Curriculum Guide
Initiating a Proposal
The following individuals can initiate a curricular proposal:
- The academic program/unit (chair/director or any member of the program’s/unit’s faculty)
- Administrators in the relevant approval chain
Curricular Proposal Tiers
As some proposals require more oversight than others, there are three curricular proposal tiers, based on the level of review necessary. Each tier has defined curriculum actions captured and a specific approval process.
Tier 1
These are curricular actions that are minor and local, and can be handled inside the College.
Actions Captured
- Renaming a major, minor or certificate
- Modifying requirements for a major (less than 30% changing)
- Modifying an existing course not in the Core General Education curriculum
- Modifying a minor, certificate or emphasis
Process
- Initiator brings proposal forward to program/unit and enters the proposed change into CourseLeaf.
- Approval chain is:
- Program/unit chair to
- Dean to
- Provost
Tier 2
These are changes of moderate significance and benefit from the review of a shared governance committee acting on behalf of the faculty across the university.
Actions Captured
- Establishing or reconfiguring academic units
- Suspending admissions to a major temporarily
- Developing new minors
- Discontinuing existing minors
- Adding new emphases within a major
- Discontinuing emphases within a major
- Modifying requirements within a major (over 30% changing)
- Developing a for-credit certificate
- Discontinuing a for-credit certificate
- Developing new courses
Process
- Initiator brings proposal forward to program/unit and enters the proposed change into CourseLeaf.
- Approval chain is:
- Program/unit chair to
- Dean to
- GEC, AAC or GAAC to
- Provost
Tier 3
These are significant actions that require review by the larger body of the Faculty Senate.
Actions Captured
- Developing a new major/degree
- Discontinuing an existing major
- Modifying undergraduate graduation requirements
- Modifying the Core Curriculum (an approval step with the GEC is required for this action)
Process
- Initiator brings proposal forward to program/unit and enters the proposed change into CourseLeaf (if required).
- Approval chain is:
- Program/unit chair to
- Dean to
- Faculty Senate to
- Provost to
- Universities of Wisconsin System Administration, Board of Regents and/or Higher Learning Commission, where applicable
Proposal Decisions
If approval isn't granted for your curricular proposal, there must be a justification for that non-approval given, including whether revision to the proposal could result in approval, and the justification will be shared with all parties in the approval chain. If revisions to the proposal are possible and appropriate, the proposal returns to the initiator, and the revised proposal can begin the approval process anew.
Shared governance decisions are ultimately advisory to university administration (Chapter 36.09 in the Wisconsin State Legislature articulates this in its definition of roles). If a unit or other shared governance committee does not approve (or fails to consider) a proposal, administrators can forward the proposal up the approval chain at their discretion, after due consideration. In general, courses within an academic major/minor/emphasis/certificate (the courses needed, and their sequence) constitute the curriculum and requires the oversight of the faculty as the disciplinary experts. The presence or absence of academic programs within the university’s offerings constitutes the university’s program array and requires the oversight of the administration.
Course Catalog Updates in The Nest
Deadlines and information about submitting changes for the Course Catalog are available in The Nest, UW-Green Bay's intranet for faculty and staff.
Contact US
Contact Courtney Sherman, Associate Provost for Academic Affairs, for any questions and concerns.
Phone: (920) 465-2463
Email: shermanc@uwgb.edu