University Level Review
Office of the Registrar
All curriculum proposals prepared by colleges and/or programs will be submitted to the Office of the Registrar, which will review the proposals for technical implementation, e.g., concise and consistent course descriptions, scheduling, degree audit, and articulation. Staff will communicate directly with the department chair or designee regarding issues with the proposals that need to be resolved, and work in coordination with the Academic Programs Office.
The Office of the Registrar will forward a copy of curriculum proposals to the Academic Programs Office for their review. In addition, the Office of the Registrar will post summaries of all curriculum changes received for each cycle on its web site for information and comment by campus constituencies. Feedback on curricular changes posted should be directed to the Chair of the Academic Senate Curriculum Committee.
Academic Programs and Planning Office
Academic Programs and Planning Office staff is responsible for reviewing proposals for adherence to campus academic policies as well as the campus academic master plan. Staff will communicate directly with the department chair or designee regarding issues with the proposals that need to be resolved and work in coordination with the Office of the Registrar.
Academic Senate Curriculum Committee
After initial review by the Academic Programs Office and the Office of the Registrar, curriculum proposals will be forwarded to the Academic Senate Curriculum Committee (ASCC) for review. This committee shall be composed of one faculty representative from each college curriculum committee and from related areas of the University (see Academic Senate bylaws for details).
The Academic Senate Curriculum Committee will review all proposals for academic merit and potential overlap and/or duplication with existing courses and programs, and make recommendations.
The Academic Senate Curriculum Committee will forward its recommendations directly to the Academic Senate for full Senate review.
General Education Governance Board
The General Education Governance Board (GEGB) is responsible for leading and developing a visionary, high quality GE program that enriches the specialized knowledge acquired in a major program with foundational and integrative understanding of its scientific, humanistic, artistic, and technological contexts.
U.S. Cultural Pluralism Subcommittee
The U.S. Cultural Pluralism Subcommittee (USCP) is responsible for the initial review of courses proposed to fulfill the Cultural Pluralism baccalaureate requirement.
Academic Senate
The Academic Senate makes recommendations on all curricular proposals for approval by the University President.
All curriculum proposals, except new degree programs, appear on the Academic Senate agenda by college as consent items. Senators are given two weeks notice of the consent items and are expected to review the summaries posted on the Office of the Registrar website. Issues, concerns, and questions regarding curriculum proposals are directed to the chair of the Academic Senate Curriculum Committee by one week before the Senate meeting. If the concern is strong enough, any senator may request an item be removed from the consent agenda no later than one week before the meeting. Items removed from the consent agenda will be placed on the Senate agenda as discussion items. The Senate Chair (or designee) will invite representatives from the concerned departments and the Academic Senate Curriculum Appeals Committee to be present at the meetings where pulled proposals will be discussed. It is recommended that the Senate Chair allow the Academic Senate Curriculum Appeals Committee freedom to ask questions at will, without needing to be on the speakers list. Following discussion in the Senate, the Academic Senate Curriculum Appeals Committee will make the final decision to approve, disapprove, or return the items to committee (at any level) for further development. Items not removed from the consent agenda are considered approved on the meeting date of the consent agenda.
New degree proposals must be approved by the CSU Chancellor’s Office, and as this approval cannot usually be timed to meet a catalog cycle deadline, these proposals come to the ASCC when they are ready. After approval by the ASCC, they are forwarded to the Academic Senate Executive Committee and are then sent to the full Senate for a first and second reading.