Received by the Graduate Council—May 2, 2011
GRADUATE COUNCIL CURRICULUM COMMITTEE (GCCC)
Fourth Meeting/2010-11 Academic Year
April 11, 2011
Approved
p. i of iv
PRESENT:
G. Bennardo (LAS/ANTH), B. Bond (Graduate School), E. Niemi (EDU/CAHE/Student),
R. Orem (EDU/LTCY), J. Umoren (HHS/FCNS), L. Zittel (EDU/KNPE)
CONSULTANTS: D. Smith (Catalog Editor/Curriculum Coordinator)
GUESTS:
D. Gough, N. Nuzzo, M. Pritchard
Graduate Council curriculum Committee Chair Umoren called the meeting to order and congratulated
Bond on his permanent appointment as dean of the graduate school and vice president for graduate studies.
APPROVAL OF AGENDA
Orem made a motion, seconded by Zittel, to APPROVE THE AGENDA. Motion passed unanimously.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
1. Minutes from the March 21, 2011, meeting approved and sent electronically.
2. Items reported for inclusion in the Graduate Catalog by another standing committee of the
Graduate Council—Section D.
3.
CONSENT AGENDA
Orem made a motion, seconded by Niemi, TO ACCEPT THE CONSENT AGENDA. Motion passed
unanimously.
The following college curriculum committee minutes with no graduate-level attachments were so received.
College of Business #9
College of Health and Human Sciences #8
College of Health and Human Sciences #9
College of Health and Human Sciences #10
The following college curriculum committee minutes with graduate-level attachments were so received.
None
COLLEGE MINUTES FOR DISCUSSION
College of Health and Human Sciences #11
Received by the Graduate Council—May 2, 2011
GRADUATE COUNCIL CURRICULUM COMMITTEE (GCCC)
Fourth Meeting/2010-11 Academic Year
April 11, 2011
Approved
p. ii of iv
Zittel made a motion, seconded by Orem, to ACCEPT THE GRADUATE-LEVEL CURRICULAR
ITEMS IN COLLEGE OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SCIENCES #11 (3/25/11). Pritchard explained that
the college recently added the D.P.T. program and the first cohort began last fall. But they still have
licensed student enrolled who need a degree completion program and Nuzzo spearheaded the effort to add
this transitional D.P.T. program for students with a bachelor’s or master’s in physical therapy. Nuzzo
explained that their accrediting bodies will require the D.P.T. by 2015, and the transitional D.P.T. will
enable current students to achieve that. Having this program will also allow NIU to be competitive with
other institutions that offer the D.P.T. The transitional D.P.T. will consist of existing courses with the
exception of the new course in digital imaging. The program will consist of both online and face-to-face
courses with the face-to-face courses being held at the Wellness and Literacy Center. Nuzzo noted that
due to the nature of the students, that they are clinical practitioners, the school felt they could eliminate the
requirement of the GRE and asked that that sentence be removed. Bond stated that this is acceptable and
the program will be added to the front of the catalog as well as a one of the programs that do not require an
admissions exam. Nuzzo also stated that there are discussions to have Illinois be a direct access state;
where patients may go directly to a physical therapist without a doctor’s prescription. But if this is to
happen, the preference is to have those practitioners have a doctoral degree. Orem asked about the
timeline for the transitional D.P.T. and it was reported that there would probably only be need for the
program for about five years. It was clarified that faculty would not need additional training to offer the
coursework online as most of them are already presenting their courses in this manner. Pritchard added
that the college developed the online courses with strategic planning funds and will do additional training
if need be. Orem asked about a capstone project and Nuzzo responded that students at the very least have
to develop a publishable case study that includes a literature search. She added that this meets the
standards of their accrediting body. Zittel made an amendment to the motion, seconded by Orem, to
DELETE THE GRE REQUIREMENT AND ADD THE PROGRAM TO THE LIST OF PROGRAMS IN
THE CATALOG THAT DO NOT REQUIRE AN ADMISSIONS EXAM. Motion passed
unanimously.
OLD BUSINESS
1. New forms for new courses/course revisions. No report.
2. CEDU #5
The GCCC tabled new courses LESM 552 and LESM 553 for verification of nonduplication
from departments outside the College of Education and make parenthetical information the
prerequisites. Smith reported that the department has revised the course outline for LESM 552
and will need to resubmit to the College of Business, so they have withdrawn this new course
proposal at this time. She added that she received correspondence that the college has
verification of nonduplication for LESM 553 from the Department of Leadership, Educational
Psychology and Foundations, but has yet to receive the actual documentation. Zittel made a
motion, seconded by Bennardo, to RECEIVE THE NEW COURSE PROPOSAL FOR LESM
553 PENDING VERIFICATION OF NONDUPLICATION AND CONFIRMATION THAT
THE PARENTHETICAL TEXT BE CHANGED TO A PREREQUISITE. Motion passed
unanimously. [Note: These items were received.]
Received by the Graduate Council—May 2, 2011
GRADUATE COUNCIL CURRICULUM COMMITTEE (GCCC)
Fourth Meeting/2010-11 Academic Year
April 11, 2011
Approved
p. iii of iv
NEW BUSINESS
1. Revisions to the Academic Policies and Procedures Manual (APPM). Bond explained that
in response to federal action; the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) will require
institutions to report on courses and programs that can be offered via distance education.
The HLC has provided a definition of distance education, which is included in the
revisions to the APPM. Last year, NIU began collecting this information through a survey
of all departments, asking them to note which courses are offered through distance
education 50% or more of the time. In addition, if a program can be completed with 50%
or more of courses that are identified as distance education, that program is identified as a
distance education program. NIU currently has five programs, which have not been
approved to be distance education with the IBHE or the HLC. NIU will be required to
report what’s available in the distance modality beginning July 1, 2011. Therefore, going
forward, a procedure needs to be in place to approve these courses and, subsequently, to
approve the programs that can be completed with distance education courses. Therefore,
revisions have been proposed to the APPM, which need to be approved first by the
curriculum committees (GCCC, CUC), then by their respective councils (Graduate
Council, Undergraduate Coordinating Council). Niemi asked if courses and programs
identified as distance education have to be taken as such by students, or can be an option
for students, and Bond responded that these are an option for students. Discussion
followed regarding the approval process involved and suggestions for expediting approval
as well as the pros and cons of online versus face-to-face delivery. It was also clarified
that a distance education course or program is not noted as such on a student’s transcript
and that faculty will need to receive training to be able to offer a course with a distance
education modality. Bond noted that he will have a few minor revisions and will develop
a cover sheet for new course proposals. Niemi made a motion, seconded by Zittel, to
APPROVE THE REVISIONS TO THE APPM WITH REVISIONS TO COME FROM
BOND. Motion passed unanimously. Zittel asked how this should be communicated to
departments. Bond noted that the Graduate Council will vote on this and those
representatives should report back to their colleges. He added that this can be reported to
the curricular deans the next time that group meets. See also Appendix A.
OTHER BUSINESS
Umoren asked why the grade change proposal didn’t come to the GCCC and it was noted that it is not a
curricular issue. She then thanked GCCC members for their time this year.
Niemi made a motion, seconded by Orem to ADJOURN THE MEETING. Motion passed by
acclamation. The meeting adjourned at 11:35.
Received by the Graduate Council—May 2, 2011
GRADUATE COUNCIL CURRICULUM COMMITTEE (GCCC)
Fourth Meeting/2010-11 Academic Year
April 11, 2011
Approved
p. iv of iv
The next meeting of the Graduate Council Curriculum Committee is tentatively scheduled for October 10,
2011, 10:00, Conference Room 304, Lowden Hall.
Respectfully submitted,
Donna M. Smith