The deadline for implementing structural changes to the Associate of Applied Science degrees has been moved to the 2007-08 school year. The WTCS state office cited concerns communicating new information to students and problems related to the treatment of general education courses as significant reasons for delaying implementation.

The reconfigured AAS degree, originally scheduled for full implementation by 2006-07, places an increased emphasis on general education coursework. The revised degree format increases total general education requirements from 18 to 21 credits. In addition, the revised degree caps total credits at 70.

Faculty from across the state, including faculty representatives on the new WTCS Curriculum and Educational Initiatives (CEI) Committee, have expressed concerns about the limited number of general education options available under the revised AAS degree. Once implemented, only courses on the state-approved list of general education courses can be used to fulfill the 21-credit requirement. Currently, there are only 36 courses on the state-approved list.

Faculty on the CEI committee have argued that the current list does not provide the breadth of general education options necessary to meet the widely varied needs of every AAS degree program across the state. CEI Committee members, in conjunction with other faculty, have therefore been pushing for a process whereby additional courses can be added to the list of state-approved courses. That process is now complete.

Members of the CEI committee recently sent a letter to all faculty explaining the delay in AAS implementation, and the development of the new procedure gives faculty the time and the means to place needed general education courses on the state-approved list.

“Don’t resign yourself to settling for state-approved general education courses that do not meet the needs of your program, your students or your advisory committee,” the faculty members wrote. “If the current mix of general education courses is not appropriate for your program, use the newly developed procedures to propose a more suitable option.”

You can read the entire letter and review the new general education procedures by clicking the link. Letter