APA Course Approval Process– Revised as of July 2011 during OIP Meetings

Applies to:

  • New course approvals
  • Permanent approval of Topics courses (after having been taught twice)
  • Changes in course titles and/or numbers
  • Cross-listing of courses

Updated in July 2011 at OIP Meetings in Mexico

  1. CGE faculty willconsult with the Marketing and Recruitment Coordinator regarding any changes in courses and titles to APA cross-site team for approval. This process applies to new courses, changes in title and/or number, and request for departmental cross-listings (after the cross-listing has been approved by both departments involved).
  1. CGE faculty will consult with the Director of Augsburg Abroad (Leah).
  1. After receiving feedback from the Marketing Coordinator and the Director of Augsburg Abroad, CGE faculty will propose any changes in courses and titles to APA cross-site team for approval. ¡
  1. CGE faculty will then discuss the proposals with the appropriate department chair(s) and get approval for the general idea and discuss what level the course should be (200-level, 300-level, or 400-level, etc.) and whether or not it is applying to meet an LAF, major/minor requirement, and needs prerequisites, etc. S/he will cc Ann as Academic Director, Margaret as Coordinator of Academic Programs Abroad,Orv asAssistant Vice President of International Programs, and Leah as the Director of Augsburg Abroad, since she is also a member of AAC
  1. The instructor will send a copy of the syllabus to the Registrar to request an appropriate course number. Information about any prerequisites and conversationswith the department chair(s) should be referenced so that the Registrar can make an informed decision about the course number.
  1. The CGE instructor completes the appropriate AAC form, using the New Course Proposal form for new courses and Course Change Form for others. (If you have questions about which one to use, please ask Ann.) At that time, the instructor should include the course number provided by the Registrar.
  1. When the CGE instructor is ready to submit forms, s/he willinform Margaret, Ann, Orv, and Leah and request review and/or assistance from Ann or Orv if needed.
  1. Oncethe appropriate forms are completed, the CGE faculty member will send the proposed course syllabus and completed forms to the chair(s) of the appropriate department(s) and all the other people who need to sign off on the forms to get their recommendations for any improvements in the syllabus and/or form (usually Jane Ann Nelson in the library).
  1. After hearing back from the department chair(s) and librarian, the CGE instructor will make any suggested changes in the syllabus and/or form.
  1. The instructor will send the final versions of the updated syllabus and AAC forms to the department chair(s) for her/his/their approval and will cc Ann, Margaret, Orv, and Leah.
  1. The faculty member will ask one or both of the appropriate department headsto submit the form to the Academic Affairs Committee (AAC) for general approval and fulfilling of any graduation requirements.
  1. AAC will review, and send any initial reaction to faculty proposing course/course change. After proposing faculty has responded to recommendations, AAC will consider course for final approval.
  1. The Dean’s office will notify the proposing faculty as well as the following offices on campus: Academic Advising, the Registrar, Admissions, and AAC members and advisory members. Margaret will be put on distribution list for AAC minutes so that we can follow the progress of the proposal through AAC.
  1. Margaret will send out an email to all CGE and AA staff reporting the approval so that everyone is aware of the approval. (Since most staff are involved in marketing in some way, it is good for everyone to know about these changes.)
  1. Margaret will keep records of the changes and ensure that the Registrar’s office has received AAC notification of approvals.
  1. If AAC recommended any additional changes to the syllabus, the faculty member will make those and send the final version to Margaret so she can post it on the website and use the new version in the program manual.

GENERAL NOTES TO CONSIDER:

  1. General education requirements include:
  2. Core Skills:
  3. Lifetime Activity (Example: Mexico designed and teaches “Latin Dance” at their site)
  4. Modern Language
  5. Signature Curriculum
  6. REL 200 “Christian Vocation and the Search for Meaning II” (Example: Mexico has been approved to teach this at their site.)
  7. Augsburg Experience (all CGE courses fulfill this requirement)
  8. Senior Keystone Course
  9. Liberal Arts Foundations (LAF)
  10. Natural Science & Mathematics
  11. Social & Behavioral Sciences (Ex.: ThePOL/WST 341course meets this LAF)
  12. Fine Arts (Example: Mexico offers a Mexican Art course in Spanish that meets this LAF)
  13. Humanities (Ex.: The REL/WST 366 and HIS/WST 355 courses meet this LAF)
  1. Cross-listings do need to be approved by AAC.
  1. Topics courses* can only be taught twice. After that the department chair must take it back to AAC with any suggested revisions to be approved with permanent title and syllabus, and the Registrar will need to give it a permanent number. * Numbers for Topics courses vary by department.

APA will monitor process to make sure each of the above steps are successfully concluded, and check documents on the Registrar’s Office page to make sure that all approvals are reflected in these publications.