ENG 02 or RDL 02 if required.

ART 11 is an art history/appreciation course that extends from prehistoric to modern art. Content areas include detailed exploration of the classic period of western civilization, works of the Medieval and Renaissance periods to modern and contemporary art. Evaluation of student learning is a combination of critiques of museum exhibits as well as written assignments and exams.

MUS 11, INTRODUCTION TO MUSIC 3 credits, 3 recitation; Prerequisites ENG 02 or RDL 02 if required.

MUS 11 is a music appreciation course, taking students from Gregorian chant through early twentieth century styles. Content areas include the nature of musical expression, elements of music, including tempo, meter, rhythm, and harmonic material and structure, as well as the history of developments of musical styles and forms. Evaluation of student learning is a combination of critiques of live concerts and recorded performances that cover a breadth of music styles and periods as well as written assignments and exams.

MODERN LANGUAGES Modern Language courses offer a variety of classes in French, Italian, Spanish, and Latin American civilization, culture, literature, and writing. Students obtain a solid background in the four communication skills (aural comprehension, speaking, reading, and writing) while learning about a different culture.

Liberal arts students are required to take two courses in a modern language at the appropriate level. Both courses must be in the same language. A language placement examination determines the level of courses the student takes.

FRN 11, BEGINNING FRENCH I, ITL 11, BEGINNING ITALIAN I, OR SPN 11 BEGINNING SPANISH I 4 credits, 4 recitation.

Each course focuses on pronunciation, language structure, conversation and reading of simple texts, as well as dictation.

FRN 12, BEGINNING FRENCH II, ITL 12, BEGINNING ITALIAN II, OR SPN 12, BEGINNING SPANISH II 4 credits, 4 recitation.

Prerequisite is the previous course in the same language. Each course is a continuation of the previous course with an additional emphasis on the reading of elementary literary texts.

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FRN 13, INTERMEDIATE FRENCH , ITL 13, INTERMEDIATE ITALIAN I, OR SPN 13, INTERMEDIATE SPANISH 4 credits, 4 recitation.

Each course provides a more advanced look at the structure of the language.

Conversation, reading, translation, and discussion of modern texts are employed.

In all levels of these language courses, assessment of student learning is an amalgam of oral proficiency and aural comprehension as well as written exams.

(See Appendix D for a breakdown of which languages Liberal Arts graduates take.)

PHYSICAL EDUCATION The Department of Health, Physical Education and Wellness emphasizes the knowledge and skills necessary to maintain and maximize lifelong health and wellness practices while encouraging self-awareness and an understanding of factors that contribute to a total health profile. Medical evidence shows that a lifetime of physical activity will improve students’ fitness and enhance their quality of life. In these classes, students are introduced to the benefits associated with leading a healthy lifestyle and are encouraged to begin incorporating regular physical activity into their lives now rather than later.

Liberal Arts students are required to take either HLT 91 (Critical Issues in Health) or one PEA (Physical Education) course.

HLT 91, CRITICAL ISSUES IN HEALTH 2 credit, 2 recitation; Corequisites ENG 01 or RDL 01 if required.

Students in HLT 91 develop critical judgment in vital areas of health, such as mental health, dependencies, human sexuality, and nutrition. Students’ learning is evaluated by a combination of journals analyzing personal lifestyle choices and ways to improve them, as well as exams and research papers.

PEA 1 credit, 2 lab.

Physical Education courses encompass a broad range of disciplines including but not limited to Yoga, Jogging and Weight Training, Volleyball, Swimming, as well as myriad forms of dance. Students are evaluated by physical and other demonstrations of their proficiency and knowledge of the sport or movementrelated activity in which they are enrolled. Written exams are also used to evaluate student learning.

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MATHEMATICS Courses in the Humanities and Social Sciences are historically associated with a Liberal Arts program. In addition, however, the importance of mathematics and sciences cannot be underestimated. Mathematical experiences can or will increase quantitative and logical reasoning abilities needed for informed citizenship and the workplace, strengthen quantitative and mathematical abilities that will be useful for students in other disciplines, and improve every student’s ability to communicate quantitative ideas orally and in writing.

Liberal Arts students are required to take one mathematics course. BCC offers the following courses for the students in Liberal Arts: MTH 21 (Survey of Mathematics I), MTH 22 (Survey of Mathematics II), MTH 23 (Probability and Statistics), and MTH 26 (Mathematics in the Modern World).

MTH 21, SURVEY OF MATHEMATICS I 3 credits, 3 recitation; Prerequisites MTH 04 or equivalent and ENG 02 and RDL 02 if required.

The topics covered in MTH 21 allow students to work with and learn some powerful applications of mathematics which are accessible at this level of preparation. The course covers four separate topics: numeration systems, basic concepts of probability, linear programming and optimization methods, and financial mathematics. Students are evaluated based on written exams and homework projects.

MTH 23, PROBABILITY AND STATISTICS 3 Credits, 3 recitation; Prerequisites MTH 04 or equivalent and ENG 02 and RDL 02 if required.

This course is an introduction to the meaning of statistics and statistical methods.

In this course, students study how to collect, organize, analyze, and interpret numerical data. They study the theoretical aspects from the class discussion as dictated by the textbook, and systematically carry out a project throughout the semester that utilizes the theoretical aspects studied in class. The project involves report writing. Students are evaluated on the basis of in-class tests, daily homework, occasional quizzes, and on-going project reports. Excerpts from newspapers and magazines are included in the exercises for analysis and interpretation. Topics covered by the course include: introduction to statistics, descriptive statistics, and inferential statistics.

MTH 26, MATHEMATICS IN THE MODERN WORLD 3 Credits, 2 recitation, 2 laboratory; Prerequisites MTH 04 or equivalent and ENG 02 and RDL 02 if required.

Topics or selected from BASIC computer language; mathematical simulation of problems from diverse fields including water pollution, population studies, political polls, and artificial intelligence; mathematical algorithms and

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interpretation of graphs. Students are evaluated based on exams, quizzes, and homework projects.

LABORATORY SCIENCES The overall goal of the laboratory science courses is to introduce students to scientific methods and practices and to critically evaluate scientific and technological developments with respect to their social and environmental impact. Through experimentation the laboratory component of each course emphasizes modern key applications of scientific concepts and theories.

Liberal arts students are required to take two science courses (8 credits) from Astronomy (AST 11, AST 12), Biology (BIO 11, 12), Chemistry (CHM 11, 12), Earth Systems Science (ESE 11, 12, 21), Environmental Health (ENV 11), or Physics (PHY 11, 12). Depending on the college or university to which the student hopes to transfer, the student may need to take either two Laboratory Sciences courses in the same discipline or may take two courses in different disciplines.

AST 11 STELLAR ASTRONOMY 4 credits, 2 lecture, 1recitation, 2 laboratory; Prerequisite MTH 03, Corequisites ENG 02 and RDL 02 if required.

AST 12 PLANETARY ASTRONOMY 4 credits, 2 lecture, 1recitation, 2 laboratory; Prerequisites MTH 03 or equivalent, ENG 02 and RDL. BIO 11 GENERAL BIOLOGY I 4 credits, 2 lecture, 4 laboratory; Prerequisites RDL 02 and ENG 02 if required.

BIO 12 GENERAL BIOLOGY II 4 credits, 2 lecture, 3 laboratory; Prerequisite BIO 11.

CHM 11 GENERAL COLLEGE CHEMISTRY I 4 credits, 1 recitation, 2 lecture, 3 laboratory; Prerequisites Placement exam or CHM 02 (Introduction to Chemistry) and MTH 03 or MTH 05.

CHM 12 GENERAL COLLEGE CHEMISTRY II 4 credits, 1 recitation, 2 lecture, 3 laboratory; Prerequisite CHM 11.

ESE 11 EARTH SYSTEMS SCIENCE: THE EARTH 4 credits, 2 lecture, 1 recitation, 3 laboratory; Prerequisites ENG 02, RDL 02 if required; Corequisites MTH 03.

ESE 12 EARTH SYSTEMS SCIENCE: THE ATMOSPHERE 4 credits, 2 lecture, 1 recitation, 3 laboratory; Prerequisites ENG 02, RDL 02 if required; Corequisites MTH 03.

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ESE 21 EARTH SYSTEMS SCIENCE: THE ENVIRONMENT 4 credits, 2 lecture, 1 recitation, 3 laboratory; Prerequisite ESE 11 or ESE 12.

ENV 11 INTRODUCTION TO ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH 4 credits, 2 lecture, 1 recitation, 3 laboratory; Prerequisites RDL 02, ENG 02, ESL 03 if required.

PHY 11 COLLEGE PHYSICS I 4 credits, 2 lecture, 1 recitation, 2 laboratory; Prerequisite Intermediate Algebra or MTH 06, corequisites ENG 02 and RDL 02 if required.

PHY 12 COLLEGE PHYSICS II 4 credits, 2 lecture, 1 recitation, 2 laboratory; Prerequisite PHY 11.

TECHNOLOGY IN THE CLASSROOM All the above courses are increasingly incorporating a multitude of technologybased tools to enhance the students’ educational experience. These tools run a broad gamut from platforms such as Blackboard to hardware such as computers on wheels (COWs).

In 2005, the Educational Testing Service conducted an Information and Communication Technology (ICT) assessment of 217 BCC students. Ninety-five percent of these students tested in the low range; a breakdown of this statistic showed that between ninety and ninety-five percent of the students scored low in the assessment’s four categories: • Define/Access: the ability to use ICT to identify and represent an information need appropriately, and the ability to collect or retrieve information in digital environments; • Manage/Integrate: the ability to apply an existing organization or classification scheme to reorganize digital information, and the ability to interpret and represent digital information; • Create/Communicate: the ability to generate information by adapting, applying, designing, or inventing information in ICT environments, and the ability to communicate information properly in its context of use for ICT environments; • Evaluate: the ability to determine the degree to which digital information satisfies the needs of a task in ICT environments.

These limitations are the result in part of incoming students’ unfamiliarity or underexposure to educational technologies and in part because only recently, due to Technology Fee monies, has an influx of hardware and software begun the process of integrating and enhancing the classroom experience with education technologies. In the past few years, there has been a concerted effort in outfitting departments, specific classrooms, as well as community spaces with computers and technological opportunities for digital learning. In addition, opportunities for 19

faculty development to aid the use and integration of educational technologies has been considerably increased. These opportunities include summer technology institutes, Blackboard workshops, and other ongoing opportunities, such as a variety of faculty development workshops/seminars, many of which are coordinated by BCC’s Center for Teaching Excellence, that educate faculty in incorporating technologies such as PowerPoint and Excel.

These initiatives are shepherded through two college-wide bodies, the Teaching, Learning, and Technology Roundtable (TLTR) and the Technology Oversight Committee (TOC). The TOC has a very specific function, which is to monitor and prioritize the use of technology funding for the college.

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CO- AND EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES AND SPECIAL PROGRAMS

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CO- AND EXTRA- CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES AND SPECIAL PROGRAMS The Liberal Arts AA mission is supported by a number of co- and extra-curricular activities, along with special programs, all of which are designed to enhance the development of an individual’s potential through broadening student perspectives via exposure to new experiences and roles. In particular, these activities and programs focus on the oral and written word, public performances, as well as studies in environments that are both culturally diverse and intellectually challenging. In all of these programs, there is a strong emphasis on faculty mentoring, increased sociocultural exposure, increased opportunities for student decision-making, critical thinking, and leadership, as well as increased familiarity with areas of the Humanities outside of curricular requirements. [http://www.phirhopi.org/prp/spkrpts2.2/vinik.html] CO-CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES The Communicator The Communicator, the college’s student newspaper, is a co-curricular organization that receives funding, when needed, from the Inter-Organizational Council, which is the body that oversees student organizations. The Communicator is mentored by a full-time faculty member. It supports a number of Liberal Arts goals, including writing in multiple modes for a diverse audience, critical thinking and analysis, decision-making and prioritizing, as well as introducing students to journalistic standards, expectations, and practices.

Students are taught to write articles that are balanced and display a sense of fairness, as Aristotle calls for in The Rhetoric’s reference to the ethical appeal. For many of the articles, it is necessary for students to research the subject to obtain the necessary historical perspective and understanding before attempting to draft a story. Over time, students become more adept at conducting background searches on their stories, finding sources for these stories, and in locating experts or people involved in the stories to present all sides of the issue or issues involved. The ability to pitch and defend story choices orally, with clarity, transfers to the writing process when the students begin to draft their stories.

Students are involved as much as possible in the layout and design process and study the layouts of other student newspapers, as well as mainstream newspapers, to critique them and find ideas to improve their layouts. The students who work on The Communicator seem to understand from the outset that teamwork and individual effort in support of the college carry over into civic engagement on both the local and national stages.

In Spring 2005, The Communicator won a First Place award for Community College newspapers from the Associated Scholastic Press Association.

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Speech, Drama and Debate Team The Speech, Drama and Debate Team is a co-curricular organization that receives funding from both the Inter-Organizational Council and the Department of Communication Arts and Sciences. The Team provides a foundation that will help students in their future studies and professional lives. It is an invaluable opportunity for students to learn and interact with a whole range of social, artistic, interpersonal, cultural and geographic perspectives to which they might not ordinarily be exposed.

The Team is a co-curricular activity that specializes in the performance of prose, poetry, single interpretation of drama (SIDS), duo interpretation of drama (DIDS), as well as public speaking performances in the areas of informative, persuasive, after-dinner speaking, and impromptu. Students and the faculty adviser travel to competitions primarily along the middle-Atlantic seaboard, where they compete against students from community colleges and four-year institutions.

Members work collaboratively to develop a strong team of accomplished speakers. For many, it is their first experience of competition, teamwork, leadership and public speaking. By participating in this activity, the students receive a myriad of benefits that include making them skillful communicators, better readers, more discerning critical thinkers, avid scholars, and more confident global citizens.

Each member receives personal attention, working one-on-one with the Faculty adviser in a mentoring relationship. Attention is paid to their own individual needs of vocal accuracy, expression, articulation, and overall presentation.

Students learn the power of language in all its subtlety and complexity; they learn to embrace the oral tradition and speak with confidence, clarity and conviction.

In researching and developing their presentations, students develop a broad base of knowledge of prose, plays, poetry, journalistic and academic writing. They read and cull from a variety of sources, collaborating with the advisor and other members on new materials, websites, and writers.

In the Spring 2006 term, two students along with the Faculty Advisor are attending the International Forensic Competition, held in Prague.

Theatre Workshop The Theatre Workshop is a co-curricular organization that receives funding from both the Inter-Organizational Council and the Department of Communication Arts and Sciences. The Workshop consists of BCC students with a desire to explore the artistry of the live theatre, and is mentored by a full-time Faculty member, with experience in both professional and educational theatre practices.

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The Theatre Workshop promotes the goals of the Liberal Arts and Sciences AA by introducing students to both canonical and new visionary theatrical works that help build their knowledge of the beauty of the performed and spoken word. The formalization of acting and directing, as well as designing, to create the entire project, lends itself to the ideology of a well-rounded education. Students first read the text, then stage it. In doing so, the Workshop promotes interdisciplinary code-sharing through the arts. Further, the Workshop promotes the ideas of nontraditional and non-gendered casting and the performing of intercultural works to ground the students with a sense of knowledge regarding their entire world, and how it is viewed through multiple lenses of subjectivity. While students are strongly encouraged to work on the traditional masters (Shakespeare, Ibsen, Miller) they are also made aware of the new and ever-emergent theatre of the world in Latin America, Africa and Asia.

Founded in 1965, the Theatre Workshop produces theatre productions and acting workshops on campus. The productions range from fully-staged musical theatre works to intimate chamber theatre presentations and a play reading series. As members of the Theatre Workshop, students have an opportunity to experience the art and craft of theatre from various perspectives. The Workshop typically produces and presents two theatre productions during the academic year.

Members perform all the tasks involved in productions: acting, designing and building sets, lighting and costuming the shows, assistant directing, box office and house management, and promotion and publicity. Additionally, our students have taken backstage tours of professional theatre houses, attended seminars in working in the theatre sponsored by the American Theatre Wing, and have attended performances and workshops both Off and Off-Off Broadway.

Their last four Workshops have included Scenes from the Contemporary American Theatre, a collection of monologues and dialogues from luminaries such as David Mamet, Neil Simon, and Marsha Norman; contemporary works from George C. Wolfe and John Leguizamo; Dolores Prida’s Botanica, which was performed with a new English translation of the text; Lanford Wilson’s Burn This; and Moises Kaufman’s The Laramie Project.

EXTRA- CURRICULAR PROGRAMS Film and Media Tech Clubs The focus of these clubs is to critique members’ video or film projects, interact with members of the professional artistic community, and expand opportunities for college-wide and local professional experience. The clubs showcase guest speakers who are well-known and accomplished in their industry, field trips, film festivals, and workshops while fostering deep appreciation of the greatest cinematic and video techniques.

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French, Italian, and Spanish Clubs These modern language clubs promote intercultural perspectives and a deeper understanding of the nuances associated with each language’s milieu. The Italian Club publishes The Modern Languages Journal, in which students write poetry in different languages.

Political Science and Psychology Clubs These clubs provide students with introductory experiences in their respective fields. Both clubs offer opportunities for students to interact with professionals through participation in conferences, lectures, and field trips.

Through the Looking Glass and Fragments Through the Looking Glass, the English Department’s literary publication, promotes student expression and creativity through essays, poems, short stories, along with artwork and photographs from the Art Department and Photography Club to showcase in its yearly magazine. The Art Department publishes Fragments, a journal of student writing about art, on the BCC web site.

SPECIAL PROGRAMS The Study Abroad Program Perhaps few other programs foster the goals of the Liberal Arts AA as well as a study abroad program. Study abroad programs increase students’ knowledge of the world in which they live and generally offer courses about the history, civilization and language of their host countries. Students can choose from countries ranging from those that are more similar to their own backgrounds or those countries that provide a strong contrast to the student’s milieu.

Overall, there are programs in 14 countries, from China, to Rwanda; the focus of the programs ranges from economics to studio art.

The Honors Program The Honors program fosters academic excellence. It is open to all students with a GPA of at least 3.2, all remedial courses completed, and at least nine college credits earned. Honors students avail themselves of classes that are smaller in size and with more in depth interaction with the professor, other students, and the course content material. Students who earn a B+ or higher in honors courses receive special recognition.

The program strives to strengthen a sense of community within the Honors cohort. Honors students occasionally serve to initiate new programs and tools 25

that enhance the learning environment. A recent example of this is the Tablet PC Project, wherein Honors students utilize computer technology that aids in notetaking, course organization, and information literacy.

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SUPPORT SERVICES

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SUPPORT SERVICES The Library The Library and the Gerald S. Lieblich Learning Resources Center (LRC) provide support for teaching and research in all areas of the BCC curriculum. BCC students, faculty, and staff have access through BCC Library and LRC to electronic resources, many accessible continuously from remote sites, including more than 20,000 periodicals. The Library is structured around the notion that all students, regardless of their academic level, can find material to meet their needs. The library subscribes to thirty-five electronic full-text databases, many of which focus on subjects identified with the liberal arts. Specific disciplines that are of primary importance for Liberal Arts and Sciences students have been targeted for the expansion of library materials. This expansion includes databases such as American History Online, World History, American Women’s History, African-American History and Culture, and Ancient History and Culture, Books-in-Print, JSTOR, Literature Resource Center (InfoTrac), ProjectMUSE, and a digitized back file of all editions of The New York Times. In addition, the library has extensive audio-visual material (DVD and VHS), CDs, multimedia resources, plus microfilm and microfiche. This collection, large by community college standards, contains discipline-specific materials as well as those films that offer our students an aesthetic and cultural awareness. The library offers classes in identifying information needs, finding resources, evaluation of the information retrieved, and giving proper credit to the sources used. Customized instruction is available to focus on particular sources, assignments, and subject areas.

Academic Advisement Because the Liberal Arts and Sciences AA curriculum exposes students to a broad program of study, that is, courses ranging from English to Music, Social Sciences, Math, and Health, students following this program seek academic advisers who can validate their choice of curriculum. Often, they have been counseled by family and friends to select a curriculum that would prepare them for a particular vocation (such as radiological technology or paralegal studies). The advisers for the Liberal Arts and Sciences AA program are well versed in helping students see the value in a LASAA education to achieve their goals. When Liberal Arts and Science AA students are in their second semester at BCC, they are assigned an adviser from Humanities or Health, Physical Education, and Wellness faculty who follows their progress to graduation. The assignment of a student to a specific faculty member allows the adviser to develop a relationship with the student over several semesters. This system is a crucial retention tool for the College because students who develop such a relationship are more likely to persevere with their studies. The advisers do more than help with course selection for the upcoming semester; they can engage the student in long range planning—another important process in ensuring student success. Advisers also 28

help communicate information about current College initiatives (such as the need for students to take two Writing Intensive courses during their College careers) or the availability of special programs (the Honors program) and scholarships designated for Liberal Arts students.

Speech Lab One of the key aspects of a good liberal arts education is communication skills.

The Speech Lab, under the direction of an ASHA-certified speech pathologist, provides an environment where communication skills can be developed and honed. Students with various needs attend the Speech Lab to work on issues that are hindering their ability to communicate clearly.

The goals for the Speech Lab are: • To produce oral intelligibility • To strengthen aural comprehension • To improve speech production patterns for business and professional use • To improve communication competence for their vocational use The Speech Lab enhances classroom instruction by providing students with supervised, programmed self-instruction, in oral communication, utilizing computer voice and language acquisition, interactive programs, pre-recorded audio tapes and accompanying work sheets in a learning center environment.

The Speech Lab serves primarily two distinct populations: students who are native English speakers but exhibit articulation patterns or dialects that are less than optimum for business and professional environments. The second population are those students for whom English is not the first language. Those students often exhibit phonemic errors of omission, substitutions, and distortions. The Speech Lab is equipped to meet their particular needs. Over the most recent term, Fall 2005, 230 students availed themselves of the services in the Speech Lab averaging a little over an hour for each visit.

The Speech Lab is kept up to date with an array of the latest versions of appropriate hardware and software.

Writing Center The mission of the BCC Writing Center is to reinforce the writing skills of our Liberal Arts and Sciences students as well as those from other curricula. Staffed by adjunct and student tutors, under the supervision of the Writing Center Director, the center provides individualized as well as group and workshop instruction in a computerized environment that includes a fully functional computer classroom. Students can make their own appointments or they may be referred to the Writing Center by their instructors. At the Center, students work 29

on specific writing assignments as well as areas that have consistently hindered their writing. The Center also offers a menu of workshops on writing-related subjects and helps to prepare students for the CUNY/ACT Writing Skills Assessment Test and CUNY Proficiency Examination (see page 33), among other graduation requirements.

Tutoring Tutoring at BCC is a broad-based activity that can be categorized through two outlets. First are those venues specifically designed for tutoring: The Writing Center, The Personal and Academic Support Services (PASS) Center, The Gerald Leiblich Learning Center; and those initiatives that incorporate tutoring as a component or ancillary part of a program (Coordinated Undergraduate Education, College Discovery), as well as individual departments, which may offer BCC students an array of specialized tutoring options. Bronx Community College spends approximately $500,000 per year on tutoring.

The majority of tutors at BCC are current or former students. More than 90 per cent of BCC tutors are trained through Perkins Grant-sponsored programs.

Perkins training is given at three levels, each of which requires ten hours of preparation. Tutor training is conducted by the PASS Center, and by some academic departments. This year there has been a tutor certification and standardization initiative that includes: Vocational Satellite Tutoring Centers, online tutoring, incorporating supplemental instruction in historically difficult courses, and standardization of tutor training.

Programs that fall under the rubric of Coordinated Undergraduate Education, contain a dedicated tutoring component. The tutors employed by this program might be students who audit a course and provide supplemental instruction and support to the other students. Or, a student assistant to the instructor of a course, functioning like a Teaching Assistant. In addition, the summer USIP (Undergraduate Summer Immersion Program) gives over 1200 students specialized tutoring as part of their classroom education.

The College Discovery Program admits students with academic and fiscal problems and offers them counseling, tutoring, and supplemental instruction.

For students at academic risk, BCC offers the Student Assistance Center where students on probation are given specialized tutoring in remedial subjects, History, English and Biology. The Office of Disability Services office also provides specialized tutoring to their student clientele, mostly in remedial classes.

Finally, there are many departmental labs and workshops where students may receive tutoring. Among these are the Reading Lab, the Math Lab, the Bio Lab and the Art Lab.

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Academic Counseling and Course Advisement Academic Counseling and Course Advisement is concerned primarily with supporting students’ educational development. The program offers students academic, career and personal counseling on an individual and group basis. In addition, students are strongly advised to take OCD 01 (Orientation Career Development), taught by Student Development counselors. This course aims to enhance study skills and time management, and aid students in making decisions about careers and future education. Course advisement is provided by academic departments. Faculty members serve as academic advisers throughout the academic calendar year.

Psychological Counseling and Office of Disability Programs and Services Students with personal and emotional concerns can get counseling at Psychological Services, which provides free, confidential short-term individual and group counseling. Issues requiring psychiatric intervention are referred to an appropriate institution off campus. The Office of Disability Programs and Services assists students who have documented learning disabilities or physical or psychiatric disabilities that may affect their academic success. Provisions and accommodations are afforded to students within the guidelines of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Transfer Center Students intending to transfer can receive guidance at the Transfer Center, which provides information regarding admissions standards and requirements for senior colleges at CUNY, SUNY, and elsewhere. The Transfer Center monitors articulations with other colleges and notifies department chairpersons of changes in or the need to update articulations. Each semester, it hosts a Transfer Day, which attracts forty-to-fifty admissions representatives from CUNY, SUNY, and other public and private schools.

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ASSESSMENT

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ASSESSMENT Assessment at Bronx Community College, as with other colleges and universities, is an imperative. Although BCC has a fledgling assessment program at the present time, it has had and continues to use a series of assessment vehicles that aid the faculty in measuring student learning. Those assessment tools include: Standardized Exams • ACT: The ACT is a nationally normed standardized exam that measures basic reading, writing, and mathematical skills. The ACT exams are used to place incoming students at the appropriate level for instruction. In addition, the tests are used to measure whether students in remedial courses have reached the college level.

• CPE: The CUNY Proficiency Exam is a two-task exam designed to evaluate writing, higher-order thinking, and managing information. The first task requires students to write an essay in response to two readings; the second task requires students to respond in writing to questions about a chart or a graph. Students take this test after earning 45 credits and passing all of their ACT tests. If, after three attempts, students do not pass the CPE, they cannot graduate. (See Appendix E for LASAA CPE Scores.) LASAA students who take the CPE pass at a higher rate than over fifty percent of all BCC test takers. In addition, their pass rate is commensurate with Liberal Arts and Sciences students at the other CUNY community colleges.

Programmatic Assessment • In Fall 2003, the Academic Program Planning Council developed an assessment matrix to help make transparent prospective goals and outcomes of individual courses. The Humanities departments, principally Communications Arts and Sciences, English, and History, developed a course-based assessment rubric for the core courses in the Liberal Arts and Sciences AA program (and for the college). These matrices have acted as a foundation for conversations about further assessment tools and activities. (See Appendix G for examples of course assessment matrices.)

The matrices allowed faculty to give an initial examination to their pedagogy, their goals, and what in fact was occurring in terms of student learning. For many, the creation of these matrices proved to be quite valuable and caused modifications in their teaching styles, use of assessment tools (such as exams), and class design. However, through Spring 2005, the assessment initiative did not advance beyond this initial venture into outcomes study. Since the summer of 2005, the assessment initiative has been reconfigured under the leadership of a new Vice President for Academic Affairs and a new assessment director, who, along with the General Education Coordinator has taken the first steps of assessment for the college’s nascent General Education Program.

Course Assessment

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•

Each instructor assesses student learning using a variety of tools, including in-class and take-home essays, written and oral exams and quizzes, speeches, brief and longer graded assignments, etc.

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CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

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Conclusion and Recommendations After an evaluation of the curricula, the co- and extra-curricular activities and support services, along with the concurrent and symbiotic initiatives presently underway at BCC (i.e. assessment, General Education), it is our belief that the Liberal Arts and Sciences AA program at the school is strong, balanced, well thought out and effective. The goal of introducing students to a broad array of disciplines, with the heaviest concentration in the Humanities and Social Sciences is realized. Our objective to supply our students with a solid foundation and skill set in a broad range of areas has been accomplished with the support of facilities and services across the campus. Over the years, these support services, especially in the areas of the Library (as noted above, in part IV Support Services) and Technology, have increased their offerings to better address the needs of the LASAA students and faculty. The breadth of education has been underscored by meaningful and exceptional co-curricular activities, overseen by faculty members possessing professional credentials in their own right.

Our faculty is highly versed in their specific discipline areas as well as constantly updating and refining their pedagogical expertise at the Center For Teaching Excellence. In addition, as we have seen, our standardized assessment tools reflect an improvement in some of the areas most associated with the Liberal Arts: writing, higher-level thinking, and information management.

Nonetheless, there are some areas of curricular concern with respect to the successful completion of the program. Liberal Arts and Sciences AA students are not completing the program in the two years for which it was designed. Although a two-year completion rate is unusual for completion of any program at this college or any two-year school, the over four years that it currently takes is not optimal.

In addition, there are changes that should be implemented that would enhance the LASAA student’s educational experience at BCC. These are: •

Adoption of a Capstone Course in the program. Presently, students who are enrolled in LASAA program have the opportunity to take three to four elective credits. However much we may believe that students should have the opportunity to pick their own courses that appeal to them or are not regimented or assigned, we feel a better utilization of these credits would be a Capstone Course.

Humanities really must make intentional, overt commitments to general education principles and content in all classes as well as integrative and synthesizing knowledge across disciplines. The best way to do this is a Capstone Course.

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A Capstone Course, corresponding to the capstone of a building or the keystone of an arch, helps to ensure that the educational experience is drawn together. Too many students report a sense of anti-climax in their final term, just so many courses and one’s degree is finished. With a capstone course all the skills developed in earlier work could be marshaled in a project that demands the framing of a significant question or set of questions, and the research and creative exploration to find the answers.

Although currently Capstone Courses are offered primarily in four year schools, their adoption in two year schools is on the rise.

Capstone Courses can be those that require students to demonstrate all or a portion of skills they have acquired as a part of their program, such as a capstone in Communications as adopted by Sinclair Community College in Ohio. Yet, it is our belief that a capstone that is more integrative in nature is both more appropriate and beneficial for BCC students. An integrative Capstone Course would be a course that calls on knowledge from two or more disciplines allowing students to synthesize subject matter knowledge they have acquired, and connect theory and application. It is our belief that such a course would go a long way in the further preparation of our students for their future educational pursuits.

•

Adoption of a Cultural Passport program. Although the curriculum of the LASAA program offers students a breadth of study, there is still a need for students to experience a wide range of cultural experiences. Currently, the College offers some opportunities for this additional exposure, but these experiences need not only to be expanded, but they need to be made more integrated into the LASAA program. Thus, it is recommended that each student complete a “Cultural Passport.” This passport would oblige students, as part of a graduation portfolio, to attend two plays, two art gallery showings, two lectures, and two concerts on campus, and one of these off the campus. In addition, out of these nine events, two must have as its focus, global themes such as environment and development, health and disease, challenges of poverty across cultures, as well as envisioning the United States in a global context.

•

Deeper faculty involvement in academic advisement. Currently, as stated earlier, the Liberal Arts and Sciences students are fortunate to have one of the best systems for curricular advisement at BCC—that being advisement where faculty sets up private appointments with students assigned to them. However, these appointments are initiated by the students and if students do not avail themselves of this opportunity, their advisement may be less than optimal. In addition, evening students do not have the full breadth of advisement as the number of faculty available for advisement in the evening is limited to non-existent. A program needs to be constructed whereby faculty initiates advisement with their assigned students, and that

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evening students have the full opportunities for academic advisement that day students currently possess. •

Reduction in class size in order to incorporate more fully General Education objectives and proficiencies. Although Writing Intensive course enrollment is capped at twenty-four students, the number of those sections comprise a modicum of the classes offered each semester. In fact, many courses have an enrollment of forty students. This high class size severely limits both the full range of pedagogical experiences as well as hampers the faculty’s ability to fully embed the General Education objectives and proficiencies into the classes. Faculty could more fully teach and assess student learning of oral communication and information literacy for example, if they could actually devote time to these areas.

•

Active recruitment for elective courses. Currently students often take the most well-known course, for example ENG 14 (Written Composition and Prose Fiction), when they have an opportunity to take a course that might be more to their interest such as The Bible as Literature or The Black Writer in American Fiction. Active recruitment of students to courses by the faculty would allow students to become more informed about their choices and at the same time encourage faculty to create courses that would appeal to our student population.

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APPENDICES

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Appendix A

Abbreviated Faculty Credentials Department of Art & Music Professors Bass, Ruth (Chairperson) Ph.D. in Art and Art Education, NYU Art Critic for ARTnews, 1979 -2001 Cipullo, Tom M.A. in Music Composition, Boston University A Visit with Emily, Oxford University Press 2003 Associate Professors Amowitz, Lisa M.F.A. in Painting, Lehman College CUNY 9-11 memorial website design contest winner 2002 Yarmolinsky, Ben Ph.D. in Music Composition, The Graduate Center of CUNY The Constitution a secular oratorio, premiere NYC November 14, 2004 Assistant Professors Belshe, Curt M.F.A. in Printmaking, Cranbrook Academy of Art Solo art exhibit at the U.S. National Arboretum, Washington D.C. 2004 Mazzella Ben-Nun, Mary Jo M.F.A. in Graphics, Lehman College Book Cover illustration for Shizuko’s Daughter by Kyoko Mori, Henry Holt & Co., 1995, NYC Viola, Mary Jo Ph.D. in Art History, The Graduate Center of CUNY Via Crucis, 2004 documentary film. Premiered at National Arts Club, NYC Lecturer Kelley-Williams, Jeanine B.A. in Studio Art, City College of New York

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McKeown, Cecily M.F.A. in Art and Technology, School of the Art Institute of Chicago

Department of Communication Arts & Sciences Professor Gonsher, Debra (Chairperson) Ph.D. Theatre Criticism, CUNY Graduate Center Film: The Eternal Light: A Historical Retrospective – ABC Television, January 2006 Associate Professors Butt, Rex Ph.D. Theatre History, CUNY Graduate Center “Using the Telephone in a Professional Manner” and “Effective Sales Presentations,” in Career Speak: Articulation and Presentation, Kendall/Hunt, August 2005 Carney, Benjamin Ph.D. in Theatre, University of Missouri Performed Work: Homeland Insecurity (Written and Performed) American Place Theatre, January 2005.

Mirsky, Isabel Ph.D., Columbia University “Informational Interviewing” and “Interviewing,” in Career Speak: Articulation and Presentation, Kendall/Hunt, August 2005 Powell, Laurence Ph.D. in Dramatic Theory and Criticism, Bowling Green State University Manual: Fundamentals of Interpersonal Communication, (by Joseph DeVito), with Marylin S. Kelly, Ed.D. New York: Longman, 1999 Wisotsky, Jeffrey M.F.A., Columbia University “Super 8mm Film Production in the Digital World,” Cover story, Indie Slate Magazine, June 2002 Lecturers Crick, Matthew M.S. in Broadcast Programming, Management and Production, Brooklyn College Produced and Directed “Creature Feature: 50 Years of the Gill-Man,” Tribeca Film Forum, Spring 2005 41

Mareneck, Ellen M.F.A. Theatre, Brandeis University Schryer, Malcolm M.A., Teacher’s College of Columbia University Socas, John M.F.A. in Performing Arts, National Theatre Conservatory of Denver Performed work: Velocity at the Fringe Festival in Scotland Ramirez, Jason M.Phil., CUNY Graduate Center Cultural Studies review; “Anna in the Tropics,” Theatre Journal, November 2004. El Teatro Latino: Esteticas, Metodos Y Politicas, Ateneo Press, 2006

English Department Distinguished Professor: Hall, N. John Ph.D. English Literature. New York University.

Book. Trollope: A Biography. Oxford University Press, 1991.

Professors: De Naples, Frederick (Department Chairperson) Ph.D. English Literature. University of Pennsylvania Essay. “Between the Undergraduate College and the Graduate School: What Do Undergraduates Need? What are Doctoral Programs Doing?” ADE Bulletin, Spring-Fall 2003, 39-42.

Donovan, Richard Ph.D. English Literature. University of Minnesota.

Book. The Collaborative Advantage, Scarecrow Press, 2005.

Associate Professors: Blot, David Ph.D. Linguistics. Fordham University.

Essay. “Testimonials: Empowering ESL Students to Write” CUNY ESL Journal, 1993.

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Denbo, Michael Ph.D. English Literature. City University of New York.

Book. The Holgate Miscellany: A Diplomatic Edition (forthcoming).

Renaissance English Text Society.

Pita, Marianne Ph.D. Linguistics. New York University.

Essay. “An Educational Policy for Negotiating Transnationalism: The Dominican Coumminity in New York City” with Sharon Utakis (see below), in Reclaiming the Local in Language Policy and Practice. Lawrence Erlbaum, 2005.

Read, Phyllis M.A. English Literature. Trinity College.

Book. The Book of Women’s Firsts, with Bernard Witlieb. Random House, 1992.

Sassi-Lehner, Christina Ph.D. English Literature. City University of New York.

Book. Scholarly edition of Daniel Defoe’s The Storm, AMS Press (forthcoming).

Sedore, Timothy Ed.D. English Education. Teachers College, Columbia University.

Essay. “‘Tell the Southrons We Lie Here’: The Rhetoric of Consummation in Southern Epitaphs and Elegies of Post-Civil War America.” Southern Quarterly 41 (Summer 2003): 144-62.

Wodajo, Tsegaye Ph.D. English Literature. Indiana University of Pennsylvania.

Book. Hope in the Midst of Despair: A Novelist's Cure for Africa, African World Press, 2004.

Assistant Professors: Amper, Susan Ph.D. English Literature. Fordham University.

Essay. “‘The Assignation’: The Biographer as Assassin.” Poe Studies/Dark Romanticism 35 (2002).

Athanasourelis, John Ph.D. English Literature. Purdue University.

Essay. “American Individualism and the Hard-Boiled Detective Hero,” The McNeese Review, Winter 2004.

Beuka, Robert Ph.D. English Literature. Louisiana State University.

Book. SuburbiaNation, Palgrave Macmillan, 2004.

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Bolt, Julie Ph.D. Comparative Literature and Cultural Studies. University of Arizona Essay. “Towards an Active Utopia: Truth-making in Menchu, Stoll, and the Classroom,” The Review of Education, Pedagogy, and Cultural Studies. 2003.

Dacey-Groth, Camilla Ph.D. American Cultural Studies. Bowling Green State University.

Presentation: “Slaves of Fiction,” American Studies Association, 2001.

Hurley, Leslie Ph.D. English Literature. State University of New York at Stony Brook.

Book. Gender and Realism in Plays and Performances by Women, Peter Lang, 2003.

Liston, Carolyn Ph.D. American literature. Colorado University.

Smith, H. Elizabeth Ed.D. English Education. Teachers College, Columbia University.

Tarlin, Sandra Ph.D. Creative Writing. University of Houston.

Essay: “Judith” in Medieval Folklore: An Encyclopedia of Myths, Legends, Tales, Beliefs and Customs. ABC-Clio Press, 2002.

Treglia, Maria Ph.D. Linguistics. New York University.

Essay: “Demystifying Poetry in the Classroom.” Idiom 28, no. 4, 2001.

Utakis, Sharon Ph.D. Linguistics. City University of New York.

Essay: “Educational Policy for the Transnational Dominican Community,” with Marianne Pita (see above). Journal of Language, Identity and Education December 2002.

Lecturers: Barnhill, Marc M.A. American literature; composition and rhetoric. City University of New York.

Presentation: “The Interactive Classroom,” Before the Class, GSUC-CUNY, 1997.

Di Tommaso, Kathrynn M. Ed. (Ed. D. in progress) Adult Education. Harvard University.

Essay: “Strategies to Facilitate Reading Comprehension in College Transition Students,” Research to Practice Brief, 2005.

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Gear, Nancy M.A. Linguistics. Teachers College, Columbia University.

Textbook: Women on the Rise (ESL textbook). Lawrence Earlbaum, 1993.

Mullins, Hattie-Jo M.A. Journalism. New York University.

New York Made Easy: A Practical Guide for Seniors (with Carole A. Kennedy), Xlibris, 2004.

Rowan, Andrew M.A. English Literature. New York University.

Washington, William M.A. Drama. New York University.

Higher Education Assistant: Robertson, Jan (Director, Writing Center) M.A. Teacher’s College, Columbia University Presentation: “The Psychological and Emotional Side to the Writing Center,” AACC, 2004.

Department of History Professors Gutwirth, Jacqueline (Chairperson) Ph.D. Italian Renaissance, NYU Priorista: (1407-1459) (Instituto Nazionale de Studi sul Rinascimento, 2000).

Bonelli, Vincent Ph.D. Early National Period, Fordham University The Response to Public and Private Philanthropy to the Panic of 1819 in New York City. Dorrance Publishing, 2003.

Associate Professors Davis, Neil Simon Ph.D. 20th Century Anglo-American Diplomatic Relations, University of Exeter.

The A to Z in the Cold War; Joseph Smith co-author Scarecrow Press, 2005.

Finkelstein, Andrea Ph.D. Early Modern Intellectual History, Graduate Center, CUNY Harmony and Balance: An Intellectual History of Seventeenth-Century English Economic Thought. University of Michigan Press, 2000.

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Gordon, David Ph.D. Modern French History, Brown University Liberalism and Social Reform: Industrial Growth and Progressive Politics in France, 1888-1914. Greenwood Press. 1996.

Wach, Howard Ph.D. Nineteenth Century British and American History, Brandeis University “A Boston Vindication,” Massachusetts Historical Review, no. 7 (2005) Assistant Professors Getman-Eraso, Jordi Ph.D. Modern Spain and Latin America, University of Wisconsin-Madison “What Role Did Spanish Anarchists Play in the Course and Outcome of the Spanish Civil War?” in K. Estes and D. Kowalsky (eds.), History in Dispute: The Spanish Civil War. Manly, 2004.

Grenda, Christopher Ph.D. Early American Religion and Politics, University of Maryland “Revealing Liberalism in Early America: Rethinking Religious Liberty and Liberal Values,” Journal of Church and State, Winter 2003 Raczniak, Wladyslaw Ph.D. Early Modern Charitable Organizations, CUNY “The Polish Gromada Peasant Collectives in the Eve of Re-Feudalization, “The Polish Review 4 (2004): 1093-1103 Rothenberg, Tamar Ph.D. Human Geography, Rutgers University “Voyeurs of Imperialism: The National Geographic Magazine Before World War II,” in Geography and Empire, A. Godlewska and N. Smith, eds. (Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1994).

Department of Modern Languages Associate Professor López-Marrón, José (Chairperson) Ph.D. 19th & 20th Centuries Peninsular Literature, NYU Book: Unamuno and his Path to Individuation, New York: Peter Lang, 1998 Assistant Professors Aguilar, Martha Ph.D. Sociology and Literature, Sorbonne University III 46

Cummins, Laurel Ph.D. 20th Century French Literature, Indiana University.

Book: Colette and the Conquest of Self. Summa Publications, 2004 Guarnieri, Giulia Ph.D. 20th Century Italian Literature, University of Washington.

Book Review: “Eugenio Bolongano’s Italo Calvino and the Compass of Literature” (in Forum Italicum. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, Fall 2005) Gorycki, Lydia M.A. Pedagogy, Columbia’s Teacher’s College Zaidi, Ali Ph.D. Comparative Literature, University of Rochester Article: “Coriolanus in Shakespeare and Calderon,” Hispanofila, Jan. 2003 Lecturers Flores, Diana M.A. Latin American Literature, NYU. Lamazares, Alex M.A. Cultural Studies, University of Chicago Resto, Angel M.A. Spanish, CUNY

Department of Social Sciences Professors Morrill, Peter (Chairperson) Ph.D. Sociology, NYU Berger, Kathleen Ph.D. Psychology, Yeshiva University The Developing Person Through the Life Span, 7e, Worth, 2005 Associate Professors Daley, Carl Ph.D. Sociology CUNY Garrido, Marjorie 47

Ph.D. Psychology, NYU Gray, Montgomery M.S.W. Human Services, Hunter College Mendez, Raphael Ph.D. Psychology, Boston University L. Holtzman & R. Mendez, Psychological Investigations: A Clinician’s Guide to Social Therapy. Hawthorne, 2004 Assistant Professors Asimakopoulos, John Ph.D. Sociology, Graduate Center CUNY Eugene, Jude Ph.D. Psychology, Howard University Book Review, Journal of Black Psychology, 2005 Freeman, James Ph.D. Political Science, SUNY/Albany Mangiante, Donna M.S.W. San Diego State University Marzan, Gilbert Ph.D. Sociology, SUNY/Albany C. Bose and G. Marzan, “Exodus from the Northeast: Changing Economic Opportunities for Puerto Rican Women and Men,” Latino Research Review, 2004 Ryan, Tracey Ph.D. Psychology, Clark University “Motivating Novice Students to Read their Textbooks,” Journal of Instructional Psychology, 2005 Somerville, Barbara M.S.W. Human Services, Adelphi University Thomas, Vaso Ph.D. Sociology, New School for Social Research Ticke, Lynne Ph.D. Psychology, The Graduate Center/CUNY “Opening Dialogue: Students Respond to Teacher Comments in a Psychology Classroom,” The WAC Journal, 2003

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Shane, Randi Ph.D., CUNY Shane, et.al., “Reciprocal Interactions between the amygdata and ventrolateral periaquedoctal gray and mediating OFQ/N induced analgesia in the rat. Brain Research, 2003 Vinson Teraesa Ph.D. Psychology, University of Florida Vinson, T. & Neimeyer, G. G.J., “The relationship between racial identity development and multi-cultural counseling competency,” Journal of Multicultural Counseling and Development, 2003 Lecturers Battista, Leon M.A. Economics, New School for Social Research Rodriguez, Gloria M.A. Psychology, Goddard College “DeAlmas Latinas: A Psycho-Spiritual Culturally Relevant Group Process,” Women and Therapy, 2002

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Appendix B

GENERAL EDUCATION OBJECTIVES AND PROFIENCIES AT BRONX COMMUNITY COLLEGE I.

General Educational Objectives

Graduates from BCC will have acquired and demonstrated the knowledge and proficiencies they need to successfully transfer to a four-year baccalaureate program and/or to work in their chosen fields. They will be well-informed, globally aware, engaged world citizens making a meaningful contribution to society. They will be self-directed, committed to their physical and mental wellbeing, and to lifelong learning.

II. General Education Proficiencies A. Communication Use reading, writing, listening and speaking to find, interpret, and communicate information in various modes, including aesthetic, statistical, symbolic and graphic.

B. Reasoning and Analysis Use abstract reasoning, including the ability to analyze, interpret, evaluate and integrate information; apply the results; and formulate and solve problems.

C. Mathematical Methods Use mathematics/statistics to solve problems.

D. Scientific Methods Use the scientific method to understand the natural and physical worlds.

E. Information Literacy Use information technology to support professional and academic careers.

F. Personal Growth and Professional Development Use continued self-development to examine personal values and civic responsibilities. Navigate college and career requirements with academic, personal, and professional integrity and accountability.

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APPENDIX C LASAA CURRICULUM PATTERN FIRST SEMESTER CREDITS ENG 11 HIS 10 or HIS 11 CMS 11 PEA or HLT 91 LANGUAGE

Fundamentals of Written Composition I History of the Modern World Fundamentals of Interpersonal Communication Physical Education or Critical Issues in Health Modern Language** Total Credits

3 3 3 3 4 14-15

SECOND SEMESTER ENG 12 Fundamentals of Written Composition II 3 CMS 20 Public Speaking and Critical Listening 3 ART 11 or Introduction to Art or MUS 11 Introduction to Music 3 SOCIAL SCIENCE Select from ANT, ECO, GEO, PHL, POL, PSY and SOC 3 LANGUAGE Modern Language 4 Total Credits 16 THIRD SEMESTER ENG English Elective (not including ENG 23) 3 HIS 20 American Nation: Political and Social Development of a People 3 LAB SCIENCE Choose from AST, BIO, CHM, ENV, ESE, or PHY 4 MTH 21 or 23 Survey of Math I or Probability and Statistics* 3 SOCIAL SCIENCE Select from ANT, ECO, GEO, PHL, POL, PSY and SOC 3 (not from an area already taken) Total Credits 16 FOURTH SEMESTER LAB SCIENCE Choose from AST, BIO, CHM, ENV, ESE, or PHY ART 11 or Introduction to Art or MUS 11 Introduction to Music RESTRICTED ELECTIVE ENG (not ENG 23) HIS, or SOC SCIENCE FREE ELECTIVES Total Credits

4 3 3 3-4 13-14

*Students may substitute MTH 30 or 31 if they reduce free elective credits. **Choose from modern language at the appropriate level. Both courses must be in the same language.

NOTE: Alt least two courses must be taken from a list designated as “Writing Intensive” as published each semester in the Registration Guide and Schedule of Classes.

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APPENDIX D MODERN LANGUAGE COURSE ENROLLMENT BY LASSAA STUDENTS Liberal Arts (A.A.) Graduates Enrollment in Modern Language Courses

Spanish French Italian

Academic Year Graduated 2003-2004 2004-2005 (N=90) (N=93) 74% 71% 16% 23% 8% 6%

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APPENDIX E CUNY PROFICIENCY EXAM RESULTS

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APPENDIX F LIBERAL ARTS AND SCIENCE GRADUATES TRANSFERRING TO LEHMAN COLLEGE

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