A UTC committee is recommending that the university overhaul its general education program by dropping some classes in math and humanities and requiring students to take a minimum of six hours in diversity, equity, and inclusion.
The recommendation is currently being reviewed with plans to implement changes in the fall of next year.
Officials said, "Under the current general education program, students take three hours in Non-Western Culture.
This category is limited to explorations of diversity outside the Euro-American framework. The reimagining committee believes the category should be broadened to explore diversity, equity, and inclusion in a variety of cultures, including within the United States.
"The reimagining committee has decided to expand this category and increase the credit hours for several reasons.
"First, UTC has committed to promoting diversity. In the university’s draft/new strategic plan the university has set the goals of 'modeling inclusive excellence through diverse representation' and of implementing 'curricular changes to ensure all students are prepared to live, work and engage in reasoned discourse in a diverse, global society.'
"To achieve these goals the reimagining committee believes the university needs to make a substantial commitment to a curriculum that addresses diversity, equity, and inclusion in a significant way. One of the most effective ways to do this is through the general education curriculum because it touches all students.
"Second, this is an important and broad topic that touches all academic disciplines. By creating a category dedicated to diversity, equity and inclusion, the reimagining committee hopes to encourage all departments to introduce courses that address diversity, equity, and inclusion from a variety of perspectives.
"Third, the reimagining committee has taken the approach of creating a category for diversity, equity, and inclusion, rather than spreading the topic throughout the curriculum, because the committee feels the topic deserves in-depth study. If the topic was spread across the curriculum, with each category having a diversity learning outcome, the committee feels many classes with deal with the issue in little more than a superficial way.
"The current prototype includes a minimum of six hours in diversity, equity, and inclusion."
UTC’s current general education curriculum requires that students take 40-41 credit hours. Requirements in a number of high credit majors prevent general education expanding past the current number of credit hours, it was stated.
The Reimagining General Education committee proposes a general education curriculum requiring 39 credit hours. The slight reduction in hours is intended to reduce conflicts with high credit majors, officials said.
The prototype includes requirements in eight broad categories:
- Writing & Communication (minimum of 6 credit hours)
- Quantitative Reasoning (minimum of 3 hours)
- Natural Sciences (minimum of 3 hours)
- Behavioral & Social Sciences (minimum of 6 hours)
- Humanities (minimum of 9 hours)
- Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (minimum of 6 hours)
- General Education Elective (3 hours – choose from classes in above categories)
- Chattanooga-Based Project (3 hours)
Here is full information on the proposed changes: https://www.utc.edu/academic-affairs/general-education/rge