1
Liberal Arts Program Review
University of Hawai`i
Maui College
Liberal Arts
Associate in Arts Degree
Program Review
2012-2013
Jennifer Owen
Liberal Arts Coordinator
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Liberal Arts Program Review
Mission of the Associate in Arts Degree Program in Liberal Arts
The Associate in Arts Degree Program in Liberal Arts is designed to provide
students with a broad education in liberal arts and/or to prepare them for
transfer to a baccalaureate degree program at a four-year college or university.
I.
QUANTITATIVE INDICATORS
A. Demand based on enrollment

Number of students with a focus in the Liberal Arts
FY 12-13: 2034
Table 1: Number of students declaring a Liberal Arts major and percentage of increase or
decrease of such students from year to year.
F 07
08-09
09-10
10-11
11-12
12-13
1,288
1,574
2014
2160
2149
2034
12% increase
22% increase
28% increase
7% increase
½% (.5%) decrease
5.3% decrease
The number of students categorized as Liberal Arts majors decreased for the
second year in a row, after many years of increases.

SSH for students declaring a Liberal Arts major: 25,598
Student Semester Hours (SSH) for students declaring as Liberal Arts majors
have also decreased for the second year, with a 5.3% decrease.

SSH for non-Liberal Arts Majors: 12,570
SSH in Liberal Arts classes for majors in other programs have decreased for
the first time (a 7% decrease) after a 3% increase in the previous year
following an 11% increase in 10-11, a 27% increase in 09-10, and a 62%
increase in 08-09.

SSH for all Liberal Arts classes: 37,198
SSH in all Liberal Arts classes have decreased 5% in the last year as
compared to a 1 ½ % decrease in 11-12, an 8% increase in 10-11, a 29%
increase in 09-10, and an 86% increase in 08-09.

FTE Enrollment for students with a focus in the Liberal Arts: 1,240
The number of Full Time Equivalents (FTE) has similarly decreased 5% in
the last year after a 1 ½ % decrease in 11-12, an 8% increase in 10-11 and an
increase of 29% in 09-10. FTE is calculated as 15 credits per term.
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Liberal Arts Program Review

Number of Liberal Arts Classes Taught: 574
With moderate 5% decreases in SSH and FTE for Liberal Arts Majors, the
number of Liberal Arts classes have basically stayed the same as a year ago,
with four more classes offered than during the previous year. The average
class size decreased by approximately one student per class, from 22.9 in 1112 to 21.8 in 12-13.
Table 2: Number of Liberal Arts Classes taught and percentage increase of such
classes from year to year.
08-09
09-10
10-11
11-12
12-13
401
496
567
570
574
77% increase
24% increase
14% increase
½ % increase
½ % increase
B. Efficiency

Average Class Size in Liberal Arts classes: 21.8
Table 3: Average class size in Liberal Arts classes
08-09
09-10
10-11
11-12
12-13
23.6
24.7
23.7
22.9
21.8

Fill Rate: 89.6%
Table 4: Fill rate in Liberal Arts classes
08-09
09-10
10-11
11-12
12-13
91%
94%
92%
88%
89.6

FTE BOR appointed program faculty: 32.7
The number of Full Time Equivalent Board of Regents (BOR) appointed
program faculty has increased to 32.7 from the previous year’s 32.3. This
positive news reflects the hiring of one full time English faculty and one full
time Math faculty, both temporary faculty positions paid for by the C3T
grant. No new positions were created in Liberal Arts. Furthermore, Liberal
Arts is far from caught up to the FTE BOR in 2009-2010, which was 37.8.
The current number of 32.7 reflects a continued failure to add new positions
in areas where more and more lecturers are being hired full time to teach the
growing number of liberal arts classes.
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Liberal Arts Program Review

Number of majors per FTE BOR Appointed Faculty: 62.2
This number decreased from 66.6 the previous year (a 6 ½% decrease),
indicating primarily the effect of a 5% decrease in Liberal Arts majors and
indicating secondarily the effect of creating two temporary faculty positions,
which helped address the Liberal Arts’ need for more faculty positions.
Table 5: Number of students declaring Liberal Arts major per FTE BOR
appointed faculty
07-08
08-09
09-10
10-11
11-12
12-13
29
45.5
53.3
72.0
66.6
62.2

Analytic FTE Faculty: 62.9

Number of Low-Enrolled Classes (Under 10 Enrolled): 38
The number of low-enrolled classes increased by two. With enrollments
decreasing for the second year, UHMC’s Liberal Arts Program will need to
consider offering slightly fewer courses going forward so as to maintain a
healthy fill rate and class size.
C. Effectiveness

Successful Completion: 75%
Completion of courses with a C grade or higher has increased from 73%
the year before.

Withdrawals: 770
Withdrawals have decreased substantially from 846 from the year before.

Persistence of majors fall to spring: 68.6%
Table 6: Persistence
Face to face classes
Online classes
07-08
08-09
66%
70%
76%
09-10
73%
70%
10-11
11-12
12-13
72%
72%
68.6%
79%
69%
74%
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Liberal Arts Program Review

Number of AA Degrees Awarded: 171
Table 7: AA Degrees awarded 2006-2013
2006-7
2007-8
2008-9
2009-10
2010-11
2011-12
2012-13
97
96
96
122
152
161*
171
The number of degrees awarded increased 6.2%

Number of students classified as Liberal Arts majors transferring within
the UH System without earning an AA Degree: 112
The number of students transferred within the UH System increased
dramatically from 69 to 112. Since transfer is one of the goals of the Liberal
Arts Program, UHMC can consider the sum of degrees awarded (171) and
transfers (112) as the total picture of success. Therefore, UHMC has
experienced a 23% increase over the year before in total AA in Liberal Arts
degrees awarded and Liberal Arts student transfers within the UH System.
Perhaps more students are staying within the state for higher education
because of economic pressures and the affordability of state tuition. The
UHCC Memorandum of Agreement (Executive Policy E5.209) that accepts
each college’s foundation requirements and the “Automatic Admission”
policy within the UHCC system is also encouraging such transfers.
The “number of students transferred” refers only to transfers within the UH
college system. The UH Institutional Research Office has no data for
students who transferred to educational institutions in other states.
Graduation in the Liberal Arts is tied to the AA Degree. However, not all Liberal Arts
students aspire to earn the AA Degree. UHMC supports a system to more accurately
identify students’ goals when they enter college, such as the proposed “General
Studies pre-major.” Students declaring this pre-major would then clarify their goals as
they refine their educational plan during their studies at UHMC and would not be
erroneously classified as part of the Liberal Arts Program.
Furthermore, given that the number of transfer students is higher than what is being
officially reported, the number of UHMC Liberal Arts students achieving their goals
(which includes transfer to a four-year college outside of the state) is higher than the
sum of those earning the AA degree from UHMC and transferring within the UH
system.
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Liberal Arts Program Review
II.
OUTCOME AND GOAL ACHIEVEMENT
A. Program Learning Outcomes (PLOs)
In addition to the College-wide Academic Student Learning Outcomes,
graduates who qualify for the A.A. degree in Liberal Arts perform the
following skills in multiple fields of study at a level that shows readiness for
upper division college coursework:
1) Demonstrate an understanding of theories, practices, histories, and
key issues of a field of study using essential terminology and concepts
of the discipline.
2) Use theories, concepts, and practices of a field of study to analyze
evidence, artifacts, and/or texts and produce interpretations,
hypotheses, evaluations, or conclusions.
3) Apply theories and/or methods of a field of study to perform
practical, scholarly, and/or creative tasks that respond to social,
cultural, environmental, or economic issues.
Program Map
See pp. 18-19 in UHMC’s 2013-2014 online or printed catalog.
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Liberal Arts Program Review
Assessment Plan
AA PLOs
Students will
demonstrate
knowledge of
the individual
in relation to
behavior,
ideas and
values.
Students will
demonstrate
knowledge of
the diversity
of human
conditions
and cultures
in local and
global
communities.
Students will
demonstrate
knowledge of
techniques of
creative
expression
and its
evaluation.
Students will
demonstrate
knowledge of
natural
systems and
environmental
issues.
Students will
demonstrate
knowledge of
the multiple
dimensions of
the
Asia/Pacific
region.
Students will
demonstrate
knowledge of
the multiple
dimensions of
Hawai’i.
Fall 2010
PSY 240
(indirect)
Spring
2011
PSY 240
BIOL 100
(indirect)
Fall 2011
PSY 100
& PSY
240
(direct)
Spring 2012
Analysis of
direct
assessments
HIST 151
& 152
SOC 100
(indirect)
ART 105
(direct)
HUM 100
(indirect)
ART 105
ART
243/244
(direct &
indirect)
HUM 100
(indirect)
ART 105
ART
243/244
(direct &
indirect)
BOT 105
OCN 201
ASTR
110
(indirect)
BOT 105
(indirect)
HIST 242
(indirect)
GEOG
122
HAW 107
BOT 105
(indirect)
BOT 105
(indirect)
Fall 2012
Spring 2013
Fall 2013
Approved
revised AA
Degree in
LA (with
new PLOs)
Assessment
Of new PLOs
in Soc. Sci.
courses ECON
130 or 131 and
ANTH 200
Direct
assessment
of PLO #2
Analysis of
direct
assessments
Direct
assessment
of PLO #3
Analysis of
direct
assessments
Direct
assessment
of PLO #5
Analysis of
direct
assessments
Action Plan
Direct
assessment
of PLO #6
Analysis of
direct
assessments
Action Plan
Analysis of
direct
assessments
Assessment
Of new PLOs
In Global MultiCultural FoundaTions course
REL 150
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Liberal Arts Program Review
B. Analysis of Student Outcome and Goal Achievement
Direct assessments of PLOs #2 & #3 of the AA degree in Liberal Arts were conducted during
fall semester 2012 and analyzed and evaluated during spring semester 2013. Fall 2012, major
revisions to the AA degree in Liberal Arts were approved by the Liberal Arts faculty and
during spring 2013 were approved by the Chancellor of UHMC and the UH Board of
Regents. During spring 2013 the Liberal Arts faculty approved newly drafted PLOs
appropriate to the revised degree requirements, and revised the assessment plan (as seen
above) to accommodate the new PLOs and degree requirements. Fall 2013, the Liberal Arts
faculty has begun to implement the assessment plan with direct assessments of 3 - 4 courses
that fulfill the Global Multi-Cultural Perspectives Foundation requirement and the Social
Sciences requirement.
During the spring of 2012, Liberal Arts faculty decided that the level of achievement required
of graduates earning the AA Degree in Liberal Arts should demonstrate sufficient
understanding of AA Degree Program Learning Outcomes and their associated hallmarks to
demonstrate the proficiency expected from a UHMC graduate earning the degree. This
“expected proficiency” is not precisely measurable or quantifiable, and so must be
determined through faculty discussions such as those arising out of the current assessment
process.
Since exemplary work is usually deemed adequate for graduates of the AA Degree Program
in Liberal Arts, faculty attending assessment sessions look at both “exemplary” and
“minimally passing” student work, but are only asked to decide whether the “minimally
passing” work is acceptable for graduation with the AA Degree in Liberal Arts.
An evaluation of the spring 2012 assessments of the Hawai`i Emphasis PLO (in three courses)
was undertaken by a group of 32 volunteer Liberal Arts faculty members who met on Nov. 2,
2012. At the Nov. 2 meeting, 13 Liberal Arts faculty members filled out an assessment form
for HIST 284 (History of Hawai`i), 18 faculty members filled out an assessment form for
HWST 107 (Hawai`i: Center of the Pacific), and 20 faculty members filled out an assessment
form for BOT 105/HWST 211 (Hawaiian Ethnobotony). When faculty members evaluated
student work that was categorized as “minimally passing” or “C” work, they concluded in 37
cases (73%) that the evidence of student learning demonstrated sufficient understanding of
the hallmarks associated with Hawai`i Emphasis to demonstrate the proficiency we would
expect from a UHMC graduate earning the AA Degree in Liberal Arts. In 14 cases (27%),
faculty members concluded that the “minimally passing” student work did not demonstrate
sufficient evidence of the hallmarks associated with Hawai`i Emphasis to demonstrate the
proficiency we would expect from a UHMC graduate earning the AA Degree in Liberal Arts.
Faculty from many disciplines in the Liberal Arts looked over samples of “exemplary” and
“minimally passing” student work from the three courses, along with written commentary
by the teachers (to give context to the student work in relation to the PLO, the related
hallmarks, and other course work). The 32 faculty participated in discussion, heard
additional clarification from one of the teachers who had conducted the assessment, and
wrote comments about whether the quality of the sampled student work is adequate for
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Liberal Arts Program Review
UHMC graduates in the Liberal Arts (LA) program and whether and how the assessment
process could be improved.
The comments written during this evaluation (recommending actions by the teachers to
improve student learning outcomes or recommending revisions of the assessment process)
were subsequently typed up and distributed for discussion and action planning at the
November 9, 2012 meeting of the AA Degree Program Committee (consisting of a chair and
seven representatives from various discipline areas in the Liberal Arts) and the Jan. 2, 2013
LA faculty meeting.
Feedback indicated that the previous Assessment Plan was too ambitious (faculty looked at
as many as four courses during a single session), so the current plan spends more time on
fewer assessment activities. Each assessment session going forward will focus only on one
course and likely look at only two samples of student work. The samples of student work
and accompanying submission forms were better labeled for future assessment sessions, as
there was confusion due to poor organization of these materials. Responding to other
suggestions, the form that faculty fill out to accompany the samples of student work was
revised for use in fall 2013 and is copied below. To give the student work better context
within the course, this new form asks faculty to submit their current syllabus along with the
student sample. Faculty are now asked to report how many students were in their class and
how many received a grade of C or better on the assignment we are assessing.
Faculty Report on Evidence of AA Degree in Liberal Arts
Program Learning Outcome Achievement
Course alpha and number _________
Fall Semester 2013
Number of students enrolled _______
Number of students who earned C- or better on the assignment chosen for this
assessment _______
AA Degree in Liberal Arts Program Learning Outcomes (PLOs):
In addition to the College-wide Academic Student Learning Outcomes, graduates who qualify for
the A.A. degree in Liberal Arts perform the following skills in multiple fields of study at a level
that shows readiness for upper division college coursework:
1) Demonstrate an understanding of theories, practices, histories, and key issues of a field of
study using essential terminology and concepts of the discipline.
2) Use theories, concepts, and practices of a field of study to analyze evidence, artifacts, and/or
texts and produce interpretations, hypotheses, evaluations, or conclusions.
3) Apply theories and/or methods of a field of study to perform practical, scholarly, and/or
creative tasks that respond to social, cultural, environmental, or economic issues.
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Liberal Arts Program Review
Please use the following guidelines to select appropriate evidence of student learning for this
assessment activity:

Select two samples of student learning evidence, one that demonstrates exemplary
achievement (A work) of the Program Learning Outcomes, and another that demonstrates
minimal achievement (C or C- work) for the AA degree. Choose evidence from an
“embedded” assignment, project, or exam that normally exists as part of your course.

Select evidence produced with an appropriate degree of independence. In general, student
work that responds to highly prescriptive directions is not appropriate for this assessment
activity.

Count how many students in the class earned a C or better for this particular assignment,
project, part of an exam, etc. and record that number as well as the total number of students
enrolled in the class.

Please submit a syllabus for your class with your name removed from it.
Please provide the information requested on the next page. Attach this report to each sample of
student learning you provide. Send to Jennifer Owen (mailbox #107) by Jan 6, 2014.
This evidence is rated:
 Exemplary level competence
 Minimal level competence
Please briefly describe your assessment of the evidence as it correlates with the Program
Learning Outcomes; identify qualities in the student work that establish “exit-level” quality
appropriate for the AA Degree in Liberal Arts:
Please briefly describe course work designed to prepare this student to demonstrate the
Program Learning Outcomes:
Please briefly describe any coursework through which students demonstrate achievement of
the Program Learning Outcomes other that those demonstrated by this evidence:
On Jan. 2, 2013, 24 Liberal Arts faculty participated in a discussion of PLOs for the LA
program, since the existing PLOs no longer matched the newly revised AA degree in LA.
Written suggestions collected from break-out groups were incorporated into draft PLOs
written up by the AA Degree Program Committee and were edited through discussion at
subsequent Feb., March, and April LA faculty meetings. Final PLOs were adopted by the LA
faculty at the May meeting.
At the Jan. 2, 2013 meeting, one break-out group looked at C-grade and A-grade samples of
student work collected during the fall 2012 semester HUM 100 class as direct assessment of
the PLO concerning Human Expression. The “Faculty Report on Evidence of AA Degree in
Liberal Arts Program Learning Outcome Achievement” form provided context for the
student work within the course. The comments about the C-grade work from that class were
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Liberal Arts Program Review
all favorable in that the level of achievement was judged adequate for graduates earning an
AA degree in LA.
At the Jan. 2, 2013 meeting, LA faculty also analyzed the comments written when LA faculty
looked at student work from HIST 284 on Nov. 2, 2012. The comments about the C-grade
work from that class were all favorable in that the level of achievement was judged adequate
for graduates earning an AA degree in LA.
Later in January, Hawaiian Studies faculty met and analyzed the comments written when LA
faculty looked at student work from HWST 107 (Hawai`i: Center of the Pacific), and HWST
211/BOT 105 (Hawaiian Ethnobotony). C-grade work sampled from these two classes was
considered adequate as “exit-level” achievement for the AA degree in LA by 73% of faculty
volunteer assessors. The HWST faculty wrote up a summary of their discussion and action
plan, which contained the following answers to the questions posed:
Are we, as UHMC Liberal Arts faculty, satisfied with the result that 73% of peers voted that the
"minimally passing" student work was satisfactory?
Yes. It is a good benchmark from which to base future discussions and decisions about
what is "minimally passing."
What could we do to improve the quality of work in our own discipline area and in all
discipline areas?
As professionals, it is our responsibility to continually assess and strive to improve.
Goals for
specific improvements should filter down through Institutional, Programmatic, and
Discipline Goals; which could then be woven into Individual Courses.
How do we determine what is "college-level" work?
ILO's, PLO's, SLO's are given appropriate "vetting" by various levels of the College
that, in part, align with WASC standards and, in part, reflect a thoughtful response to
the Vision and Mission of the College; which in turn should reflect, in large part, the
faculty's determination to how best create curriculum for the community it serves.
Look at the summaries of the Nov. 2012 HI Emphasis PLO assessment and brainstorm what
faculty could do to improve the quality of student work.
HWST faculty, for both HWST 107 and HWST 211 courses, are appreciative of the
suggestions previously shared by LA faculty. They will be added to the on-going
assessment process that HWST faculty use when modifying courses. Some are
suggestions that could be made to a larger, system-wide group of instructors of those
same courses. Any additional suggestions and constructive comments will also be
given serious consideration for possible inclusion into the HWST HSAA
programmatic and individual course-assessment processes.
In preparation for the Feb. 8, 2013 LA faculty assessment meeting, three community members
were invited to participate, and eagerly attended. The community member to assist with
assessment of HIST 151 is an online history teacher for HPU who graduated from Baldwin
High School and UH Manoa, the community member to assist with assessment of GEOG 102
is an employee of Maui Electric Company who specializes in GIS and AutoCAD work, and
the community member to assist with assessment of SOC 100 is an esteemed community
social worker.
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Liberal Arts Program Review
At the Feb. 8 meeting, 22 LA faculty broke into three groups to evaluate C-grade and A-grade
samples of student work collected during the fall 2012 semester as direct assessments of the
PLOs concerning Human Understanding of the Community. The student work came from
two SOC 100 classes, two HIST 151 classes, and two GEOG 102 classes. Faculty teaching
those classes had filled out the “Faculty Report on Evidence of AA Degree in Liberal Arts
Program Learning Outcome Achievement” form, providing context for the samples of
student work within their course. Each group had dynamic conversation about whether the
C-grade work was adequate “exit-level” work for AA degree graduates. Each group
expressed gratitude to the community “experts” who participated and provided a different
perspective (since they work outside the UHMC campus community). The history “expert”
community member was so enthusiastic that she asked to be invited to future assessment
meetings and participated in the subsequent March and April meetings.
50% of the C-grade work evaluated was judged satisfactory as “exit-level” AA degree
student work. Some of the C-grade work was so strong that one person cautioned “we need
to be careful that faculty are comfortable sharing C-grade student work and are honest about
which samples really constitute C-level work.” 50% of the C-grade work was agreed to be
inadequate as “exit-level” AA degree student work. In all such cases, it was either the
writing or the level of critical thinking that was deemed inadequate. Spring semester 2013,
CASLO assessment was focusing on Written Communication. As a result, much of the
assessment for Liberal Arts merged with that of CASLO assessment, in that both action plans
highlighted ways to improve writing skills for our students.
The day following the Feb. 8 assessment meeting, a faculty participant emailed the LA
coordinator, “I thought a lot of good questions were raised in our geography group about
SLO and PLOs, and whether Program Learning Outcomes could be assessed through one
assignment alone from a 100 level class. But overall I thought it was a great activity to go
through, and it might be interesting to do something like this at the department level. I find
it fascinating to know what our students are doing within our department-- how teachers are
teaching, how students are learning, how they're being assessed... I'm kind of a learning
junkie! :-) What is your intended outcome from this evaluation process? On a teaching
level, it can only improve what we do!”
Each break-out group filled out a written assessment form on Feb. 8 and these were typed up
and emailed to the entire LA faculty on the day following the meeting. The LA coordinator
specifically emailed each teacher whose student work had been evaluated, and included the
following comment: “Thanks again for collecting the samples of student work and filling out
the assessment forms. Please don't be discouraged by the summaries I just emailed out to the
LA group. Of course the faculty participants thought the "exemplary" student work was
great. But it is true that after a lot of discussion about the "minimal" work, they were not
happy with it as "exit-level" work by a graduate with the AA Degree in LA. There was some
discussion about whether it was even appropriate for us to assess courses for which ENG 100
is not a prerequisite, as these can not really reflect "exit-level" student work. Some present
felt that we should only be looking at student work from 200-level courses.”
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Liberal Arts Program Review
One faculty member who was not able to attend the Feb. 8 meeting replied: “I'm finding this
exercise very informative. It tells me a few things:
1. I need to learn more about the assessment process, particularly what "exit-level" means.
This is not really something that was particularly well explained to me when I was hired on
as a lecturer ….
2. I could raise my standards for a minimum "C"!
3. Interesting comment about the Eng. 100 prereq. I tend not to grade my students on
grammar, spelling, etc., more on content and if I think they understood and assimilated the
material and whether they addressed the assignment. Again, this reflects my
misunderstanding of what would be considered exit-level student work.”
The LA coordinator answered back, “I think the conversation about grades (and what
constitutes C-level work) will continue for a long time, and is a very interesting conversation
even though we will never come up with a ‘formula.’ So it should remain the teacher's
independent decision.”
Another faculty member who was not able to attend the Feb. 8 meeting replied: “Students [in
my class] did have a rubric to follow, and students were able to turn in a first draft and a final
draft. My rubric encompasses APA style, and we spend a whole 3 hr. class addressing [the
requirements outlined in the rubric including APA style], but really...without a pre-rec. of
English 100, I just try to take students one step further in their writing with my class. I'm
more concerned with students showing understanding of sociology concepts….”
Continuing the discussion of assessment issues after the actual meeting time is a sign of a
healthy ongoing assessment process. These examples are just a sampling of many in-person
and email conversations that followed-up assessment sessions.
During Liberal Arts faculty discussions, the question has come up repeatedly, “What
constitutes ‘college-level’ work?” The Liberal Arts faculty agrees that this question is central
to our assessment work; agrees that this question must be asked and discussed repeatedly;
and agrees that ultimately, “college-level work” cannot be precisely defined except on a caseby-case basis. To engage in asking this question time and time again, and to answer it in
relation to our students’ specific achievements will, however, consistently foster meaningful
discussion among our faculty during every step of the assessment process, and will promote
work on improving student learning outcomes in the Liberal Arts curricula.
Since the question, “What constitutes ‘college-level’ work?” can never truly be nailed down,
Liberal Arts faculty are also asking the question, “What do our students need?” This
question involves examining how the college and faculty prepare students for a fruitful life
which includes work readiness, independent thinking, ability to acquire knowledge, and
being well-rounded individuals.
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Liberal Arts Program Review
C.
Action Plans and Goals
Liberal Arts faculty plan to:



Evaluate the current Writing Intensive (WI) requirement in relation to deficiencies in AA
degree in LA candidates’ writing abilities, and decide whether to require ENG 100 as a
prerequisite for one of the two required WI courses. Our campus is one of only two in the
UH system which allows the WI designation without an ENG 100 prerequisite.
Encourage more 200-level Liberal Arts courses with ENG 100 as a prerequisite and which
have a “3” for Written Communication in the CASLO grid. Such classes would likely be
offered as WI courses.
Determine that student work being assessed is “exit-level” (rather than “entry-level”) for
the AA degree in LA by choosing courses and coursework for assessment appropriate to
this goal.
Consider the following questions and decide If we want to change the degree
requirements as a result of LA faculty discussion of these issues.
 Some of the courses assessed do not have ENG 100 as a pre- or co-requisite. Are these
courses appropriate for “exit-level” review?
 If “exit-level” skills are demonstrated only in courses that require ENG 100 as a
prerequisite, can students get a degree without demonstrating competence in many of
the areas our degree was designed to develop?
 Currently an AA degree graduate may have received a D in ENG 100 as their highest
achievement in English. Consider requiring a C in ENG 100 as a graduation
requirement (or consider requiring some other more rigorous English requirement).
 Should more 200-level courses be required? Should LA require a 200-level course that
stresses critical thinking (has a 3 in the CASLO grid for critical thinking)? Take into
consideration the lack of 200-level courses available to Lanai and Molokai students in
particular, and all students in general.
 Should LA add a “research intensive” requirement (similar to WI) so that exit-level
Information Literacy is fulfilled by the AA degree in LA?


Examine the HI Emphasis requirement for the UHMC AA degree in LA as compared with the
HAP (Hawai`i/Asia/Pacific) requirement common across the UH system, and evaluate the
consequences of this UHMC requirement on our ability to graduate Maui students, who might
choose to graduate from a different UH college where only HAP is required.
Consider asking for samples of student work at the minimal and exemplary level in conjunction
with classroom observations (peer evaluations) at the department level.
CASLO Action Plan for Written Communication
The CASLO Assessment process involved identifying courses in which students demonstrate
academic skills in Written Communication at the “exit-level.” The Liberal Arts program
chose to evaluate Written Communication in ENG 209 and PSY 214. By investigating student
work in these courses, LA faculty identified gaps, brainstormed action plans for
improvement, and recommended best practices.
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Liberal Arts Program Review
In order to implement the Liberal Arts Written Communication Action Plan, faculty plan to:










Encourage students to take ENG 100 early in their college careers. This will help them
succeed in their subsequent courses.
Encourage instructors to require more writing in their curriculum. Offer plentiful
feedback and opportunities for revision early in the semester; then reduce instructor’s
influence throughout the course so that students gradually demonstrate course SLOs
with an appropriate degree of independence.
Evaluate whether UHMC offers enough (and diverse enough) WI courses with ENG
100 as a prerequisite to require one of the two required WI classes to have ENG 100 as
a prerequisite. If the answer is “no,” encourage more such classes, so this requirement
can be added without hindering students’ ability to graduate.
Require any course with a 3 in the CASLO grid for writing to include at least one
writing assignment that contributes significantly to the course grade.
Encourage attendance at ITC (Inspired Teaching Committee), RAD (Reading Across
the Discipline), WAC (Writing Across the Discipline), and WI (Writing Intensive)
workshops, to teach faculty how to incorporate literacy skills throughout the
curriculum. Incorporate best practices in avoiding plagiarism and dealing with it
when it is discovered. Share best practices in dealing with the common problem of
work submitted without competent proofreading.
Encourage organizers of ITC, RAD, WAC, and WI workshops to offer them at more
varied times (like Fridays during the semester) to facilitate faculty participation. Use
incentives, like food and supplies to boost enrollment.
Encourage faculty to consider adding a developmental co-requisite to entry-level
courses (in conjunction with increased writing in the course and collaboration with
English department colleagues who teach the co-requisite course. Faculty who
include writing in their curriculum should adjust expectations and course rigor to the
lowest prerequisite for the course. Non-English discipline faculty should share
examples of their writing assignments with faculty who teach the prerequisite course
to clarify expectations and design assignments that reinforce and build upon skills in
the prerequisite course.
Improve English prerequisite courses to better prepare students for skills needed in
college level course work across the disciplines. For example, integrate basic research
components into ENG 22 to support non-English instructors who integrate basic
research or want to use summary of reading as a teaching strategy in the course.
Encourage plentiful assignments that require summary/paraphrase to give students
plentiful practice integrating college-level vocabulary as they develop their “academic
voice” (as distinct from their social voice). Encourage faculty to add a writing SLO,
writing instruction, or writing assessment to their courses.
Encourage faculty to take advantage of campus resources such as TLC, tutors,
Turnitin, and Brainfuze (and to have a “rescue plan” ready that involves these
resources) for students with weak writing/proofreading skills. Recognize these
weaknesses early in the semester and institute the “rescue plan” immediately.
16
Liberal Arts Program Review
Strengths and Weaknesses
Starting fall semester 2013, Liberal Arts faculty and counselors are implementing the newly
revised AA Degree in Liberal Arts. UHMC better serves its students by offering an AA
Degree in Liberal Arts that aligns well with other AA degrees, including the new AA in
Hawaiian Studies, and articulates and transfers better across the UH System as well as to
colleges outside our system, through use of the language and categories familiar to
traditional academia. The revised AA Degree also facilitates the graduation of pre-nursing
students because of changes to the science requirements. Liberal Arts faculty have crafted
new Program Learning Outcomes for the AA Degree in Liberal Arts and have adjusted the
assessment plan to reflect these advancements.
UHMC’s Liberal Arts Program is adapting well to the sudden change from several years of
dramatic and remarkable growth to somewhat declining enrollments, offering about the
same number of classes (a 1% increase over the last two years) and maintaining healthy fill
rates, class sizes, completion rates, and persistence rates. The persistence rate declined
slightly from 72% to 69% in 574 Liberal Arts classes. Successful completion of those classes
with a C or better rose from 73% to 75%. In 60 on-line Liberal Arts classes, the persistence
rate increased from 69% to 74% while successful completion of those classes increased from
66% to 67%. The number of low-enrolled classes has increased from 19 two years ago to 38
this year, indicating that the program needs to consider offering slightly fewer courses to
accommodate the decrease in enrollments.
Students declaring a Liberal Arts major continue to comprise nearly half of the total
enrollment of the college. Many students are classified as Liberal Arts majors but never
graduate with the Liberal Arts AA degree because they are either “life-long learners,” have
goals that do not include earning an AA degree, or have transferred out of the state before
earning a degree. The Liberal Arts program supports the system-wide initiative to create a
“General Studies” pre-major, which will correct much of the erroneous categorization of
Liberal Arts majors.
Graduation rates for students with the AA Degree in Liberal Arts have risen 6% in each of the
last two years. Transfers to a four-year UH institution have risen by 14% in the last year and
rose 32% the year before. This data results in “Healthy” effectiveness indicators. The
program is exceeding its goals for graduation and transfer rates at a time when many
students are likely returning to full-time or part-time work as job opportunities have been
improving in an improving economy.
The following table shows the number of “Unclassified” students compared with “Liberal
Arts” majors over the last seven years. Starting in the spring of 08, UHMC made a concerted
effort to have fewer “Unclassified” students, and as a result, many students were shifted into
the category of “Liberal Arts” who would previously have been “Unclassified.” Noticeably,
as the enrollment and Liberal Arts numbers steadily increase from fall 07 to fall 11, the
“Unclassified” numbers make a dramatic decline from F 07 to F 08 and again from F 09 to F
10. If students were able to select the pre-major “General Studies,” now being discussed
across the UH system, hundreds of students would not be erroneously classified as “Liberal
17
Liberal Arts Program Review
Arts majors.” Low persistence rates in the Liberal Arts can be correlated with incorrectly
identified Liberal Arts students, who may not be truly committed to a Liberal Arts education.
UHMC supports the movement to add a “General Studies” pre-major to students’ options, as
this will greatly improve the accuracy of the number of “Liberal Arts” majors reported.
Table 8: Total student enrollment, number of students declaring Liberal Arts major, and
Unclassified students.
F 07
F 08
F 09
F 10
F11
F12
F13
Total UHMC
undergraduates
3,017
3,261
4,115
4,368
4520
Liberal Arts
majors
1,239
1,567
2,034
2,246
2219
Unclassified
643
387
388
286
364
4382
3% decline
from
previous
year
2188
½% decline
from
previous
year
309
4076
7% decline
from
previous
year
1887
5% decline
from
previous
year
313
The number of Liberal Arts majors declined by 5% from fall 2012 to fall 2013 (while the total
UHMC enrollment decreased by 7%) following a ½% decrease the year before (when total
enrollment decreased 3%). The economy continues to improve in Maui County, and
previously unemployed students are likely pursuing job opportunities and have withdrawn
or are taking fewer credits per semester.
The number of students categorized as Liberal Arts majors increased by 28% from FY 08-09 to
FY 09-10. By now, some of those students who have been attending UHMC part-time may be
completing the AA Degree and yet the number of degrees awarded increased by only 6.2%.
Some of the students admitted during the rapid enrollment increase from 2008 to 2010 have
likely returned to full time work in the improving job market.
While hiring of two full time BOR faculty during the last year has slightly lowered the
number of majors per BOR faculty, many Liberal Arts classes at UHMC continue to be taught
by lecturers, who do not shoulder the responsibilities taken on by BOR appointed faculty.
Hiring of additional faculty in full time positions is necessary and critical in order to maintain
UHMC’s quality of instructional and counseling services. A disproportionate number of
classes in Liberal Arts are taught by lecturers, especially apparent in Biology /Zoology,
Communication, Economics, English, Geography, Hawaiian, Hawaiian Studies, Math, Music,
Oceanography, Political Science, and Sociology. The number of Analytic FTE Faculty is 62.9,
whereas the number of BOR Appointed FTE Faculty is 32.7. (See pp. 3-4) The number of
tenured faculty remains at a marked deficit. UHMC has partially addressed this deficit by
hiring full-time lecturers. This practice conflicts with BOR policy A9.560 which states:
Lecturers should not, as a general concept, be hired to teach a full instructional load
equivalent of regular faculty i.e. 15 credit hours for Community Colleges and 12 credit
18
Liberal Arts Program Review
hours on four-year campuses per semester within the University system since lecturers are
hired to meet temporary, part-time requirements.
A major challenge has arisen during assessment of the AA degree program in Liberal Arts.
While UHMC’s AA degree requires a breadth of content, it has no requirement that students
develop and demonstrate skills beyond the introductory freshman level. For both writing
and information literacy, for example, students are not required to demonstrate skill beyond
ENG 100. LA faculty members do not believe that a minimally passing paper in ENG 100
demonstrates readiness for junior level college work, yet the UHMC catalog clearly states
that the AA degree prepares students for success in upper division courses. In response to
this gap, LA faculty are examining whether student work in 200-level courses would
demonstrate acceptable “exit-level skills” in the CASLO standards, and could be added as
requirements for earning the AA degree in Liberal Arts.
These ideas have been brought up at fall 2013 Liberal Arts faculty meetings, and have met
with some enthusiasm and some resistance. These issues (as well as prioritizing the LA
Action Plan) are on the agenda for the November 2013 LA faculty meeting.
Progress on goals from the 2011-2012 Liberal Arts Program Review (LA PR)
The following plans and goals were in the 2011-2012 LA PR but were not accomplished.
They are still goals of the LA program.
1. Add faculty positions in Biology/Zoology, Communication, Economics, English,
Geography, Hawaiian language /Hawaiian Studies, Math, Music, Oceanography,
Political Science, and Sociology.
2. Streamline the registration process for life-long learners, who are frustrated by the
process of repeated admissions application.
3. Identify students who “succeed” in the AA Degree Program by transferring to a
two-year or four-year institution outside of the UH system. These students are
currently identified as Liberal Arts majors but are not counted as AA Degree
graduates. They have, however, clearly “succeeded” at UHMC. UHMC has not
found a way to collect this information.
The following were goals in the 2011-12 PR that have been accomplished:
4. Evaluate the draft revision of the AA Degree in Liberal Arts and vote on it.
Continue to refine the AA Degree in Liberal Arts to better serve UHMC students.
5. Evaluate and revise the Program Learning Outcomes (PLOs) for the AA Degree in
Liberal Arts.
6. Complete direct assessments of at least one PLO each year going forward.
The following are new 2012-13 plans and goals for the LA Program:
7. Make more classroom space available for Liberal Arts classes during the most
popular times for student enrollment.
8. Make more office space available for Liberal Arts lecturers.
9. Complete direct assessments of at least one PLO in at least one required category of
the AA degree in LA each year going forward. Use assessment to create
meaningful conversation among faculty that stimulates improvements in teaching
and student learning.
19
Liberal Arts Program Review
10. Coordinate assessment of CASLOs (College-wide Academic Student Learning
Outcomes) with the assessment of the AA Degree in whatever ways are useful to
the assessment and improvement of the AA Degree Program.
11. Work with the UH system to institute the proposed “General Studies” pre-major,
so that Liberal Arts is no longer the catch-all category for students pursuing a wide
variety of goals that may not include an AA Degree. Currently no clear distinction
exists between AA in LA degree-seeking students and those who are planning to
enter a different program (such as nursing) as soon as they have completed the
entrance requirements but need to temporarily declare a major in order to qualify
for financial aid. The “General Studies” category would also fit students who are
taking courses in order to transfer elsewhere and earn some other degree, or those
who are only taking one course to fulfill an immediate interest (life-long learners),
so they are not erroneously counted as Liberal Arts majors.
12. Add category designations for all Liberal Arts classes that currently do not have
them in the UHMC catalog. This will improve students’ ease in earning certificates
and degrees and will improve articulation with other campuses in the UH system.
13. Prioritize, resolve, and/or implement all the items in the Action Plans for LA and
CASLOs.
III. Budgetary Consideration and Impact
The Liberal Arts Program needs new faculty positions and additional classroom space,
counseling services, office space, secretarial support, science technicians, and classroom
computer equipment.
The Liberal Arts Program needs a performing arts and visual arts facility. Such a facility is in
UHMC’s long range plan and would strengthen disciplines that are spread out across the
campus in spaces that are not ideal because not built for the performing or visual arts. These
disciplines are already strong and growing rapidly, but would truly thrive in a dedicated
space.
The Liberal Arts program needs additional classroom space for Liberal Arts classes during
high demand times. Limited classroom space, in particular a limited number of classrooms
with student computers, has negatively impacted class offerings for students and
compromised curriculum redesign efforts.
As an example of the need for additional class room space, the English department has been
unable to meet student demand for English classes during the popular 9am to 3pm time slots.
Currently the English department has full possession of 3 classrooms: TLC L-02, Kupaa 204,
and LIB 101 and can schedule in 3 additional classrooms (FLNG 104, KAA 108, and KLMA
204) only after other departments have scheduled their classes. In response to this shortage,
the department has begun offering numerous classes during the 7:30am, evening, Friday, and
weekend times. Even with these adjustments, as a result of this class room shortage, the
English department has had to cancel and reschedule classes to less desirable times, despite
20
Liberal Arts Program Review
student demand. In many cases, English classes, which often rely on student computers for
writing instruction, are forced to be in rooms without student computers.
To demonstrate the high demand for English classes, the following chart shows the fill
rate of English courses during different time slots:
9:00-10:30
12:00-1:15
1:30-2:45
Fill rate of college level
English courses
98% (7 sections)
99% (3 sections)
100% (6 sections)
3pm-7:15pm
95% (12 sections)
Fill rate of developmental
English courses
110% (10 sections)
105% (4 sections)
100% 2 sections--(except for
two special program
courses offered as
Skybridge and on Moloka’i)
89% (9 sections)
The chart above indicates that classes between 9am and 3pm are in much higher demand,
especially for developmental students. With many classes over capacity, the data indicate
enough demand for additional sections which is not possible because of lack of classroom
space.
With English courses as a foundation for a student’s academic career, a lack of class
availability at times that meet student needs negatively impacts student success. English is
just one among many disciplines in the Liberal Arts lacking sufficient classroom space during
the highest demand times.
Music needs funds to renovate KAA 111 to make it an adequate recording studio and
classroom. The room is not set up well for either a recording studio or classroom. Blueprints
have recently been drawn up for a renovation that will cost between $130,000 and $150,000.
This renovation would help alleviate the classroom shortage because currently the room can
only be used for music technology classes. When renovated, the room would accommodate
many other music classes.
Many Liberal Arts office computers are not adequate for use by faculty who teach online
courses. For example, the Economics Discipline needs a computer with a web cam and
speakers (at a cost of c. $1000) in order to affectively deliver online courses, integrating digital
media, web conferencing, and other current technology into economics courses.
Faculty need better communication with peers in their discipline areas across the UH System.
UHMC Liberal Arts faculty need system-wide face-to-face discipline meetings (like the
annual “Excellence in Education” meetings that were held for the Community Colleges some
years ago). Issues like the value of various requirements in the AA Degree in Liberal Arts
across all the UH System Community Colleges (such as a numeracy requirement, a “research
intensive” or “information literacy” requirement, a Hawai`i Emphasis vs. HAP requirement,
and ENG 100 prerequisites for Writing Intensive requirements) or the place of foreign
languages as electives versus as language requirements, need regular and consistent systemwide discussion. Faculty have reported that telecom meetings are not sufficient; face-to-face
21
Liberal Arts Program Review
meetings are required to facilitate meaningful and productive conversations. About $8000
will be needed to provide airfare and a rental van for attendance at such a system-wide
Community College meeting on Oahu.
Full-time, tenure-track positions need to be filled or created in the disciplines represented in
the following table.
Table 9: Data supporting the hiring of full time tenure-track faculty in certain disciplines.
The majority of classes listed are 3-credit courses, but others are 2 and 4-credit courses. One
credit science labs have been counted as separate classes. The data comes from IRO Dynamic
Reporting, except where there is an asterisk.
S13
F13
Subject
S13 classes
S13
F13 classes
F13
F13 BOR
Cost
area
clas taught
classes
clas taught
classes
Appoint-ed
& # of faculty
ses
by BOR
taught
ses
by BOR
taught
faculty
needed
faculty
by
faculty
by
lecturers
lecturers
Biological
Science
One @ $55,000
BIOL,
MICR,
30
15
15
28
14
14
4
ZOOL
(except
marine
biology)
CHEM
4
2
2
2
0
2
0
One @ $55,000
COM
/SP
18
9
9
21
9
12
2
Two @ $110,000
ENG/
JOUR
43
ECON
4
GEOG
/GIS
6
19
(BOR
faculty
are also
teaching
5
developmental
classes)
18
(BOR
faculty
are also
teaching
10
developmental
classes)
29
8
(includes one
C3T grantfunded faculty
member
teaching only
developmental
classes))
Three @ $165,000
[One position for
Moloka`i to teach live
and online and
therefore help with
all the distance sites]
21
50
0
4
4
0
4
0
One @ $55,000
0
6
5
0
5
0
One @ $55,000
22
Liberal Arts Program Review
Subject
area
HWST
/HAW
S13
clas
ses
26*
18
MATH
S13
classes
taught
by BOR
faculty
14
11
(BOR
faculty
are also
teaching
12
Dev. Ed.
&
1 CTE
class)
S13
classes
taught
by
lecturers
12*
7
F13
clas
ses
26
19
F13
classes
taught
by BOR
faculty
13
12
(BOR
faculty
are also
teaching
10
Dev. Ed.
&
1 CTE
class)
F13
classes
taught
by
lecturers
13
5
F13 BOR
Appoint-ed
faculty
Cost
& # of faculty
needed
3 @ $165,000
(one position
for Moloka`i and
one counselor)
4
5
(includes one
BOR and one
C3T faculty
who teach
exclusively
developmental
classes)
Four @ $220,000
[One position for
Moloka`i to teach live
and online and
therefore help with
all the distance sites
and three positions for
Kahului]
MUS
19
6**
13
19
3**
16
2
Two @ $110,000
OCN
(& Marine
biology)
8
2
6
6
2
4
0
One @ $55,000
POLS
1
1
0
1
0
1
0 ***
One @ $55,000
SOC
9
0
9
10
0
10
0 ****
One @ $55,000
*IRO Dynamic Reporting mistakenly did not include four sections of HWST 211 in the HWST data.
Therefore, on the IRO website, this number is smaller by four three-credit courses. HWST 211 is
cross-listed as BOT 105, but on the IRO website was included only in the BOT data during spring
semester 2013.
**IRO Dynamic Reporting mistakenly did not include two sections of MUS 176 in the MUS data.
Therefore, on the IRO website, this number is smaller by two three-credit courses. MUS 176 is crosslisted as HWST 176, but on the IRO website was included only in the HWST data during spring and
fall semesters in 2013 (one class each semester).
***Donna Haytko-Paoa is listed as POLS and SOC faculty in the current catalog but she is actually
Professor/Coordinator of Maui College, Molokai, and rarely teaches POLS or SOC classes.
****Ryan Daniels and Donna Haytko-Paoa are listed as SOC faculty in the current catalog but Ryan’s
primary responsibility is as faculty and Program Coordinator for Administration of Justice.
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Liberal Arts Program Review
SOCIAL SCIENCE
Without a dedicated faculty member nourishing the disciplines of Sociology, Geography,
Economics, and Political Science, and inspiring students with enthusiasm for their study,
courses offered by lecturers may attract fewer students and slowly be dropped from the
curriculum. These important disciplines require full time BOR appointed faculty members to
maintain their vitality.
Social Science and Humanities also need more clerical support. They currently share one
secretary, and each department needs more than a half-time secretary.
Social Science’s first priority is for a full time faculty member in Sociology who can also teach
some of the classes in the Human Services discipline. Both Associate in Science degrees in
Human Service require SOC 100. Out of ten fall 2013 Sociology classes, none are taught by
BOR appointed faculty. SOC 100 is among the few 100 level classes that students can take
without college-level prerequisites, and therefore fills to capacity when offered. UHMC
currently has highly qualified lecturers in Sociology but their availability, rather than
students’ needs, dictates when courses are offered. UHMC has only one lecturer qualified to
teach the necessary online Sociology courses.
Social Science’s second priority is for full time faculty in Geography. Out of four fall 2013
Geography classes, none are taught by BOR appointed faculty. UHMC has a qualified
lecturer in Geography, but she holds several jobs and could decide to take a full time position
elsewhere. GEOG 102 is one of only five courses in the AA Degree’s “Global Multicultural
Perspectives Foundations I” core (a student must take two of these five courses in order to
earn the degree). GEOG 101 and GEOG 101L are also key courses for the AA Degree in
Liberal Arts, as they fulfill the Physical Science (DP) and Natural Science Lab (DY)
requirements.
Social Science’s third priority is for full time faculty in Economics. Out of four fall 2013
Economics classes, none are taught by BOR appointed faculty.
Social Science’s fourth priority is for a full time BOR appointed faculty member in Political
Science. POLS 110 is among the few 100 level classes that students can take without collegelevel prerequisites. However, the Political Science discipline is clearly shrinking, with fewer
courses offered each year, due to lack of discipline leadership. In one instance, if UHMC had
a Political Science faculty member to promote Political Science classes, the ABIT four-year
degree offered by UHMC would likely accept a Political Science course to fulfill a
requirement that currently accepts only either a Sociology or Psychology course.
COMMUNICATION / SPEECH
Of the four language arts skills (reading, writing, speaking, and listening), listening and
speaking are the skills used most at all stages in one¹s life. Listening and speaking are both
oral communication skills. In addition, Oral Communication is one of the six College-wide
Student Learning Outcomes (CASLOs) and it is included as a Graduation requirement (Oral
24
Liberal Arts Program Review
Communication in English, 3 credits) in the college¹s AA degree and as a choice in the
General Education or the Humanities elective credits in our AS and AAS degrees. Thus, oral
communication classes not only satisfy college requirements and introduce or reinforce the
CASLOs, they also prepare our students to participate more fully and appropriately in their
other courses, in their jobs, in their personal lives, and in society in general.
Currently, UHMC has only two Board of Regents appointed faculty teaching these classes. In
the past three years the average number of Communication classes taught by full time BOR
appointed faculty has been 25% of the total Communication classes.
Most Communication and Speech classes have no prerequisites and fill quickly. UHMC has
faced challenges in finding fully qualified lecturers to teach Communication and Speech.
HAWAIIAN STUDIES / HAWAIIAN LANGUAGE
HWST/HAW is requesting funding for three full time faculty positions: one Hawaiian
Studies/Language program counselor for the Maui campus; and two Hawaiian
Studies/Language instructors, one for the Maui campus and the other for Maui College
Molokai. The Hawaiian Studies faculty serves the general student population and other
programs such as Liberal Arts, the Institute for Hawaiian Music, and Hospitality and
Tourism, as well as providing courses for majors earning the AA Degree in Hawaiian
Studies. The present situation already facilitates healthy enrollments and, unlike a typical
program, the large majority (about 91%) of HWST/HAW students will not be majors. As
such, the commitment to the general student population is immense.
Other unique components are the learning centers on Molokai and Lana`i, and in Hana and
Lahaina. According to the Maui College Molokai 2010 Program Review, the center has the
highest percentage of Native Hawaiian students in the system, between 70-75%. As well, a
significant demand exists for Hawaiian Studies and language courses. Also, due to a large
Native Hawaiian community, there is a significant need for the Hana learning center to offer
live courses.
Lecturers teach approximately 13 course sections at UHMC each semester. These classes
equal approximately three full time faculty positions, since they include four-credit language
courses. Therefore, HWST/HAW is requesting funding for three full time faculty positions.
MUSIC
In spite of the fact that UHMC hired a full time tenure-track Ethnomusicologist in 2012, the
needs of the Music discipline are the same as last year. The Ethnomusicologist is responsible
primarily for the new Institute for Hawaiian Music and for cultural based curriculum in
Music, but is not teaching the general Music curriculum. Each semester, UHMC fills as many
sections of MUS 107 as are offered, and more are needed. Due to student demand and
expanded course offerings, UHMC needs to add two full time Music positions: one in
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Liberal Arts Program Review
voice/piano/music education, and one in guitar/ukulele/recording technology. Both
lecturers in this area are teaching full time. One is already a “B” status lecturer and will soon
be raised to level C. One music lecturer is already in “C” status and will teach over 15 credits
during spring 2014. Depending on full time lecturers conflicts with BOR policy A9.560
quoted on pp. 17-18. Hiring C lecturers to teach full loads is very costly. In 2013, C lecturers
make just shy of $58,000 while new C-2 faculty may start as low as $50,000. As a result,
UHMC can actually save money by adding full-time faculty and complying with BOR policy.
SCIENCE
The science disciplines appreciate the hiring of a Physics faculty member in the past year, but
need the following:






A faculty position in Oceanography. The STEM Department supports the Sustainable
Sciences Management Bachelors in Applied Science with both lower- and upper-division
natural sciences courses and the four-year Bachelors in Arts in Marine Sciences in
collaboration with UH Hilo, with more curriculum and more demand for courses than
previously.
A faculty position in Chemistry. Demand is growing and chemistry offerings could
expand with a dedicated faculty member who would also manage the chemistry lab.
A faculty position in Botany, or a position shared between Botany, Biology, and
Agriculture. Ideally this teacher would expand the natural sciences offerings with botany
specific courses as well as courses related to agriculture and biology.
Two full-time technicians working in the central prep area of the new science building,
Ike Lea. Peter Fischer is the supervisor, but he also teaches, and monitoring activities in
the central prep area is required at all times during the day. Central prep is a limited
access area requiring hazmat training and employment by UHMC. Peter needs a fulltime assistant to cover those times when he is absent, to supervise student help, and to
support faculty needs during the day. STEM has one position funded by summer school
funds. STEM would like to move that to general funds, and add another full-time
position.
A secretary/APT for the ECET program and BAS in engineering. An individual has
performed this function for several years through use of grant funds, but funding is
running out and this job needs to be a permanently funded position.
An additional secretary for division level activity (that could be shared). The job of STEM
secretary is too big for the one secretarial position.
ENGLISH
In the fall of 2013, only 36 percent (18 out of 50) college-level English, Learning Skills, and
Journalism classes were taught by full-time BOR appointed faculty. Full-time lecturers are
rapidly progressing toward "C" lecturer status which will place them in a salary range
significantly higher than full-time C-2 faculty. UHMC employed one English lecturer with a
six-course load, two English lecturers with a five-course load and one English lecturer with a
four-course load. This practice conflicts with BOR policy A9.560 quoted on pp. 17-18. In
Spring 2013 and Fall 2013, the UHMC English department employed 1 lecturer with “C”
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Liberal Arts Program Review
status, 8 lecturers with “B” status, and 12 lecturers with “A” status. In 2013, "C" lecturers
make just shy of $58,000 while new faculty may start as low as $50,000. As a result, UHMC
can actually save money by adding full-time faculty and complying with BOR policy.
MATH
UHMC does not have an adequate number of math faculty to provide effective leadership in
STEM, Social Science, Humanities, Education, Allied Health (the largest group of UHMC's
college-ready students), Career and Technical Education (CTE), and Developmental
Education (consistently the largest group of students served by the math faculty). UHMC
requires additional math faculty to provide effective leadership as the college embarks on
next year's College-wide Academic Student Learning Outcome (CASLO) assessment of
"quantitative reasoning" skills at the point of graduation. UHMC therefore needs three
additional math faculty for the Kahului campus along with a full-time math position for
Moloka’i and a full-time developmental education counselor.
As an example of the need for positions in MATH, the demand for college level MATH is
steadily growing, especially for MATH 103 and MATH 115. The Developmental Math
redesign along with a Department of Education pilot which would allow students into a first
semester college level math course, provided that the student has just graduated from high
school with a gpa of 2.6 and has successfully completed high school Algebra II with a C or
higher, is accelerating the demand for college-level math classes. Demand for MATH 103 has
nearly doubled from fall 2012 to fall 2013. Fall 2012, UHMC offered 3 live MATH 103 classes
and 1 distance class for Maui County students. Spring 2013, UHMC offered 4 live MATH 103
classes on the Kahului campus. Summer 2013, with over 100 students waitlisted for MATH
103, UHMC added 2 additional classes to the 5 originally planned. Student demand called
for additional MATH 103 classes, but UHMC did not have qualified faculty available to
teach. Fall 2012, 68 students enrolled in the two sections of MATH 115, including 10
statewide students. Fall 2013, 81 students enrolled in the two sections of MATH 115,
including 14 statewide. There is currently discussion of capping distance classes at 20
students per class. Although distance classes are not waitlisted, requests for additional
sections of MATH 115 make it clear that more such classes would fill if UHMC had qualified
faculty to teach them. The Math department has neither a pool of qualified lecturers nor the
classrooms available to meet student demand. Within two weeks of Spring 2013 registration,
all Kahului MATH 100, 103, 107, 115, and 135 classes were full and closed.
Table 10: Number and percentage of MATH courses taught by BOR faculty and lecturers
from Fall 2011 - Fall 2013
Fall
2011
Dev Ed
BOR
Dev Ed
Lec
CTE
BOR
CTE
Lec
College
MATH BOR
College
MATH Lec
9
18%
40
82%
1
25%
3
75%
9
69%
4
31%
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Liberal Arts Program Review
Spring
2012
8
17%
39
83%
0
0%
3
3%
12
80%
3
20%
Fall 2012
7
16%
38
84%
0
0%
3
100%
12
80%
3
20%
Spring
2013
12
32%
25
68%
1
33%
2
67%
11
61%
7
38%
Fall
2013
10
29%
25
71%
1
25%
3
75%
12
63%
7
37%
UHMC needs three additional math faculty for the Kahului campus along with a full-time
math position for Moloka’i. During spring 2013 and fall 2013, 41% (47/116) of UHMC math
classes were taught by BOR faculty including a temporary position that is funded by C3T,
while 59% (69/116) of UHMC math classes were taught by lecturers. Math faculty are
required to meet the growing demands of the BAS programs, the increased demand for
entry-level college level math courses (primarily MATH 103 and 115), and to focus on the
developmental math courses along with the transition from developmental math to college
level math. In addition to the four math positions needed, a full-time developmental
education counselor is needed to assist our students. This counselor would increase
retention and help students transition from developmental math to college level math. These
five positions are necessary to increase student success, persistence, and retention.
A need exists for a Math and an English position on Moloka’i, to serve the needs of the
students there and to teach online as well to the remaining distance sites of Lana’i, Lahaina,
and Hana. Since Moloka’i’s student body is about 70-75% Native Hawaiian, having faculty
located there would support not just UHMC goals but also UH Strategic Plan goals. Many
Moloka’i students currently enroll in online or Skybridge classes and would be more
successful in face-to-face classes if they were available. Moloka’i generally offers eight
MATH classes per year and seven English classes per year. These classes should be taught
by well-qualified math and English faculty who are able to teach developmental, collegelevel, face-to-face, and online courses in each discipline. At the start of the fall 2012 semester,
the long-term Moloka’i Math lecturer had medical problems and will not be returning to
cover math classes. The students on Moloka’i need and deserve to have the student support
that comes with having live teachers in these critical disciplines.
Demand for prerequisites for a variety of programs (i.e. Nursing and ABIT) puts additional
pressure on Liberal Arts. Careful attention should be paid to how these areas are staffed.
UHMC needs increased counseling services. In order to implement the Academic Probation
Policy, and to communicate their status with the large numbers of Liberal Arts students who
now face Academic Warning or Probation, more counseling services are required. Also,
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Liberal Arts Program Review
more counseling services are required for the many Liberal Arts students receiving financial
aid. When any of those students are suspended from financial assistance and then appeal
their suspension, they must meet with a counselor to make a financial aid academic plan
before their appeal can be approved. If more Liberal Arts students consulted regularly with
counselors, they would better identify their goals, would target their course choices more
closely to their academic goals, and would persist and graduate in larger numbers. Funding
is also needed for a counseling services director and a developmental counselor, so that other
counselors have more time to devote to counseling Liberal Arts students. (See discussion of
the need for a developmental counselor on p. 27.) To further amplify the need for counselor
services, there is an initiative under development whereby every classified student will be
assigned a counselor. With the implementation of this initiative, counselors’ workload will
definitely be impacted and will result in a decrease in the number of students that may access
a counselor and the time the counselor will be able to provide services. This in combination
with the other issues, i.e. the Academic Probation Policy, clearly demonstrates the need for
additional full-time counselors.
Because Liberal Arts generally supports all other programs at University of Hawai`i Maui
College, the basic needs of this huge segment of faculty and staff must be supported. While
there are not such specific equipment/supply needs as there might be in the CTE programs,
the Liberal Arts’ needs, such as faculty positions, classrooms, offices, secretarial support,
science technicians, classroom computer equipment, and increased counseling services, are
vital to the health of the entire campus and should be considered essential.
IV. Engaged Community
The Liberal Arts faculty has been very responsive to calls for volunteers to participate in
assessment activities, AA Degree revisions, selection of Liberal Arts awardees, and other
concerns. Every faculty member who has been asked to collect samples of student work and
fill out forms to analyze that work for assessment purposes has accepted the challenge and
completed the task. Lecturers are also eagerly participating. Despite the difficulties in
finding a meeting day and time that would accommodate such a large and diverse faculty
population, 18 Liberal Arts faculty (there are a total of 33 FTE BOR LA faculty and 63
Analytic FTE LA faculty at UHMC) attended the most recent meeting on Oct. 11, 2013, with
20 attending the previous Sept. 13th meeting.
Liberal Arts faculty enlisted the help of three discipline experts from the Maui community to
assist with PLO assessment during spring 2013. See discussion on p. 11.
Assistant Professor of Art Michael Takemoto designed and painted a mural in the library at
Pomaika’i Elementary School. The Principal wrote, “His mural has transformed the focus of
the room, creating an environment of both functionality and beauty, a vision of a thriving
wetland with native plants and animal life. It is a welcome addition to Pomaika’i Elementary
School.”
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Liberal Arts Program Review
English Instructor Marnie Masuda coordinated and provided literacy professional development to
K-college teachers throughout the state. Marnie was also the coordinator this year of “Celebrate
Reading,” hosted by UHMC to promote literacy in Maui County. In 2013, a record 350 Middle School
and High School students from across the island attended, along with teachers and community
members.
The English department faculty members are very active in regularly offering college-wide
professional development opportunities to the campus. In addition to regular Learning
Center workshops, writing workshops for various content areas, and “Inspired Teaching
Committee (ITC)” presentations, the department has offered three areas of professional
development for the campus for 2012-2013: best practices for writing instruction, reading
instruction, and English language learner instruction.
1) Writing Across the Curriculum, Hawaii Writing Project (Summer 2013) Marnie
Masuda provided this 3-day workshop for UHMC faculty from all content areas to
help them incorporate more authentic writing opportunities into their curricula. As
a result, faculty design new lessons and units, then pilot the new material during
the upcoming semesters.
2) Reading Across the Disciplines (RAD) Morgan Andaluz and Emma White train
faculty to address reading comprehension issues when they arise in their classrooms
and across all disciplines. In Summer 2013, they led a four-day faculty workshop
training 23 faculty fellows from diverse disciplines (ex: Biology ,Sociology, Dental).
Morgan and Emma also present short RAD workshops at Academic Senate and ITC,
host ongoing support meetings for fellows, and present reading skills workshops for
students at The Learning Center. Retention rates in targeted gatekeeper courses have
improved by over 8% and students report an improvement in their reading skills and
comprehension methods. RAD is also working with Pathways and Math 18
instructors to apply some best practices to improve reading support for developmental
math students. RAD has been selected to present at this year’s National College
Reading and Learning Association Conference (Nov. 2013) and the Hawaii Strategy
Institute (both Feb 2012 and 2013). Emma and Morgan are bringing the RAD
workshop to Oahu at the request of various CCs. Morgan and Emma taught Inspired
Teaching Committee (ITC) workshops in RAD in spring 2012 and fall 2013.
3) UHMC ESL Tutoring Project for ESL CTE Students Perkins Project (Jan to Jun
2013) After the summer 2012 faculty ESL workshop, Derek Snyder has developed and
provided training for UHMC ESL-specific student tutors, piloted ESL-specific tutoring
for CTE ESL students at UHMC, and created an online resource for UHMC CTE ESL
tutors and ESL students.
Liberal Arts faculty are active members of campus committees and serve as department
chairs and program coordinators. They volunteer in many capacities and participate
vigorously in academic senate and other campus meetings. They are engaged in improving
and updating curriculum and coordinating UHMC initiatives with those in the UH System.
They are committed to professional development and pursue opportunities to remain current
in their academic fields through study and participation in conferences.
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Liberal Arts Program Review
Liberal Arts faculty are productive, contributing individuals forming a vibrant community of
dedicated educators.
V. Recognize and Support Best Practices
Associate Professor of Hawaiian Studies Kīʻope Raymond has been actively employing
technology in his Hawaiian Language HAW 202 course to enhance student exposure to
heretofore unavailable digitized oral recordings of Hawaiian native speakers to improve
student's listening comprehension. He has also increased use of only recently completed
optically-scanned and internet-uploaded written materials from the many Hawaiian
Language newspapers published in the 19th century. And, with increasing use of students'
smart-phones for most of their communication tasks, Kīʻope has initiated student selfrecording of their voices for oral assignments, which students send in as mp3 or mp4
attachments. The interaction is simple and feedback time to students has been drastically
reduced. Students indicate they appreciate being met halfway regarding how they want to
engage.
Associate Professor of Spanish Molli Fleming conducted a month-long study abroad program
in Oaxaca, Mexico in June 2013. Seven students participated in a one month intensive
language study and homestay program with the Instituto cultural Oaxaca. In addition to the
language study program, students engage in language and cultural exchange with students
from the University Benito Juarez, as well as cultural workshops and optional service
learning opportunities teaching English to children in a rural weaving village.
Music Instructor Keola Donaghy has upgraded UHMC music technology by:
 Procuring a $10,000 grant to purchase a portable sound system and an upright bass for
IHM (Institute for Hawaiian Music) in spring 2013.
 Purchasing ten electronic pianos using RDP and VCAA funds in summer 2013.
 Purchasing new recording studio equipment and software in summer 2013 (with RDP
funds), that addressed long standing issues negatively affecting delivery of music
technology classes.
Assistant Professor of Music, Dr. Robert Wehrman purchased a new sound system in the
primary music instruction room (summer 2013), that included a computer interface for
digitizing music, which has greatly enhanced music students’ experience.
Music lecturer, Joel Katz, has a Youtube channel called "mauicollege" at
http://www.youtube.com/user/mauicollege/videos?view=0
He uses this channel to
post instructional videos to accompany lessons on specific songs and techniques. Students
can view these to help with their practice time. Students in Katz’s audio technology classes
are using ipads and iPhones as an affordable hands-on method for controlling software.
In October 2012, all tenured and tenure-track members of the English department
participated in a department retreat to redesign the developmental English classes. As a
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Liberal Arts Program Review
result, the English Superclasses were created, which combines the following elements into
an innovative and effective model for developmental English:
- Provides laptop rentals to students and incorporates technology skill instruction
into the curriculum
- Condenses the sequence of English classes to move students to college-level
English in one semester
- Incorporates learning skills and life skills into the curriculum
- Uses MyWritingLab software for individualized grammar instruction to allow
classtime to be devoted to maximizing individualized instructor feedback and
group workshop to improve writing skills
- Focuses on developing reading and research skills at all levels through selected
readings and assignments
Eric Engh, Professor of English, Laura Lees Nagle, Assistant Professor of English, Marnie
Masuda, Instructor of English, and Emma White, Instructor of English, are teaching
Superclasses Fall 2013.
Derek Snyder and Morgan Andaluz are participating in the Pathways Project, the C3T grant
funded initiative to provide support services to developmental math and English students to
increase the success rates of students in the class.
English Instructor Emma White English has participated in Academic Coaching Pilot Inside
Track (Fall 2012). As part of the pilot, students in one section of English 22 connected weekly
with external academic coaches, who assisted students with academic performance and life
skills. As instructor, Emma worked with students and coaches to help students achieve their
weekly academic goals and communicate between coach and students. As a result of her
participation in this innovation, ninety percent of this developmental English section passed
with a “C” or higher.
English Instructor Emma White is currently offering ENG 102 ALLIED HEALTH FOCUS
(Fall 2013) with the goal of providing relevant, career-specific reading skills instruction. She
developed this allied health-focused reading course at the request of Kristine Kory Smith,
Learning Center Director and C3T grant administrator, and in consultation with nursing
faculty.
Awards and Recognition:
Associate Professor of Psychology Nani Azman and Psychology Lecturer Stephen Fox won
the Best Paper Award at the Clute International Education Conference in January, 2013 for
their paper, "Understanding plagiarism, with some help from Dr. Seuss."
Associate Professor of Biology Ann Coopersmith received the Maui Sierra Club `Onipa`a
Award In February 2013 for continuing dedication to environmental education and was
featured in the March-April issue of Maui No Ka Oi magazine as an Environmental Hero of
the Year. She is on the Executive Board of the UH System-wide Center for Ocean Sciences
Education Excellence – Island Earth (COSEE-IE).
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Liberal Arts Program Review
Assistant Professor of Mathematics Donna Harbin has been elected to serve on the
“American Mathematical Association of Two-Year Colleges Teaching Excellence Award
Committee” from the West Region. Donna is serving on this committee from Jan. 2012
through Nov. 2013, when the Annual Conference is held and the awards are presented. At
the conference she will participate in workshops, mini-courses, and networking with the over
1,200 attendees from two-year colleges across the United States and Canada.
English faculty have received the following Awards and Recognition:
English Instructor Emma White authored (and has been awarded) three innovative
developmental education initiative grants.
English Instructor Marnie Masuda was named Director of the Hawai'i Writing Project (and UHMC
is now a National Writing Project host site).
Richard Hill, English lecturer
 Writing with pictures: Stevenson at play and the work of writing, International Robert Louis
Stevenson Conference, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia, July 2013.
 “The Pacific Story and the Indigenous Student: ‘The Bottle Imp’ and ‘The Isle of Voices,’”
Approaches to Teaching the Works of Robert Louis Stevenson, Modern Language Association
of America, 2012.
 “Robert Louis Stevenson, King Kalakaua, and ‘The Isle of Voices,’” accepted for
publication in Chaminade Literary Review, 2013.
 Robert Louis Stevenson and the Pictorial Text, contract signed with Ashgate, draft due 2015.
Connie Nichols, English lecturer
 On the Beach Poems and Vignettes Poetry Book recently released as an E-book on Amazon
This is a collection of poetry and several Creative Non-fiction stories.
 The Roger Nichols Recording Method, Connie Nichols co-editor and author of an
introductory chapter. The book is a how-to book about audio engineering with some
biographical information about Roger Nichols
Gary George, English lecturer
 The House of Three Murders by Gary George, on Kindle.
Richard Chatenever, English lecturer
 Emmy Award nomination (San Francisco Region) for writing "When the Mountain Calls:
Nepal – Tibet – Bhutan," a documentary produced on Maui and presented by KHET 11
that has been screened by some 200 Public Broadcasting affiliates in the U.S. and
internationally.
 The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences San Francisco/Northern
California Chapter. It was in the category of "Outstanding Achievement
Historic/Cultural-Program/Special" and was presented June 15, 2013.
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Liberal Arts Program Review

Finalist award from the Hawaii Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) in
the category of column writing for my weekly column, "Making the Scene," in The Maui
News. The awards were posted June 28, 2013.
Music Instructor Keola Donaghy has received the following honors in the past year:
 Two final ballot nominations for the 2013 Nā Hōkū Hanohano Awards, one for "Single of
The Year" and second for "Haku Mele" (best new Hawaiian language composition. Both
nominations are shared with Kenneth Makuakāne. The composition, “Aloha Keauhou” is
also entered in the Grammy Awards for "American Roots Song of the Year." Another cocomposition (with Steven Espaniola) is also entered in that category. Final awards won't
be announced until December 2013.
 Article published fall 2012 in Hūlili: Multidisciplinary Research on Hawaiian Well-Being. It is
entitled “Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar Instruction: Moving Forward by Looking Back” and
online here:
http://www.ksbe.edu/spi/Hulili/Hulili_vol_8/4_Hulili_2012_Vol8_Donaghy.pdf
 Delivered the commencement address for the graduation of Maui University Center at the
spring 2013 graduation ceremony.
 Presented a paper at the Society of Ethnomusicology annual conference in New Orleans
in November 2012 entitled “I Ke Mele Ke Ola: Hawaiian Language Lives Through Song.”
 Three years of collaborating with Microsoft resulted in the fall 2012 release of Hawaiian
language support for Windows 8, found online at:
http://mauinow.com/2012/11/08/new-windows-system-supports-native-hawaiianlanguage/
Music lecturer Joel Katz completed a CD project on Hawaiian steel Guitar entitled "Hawaiian
to Jazz.” It was a finalist in this year's no Hoku Hanohano awards for instrumental album of
the year.
Assistant Professor of Art Michael Takemoto exhibited in the following invitational or juried
exhibitions in the last year:
Mixed Media Originals, Ebb & Flow Arts, Maui, HI
Music of the Spheres, Imaginarium, Windward Community College, Oahu, HI
Infinite Blue, Hui No’eau Visual Arts Center, Maui, HI
Juror’s Choice award
Mixed Media Miniature XV, Koa Gallery, Kapiolani Community College, Oahu, HI
Art Maui 2013, Schaefer International Gallery, Maui Arts and Cultural Center, HI
Michael is also one of the three featured artists on Joshua Meredith’s documentary, “Maui
Mural Artist.” The video can be seen on You Tube at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FO-pRkTXEuc
Artist and Humanities lecturer Carmen M. Gardner exhibited in the following juried
exhibitions in the last year:
Art Maui juried exhibition 2012 and 2013
Malama Wao Akua juried exhibition 2012, 2013
Hui No’eau juried exhibition “Going to the Dogs” 2013
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Liberal Arts Program Review
Daniel Smith Art Competition (a national competition in which Carmen’s painting
was one of twelve from over 2500 works submitted which has been chosen for their
showcase.)
Associate Professor of Art Jennifer Owen exhibited in the juried exhibition “Hawai`i
Craftsmen 2013.”