In the last open forum before the Faculty Senate votes to make cultural diversity courses mandatory, students and faculty may attend a University-wide teleconference from 2 to 4 p.m. today in 112 Kern.

The feedback from this teleconference will not alter the presentation of legislation considered in the senate, but could be used for amendments or further discussion, said Felix Lukezic, a member of the sub-committee on culture and race diversity.

Five speakers will address different aspects of the requirement, including the proposal and the senate's history of actions on this issue, Black Studies and Women Studies initiatives and curriculum integration and estimated implementation costs.

Speakers include: Lukezic, Thomas Merrit, faculty senator; James B. Stewart, director of the Black Studies Program; Lynne Goodstein, director of the Women Studies Program and William C. Richardson, executive vice president and provost.

"The main thing is to communicate the courses to the Commonwealth campuses and give students and other interested parties an opportunity to give feedback," Lukezic said.

People will be able to walk in and out of the conference as their schedule allows, said Janet Atwood Faculty Senate chairwoman.

Mary Dupuis College of Education senator will moderate the conference.

The Faculty Senate is expected to vote at its March 20 meeting on legislation making cultural diversity courses mandatory.

The committee will recommend implementation of the requirements as early as this summer or Summer Semester 1991 for incoming freshman, said Jerry Covert, member of senate committee of undergraduate instruction, on Thursday.

As the legislation stands, students will be required to take either a three-credit "diversity focused" course or four three-credit "diversity enhanced" courses, Lukezic said.

Focused courses would concentrate on issues related to "ethnic, racial, gender and global" perspectives. Enhanced courses would devote 25 percent of the time to such issues.

Both options would be part of general education and would not require additional credits.

If the legislation passes, a committee would be set up to review syllabi and approve courses, Lukezic said. Ultimately, the effectiveness of these courses will lie in the sensitivity of the faculty for following the prescribed syllabus, he said.

The subcommittee rejected a proposal presented at the last forensics session which would have put global perspectives into separate, additional requirements, Lukezic said. Student faculty senators said this requirement would cause an overburdening numb The three forensics senate sessions held since Fall Semester 1989 were the main sources for the legislation, Lukezic said. Student faculty senators said this requirement would cause an overburdening number of credits in some majors, he said.