C
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2011-2012
T ABLE OF C ONTENTS
W ELCOME TO THE C ORE !.................................................3
W HAT I S THE C ORE ?........................................................3
W HAT W ILL I E XPLORE IN E ACH C OURSE ?..........................6
H OW C AN I E XCEL IN THE C ORE ?.....................................18
W HERE D O I G O I F I N EED H ELP WITH A C ORE C OURSE ?....
20
W HAT ABOUT C ORE RELATED E VENTS ?...........................22
F REQUENTLY A SKED Q UESTIONS (FAQ S )……………………23
W HOM S HOULD I C ONTACT ?……………………………………27
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W ELCOME TO THE C ORE !
Welcome to Concordia’s Core Curriculum! What exactly is the Core? What will I investigate and do in each Core course? What should I do to excel in the Core? Where do I go if I need help? You will find answers to these and other questions about the Core below.
W HAT I S THE C ORE ?
Concordia’s Core, your Core, is an opportunity for you to grow intellectually, ethically, and spiritually. In the
Core you will explore the world, God, and who you are as you search for what is true, good, and beautiful with your classmates and professors. Through this exploration you will be encouraged to cultivate yourself as a citizen who serves society and the church with wisdom and honor.
Comprised of 8 linked courses spread over 4 semesters, the Core is taken in common by all students entering
Concordia with 29 or fewer transferred semester units.
The linked courses, listed below, can be taken in either order within the freshman and sophomore years.
F RESHMAN Y EAR
CBio 101 Integrated Biology
CThl 101 Foundations of Christian Theology
CMth 101 The Nature of Mathematics
CPhi 101 Introduction to Philosophy
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S OPHOMORE Y EAR
CEng 201 World Literature to the Renaissance
CHst 201 The West and the World
CEng 202 World Lit. from the Enlightenment
CHst 202 America and the World
Each linked pair of Core courses is offered in back-toback timeslots with the same students—about 25—in each pair. These learning communities will help you to form close connections with a small group of classmates and professors. By taking courses back-toback you will be able to make connections between linked courses as you discuss and apply their content from one class to the next and back again.
All of the Core courses are rooted in the liberal arts.
This means that instead of training for a particular profession in the Core, you will build a broad intellectual foundation that prepares you for life and your other courses at Concordia. In the freshman Core courses you will inquire about truth, ethics, and ways of knowing based on reason, revelation, tradition, and experience. In the sophomore courses you will explore the great issues, ideas, events, and expressions of human experience from around the globe and from the dawn of civilization to the modern era. Throughout the
Core you will be challenged and encouraged to exercise strong reading, listening, thinking, speaking, and writing habits. These habits are essential for you to
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excel in the Core; they will also help you excel in your major and later vocations in life.
While specific learning objectives will naturally vary from Core course to Core course, the basic academic expectations are the same for all. Throughout the Core you will:
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Read closely great works (text, theorem, or art) from the past to present and West to East to grapple with the great questions and concepts of life;
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Think critically and creatively about these inquiries and ideas;
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Communicate clearly and persuasively in writing and dialogue about them;
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Connect different disciplines to address these questions and ideas; connect the Christian faith to learning; connect learning to life; and
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Prepare yourself to excel in life with this knowledge and these habits.
To help you achieve and expand on these expectations, the Core has a larger learning community around it extending beyond the classroom. There are professor office hours, Core Peer Tutors, and the Writing Center to help you advance your knowledge and hone your habits to excel in your Core courses. There are also Core course trips, First-year Experience (FYE) Excursions, and CUI Bono lectures for you to investigate other avenues of interest and learning.
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W HAT W ILL I E XPLORE IN E ACH C OURSE ?
What will I study in each Core course? What questions will I wrestle with? What concepts will I ponder? What great works will I read? What academic habits will I exercise? How will this apply to life? To find out answers to questions like these, read the following sketches about each Core course.
CB IO 101 I NTEGRATED B IOLOGY
In this course we will tackle a number of large questions that are essential to ask and answer if one is to be an educated person. The first obvious question is: What does it mean to be an educated person? The singlesentence answer to this question is that you are able to think for yourself in ways that allow you to take a good deal of information, synthesize it, and use it to figure out who you are and how the world works. This ability applies to many different types of information— science, theology, math, art, literature, philosophy, history, economics, etc.
Another question that we tackle is: What is truth and how do you know when you have it? This question is central to the course and essential to the process of becoming an educated person. Truth is a concept that humans use regardless of age, gender, creed, or culture. We all claim that we know what it is by the way we use the word; however, rarely do we take the time honestly to understand what it is. In this course we use biology, the information found within it that connects to real-world situations (origins, how life functions,
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biotechnology, natural resource concerns, etc.), and its connections with CThl 101 to understand what science means when it says something is true. From this, we move to what it means when you the student hold something to be true, false, correct or incorrect.
To accomplish this, certain habits of the mind must be developed and codified. The primary habit we will work on is the ability to think. You must be able to think in ways you may not have before to engage fully the process of becoming educated. Assignments are developed in such a way that you are challenged to think about large issues with an understanding of the small details, positioning you to articulate your ideas verbally and in writing. A mastery of this ability is critical in the process of becoming wise (knowing when, and when not, to speak and when to listen), honorable
(respectfully engaging those whom you disagree with in such way that they know you respect them, but you may disagree with them), and cultivated (you seek knowledge more than wealth) citizens.
G
REAT
W
ORKS FOR
CB
IO
101
Novum Organum by Bacon
Origin of Species by Darwin
Experimental Research in Plant Hybridization by Mendel
Relativity by Einstein
The Logic of Scientific Discovery by Popper
A Sand County Almanac by Leopold
The Structure of Scientific Revolutions by Kuhn
Creation: An Appeal to Save Life on Earth by Wilson
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CT HL 101 F OUNDATIONS OF C HRISTIAN T HEOLOGY
One of the enduring issues in the discipline of theology is the relationship between faith and reason, a topic that will inform much of this Core course. As theology refers to “the study of God,” a major preliminary question to be addressed is whether it is reasonable to believe in the existence of a God who can be studied.
Similarly, but more specifically, is there any rational warrant for believing that a first-century Jewish preacher named Jesus is God? Or again, does it require a sacrifice of the intellect to believe that the Bible is an authoritative revelation from God?
Dissecting, discussing, and debating such questions will invariably lead to other, more “practical” questions:
What would possible answers to the above mean for reflecting on the nature of the cosmos and the meaning of life? What would they mean for contemplating how one’s brief days are to be lived in this world? How have they shaped, and how do they continue to shape, civilization and its history? In short, the study of
Christian theology as part of a liberal education will prompt you not only to examine what Christians believe, but also why—and with what consequences?
In addressing such topics, you will therefore be asked not only to digest the broad, basic survey of Christian doctrine, but also to engage critically with seminal texts from throughout the church’s two-millennia history, and to reflect intelligently—both orally and in writing— on some of the many questions and controversies raised by the long existence and profound influence of
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Christianity. You will also make connections with CBio
101 by discussing issues that equally affect theology and science, faith and reason—like the nature of truth and the means and certainty of knowledge.
Doing so will require the exercise and cultivation of such scholarly virtues as curiosity, honesty, and humility, as well as such academic habits as analytic reading, logical thinking, and clear and cogent communicating. By such means it is hoped that you will, regardless of your religious convictions, gain a clearer and deeper understanding of both the content and import of Christian theology. If you are a Christian, it is further hoped that you will, in the spirit of “faith seeking understanding,” become better equipped to
“give a reason for the hope within you” (1 Pet. 3:15).
G REAT W ORKS FOR CT HL 101
Genesis 1-11
Luke 1-24
Confessions by Augustine
On the Incarnation by Athanasius
Proslogion by Anselm
Summa Theologica by Aquinas
On Christian Liberty by Luther
The Idea of a University by Newman
Mere Christianity by Lewis
The Greatest Drama Ever Staged by Sayers
CM TH 101 T HE N ATURE OF M ATHEMATICS
Are you ready to examine some truly great ideas— mathematical ideas that influenced people from Plato
9 to Lincoln to Einstein? Ideas that compare to the works of Michelangelo, Aristotle, or Shakespeare? Ideas that interweave with the philosophical framework of humankind? In this course we will discuss mathematical ideas that connect to how we view the universe, how big is big, how we vote democratically, and what mathematics can—and can’t—prove.
This course is not a pre-algebra, pre-calculus or other
“pre” course where a lot of formulas are introduced and practiced with a lot of “plug and chug”. Rather, in CMth
101 you will examine and dissect great ideas to attain a better understanding of some rich mathematical concepts and, in so doing, sharpen your habits of mind for analyzing life issues that transcend mathematics.
We will embrace our Core partner class, CPhi 101, as we investigate the powerful historical and contemporary connections between mathematics and philosophy. We will cultivate a new respect and outlook for viewing
God’s world by seeing the wonderful mathematical connections that surround us.
Expect to be challenged in this course. Expect to be surprised. Expect to have your eyes opened to the power of mathematical thinking in your everyday life.
G REAT W
=
CM TH 101
Arrow’s Impossibility Theorem
Cantor’s Theorem
Continuum Hypothesis
Elements by Euclid
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G REAT W ORKS FOR CM TH 101, CONTD .
Fibonacci Numbers and Golden Ratio
Liber Abaci by Fibonacci
Incompleteness Theorem
Pigeonhole Principle
Pythagorean Theorem
CP HI 101 I NTRODUCTION TO P HILOSOPHY
In this course you will study and practice rational inquiry into fundamental questions about human wisdom, action, and creativity. In particular, you will examine the elements of rational inquiry, including basics of statement logic and strategies for information gathering. More broadly, you will cover the traditions of western philosophy, beginning with the ancient Greeks and following selected threads in subsequent eras.
Classic texts by selected philosophers are read and studied to weave you through and expose these threads. Topics include ontology, epistemology, aesthetics, ethics, language, and logic.
Because the course is paired with CMth 101 and because philosophy considers that mathematics provides clear examples of rational problem solving, you will investigate mathematical examples along with examples from public policy, life choices, science, literature, the arts, and the professions.
G REAT W ORKS FOR CP HI 101
Apology and Meno by Plato
Discourse on Method and Meditations on First Philosophy by Descartes
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G
REAT
W
ORKS FOR
CP
HI
101,
CONTD
.
Grounding for the Metaphysics of Morals by Kant
Utilitarianism by Mill
CE NG 201 W ORLD L ITERATURE TO THE R ENAISSANCE
What should a husband say to his wife as he leaves her for the battlefield? What should a wife do if her husband abandons her for another woman? Is it worse to murder a man in a fit of anger or con him out of his life savings? Is it a laughable goal or a worthy endeavor to seek justice in an evil world?
Not only are these dilemmas that challenge humanity, they are questions that writers have tried to answer for centuries and that we will address in this course.
Through close readings, frank class discussions, and critical written analyses, you will discover how others have answered these questions from Virgil to
Cervantes. In discovering the answers of others, you will be prompted to reach your own conclusions.
In addition, you will learn the elements of great literature, and, in conjunction with CHst 201, see the interplay of the fictional world with the actual one. You will hone your writing, speaking, and thinking skills— necessary tools for success in college and the work place. And you will be introduced to other disciplines, such as psychology, theatre, and art, in order that you may understand the interdisciplinary nature of your education and of your world.
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One of our authors, Sir Philip Sidney, wrote, “the poet
. . . never affirmeth; the poet never maketh any circles about your imagination, to conjure you to believe for true what he writeth: he citeth not authorities of other histories, but even for his entry calleth the sweet Muses to inspire into him a good invention; in troth, not laboring to tell you what is or is not, but what should or should not be.” Thus, the works of fiction that we read in this course will provide a fertile testing ground for our own ideas of what our lives should look like at
Concordia and beyond.
G REAT W ORKS FOR CE NG 201
Medea by Euripides
Aeneid by Virgil
ShiJing (The Book of Songs)
The Inferno by Dante
Medieval tales
Antony and Cleopatra by Shakespeare
16 th
-century love lyrics from around the world
Don Quixote de la Mancha by Cervantes
The Defense of Poesy by Sidney
CH ST 201 T HE W EST AND THE W ORLD
What should we believe? How should we be governed?
What does it mean to be civilized? The answers to these great questions vary from civilization to civilization, and from era to era. But the distinctive features of western culture—the way we govern ourselves, what we believe and how we practice our religion(s), how we express ourselves in writing and oratory, how we think about the questions of existence, learning, scientific inquiry,
13 justice, beauty and form, happiness and the good—all develop in recognizable form in the ancient civilizations of Greece and Rome.
In this course you will investigate historical developments from the rise of ancient civilizations through the religious reforms of the 16th century.
Throughout, you will keep a keen eye on how different civilizations and eras answered the above three great questions. You will also observe how western civilization informed, reacted to, and evolved with the eastern world.
Your primary investigative tool will be great texts from ancient to medieval times. Since these texts have life— that is, they were written by real people using literary traditions in real historical and cultural circumstances— the historical texts in CHst 201 will be read chronologically alongside the literature of CEng 201. To bring these texts alive in both courses, you will apply historical context to the reading of literature, and the critical literary eye to the reading of historical texts.
Finally, this course is not simply some arbitrary, useless requirement. This is a course that the life of your soul depends on. The witnesses of ancient and medieval history are the lives and living texts of past peoples, who aimed at human virtue, and at virtuous answers to the prevailing questions of history. So to read the witnesses of world history is no less than preparation for life and eternity. As St. Basil said, "We are, then, to receive those words from the pagan authors which
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contain suggestions of the virtues. But since also the renowned deeds of the men of old either are preserved for us by tradition, or are cherished in the pages of poet or historian, we must not fail to profit by them."
G REAT W ORKS FOR CH ST 201
Theogony and Works and Days by Hesiod
The Histories by Herodotus
Politics by Aristotle
Aeneid by Virgil
Lives of the Caesars by Suetonius
On Law, Morality and Politics by Aquinas
Muqaddimah by Ibn Khaldun
The Prince by Macchiavelli
Praise of Folly by Erasmus
Classic wisdom and religious texts from China and Arabia
CE NG 202 W ORLD L IT .
FROM THE E NLIGHTENMENT
Completing the two-year Core journey through the ideas of truth, goodness, and beauty ultimately demands re-learning the disciplines of how to read and how to write. There is no better way to accomplish both than through examining great works of literary art. In this course, you will plumb the great question of “What is art?” through three basic quandaries of literary criticism: What is the author? What is the text? What is the reader?
To plumb these dilemmas, you will read and write about several great works stretching from 1650 to 2004 and spanning the globe. You will engage the literary and historical periods of the English Civil War, German
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Romanticism, Victorianism, American Renaissance,
World War I & II, Colonialism in Africa and India, the
Cold War, the Chinese Cultural Revolution, and post-
September 11 th
America. In reading and writing about great works from these periods and places, you are encouraged to let literature guide you in recognizing thematic parallels with CHst 202 and in revisiting the major questions and ideas of your earlier Core courses in theology, philosophy, and history.
Through lectures, discussions, and papers you will pursue appropriate textual analysis and appreciation.
You will learn a variety of textual analysis methods, but also learn when to stop analyzing and when to simply appreciate Truth and Beauty in literature. The
Postmodern urgency to see through everything—and so see past any meaning in life—is a form of blindness, an intellectual, ethical, and spiritual impediment that you will be encouraged to avoid.
G REAT W ORKS FOR CE NG 202
Pilgrim’s Progress by Bunyan
The Sorrows of Young Werther by Goethe
Jane Eyre by Brontë
Ethan Brand and other tales by Hawthorne
Farewell to Arms by Hemingway
Fatelessness by Kertész
Death and the King’s Horsemen by Soyinka
Nectar in a Sieve by Markandaya
To Live by Hua
Terrorist by Updike
Assorted poems from America, Europe, India, and Russia
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CH ST 202 A MERICA AND THE W ORLD
In this course you will explore spans in time from the voyages of Columbus through the Revolutionary 1700’s, the World Wars, 9/11 through today. As in CHst 201, you will explore three key human questions: What should I believe? How should I be governed? And, what is the nature of a good society? In this course, you will see how these questions have been answered in very similar and disparate ways by people in America and other nations over the last five centuries.
But why should I care about the past? What difference does it make? Here’s one philosopher’s answer to these oft-asked questions: “We live forward, but we can only think backward.” That is to say, the great “human questions” about God, government, and community that shape all of our lives going forward are necessarily informed by our past. We study history, then, because it gives us wisdom to think about life’s big questions today and figure out where we are going from here tomorrow.
The great historian Jakob Burckhardt once told his students that there was only one thing necessary for studying and understanding history: “ Learn how to read.
” You will read a lot in this class—just like in CHst
201—so give yourself plenty of time each day to read, write questions and comments in the margins, and think about what you have read.
If understanding history is “ learning how to read, ” then taking history with a literature course will benefit you
17 greatly. As CHst 202 helps you to appreciate the historical context and significance of literature in CEng
202, so CEng 202 helps you to appreciate the aesthetic expressions and daily experiences of people from other times and places in CHst 202. By taking both courses together you will get a vivid picture of the past so that you too can “live forward by thinking backward.”
G REAT W ORKS FOR CH ST 202
The Four Voyages by Columbus
A Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies by De
Las Casas
Two Treatises of Government by Locke
The Battle of the Books by Swift
The Spirit of the Laws by Montesquieu
Declaration of Independence, Constitution, Federalist
Papers
Common Sense by Paine
The Journals of Lewis and Clark by Lewis and Clark
Address to the Young Men’s Lyceum by Lincoln
On Liberty by Mill
Communist Manifesto by Marx and Engels
Fahrenheit 451 by Bradbury
Seminal political speeches, religious sermons, economic texts, and cultural essays from around the world
H OW C AN I E XCEL IN THE C ORE ?
The Core presents you with new questions, concepts, and intellectual tasks. How can you succeed in these new challenges? We asked students in the Core to give you their advice. Here are their 7 top suggestions:
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1.
Study hard every day
2.
Read and re-read the texts
3.
Pay attention and be open-minded in class
4.
Take good notes
5.
Attend every class
6.
Ask questions and participate in class
7.
Do all of the assignments
None of this should be surprising to you. Nonetheless, it would be wise to take all of this advice to heart right from the start. These academic habits not only lead to success in the Core, they help you excel in any class.
Study, ask questions, and read the assignments twice.
The Core challenges you to think about what the readings are saying so if you don’t understand it the first time, read it again. If you still don’t understand it, don’t be afraid to ask your professor to clarify what the reading means. Also, study for exams. You can’t go into the exam thinking that you’ll ace it without any previous studying. (Anonymous student, class of 2014)
As a university student, you have a lot of freedom, so wield it to your academic advantage. Use your freedom to attend and participate in class. Use it to set aside ample time each day, week, and month to study hard and do all your assignments to the best of your ability.
By taking control of your freedom and applying it to academics, you can excel in the Core.
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W HERE D O I G O I F I N EED H ELP WITH A C ORE
C OURSE ?
All students need help with a Core course at one time or another. This is nothing to be ashamed about; the Core is a rigorous academic experience. Besides, part of being a wise individual is knowing when you need help, admitting it, and seeking it. So where should you go if you need assistance with a Core course? Here are some suggestions.
Office Hours
All professors have posted office hours to meet with students. Many professors are eager to set up other times to meet with you outside of office hours too. If you have a question or problem—or just want to pursue a topic of interest—go and speak with your professor.
They are here to help you learn.
Core Peer Tutors
Each Core course has one or a few professor-picked peer tutors to assist you alongside of your professor.
These tutors can help you comprehend readings, course content, and assignments as wells as coach you in reading, note-taking, and study skills. To see who the peer tutors are for your Core courses, their contact information, and when and where to meet with them, consult your syllabi or ask your professors.
Writing Center
All of the Core courses have writing assignments. If you have questions about or need guidance in writing a
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paper, you should see your professor first. Additionally, you can go to the Writing Center. There you will find faculty-selected student tutors who will help you brainstorm and organize ideas, improve your editing skills, and check for proper formatting and documentation. For more information, go to: http://www.cui.edu/studentlife/writing-center .
Library
If you need help finding printed or electronic sources to research a topic and write a paper, go to the library.
The staff there can help you find the best sources. Go well ahead of the paper’s due date as some sources may need to be requested from another library—which is rather typical when doing any kind of scholarly research. For information on the library and access to its catalog and research databases, go to: http://www.cui.edu/library .
Study Groups
One of the benefits of being in a small learning community like the Core is that you form closer bonds with your classmates. If you need help studying for a test or figuring out a complex issue, join or set up a study group with some classmates. While study groups should never replace the rigor, responsibility, and reward of individualized study, they can be a wonderful forum for testing and sharpening your knowledge and thinking.
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Study Skills Resources
For guides and videos on successful reading, notetaking, time management, writing, and testpreparation skills, see: http://www.cui.edu/studentservices/disability-learningresource-center/index.aspx?id=19388 http://www.dartmouth.edu/~acskills/videos/index.html
http://csd.mcmaster.ca/academic/onlineresources.html
Disability and Learning Resource Center
If you need reasonable accommodation for a Core class due to a documented disability, contact the Disability and Learning Resource Center. For more information, go to: http://www.cui.edu/studentlife/disabilitylearning-resource-center .
W HAT ABOUT C ORE RELATED E VENTS ?
While there are many stimulating co-curricular experiences for you to participate in and enjoy at
Concordia—convocations, plays, music performances, art exhibits, etc.—some out-of-class events are specifically linked to your Core courses.
Core Course Trips
Professors of a Core course, e.g., biology or history, occasionally organize and lead local trips for you to reinforce and expand on your learning in that course.
Examples include fossil beds in Orange County and the
Getty Villa in Malibu.
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First-Year Experience (FYE) Excursions
FYE complements and supplements the Core by offering off-campus trips and on-campus events where freshmen engage in further discussion and learning about a variety of educational issues with Core professors. Previous excursions have included the
Natural Museum of History in San Diego, the Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles, and art galleries in Laguna
Beach.
CUI Bono
CUI Bono , a voluntary student-led academic society, promotes deeper thinking about the ultimate questions that arise from lectures, texts, and conversations in your Core courses and beyond. Students of all levels interact with professors from an array of departments.
CUI Bono hosts several events for your intellectual enjoyment each year. Examples include a retreat to
Lake Arrowhead in September, a monthly lecture series, and debates on special topics. For information about this semester’s events, go to: http://www.cui.edu/studentlife/first-yearexperience/index.aspx?id=20958 .
F REQUENTLY A SKED Q UESTIONS (FAQ S )
What is Core Convocation? When and where do we meet for this?
Whenever you register for a linked pair of Core courses your schedule is automatically blocked off for Core
Convocation on Wednesdays from 10:30-12:00. This is not a separate course. This time is set apart for you to engage in various activities related to your Core
23 courses. Some linked pairs might use this time to meet in plenary fashion for special lectures or discussions.
Others might use this time for tutorials. To find out which Wednesdays you will be meeting and where, consult your syllabi or ask your professors.
May classes taken at another university transfer in for Core courses? What about receiving credit for Core courses through AP (Advanced
Placement) or CLEP (College Level Examination
Program)?
The content, requirements, and aims of Concordia’s
Core courses are different enough from classes at other universities that they need to be taken at Concordia.
Similar classes from another university may count toward your graduation requirements at Concordia, but they will not fulfill Core course requirements. The same is true for AP and CLEP credit. To find out what credit you might receive for AP, CLEP, or classes taken elsewhere, speak with the Registrar’s Office.
Are the Core courses transferable to other universities?
The general answer is yes. Since all of the Core courses are college-level courses, they typically are transferable. The next question is whether a specific university will accept a particular Core course in fulfillment of a general education requirement, major or minor requirement, or as an elective toward graduation requirements. This answer can only be determined case by case. To figure this out, speak with the Office of Advising and Registrar’s Office.
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Are Core courses offered online or in the summer?
No. Since the Core courses are structured for frequent face-to-face interaction with classmates and professors, they are not offered online. Typically there are no undergraduate courses offered on campus in the summer; this applies to the Core too.
May I withdraw from a Core course?
Because the Core Curriculum fosters the academic virtues of responsibility, merit, and integrity and its linked Core courses are to be taken as interdisciplinary pairs for a whole semester, you may normally withdraw from a Core course only in a couple of situations. These are: 1) an exceptional, documented, personal tragedy that has prevented you from participating in and fulfilling the requirements of the course and
2) withdrawal from the university.
A withdrawal (W) from a Core course may also be requested from the professor and Director of Core
Curriculum in weeks ten (10) or eleven (11) if you are in jeopardy of failing the course and meet the following merit-based conditions: you have attended 90% of the classes up to that point, have handed in almost all of the assignments, taken all available tests, spoken promptly with your professor each time after receiving an academic warning, and followed through on your professor’s advice for academic improvement.
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What do I do if I withdraw from or fail a Core course?
If you have withdrawn from or failed a Core course, you will need to retake it the next semester along with the next pair of Core courses. To register for an unlinked
Core course, you will need to get the signature of the
Director of Core Curriculum on an Add/Drop form and take it to the Registrar’s Office.
May I retake a Core course to improve my grade?
Yes, you may. As with other courses at Concordia, you may retake a Core course that you have passed at a later time to learn more and earn a better grade. Only the higher grade will count toward your GPA.
What do I do if there is a scheduling conflict between the Core and another course that I need to take?
For scheduling conflicts, speak with the Advising
Office. They will walk you through your options and help you to resolve these problems.
May I study abroad before finishing the Core course sequence?
Studying abroad is a wonderful way to gain a global perspective on life, an outcome consonant with the
Core. To be considered for study abroad you ordinarily need to have completed four semesters at Concordia or attained junior status. Exceptions to this residency requirement may be requested from the Office of the
Provost. If granted, you will need to pick up the Core sequence again the first semester back on campus.
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Where can I find and read great works that are not covered in my Core courses?
The library has an entire section on the lower level called the Great Books Collection. This collection contains hundreds of great works from ancient
Mesopotamia to Medieval Europe to modern-day China in diverse subjects of life like philosophy, science, mathematics, religion, literature, history, economics, politics, and psychology.
W HOM S HOULD I C ONTACT ?
For questions about the Core in general or a Core course in particular, please contact the following:
Director of Core Curriculum: Dr. Scott Ashmon
Scott.Ashmon@cui.edu
Beta 203A
Lead Professor for CMth 101: Dr. Melinda Schulteis
Melinda.Schulteis@cui.edu
Alpha 103A
Lead Professor for CPhi 101: Dr. James Bachman
James.Bachman@cui.edu
Beta 209C
Lead Professor for CBio 101: Dr. Rod Soper
Rod.Soper@cui.edu
Founders Hall 209
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Lead Professor for CThl 101: Dr. Korey Maas
Korey.Maas@cui.edu
Beta 203B
Lead Professor for CENG 201: Dr. Kerri Tom
Kerri.Tom@cui.edu
Alpha 105B
Lead Professor for CHst 201: Prof. C.J. Armstrong
Clinton.Armstrong@cui.edu
Beta 205B
Lead Professor for CEng 202: Prof. Adam Lee
Adam.Lee@cui.edu
Alpha 104
Lead Professor for CHst 202: Dr. Daniel van Voorhis
Daniel.Vanvoorhis@cui.edu
Alpha 108A
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