A University Faculty Senate subcommittee is considering expanding the intercultural and international competence (GI) requirement to six credits, the Undergraduate Student Government (USG) Academic Assembly president said last night.
The announcement by Assembly President D. Josh Troxell was followed by a brief discussion on the additional general education requirement.
Troxell said the original purpose for currently certified GI courses was to incorporate both the international and cultural aspects of diversity. But few classes focus on both of these aspects, Troxell said.
Therefore, if University Faculty Senate approves the subcommittee's plans, three credits will be required for international competence and three more credits for intercultural education.
Troxell said the subcommittee hopes the requirement will encourage departments to integrate culture into their classes and apply to have them certified. They would also like the requirement spread across the curriculum, like the current writing requirement, denoted by the "W" suffix on course numbers.
While Earth and Mineral Sciences Sen. Mark Levin agreed that a diversity requirement is necessary, he said he was not satisfied with splitting the GI requirement into two entities.
"I don't know if subdividing it into things ... in order to be an enriched person is something you need," he said.
Levin also said that in some colleges, the only classes with GI certified courses are in specific majors.
"You're being steered toward a certain major ... instead of being able to take something that you like," he said.
Kristi Vilberg, Eberly College of Science representative, said she did not think breaking down the requirement will give students the best experience.
Troxell said combining general education classes is possible. One class the committee approved yesterday will be certified for both the GI and health and physical activity (GHA) requirements, he said.
"The committee is very concerned about credit creep," Troxell added, referring to the tendency of some programs to slowly increase the number of credits required to graduate.
In other business last night, the assembly confirmed Jen Ayer (junior-journalism) as a USG Supreme Court associate justice by a vote of 13-0, with one abstaining.
Also, Troxell updated the assembly on the use of Social Security numbers as student ID's. When professors enter grades on eLion this semester, they will only see the last four digits of students' Social Security numbers. This is one of the first steps in eliminating the concern about Social Security number fraud, Troxell said.
