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Curriculum Development and Revision

POLICY STATEMENT

All academic development and change will be affected according to the policy and procedures as described herein and as required by IHL Academic Guidelines, IHL policy, and all applicable accreditation policies.

DEFINITIONS

Academic Council: The Provost/Vice President for Academic Affairs heads the Academic Council, which includes the academic deans and other academic administrators. All DSU academic policies, academic programs, and academic units are under the leadership of the Provost/Vice President for Academic Affairs.

Academic development and change: Includes additions, revisions, edits, and deletions to academic courses, formats of instruction, curricula, programs, degrees, or units.

College Curriculum Committee: A faculty committee formed at the college level, composed of representative faculty thereof, that provides review and recommendation regarding curriculum development and revision.

Department Curriculum Committee: A faculty committee formed at the department/division level, composed of the faculty thereof, that provides review and recommendation regarding curriculum development and revision.

Graduate Council: The committee formed to oversee important functions of graduate education that provides review and recommendation regarding graduate curriculum development and revision.

IHL: Institutions of Higher Learning, State of Mississippi (Board of Trustees)

SACSCOC: Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, Commission on Colleges, the regional accrediting body for the University.

University Curriculum Committee: A faculty committee formed at the university level that provides review and recommendation regarding undergraduate curriculum development and revision.

PROCEDURES and RESPONSIBILITIES

To ensure broad input into the academic offerings at the institution, academic development and change will take place according to the following steps.

The departmental curriculum committee (faculty) will recommend academic development and change to courses, curricula, programs, degrees, or units. Departmental changes are requested in a process that moves from the Departmental Curriculum Committee, to the department chair/director, to the College Curriculum Committee (if it is empaneled), to the college/school dean, to the University Curriculum Committee, to Academic Council, and to the provost for approval. Change requests will be submitted on the University’s Course Request Form, Curriculum Request Form, or Course Fee Request Form and/or may require an IHL Appendix Form. Departmental Curriculum Committees and department chairs/directors will consult with the University General Education Committee and/or Distance Learning Committee when necessary before submitting an academic change to the College Curriculum Committee.

Other designated curriculum development units that do not report directly to an academic unit (General Education Committee, for example), may recommend academic development and change to the Provost/ Office of Academic Affairs. The Provost will identify the appropriate position within the approval process—Department Curriculum Committee, College Curriculum Committee, Graduate Council, or University Curriculum Committee, but no higher—and begin the review/recommendation process at that point. The proposal will then move according to the standard routing procedure.

Academic Council will act on all curriculum requests approved by the University Curriculum Committee or Graduate Council within two scheduled meetings, and it will ensure that all applicable policies and procedures are followed, including, for example, federal requirements regarding credit hour designations.

At all steps within the processes described above, submitted changes shall be acted upon within one month of the submission unless a written explanation is submitted to the preceding committee or administrative office explaining the reasoning for a delay within the bounds of this policy.

If an academic change is denied at any step of the processes described above, the change shall be sent back, with notes and comments, to the preceding committee or administrative office for revision or reconsideration unless a written explanation is provided as to why the change is unacceptable in any form and cannot be revised.

Changes to curricula, programs, degrees, and/or units may or may not require submission to IHL or SACS COC for approval (See IHL guidelines and SACSCOC substantive change policy for clarification). If submission is not required, changes will be implemented at the institution in the timeframe as approved by Academic Council.

If the change requires IHL approval, and once Academic Council approval is granted, the Office of Academic Affairs will prepare as necessary documents to be submitted to IHL by the president, and/or according to the IHL guidelines. Once IHL approval is granted, the Accreditation Liaison will review all changes for substantive change issues and will prepare documents, if required, for the President to submit to SACSCOC for approval. Those changes not requiring SACSCOC approval will be implemented at the institution in the timeframe as approved by IHL.

Once SACSCOC approval is granted, changes will be implemented at the institution in the timeframe as approved by SACSCOC.

Records of all changes will be maintained in Academic Council Minutes, and copies of all documents will be maintained in the Office of Academic Affairs.

The College Curriculum Committees, the University Curriculum Committees, and the Graduate Council will meet regularly, as needed, at least once per month during the academic year, to ensure expediency and timely resolution of all submitted changes.

Responsible Office and/or Policy Owner: Office of Academic Affairs