Status Report to the Faculty Senate

February 24, 2005

Judith Dallinger, Assistant Provost for Undergraduate Studies

 

 

First Year Experience Committee

 

CHARGE

 

            The current FYE Committee was charged to: “assume responsibility for the development, leadership, and implementation of the University First Year Experience (FYE). Coordinate with appropriate academic, American Democracy Project, Faculty Senate, and Student Services committees and units, including Admissions, to insure success of the FYE. Develop, allocate, and monitor the budget for the FYE. Jointly design with the Office of Student Development and Orientation, an integrated academic affairs/student services new student orientation program for implementation with the incoming fall 2005 class.”  (Quoted from the provost’s web page, 2/5/05)

 

 

CURRENT ACTIVITIES

 

            The FYE Committee has approximately 25 members and is scheduled to meet once a month, primarily to share information from subcommittees.  Minutes are posted on the FYE website.    http://www.wiu.edu/provost/FirstYearExperience/index.shtml

            When the current configuration of the FYE committee was instituted in October 2004, the FYE committee was divided into four working subcommittees.  The Course Structure subcommittee began identifying the classes which would be offered as FYE classes.  The Course Activities subcommittee is working on the co-curricular activities part of the FYE classes.  The Residence Halls Activities subcommittee is creating the structure for the living and learning communities, and the Marketing subcommittee is working on informing various constituencies about the FYE program, as decisions are made. 

            The FYE Subcommittees as well as several additional committees are working to plan and implement all aspects of the comprehensive First Year Experience which will be provided to all entering freshmen beginning in the 2005-2006 academic year.

 

 

FYE:  Academic Component

 

 

FYE Courses:  

 

The FYE sections of courses have been identified for fall and spring of 2005-2006.  The majority of the FYE sections will be in general education, with several offered as entry level courses in selected majors. Over 100 sections will be offered each semester, so class sizes should be about 20-22.  Departments and colleges are currently working with the registrar to create an overall FYE course schedule, and to add sections of courses created for “displaced students.”   Advisors will use guidelines for placing students into FYE sections in order to make effective use of the distribution of courses.

 

FYE Course Expectations

 

            The FYE committee has recently approved a Description of FYE Courses, which details many of the expectations that will be held for both faculty teaching FYE courses and for students taking them.  I have enclosed a copy of the description.

 

FYE Faculty Training

 

            The faculty training sub-committee of the FYE committee is currently working to plan for training sessions and resource materials for both the faculty who will be teaching FYE courses and for the upper division undergraduate peer mentors who will be serving in each FYE section. 

 

FYE Peer Mentor Training

 

            Each FYE section will have a student who will serve as a peer mentor working with the faculty member.  Peer mentors for the Fall 2005 will be selected during the spring of 2005, and the tentative plans are that they will be trained just prior to the beginning of the Fall 2005 semester.  

 

 

FYE Calendar

 

            The marketing subcommittee and the course activities subcommittee of the FYE committee are both working on implications for and implementation steps required to develop a master FYE calendar, which will include as many of the co-curricular events as possible, and which will also provide a reservation system for FYE faculty to indicate which co-curricular events their students will be attending.  The FYE committee encourages everyone who is sponsoring an appropriate co-curricular event to add it to the FYE Calendar.

 

 

Academic Orientation Component

 

            The First Year Experience begins for students even before they arrive for their first semester of coursework.  The FYE is being integrated into the admissions and orientation process.  This spring I am attending six Welcome Receptions, hosted by the Admissions office for students who have been accepted at WIU, and I am giving a brief presentation on the FYE.  President Goldfarb is also mentioning the FYE program in his speeches at these receptions.

 

Summer Orientation and Registration

                       

The Faculty Senate endorsed an ad hoc task force created to plan for the academic component of the mandatory 1 ˝ day orientation and registration programs for all entering freshmen.  The committee is developing two programs, one for each day of the summer orientation.  On Day 1, faculty members will work with small groups of students to discuss issues of Academic Responsibility.  On Day 2, teams of faculty will present a program on Academic Curiosity which will highlight the value of a general education. 

 

Fall Orientation

 

            The kick off event for the FYE Courses will take place on Sunday, August 21st, during Fall Orientation for entering students.  Because this event will serve as the beginning of the FYE course experience for freshmen, and will bridge the course activities and the summer academic orientation, advice is being sought from both the FYE subcommittees and from the ad hoc task force on summer orientation.   A subcommittee representing those is currently being constituted to gather together this advice and to develop and implement the program for the Fall Orientation FYE Event.

 

 

FYE Residential Component

 

            A proposal for the residential component of the FYE has been received by the Residential Activities subcommittee of the FYE Committee and by the Associate Vice President for Student Services (Kathy Cavins).  That subcommittee (chaired by Dr. Cavins) is working with the Assistant Provost for Undergraduate Studies to implement the proposal.  Additional information on the FYE Living and Learning communities is available from either Dr. Cavins or Dr. Dallinger.