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Kickoff Luncheon Notes

L4L Faculty Feedback
October 17, 2007

(This is a compilation of all of the post-it notes that were filled out and then collected at the luncheon, as they were categorized at the time.)

Facilities – Positive

Morrison Center is terrific venue for Arts
Writing Center fills critical role
some wonderful facilities
Liberal Arts collection in library
Smart classrooms - need more of these for smaller classes (15-20)
small learning groups / good communication

Facilities – Negative

Independent bookstore where we can have author events (faculty too)
some decrepit facilities
space problems in classrooms
faculty offices are scattered, as are departments

Students – Positive

students often take courses seriously – they pay, they work, they want to learn
students are goal oriented, want training
civic
community engagements
service learning on the rise
students appreciate having their spheres of knowledge expand
library is providing library institution to students
First Year Read program
different socio-economic classes
we bring in students from economically disadvantaged background
our students are from economically diverse background
education provided to a diverse SEC background
students encouraged to be undecided majors
increasing numbers of students with varied interests
Honors College
Boise State brings in lots of opportunities for cultural enhancement
many cultural opportunities
do well with more easily measured knowledge

Students – Negative

students tend to regard core requirements instrumentally
commuter school – no time to just be
because we are a commuter school, it has been difficult to create a Liberal Arts tradition
commuter type campus
commuter campus – no time for community
students do not have time to informally discuss/process new ideas
large number of hours students need to work does not allow interaction
no time allocated to attend liberal arts events
too scheduled children
too entitled students
lack of curiosity
definition of liberal arts to students the value
no value
critical thinking only happens in discussion of sports
so many students ask “What can I do with that major?” – why would I be a (fill-in-the-blank) major is I can’t get a job with it
students are goal oriented – want education that is not liberal but skill based
practicality of degree outweighs desire to learn
limited skill set to process liberal arts
lack of student understanding of the concept
students are too over-scheduled with busy with work, family, etc.
challenge: how to get students to engage in extra-curricula activist
challenge: core is seen as checklist or hurdle for students, not connected to major
need to stop evaluating courses and degree plans in terms of their future financial impact for students
large number of non-traditional students

Really Great Ideas

more research competition
great book series to expose students to reading the Greats
a small writing intensive seminar for first year students would be a good intro to liberal arts and help with retention

find a way to reach out to society – the 75% who don’t go to college to make them begin to value the arts and education

Research – Positive

examples of excellence – research experience for undergrads
develop a university press for faculty research and publishing
BSU faculty is doing a lot of great research in the liberal arts
undergrad research conferences and other venues to present
an example of excellence: faculty incorporating/including undergrads in research
we support our research programs increasingly well
undergrad research becoming more widespread
research office has expressed interest in finding ways to advance liberal arts research efforts
flexibility in pursuing research interests

Research – Negative

funding is not equal
hiring problems
no course reductions/teaching loads
div. req.
more value placed on programs/fields that are not necessarily large contributors of research funding
define outcomes and measure – what gets measured gets done
resources for research (archival collections in particular)

Other – Positive

support from community – business, corporations, sports, music
good speakers come through
lecture series
good performances and exhibitions are available
SPB concerts
galleries in the SUB
need to speak to the value of liberal arts at the beginning of each year and throughout the year as a part of the core education for all students – we just don’t do this!
good creative classes in our Honors College
a question: to what extent should we be striving to provide a liberal arts education?
we have a College of Arts & Sciences that brings together faculty leaders across a broad range of disciplines on a regular basis
KBSU
The Big Read in the fall
the university core

Other – Negative

Many cultural opportunities re not well attended
our community does not value the liberal arts. – the priority is in technology, math, sciences – look at where the monies go starting with the university!
little evidence of communicating the value of liberal arts education to students and campus community
at no time is liberal arts spoken to the entire university community as a core value
lack of shared understanding of what the liberal arts are – limits on ability to articulate their importance to students and community
help prepare educated students to live and work in community
Arts & Sciences is split among several colleges – COAS/COBE/SSPA
tribal (departmental) culture often interferes with interdisciplinary program development
is there a consensus on what constitutes a liberal education?
faculty salaries and grant funding
not enough financial aid and scholarships

Administrative Support – Positive

clarity of purpose – CTL assists in process
Honors College – at least potential for strengthening it
accreditation recognizes value of liberal arts education and requires this
I am glad BSU is starting this discussion!
presidential and provost support (2)
CTL

Administrative Support – Negative

few interdisciplinary courses and no program to encourage their development
we as faculty are so overworked and thinly supported financially that we often don’t have time to be creative and we don’t have the resource to really be leaders in liberal arts
lack of oversight
administrative accountability
provide more funding for liberal arts research (course releases, etc.)
budgets for liberal arts departments have not increased with enrollment
our liberal arts dept. has no vision for itself. I suspect we’re not alone.
value of liberal arts degrees not communicated
shared (more) communication
more special lecturer slots
imperative that support be given to adjunct faculty
class size is getting bigger
need to defend arts for arts sake
emphasis on empirically measurable “outcomes assessment” is wrong headed
resources available to support new initiatives
operating expenses do not reflect need or goals and growth
State of Idaho too frugal
lacking financial support especially from the State
disconnect between community interest in the arts and the funding of the arts at BSU
increase funding for the arts
outreach to K-12 regarding value/need for liberal arts education
need intersession options for study abroad or shorts courses

Curriculum – Positive

core curriculum I & II
core curriculum (Area I) helps exposed students to liberal arts
Area Core I requirements for bachelor degrees include the arts and humanities
the core offers a broad based liberal arts intro to higher education
core requirements are right-minded whether we have the courses distributed correctly is a separate question
languages as a central component of Area I is correct
we have a core requirement that spans the liberal arts
core curriculum “protects” the liberal arts education
core curriculum encourages students to select courses from a variety of disciplines
core requirements are a great start
core curriculum
we have a core but….
core curriculum and assessing outcomes
the core is broad and inclusive , allows students to explore a range of topics
BSU provided opportunities to students in a balanced manner, including core curriculum and research/creative activities for undergrads well.
strong humanity core courses
Capstone courses
curriculum is here
there are some strong programs already in the arts and humanities
we have fairly significant credit hours dedicated to general education
talks/events offered outside of class are good
ISD major
requires 42+ hours of curriculum devoted to liberal arts
Capstone courses that require student presentation and defense of perspective
increased emphasis on interdisciplinary approaches/experiences
Service-learning (3) – promotes creativity
we have many programs that are easily measured
we have a large number of well educated and often published liberal arts professors
Honors College
good communication between departments when initiated
interdisciplinary programs – i.e. Enviro. Studies
interdisciplinary courses offer students insight into how diverse disciplines are intertwined
creative writing programs – MFA
residential college
the push for diversity as part of required curriculum
great effort t made by some departments to require foreign language knowledge

Curriculum – Negative

static core that hasn’t been revised since really the ‘80s
curriculum is 50 years old
review the core curriculum
core structure is amorphous
core objectives are ethereal
core connections are non-existent
is there a problem? no, however re-evaluation on a periodic basis is positive
we need to emphasize classical languages more as they are the basis for the original liberal arts of the university – grammar, rhetoric, logic, history, poetry, math & the sciences
don’t look at students’ prior experiences that aren’t in their transcripts (i.e. private lessons)
need more events during academic day (accessible to commuters
specialization – discourage wide involvement
too much focus on disciplinary requirements
no language requirement (4)
BA degrees require a language in curriculum
seriously consider requiring a foreign language competency for all majors
languages need emphasis in requirements for academic majors
challenge: nature of university makes interdisciplinary work challenging and hard for students to see
courses that require integration across disciplines are almost non-existent
no interdisciplinary
we don’t articulate intentional connections between majors and general education
too much separation of arts and science disciplines
more links should be made between COAS and the other colleges on campus
there should be a more comprehensive effort to offer cross disciplinary courses that bring students with different interests together
too much emphasis on “practical” training – not enough on creative thinking as a worthwhile goal in itself
need an informative literacy course that fosters critical thinking about information resources for liberal arts education
writing and critical thinking need to be incorporated into more required courses, not just Eng 101
no opportunities for intellectual engagement
learning outcomes emphasis instead of core knowledge
need to encourage all students regardless of major to study abroad
need international internships
lack of funding at BSU for liberal arts
too much emphasis on sciences
more support for developing cross disciplines for specific ethics courses, business, geosciences, geology, nursing, law etc.
preparedness of students
focus on professional education
too much focus on product – not on process
need to expand/market IDS major as option to students
lack of masters and PhD arts degrees
diverse curriculum
courses that reflect a global world with faculty to match
what general areas need attention? - integration of the areas
more reverence for preserving high culture and out cultural history for its own sake
world music offerings in the arts are limited or narrow in focus
too many classes taught by adjuncts
does not foster and measure civic engagement such as voting, community engagement, practices of engaged citizens
too much emphasis on business, engineering and athletics
little global focus
the community is not oriented to liberal arts education
isolated courses
we have programs that are easily measured but these do not tend to be arts, social sciences, etc.
difficult to measure well rounded, engaged thinking
writing requirements need to be more consistent for students exiting E101 and E102
the lack of interdisciplinary programs that focus on cultural issues
funding hires that promote the written goals of the university
racial disparities in faculty, staff and student body
where is the classics department?
lack of inclusion of liberal arts course work within some sciences
not enough rigor in classes, in programs
grade inflation
drive toward outcome assessments that are solely empirically driven can do damage to connection of liberal education
what problems need to be addressed?
we need to know what can be done (future employment) with a liberal arts degree

Faculty – Positive

great faculty
diversity and diverse faculty
active faculty
caring professors
great leaders
we have good faculty – well trained, well educated
faculty do good research and creative activity in spite of relatively few resources to support them
engaged faculty with great diversity
exciting talent in all liberal arts and sciences
excellent faculty to implement whatever initiatives are undertaken
historical grounding of disciplines
the CTL itself!
interdisciplinary
marketing speaks to culture
we have opportunity for lots of engagement, speakers, music, etc.
bring good events
opportunity forum for faculty exchange
good variety of liberal arts classes

Faculty – Negative

lack of communication among faculty
some faculty focus on multiple choice and put little effort into a rigorous class and others put enormous time
university doesn’t reward non-research
lack of interdisciplinary strength
support interdisciplinary faculty exchange
lack of collegiality between science and humanities departments – we don’t know each other – perhaps some team teaching for cross fertilization
faculty members who don’t enjoy teaching
too much of general education is farmed out to adjunct faculty
more support for faculty to rework courses to incorporate diversity, writing
support = time! course releases!
arts & humanities as the step-child of the university (re: funding, value, facilities, recognition, etc.)
advisors play a key role in encouraging students and pursue varied interests – the university could include advising in P & T outlines
lack of consensus – what is liberal arts?
faculty need more time to think in order to improve the interdisciplinary side of their courses
Bronco Guarantee = Finish in Four
we could have more team teaching between different disciplines on related topics
undiscovered resources in people and in knowledge
poor marketing (?) of lesser known corners of university
work load policy may send contradictory message about how to “count” interdisciplinary teaching
“real education: seen by students as not the liberal arts
BSU marketing starts with football
raise value in local community for liberal arts
there is not enough room and time for open-ended exploration
for critical thinking we must value adverse opinions
outcomes assessment may take attention from liberal arts as currently framed
lack of understanding of reasons for liberal arts education – students, faculty, public
large sections can reduce critical thinking
need to have a celebration at every faculty authored book
students not prepared with basic history and philosophy
department silos
challenge of adjunct labor – harder to have deep, disciplinary content-based courses (e.g. math 124)

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10-17-07 Faculty Feedback.doc (Word Document - 68k)
posted by nmiller Jan 28 2008, 1:46 PM EST

Kickoff Luncheon Notes