Faculty Senate Curriculum, Assessment & Programs Committee
MEETING MINUTES
April 11, 2014
Attendance: Dan Adams, Bridgett Blaque, Susan Bluhm, Dan Bouweraerts, Natalie Brown, Jamie Campbell, Tara
Connolly, Fini Dobyns, Bob Fletcher, Judy Fredrickson, Paula Frioli, Pam Hawkins, Blisin Hestiyas, Mike Holmes, Jeffrey
Metcalf, Staci Miller, Cindy Mortensen, Michelle Noel, Melanie Purdy, Jian Wang, Neil Whitehurst
Absent: Amy Blomquist, Lance Bowen, Becky Calhoun (her proxy was Melanie Purdy), (Kurt Ehlers (his proxy was Blisin
Hestiyas), Andy Hughes, Denise Lackamp
Guests: Lee Bale, Armida, Fruzzetti, Julie Muhle, Marie Murgolo-Poore, Jim New, Jane Nichols, Laurel Santos, Randy
Walden, Sharon Wurm
Meeting called to order: 9:00 a.m.
Approval of the Meeting Minutes from February 14, 2014 – Passed; Bridgett Blaque / Neil Whitehurst
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Bachelor of Applied Science – Factors/CAP Input – Dr. Jane Nichols
Dr. Nichols discussed the decision process for determining whether TMCC would like to consider offering BAS
degrees, what the process might look like, and what CAP’s role might be within that process. Currently, we are
only looking at offering a BAS degree, but we could also look at possibly offering a BA and BS degree as well.
The process will be long, but during Dr. Nichol’s discussions with President Sheehan, the president has expressed
her support in moving forward with determining if we would like to offer any BAS degrees, as long as it will benefit
our students.
One current myth going around is that, if we offer a bachelor’s degree, we must change the name of TMCC. This is
false. Our name is not connected to us offering bachelor’s degrees. The NSHE Procedures and Guidelines are very
clear on the process for changing the name of an NSHE institution. Concerns for changing our name include the
expense of changing all our signage, letterhead, etc. If we decide we would like to change our name, we can then
submit that to the Board of Regents, per NSHE Procedures and Guidelines, but we are not required to do so.
The process for getting approval to offer a bachelor’s degree at TMCC:
1. The President would present our proposal to the Council of NSHE Presidents, to advise them of the BA degrees
we are considering. The NSHE Presidents would then advise as to whether they are better equipped to offer
the degrees. Any NSHE President that believes their institution can provide the bachelor’s degree in a better
format has a maximum of two years to bring that degree before the Board of Regents, or else it will revert
back to us. This can become a rather messy process. Dr. Nichols is not willing to take a proposal forward that
is likely to be taken away by UNR.
2. We would need to determine which bachelor’s degrees we want to pursue. There is nothing in the policy that
prohibits us from offering a bachelor’s degree. The dental hygiene department is doing other things and not
interested in these discussions. All we are currently looking at right now is a BAS degree, which requires an
AAS degree as the pathway to the bachelor’s level. The AAS is already set in place and we would then add the
BAS requirements on top of that. There are a variety of models we can look at. Dr. Nichols has already
introduced this discussion to the Deans and they are open to pursuing it.
The proposed Bachelor’s degree must meet a specific set of criteria, including:
1. The degree cannot be in competition with a degree already offered at UNR or other institutions in our area.
The degree must be workforce related and there must be a need for the program.
2. The proposed degree would need student support; i.e. students are willing to enroll in the program to achieve
graduation. For TMCC, Dr. Nichols believes this is a good time for us to consider developing baccalaureate
degrees. These degrees would be funded at the same level for the classes as UNR is funded.
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3. UNR does not distinguish between general education at the lower levels and those programs at the upperdivision levels. We can decide to add more general education classes, but are not compelled to do that. It
would depend upon the field of concentration.
4. The degree must be at least 120 credits. This is determined by the Board of Regents, so we would want to try
and stay within that requirement as much as possible as we build our proposals.
5. We would need to determine how to structure faculty workload. GBC was the first community college to start
offering a bachelor’s degree. They have no distinction in pay between whether their faculty members teach a
200-level or a 400-level course.
Other Issues to Consider:
1. Timeline – we are driven by the academic calendar and our course catalog. We cannot move forward until a
proposal is created and the process is defined. First, we need to define the framework of what we want to
offer. This would include defining what the degree is, the standards that need to be set, and how we intend to
offer the required courses. We could potentially work on this next year and take our proposal before the
Board of Regents next April for approval. We could then begin offering the degree in Fall 2016.
2. Accreditation: We would need to meet the criteria spelled out by the Northwest Commission and submit our
proposal for their approval. Criteria includes whether or not we have the faculty and the library to support a
bachelor’s degree. We would need to demonstrate that we have the capacity to support the degrees we are
proposing. President Sheehan has already alerted the Chancellor and the Northwest Commission that we are
exploring the bachelor’s degree option, and this idea has been well received by both.
Dr. Nichols asked that Chair Purdy put together some models to present to the committee next month so we can
begin having robust discussions on a structured proposal.
It was suggested that an email should be sent out to all faculty, to communicate what we are planning, invite
participation by all faculty, and dispel some of the myths that might warp the perceptions of our faculty. Many
people are in error that the administration is pushing for our institution to offer bachelor’s degrees. We want this
proposal to be a grass roots process with feedback from everyone, and not just be prompted by our
administration. Dr. Nichols agreed to send out an email to everyone next week.
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Common Course Numbering Procedure Update – Dr. Lance Bowen
Dr. Bowen was unable to attend this meeting. This issue will be discussed at our meeting on May 9th.
Fini advised the committee that the CCN long form we use to notify the system of our offerings has been revised
by NSHE. The most recent version is now available on our Faculty Senate website. We now need to start using
this new form.
Additionally, when we revise a course that has been listed for a long time at TMCC, we still need to notify all of the
other institutions of any changes, and provide a copy of the syllabus or course outline. This will allow the faculty at
our sister institutions to verify that our course is 80% in line with their course. If we do not hear back from them
within 10 days, it is assumed that our change is approved by them. The NSHE office then has 14 days in which to
notify us as to whether our paperwork has been accepted by them. We must not publish the course until we
receive this notification that our paperwork has been approved.
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Course Contact Hours and Course Number of Credits
The question was asked as to how the course contact hours impact the course number of credits. Jeffrey Metcalf
stated that, if we do not put something into the field, the default is 50 hours. In order to confirm what is correct,
our catalog states “lecture hours.” It specifies 15 lecture hours for every 1.0 credit hour of class. This does not
include additional hours such as labs. It is not the Admissions and Records office’s place to define this for us;
however, they do need to know what the requirement for the class is.
This issue impacts classes such as certifications for automotive, where contact hours are a 20:1 ratio.
Traditionally, studio classes are a 30:1 ratio. We rely on the expertise of our faculty in each discipline to determine
what the contact hours should be, based on accepted standards. We need to determine how many hours will be
dedicated to lecture and how many hours will be dedicated to shop/lab time, etc.
In order to add more clarity for our committee members as they review proposals, it was suggested that
information be provided as to how the course submitter came up with the contact ratio and whether the students
will be getting their full value in the class. It was also suggested that we include a direct link to the NFA rules,
which specifies more guidelines.
Page 2 of 4; Curriculum, Assessment & Programs Meeting Minutes
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Master Course Outlines
Deletions:
Passed; Fini Dobyns / Pam Hawkins
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DRV 101 – CDL Permit Preparation
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DRV 110 – Driver Resource Management
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DRV 120 – Pre-Trip Inspection
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DRV 130 – Driver Maneuvers
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DRV 140 – Over-The-Road Driving Skills
New:
Passed; Dan Adams / Fini Dobyns
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PPF 198 – Special Topics in Plumbers and Pipefitters Apprenticeship
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ELECT 198 – Special Topics in Electrical Apprenticeship
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OPE 198 – Special Topics in Operating Engineers Apprenticeship
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SKC 86 – College Transition Math
Revisions:
Passed; Mike Holmes / Fini Dobyns
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ELM 127 – Introduction to AC Controls
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ELM 129 – Electric Motors and Drives
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ELM 134 – Programmable Logic Controllers I
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ELM 233 – Introduction to Instrumentation
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ENGR 110 – Basic Electricity
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MPT 110 – Automated Production Concepts I
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MPT 120 – Automated Production Concepts II
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MPT 135 – Material Handling
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MPT 140 – Quality Control
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MT 108 – Fluid Power (Pneumatics Hydraulics, Instrumentation)
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READ 95 – Reading and Improvement
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BIOL 106 – Introduction to Evolution and Adaptation (sic)
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SW 101 – Introduction to Social Work
Current General Education Courses Revised to Meet New Criteria:
Passed; Jamie Campbell / Dan Adams
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BIOL 106 – Introduction to Evolution and Adaptation
Note: The quantitative reasoning and critical thinking were updated. The committee reviewed the outcomes,
which look good.
Passed; Pam Hawkins / Fini Dobyns
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ECON 102 – Principles of Microeconomics
Amendments include: The course class size and lecture hours need to be filled in. Under the course description,
clarification is needed as to whether the course meets the UNR Social Science requirement. Also, minor changes to
the objectives.
Passed; Dan Bouweraerts / Bridgett Blaque
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ECON 103 – Principles of Macroeconomics
Amendments include: The course class size and lecture hours need to be filled in. Under the course description,
clarification is needed as to whether the course meets the UNR Social Science requirement. Also, minor changes to
the objectives.
Outcome/Measure Revisions
Note: This item requires no CAP Committee action and was processed through the office of the Associate Dean of
Assessment and Planning, per policy approved by the TMCC President. This is provided as an informational item only:
There were no Outcome/Measure Revisions this meeting.
Page 3 of 4; Curriculum, Assessment & Programs Meeting Minutes
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4/11/14
Current AA/AS General Education Courses
Still Needing to be Reviewed by the CAP Committee
The committee members were encouraged to go back to their departments and get this work done. These courses need to
be reviewed, to ensure they meet our newly revised Gen Ed criteria, and also so we can meet our accreditation
requirements.
If we receive a lot of submissions, Melanie will ask the committee members to work in teams to get them approved.
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AAD / HUM 201
ANTH 101, 102, 110l, 201, 202
ANTH/SOC 205
ART 100, 160, 260, 261, 263
AST 104
BIOL 191/191L
CHEM 100, 121, 122, 201, 202
CH 201, 202, 203
CS 282
DAN 101
ENG 113, 114, 220, 221, 231, 232, 267
ENV 100
GEOG 103, 104, 106, 121, 200
GEOL 100, 101, 105R
HUM 101, 102, 106, 271
HUM 105/THTR 180
MUS 101, 121, 122, 125, 225, 226
NUTR 121
PHIL 101, 135, 210
PHYS 100, 117, 151, 152, 180-180L, 181-181L
PSY 101
SOC 101
THTR 100, 105, 210
WMST 101
New Business:
None
Meeting Schedule for AY2014:
MCOs DUE to CAP
3/28/14
4/25/14
For REVIEW at CAP on
4/11/14
5/9/14
Meeting adjourned at 10:12 am.
Page 4 of 4; Curriculum, Assessment & Programs Meeting Minutes
TMCC is an EEO/AA institution. See http://eeo.tmcc.edu for more information.
4/11/14