The Academic Program Council (APC)

Athletic Affairs Committee

The Athletic Affairs Committee has within its purview intercollegiate teams and student activity clubs involved in athletic competition. In regard to intercollegiate athletics, a primary responsibility is to ensure a proper balance among such activities, academic pursuits, and the labor program. Toward that end the Committee regularly reviews the scope of the program, the variety of teams fielded, the number and timing of scheduled contests, and formulates policy recommendations. Seeking fair treatment for all College teams, the Committee monitors access to facilities, suitability of equipment, budget allocations, and related matters. The Committee also cooperates with the Athletic Director to ensure compliance with institutional standards and regulations of the associations of which Berea College is a member. Beyond intercollegiate competition, the Committee also reviews issues and provides advice relating to student activity clubs involved in athletic competitions as requested by the Student Life Council.

Six members comprise the Committee. The Faculty Athletic Representative will be appointed by the Administrative Committee and serve a five-year renewable term. One member will be elected from the College Faculty Assembly for a three-year term and one member will be elected from the General Faculty (this member cannot be a member of the College Faculty Assembly) also for a three-year term. Two students—one male and one female—are also members. The Athletic Director will be an ex-officio member without voting privileges. The Athletic Administrative Assistant will attend the meetings and act as a recording secretary.

Committee on General Education (COGE)

The Committee on General Education is charged with acting as the steering committee for the General Education curriculum and is guided by the following aims of the General Education Program:

Aims of General Education

Knowledge: the General Education Program will help students understand:

1. aesthetic, scientific, historical, and interdisciplinary ways of knowing;
2. religion, particularly Christianity, in its many expressions;
3. Berea College’s historical and ongoing commitments to racial (traditionally black and white) and gender equality, as well as to the Appalachian region;
4. the natural environment and our relationship to it;
5. the roles of science and technology in the contemporary world;
6. U.S. and global issues and perspectives.

Skills: the General Education Program will help students develop the abilities to:

1. read and listen effectively; write and speak effectively, with integrity and style;
2. think critically and creatively, and reason quantitatively;
3. develop research strategies and employ appropriate technologies as means to deepen one’s knowledge and understanding;
4. work effectively both independently and collaboratively;
5. resolve conflicts nonviolently.

Habits of Mind: the General Education Program will help students:

1. deepen their capacities for moral reflection, spiritual development, and responsible action;
2. develop an openness to and knowledgeable appreciation of human diversity, in terms of race, gender, class, religion, sexuality, language, and culture;
3. cultivate their imagination and ability to discern connections, consider alternatives, and think about topics and issues from multiple perspectives;
4. think and act in ways that promote peace with justice;
5. develop habits leading to lifetime health and fitness.

The above Aims of General Education will be achieved through a combination of learning experiences designed to help students become independent learners and thinkers.  Such learning experiences are likely to include:

1. Discussion and lecture;
2. Student-initiated learning;
3. Experiential learning (for example, service-learning, travel, internships, etc.);
4. Collaborative learning.

The Committee on General Education (COGE) has responsibility for oversight of the General Education Program. This includes:

1. consideration of issues that affect the substance of the General Education curriculum, including reviewing and making recommendations on any matters that affect GSTR course guidelines or the General Education curriculum as a whole.
2. administration of existing policy within the General Education Program. These matters include (but are not limited to) the development, review and approval of new sections of General Education core courses, Perspectives, and other components of the General Education Program; and consideration of requests for exceptions within the General Education Program.
3. systematic and on-going assessment of individual GSTR courses, and of the General Education curriculum as a whole.
4. planning for faculty development in regard to the General Education Program.
5. initiation of proposals for programmatic and/or curricular changes to the General Education Program which are forwarded to and acted upon by the Academic Program Council (APC).

COGE will consist of eight members—the Dean of Curriculum and Student Learning; six Course Coordinators; and a student. The Dean of Curriculum and Student Learning will serve as a voting member of the Academic Program Council (APC), and will function as a liaison to facilitate communication between COGE and the APC. The six Course Coordinators will be appointed by the Dean of Curriculum and Student Learning. Terms will generally be three years, but may range from two to five years. All members will have voice and vote.

Convocation Committee

The Convocation Committee is primarily concerned with annual program planning. It reviews and recommends events and presentations to the Convocation Coordinator that advance the College’s educational purpose and enrich the life of the campus and community. Scheduling of and arrangements for convocation programs are responsibilities of the Coordinator of Convocations, but Committee members provide advice and assistance. The Committee submits recommendations for policy changes to the Academic Program Council.

The Committee is composed of seven members—two persons elected from the College Faculty, one person from the General Faculty (this member cannot be a member of the College Faculty Assembly), two students, the Dean of Curriculum and Student Learning or designee from the Committee on General Education, and the Coordinator of Convocations.  All elected members serve a three-year term.

Learning Commons Committee

The Learning Commons Committee facilitates collaboration between various academic support services across campus to deliver effective and integrated service in support of student learning and student academic success. The Committee will explore various dimensions including service methodology, interdepartmental collaboration, physical dimensions (such as the location of services), student/faculty convenience in tapping services, and virtual dimensions (that may include a virtual learning commons, portal systems, and web-based master calendar system to provide 24/7 support for student academic success). The Committee represents and promotes the college as a multi-faceted, inclusive learning community dedicated to student learning. The Committee works collaboratively with others across campus to:

1. Nurture student potential by coordinating expertise and resources.
2. Promote reflective and effective teaching and learning in formal and informal settings.
3. Promote academic success through an integrated approach to student academic support.
4. Promote innovation in instruction and course management to increase learning, collaboration and critical/intellectual thinking.
5. Provide seamless access to teaching and learning resources and related support services.
6. Sponsor activities that complement faculty efforts and promote student learning and achievement.
7. Support retention efforts through a better understanding of how our students learn and what they need to know in order to succeed in college.
8. Align academic support services accordingly.
9. Assess and monitor the effectiveness of services that support a high-quality liberal arts education.

The Committee has nine members which include the Director of Academic Services, the Chief Information Officer, the Director of Library Services, the Director of the Center for Transformative Learning, the Disabilities Coordinator, the Director of Institutional Research and Assessment, one College Faculty Assembly member elected by the College Faculty Assembly; one General Faculty member who is not also a College Faculty Assembly member elected by the College Faculty Assembly; and one student representative chosen by the Student Government Association. Subcommittees will be formed as needed and may include others across campus with certain expertise needed to carry out the work of the subcommittees. Elected members serve three-year staggered terms. All members are voting members.

Student Admissions and Academic Standing Committee (SAAS)

The Student Admissions and Academic Standing Committee monitors current policies and practices with regard to admission, scholarship, probation and suspension, and formulates policy recommendations for consideration by the Academic Program Council and other appropriate bodies. It offers admissions recommendations and stipulations to the Admissions Decision Team on marginally qualified new, transfer, and readmission applicants. The Committee serves in an advisory capacity to departments, administrative offices, committees, and faculty advisors on matters related to policies and programs that impact student success.

The Committee hears and renders decisions on (1) cases of alleged academic dishonesty; (2) grade appeals after they have been reviewed at the divisional level; (3) appeals from students on academic probation and/or under academic suspension; (4) appeals for denied requests for ninth and tenth terms of extension; (5) requests for additional terms beyond ten; (6) appeals of denied labor overloads (15-20 hours); and (7) requests to work more than twenty hours per week. The committee also assesses the impact of program curricular planning on timely and adequate progress toward students’ completion of their degrees.

Seven members comprise the Committee—four elected from the College Faculty Assembly, one student, the Director of Academic Services, and the Coordinator of First-Year Programs. Additionally, the Director of Student Financial Aid Services will serve as an ex officio and non-voting member of the committee. College Faculty Assembly representatives serve three-year terms. Nominations for new College Faculty Assembly members shall be sought from divisions not currently represented on the committee. The Director of Academic Services will present cases involving academic probation/suspension, extension of terms, and admissions criteria, as appropriate. In these cases, the Director of Academic Services will vote on these matters only in the event of a tie. The Office of Academic Services will provide necessary staff support to this Committee.

Teacher Education Committee (TEC)

The Teacher Education Committee engages in curriculum development, selects students for the Teacher Education Program, and provides liaison between that program and the rest of the campus. Programs involved in teacher preparation submit curricular proposals affecting teacher education to the Committee, which reviews and refines them in light of institutional circumstances and certification requirements of the Kentucky’s Education Professional Standards Board. Proposals approved by the Committee are forwarded to the Academic Program Council for consideration and action. The Committee, assisted by representatives of programs with teacher preparation curricula, also screens students for admission to the program.

Composition of the Committee is designed to meet institutional needs and expectations of the Education Professional Standards Board. Eleven members make up the Committee: four members of the College Faculty Assembly from programs with teacher education curricula (excluding the Education Studies Program) to be elected by the College Faculty Assembly; the Chair of the Education Studies Program; a second member of the Education Studies Program appointed by the Chair of the Education Studies Program; the Dean of Curriculum and Student Learning; a school administrator selected by TEC; a school teacher selected by TEC; a student of elementary education; and a student of secondary education. When meeting to select teacher education candidates, the Committee must invite attendance of appropriate representatives of those programs with teacher education curricula which do not also have direct representation on the Teacher Education Committee. Faculty members elected to the Teacher Education Committee serve three-year terms.