Proposed Changes to Climate Change Studies (CCS) Minor Program
1. Climate Change Internship: CCS 398, 2-4 cr. Request for Service Learning Designation.
Justification: Course meets requirements as described on the Service Learning Course
Designation Form. The Office of Civic Engagement has reviewed this proposal and supports the
proposal.
2. Climate Change Internship/Service Learning: CCS 398, 2-4 cr. (R-6) Request to allow course
to be repeatable up to two times, for a total maximum of six credits.
Justification: On occasion, students enrolled in the CCS minor want to do a second internship,
and the current course listing prevents this. The Climate Change Studies minor program offers
10-15 internship options each spring with a variety of community partners. Allowing students to
do two different internships would broaden their skills and experiences. This change would
enable students doing the Climate Change Studies minor to fulfill their six “Climate Change
Solutions” credits through internships, which is not anticipated to be a problem.
3. Climate Change Field Studies, CCS 352, 2 cr. Request to change course from two to three
credits.
Justification: Course lengthened from 9.5 to 13 field days and added a field research project.
Total contact hours include 35 hours of classroom contact (equiv. to 2.2 credits) and more than
31 hours of laboratory/field work (equivalent to 1 credit), for a justifiable 3.0 credit course. Due
to the short and intensive nature of this field course, students complete coursework before and
after the course as described in the syllabus. This change has been approved by the Climate
Change Studies Faculty Steering Committee.
4. Climate Change: Science and Society, CCS203, 3 cr. Request to change the course title to
“Introduction to Climate Change: Science and Society,” to change the course number from 203
to 103, and to cross-list this course with ENST 103 and NRSM 103.
Justification: We want to signal that this course is the introductory course for the Climate
Change Studies minor by 1) making that explicit in the title, and 2) having the course number
lower than the other core courses for the minor, such as GEO/CCS 108, Climate Change: Past
and Future. We also request to cross-list this course with ENST 103 and NRSM 103.
5. Add two courses to the Climate Change Studies minor course offerings, including:
*Climate and Society: NRSM 426, 3cr (under the Climate Change and Society curricular area)
*Climate Change Field Studies: CCS 352, 2 cr (under the Climate Change Solutions curricular
area). Note: request is being made to ASCRC to change this from a two to three credit course.
6. Change the catalog listing of CCS/GEO 382 to GEO 482, as was approved by ASCRC in
2011. Justification: The change was made in the Geosciences Department by Dr. Johnnie
Moore, although not concurrently changed in our cross-listed CCS 382 course.
Note below how courses contribute to existing course offerings, changes are in red.
Climate Change Studies Courses
Introductory Course (required, offered each fall semester):
*Introduction to Climate Change: Science & Society: CCS/ENST/NRSM 103, 3 cr
Climate Change Science
(Choose six credits from the following)
*Climate Change - Past & Future: GEO 108N, 3 cr
*Weather and Climate: ERTH 303N, 3 cr
*Global Cycles and the Climate Change: NRSM 408 (UG), 3 cr
*Global Change: GEO 482 (UG), 3 cr [ASCRC approved change 2011, previous GEO 382]
*Snow, Ice and Climate: GEO 488 (UG), 3 cr
Climate Change and Society
(Choose six credits from the following):
*Communication, Consumption, & Climate: COMM 379, 3 cr
*Climate Change Ethics & Policy: NRSM 449E (UG), 3 cr
*International Environmental Economics & Climate Change: ECNS 445 (UG), 3 cr (Prereq.,
ECON 111)
*Sustainable Climate Policies: China & the US: PSCI 324, 3 cr
*Climate and Society: NRSM 426, 3cr
Climate Change Solutions
(Choose six credits from the following, with at least one course taken in category A, which
requires practical application)
Category A
*Climate Change Internship/Service Learning: CCS 398, 2-4 cr
*Climate Change Practicum, CCS 391, 2-4 cr
*Energy Internship: NRG 298, 2 cr
*Environmental Citizenship: ENST 476, 3 cr
Category B
*Intro to Energy Systems II: NRG 102, 3 cr
*Issues in Sustainability: BGEN 160S, 3 cr
*Energy Practicum: NRG, 2 cr
*Building Energy Conservation: NRG 235, 3 cr
*Solar &Wind Systems: NRG 242, 3 cr
*Climate Change Field Studies: CCS 352, 3 cr [Note request to change course from 2-3 credits]