Cultural Diversity Designation Application Form

Guidelines for submitting a course to be considered for the cultural diversity designation:

• The proposer will submit a brief (one to two paragraph) statement of rationale that outlines how the course meets the requirements.
• Course outlines will be considered for the cultural diversity requirement; individual sections of a course will not be considered
• Course is college level and not remedial
• Cultural diversity is clearly central to the course objectives and can be achieved through course competencies
• Course is consistent with the requirement criteria:
  • Course exposes students to alternative perspectives, histories, experiences, and worldviews
  • Course encourages students to evaluate their own perspectives, histories, experiences, and worldviews in the context of human diversity
  • Course provides students with general tools to understand similarities and differences in the human experience and prepares students to apply these tools
  • Course encourages students to experience a perspective that is different from their own

Tips for preparing the statement of rationale for the Cultural Diversity sub-committee

Members of the Cultural Diversity sub-committee will carefully review the course outline to determine if the proposed course fulfills the requirement criteria. The curriculum author is expected to submit a brief (one to two paragraph) statement of rationale that outlines how the course meets the requirements.  The following list may be taken as a guide for how a proposed course articulates with the cultural diversity requirements, and it should not be viewed as an exhaustive list.

• Course exposes students to alternative perspectives, histories, experiences, and worldviews. For example, the course may:
  • Provide students with detailed and organized knowledge of some aspect of human diversity
  • Take as its central topic some aspect of human diversity
  • Make students aware of the academic, practical, and social construction of group identities
  • Provide students with competing models of human diversity, whenever possible
• Course encourages students to evaluate their own perspectives, histories, experiences, and worldviews in the context of human diversity. For example, the course may
  • Adopt a comparative, analytical, or critical approach to human diversity
  • Utilize students’ perspectives, histories, experiences, and worldview to consider areas of similarities and difference
• Course provides students with general tools to understand similarities and differences in the human experience and prepares students to apply these tools. For example, the course may:
  • Introduce students to generalized skills to interact with diverse groups
  • Provide opportunity to students to utilize generalized skills
  • Provide theories and methodologies central to an understanding of diversity
• Course encourages students to experience a perspective that is different from their own. For example, the course may:
  • Provide students with an insider’s view of diversity
  • Enhance student’s ability to consider the perspective, history, experience, and worldview of others
  • Outline the goals, obstacles, and limitations of relativism

Approval Process Guidelines for the Cultural Diversity sub-committee

The Diversity sub-committee of the Educational Affairs Committee reviews and recommends to Ed Affairs courses proposed to meet the Cultural Diversity Requirement. All courses proposed for consideration should include a brief (one to two paragraph) statement of rationale that outlines how the course meets the requirements along with course outline. The Educational Affairs Committee must approve new course proposals before the Cultural Diversity sub-committee will consider them.

• The voting members of the Cultural Diversity sub-committee will consist of members of the Educational Affairs Committee
• A two-thirds majority is required for approval of proposed courses
• The curriculum author, or other representative, will be invited to attend the meeting to address any questions that may arise in discussion by the voting members
• Voting members will discuss the proposed course and vote yes or no on its acceptance to fulfill the Cultural Diversity Requirement
• The chair of the Cultural Diversity sub-committee will draft a rationale for all courses that are rejected and submit the rationale to curriculum author and the Educational Affairs Committee.