AP-001-089, Discontinuance of Botany, Microbiology and Zoology Majors

And Implementation of New Biology Major with Options in General Biology, Botany, Microbiology, and Zoology

CALIFORNIASTATEPOLYTECHNICUNIVERSITY, POMONA

ACADEMIC SENATE

ACADEMIC PROGRAMS COMMITTEE

REPORT TO

THE ACADEMIC SENATE

AP-001-089

Discontinuance of Botany, Microbiology and Zoology Majors

And

Implementation of New Biology Major with Options

in General Biology, Botany, Microbiology, and Zoology

Academic Programs CommitteeDate:9/17/08

Executive Committee

Received and ForwardedDate:11/12/08

Academic SenateDate:11/19/08

First Reading

1/21/09

Second Reading

BACKGROUND:

The Department of Biological Sciences has submitted a proposal to discontinue the Botany, Microbiology, and Zoology majors. The Department is also requesting the implementation of a new Biology major with Options in General Biology, Botany, Microbiology, and Zoology. The new Biology Major proposal will be implemented no sooner than Fall 2010.

RECOMMENDED RESOURCES:

Jill Adler-Moore, Nancy Buckley, Gary Carlton, Frank Ewers, Chris George, Don Hoyt, Claudia Pinter-Lucke.

DISCUSSION:

This request has the endorsement of the Department’s faculty and the College of Science’s Curriculum Committee. All of the resources contacted support the proposal.

The proposal

Reduces the number of majors to three (Biology, Biotechnology, and Environmental Biology) and brings the Department more in line with other regional CSUs.

Streamlines the offering of the Department and reduces the course overlap between majors. Grouping the students in three majors enhances the position of the Department (for example, it would have 877 majors instead of scattered numbers distributed among the 6 majors).

Allows students greater success since Options appear on the diploma, bestowing, thus, recognition on the students for the sub-discipline and allowing them greater flexibility when seeking employment.

RECOMMENDATION:

The Academic Programs Committee recommends approval of the referral Ap-001-089 Discontinuance of Botany, Microbiology, and Zoology Majors and Implementation of New Biology Major with Options in General Biology, Botany, Microbiology, and Zoology.

9/26/07

Reasons for Implementing a New Biology Major

with Options in General Biology, Botany, Microbiology, and Zoology

(The other two majors in our department, Biotechnology and Environmental Biology, will remain as they are. We are well situated to take a leadership role in each of these important areas of future growth in biology.)

In recent decades, there have been remarkable advances in the biological sciences. These advances have been driven by new tools in molecular and cell biology, biotechnology, environmental sciences, as well as biological and biomedical instrumentation. These tools have enabled biologists to tackle questions that would have been impossible to even dream of a few decades ago. These emerging technologies have also bridged barriers that once existed between sub-disciplines within the biological sciences. It is now essential that all students of biology receive appropriate training in these technologies.

The new curriculum proposed in this document reflects the modern needs of students of biological sciences. The new curriculum consists of a set of core courses common to all options and a set of courses unique to each option. The core courses establish the foundation that is essential to advanced studies in the biological sciences, and the options in General Biology, Botany, Microbiology, and Zoology provide additional specialized training. Combining the previous majors into a single Biology major emphasizes the breadth of training required of all biologists, regardless of their sub-discipline. It is the belief of the faculty of the Biological Sciences Department that this new curriculum will better equip our students for success in their biology careers.

There are several other reasons to reduce the four current majors in Biology, Botany, Microbiology, and Zoology to options:

Currently, in the College of Science, the Biological Sciences Department has a number of undergraduates, but because our students are dispersed among six majors, the size and complexity of our department are not recognized at the University level. In AY 2006-2007, we had 660 Biology Majors, 9 Botany Majors, 100 Microbiology Majors and 108 Zoology Majors enrolled. If these four majors were combined into one major as proposed, enrollment in the major would have been 877. It has been argued by many, both within and outside the department, that this will make us more visible and increased visibility will be beneficial.

Periodic program review requires a thorough review of each major. By reducing the number of majors from six to three, we reduce the time and effort that will be required at each program review. In past program review documents, much of the information for each of the four majors was similar, if not identical. This suggests that the four current majors are not very distinct from a programmatic standpoint.

There is significant course overlap between our current Biology, Botany, Microbiology and Zoology majors. Because of the limited number of required courses that are unique to each of these sub-disciplines, it is appropriate to treat each as an option. Furthermore, the current majors can be converted easily to options with no change in the actual coursework requirements.

Options will appear on the diploma so students will receive recognition for the sub-discipline in which they have specialized. This can be important for student success in the job market.

Having options within the Biology major provides students with flexibility when seeking employment. For some positions it may be beneficial to emphasize the biology degree, with its implications of a broad-based education in biology. For other positions that require more specialized training in botany, microbiology, or zoology, it will be beneficial to emphasize the option.

By reducing our number of majors to three (Biology, Biotechnology, and Environmental Biology) we would be more in line with the other regional California State Universities, all of which have fewer than six majors and offer options, concentrations, or emphases (Table 1).

Table 1. Academic undergraduate degrees in biological sciences for CSU campuses in the LA area (information obtained on 1/29/07). Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science Degrees are in bold.

FullertonB.S. in Biology with concentrations in:

Biodiversity, Ecology & Conservation Biology

Marine Biology

Cell & Developmental Biology

Molecular Biology & Biotechnology

Dominguez HillsB.A. in Biology

B.S. in Biology with a General Biology option

B.S. in Biology with a Microbiology option

Long BeachB.S. in Marine Biology

B. S. in Microbiology

B.S. in Biology with options in:

Biology Education

Botany

Ecology

Cell & Molecular Biology

Physiology

Zoology

Biology

Los AngelesB.S. in Biology

B.S. in Natural Science with Biology option

B.S. in Microbiology with Clinical Lab Science

B.S. in Microbiology with Microbiology

NorthridgeB.A. in Biology

B.S. in Biology with options in:

Cell & Molecular Biology

Environmental Biology

Microbiology

Biotechnology/Medical Technology

Marine Biology

San BernardinoB.A. in Biology w/ pre-med option

B.S. in Biology w/ pre-med option

San DiegoB.A. in Biology

B.S. in Biology with emphasis in:

Bioengineering

Cell and Molecular Biology

Ecology

Evolution and Systematics

Marine Biology

Zoology

B.A. Microbiology

B.S. Microbiology with emphasis in:

Clinical Lab Science

Public Health Microbiology

San Luis ObispoB.S. in Biology w/concentrations in:

Anatomy-Physiology

Ecology

Field and Wildlife Biology

General Biology

Marine Biology and Fisheries

Mol and Cell Bio

Systematics and Biodiversity

B.S. in Microbiology