IUPUI Form for Creation of a New Minor
1 I. School: School of Public and Environmental Affairs Department: N/A
1 II. Proposed Minor: Sustainable Management and Policy
1 III. Related Major: Sustainable Management and Policy
1 IV. Projected Date of Implementation: Fall 2014
1 V. List the major objectives of the proposed minor and describe its chief features briefly. The minor in Sustainable Management and Policy is being proposed to complement the current SPEA Bachelor of Science in Public Affairs (BSPA) major, titled with the same name. By offering the minor we hope to increase enrollment in SPEA sustainability courses by (i) appealing to students interested in pursuing another major within SPEA but who seek specialization or topical knowledge in sustainability; and (ii) appealing to students currently enrolled in other schools or departments at IUPUI but who seek specialization or topical knowledge in sustainability.
The BSPA Sustainable Management and Policy minor curriculum will consist of the following five courses; 3 credit hours each or 15 credit hours total: o SPEA-V 170: Introduction to Public Affairs o SPEA-V 222: Principles of Sustainability o SPEA-V 322: Sustainable Management o SPEA-V 323: Sustainable Policy o SPEA-V 311: Natural Resources and Environmental Policy
Each of these courses is currently offered as part of the approved BSPA major in Sustainable Management and Policy. As such, the minor will not require the development and approval of any new courses. Course descriptions are appended at the end.
Students with the proposed minor will need to complete a total of 15 credit hours corresponding with the aforementioned courses. An overall minimum GPA of 2.3 will be required in courses taken specifically for the minor.
1 VI. Why is the minor needed? Demand for this program has been expressed by current SPEA students to the SPEA Director of Undergraduate Programs and Student Services. The minor builds on SPEA’s ongoing efforts to bolster its sustainability programs, both at the undergraduate and graduate level. Offering the minor will help to increase enrollment in sustainability courses, thereby furthering SPEA’s reputation on and off campus as a leader in sustainability education.
More broadly, demand for this type of sustainability degree is also reflected in the growing offering of professional positions relating to sustainability by government, private, and non-profit organizations, alike. Examples of such include consultants, coordinators, and or advisors for any type of organization seeking to introduce a sustainability component to their managerial, administrative, and/or programmatic operations.
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The ability to pair a breadth of expertise acquired through a current BSPA SPEA major with specialization in sustainable management and policy will make SPEA graduates with the proposed minor particularly well suited for the types of sustainability positions currently being offered in the workforce. The minor will also benefit students from other schools who seek specialization in one aspect of sustainability.
1 VII. Describe the student population to be served and market to be targeted. There are two populations from which we hope to draw students for the proposed minor: (i) prospective and current SPEA students who are interested in pursuing a non- sustainability related SPEA major, but who seek specialization or topical knowledge in sustainability; and (ii) prospective and current students of other schools or departments on the IUPUI campus who seek specialization or topical knowledge in sustainability.
1 VIII. How does this minor complement the departmental and campus missions? Address how it conforms with IUPUI’s Principles of Undergraduate Learning. The proposed BSPA minor directly supports the mission of SPEA of preparing students to deal with pressing issues of modern society by training them to be effective professionals within the government, private, and non-profit sectors. Sustainability is an increasingly salient topic that relates to the central challenges that cities, organizations, and communities are currently facing.
The specially selected curriculum for the proposed minor will provided students with the basic disciplinary foundation of public affairs, while giving them both general specialized substantive knowledge in principles of sustainability, the development of sustainability policies, managing organizations in a sustainable manner, and natural resource management and environmental policy.
The proposed minor will not require the development of any new courses. All courses that are suggested for inclusion in the curriculum are already offered by SPEA as part of the BSPA major in Sustainable Management and Policy.
All courses are available to any IUPUI student subject to course availability. There are no pre-requisites for any of the courses included in the proposed minor curriculum.
At this time, there is only one other sustainability oriented program offered by any school of department on the IUPUI campus: Purdue School of Engineering and Technology Sustainable Technologies Certificate. The focus of the Certificate and the proposed minor are fundamentally different reflecting the varying foci of the Schools themselves. Whereas EGTC’s Certificate is focused on technological and design related elements of sustainability, the proposed SPEA minor relates to sustainability as is relevant for policy development and organizational management. As such, we do not expect there to be any negative impact for the School of Engineering and Technology in terms of enrollments or students pursuing the Certificate resulting from the approval of the BSPA Sustainable Management and Policy minor. A letter of support from Engineering and Technology appears below.
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The proposed minor conforms to the following IUPUI Principles of Undergraduate Learning (PULs):
o Integration and application of knowledge o intellectual depth, breadth, and adaptiveness o understanding society and culture o values and ethics
The proposed minor will allow students to integrate skills and knowledge learned through the sustainability curriculum with expertise gained through their primary major to be effective and engaged employees and citizens. The sustainability curriculum is unique in that it is not topically tied to any particular SPEA major.
The PULs are linked to Student Learning outcomes in section XII below.
The full PULs are appended below. 2 1 IX. List and indicate the sources (including reallocation) of any resources (personnel, financial, learning, library holdings, equipment, etc.) required to implement the proposed program. No additional resources, including library holdings, are required to implement the proposed minor as all of the courses included in the curriculum are already offered as part of the BSPA major in Sustainable Management and Policy.
X. Describe any innovative features of the program The proposed minor is innovative in its versatility, interdisciplinarity, and relevance in today’s workforce. The curriculum brings together multiple sub-disciplines within public affairs. It can complement any of SPEA existing majors, including both those relating to public affairs and criminal justice.
1 XI. List the major student outcomes (or set of performance-based standards) for the proposed minor. Students with this minor will have a basic understanding of perspectives in public affairs, management, policy, natural resource management, all as they relate to sustainability. Ultimately, this training, in combination with their degree, will allow them to pursue a diverse range of professional careers.
1 XII. Explain how each of the student learning outcomes identified in XI above will be assessed. Student learning assessments relating to public affairs, policy, management, natural resource management, and sustainability will be conducted, as relevant, through in- class assignments and evaluations.
SPEA will administer a questionnaire to graduates to ask if they were able to find employment in the field of their choice as well as to ask how well their degree(s) with
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this additional minor prepared them for their professional position. This is currently standard practice for SPEA.
Relating to broader SPEA outcomes, enrollment in sustainability courses and the proposed minor will be reviewed twice per academic year (fall and spring semester) to assess its impact and popularity.
Student success and satisfaction will be monitored continually. This function will be performed by the Director of Undergraduate Studies, who will keep records of student applications, matriculation, performance, completion rates, etc. Student satisfaction surveys will also be collected to assess student satisfaction with courses and other program elements. 0 In consultation with the department’s Undergraduate Committee, the Director of Undergraduate Studies will review assessment data for the individual courses and for the minor as a whole on an annual basis to ensure continuous improvement of the minor. See chart of Student Learning Outcomes below.
Where will How will student Student Outcome students learn achievement of Relationship to In what setting will the this knowledge or the outcome be Mission, PULs assessment take place? skill? assessed?
Understanding of In-class through Through PUL(s): (iii) foundations of public instruction and evaluation of Integration and affairs, management, policy, individual and/or student application of Through respective and natural resource group assignments performance on knowledge; (iv) classes (each of the management as related to assignments and intellectual depth, different courses sustainability testing breadth, and offered in the adaptiveness; (v) curriculum corresponds understanding to the different student society and culture; outcomes listed) and (vi) values and ethics This is a post- Through post- PUL: (iii) integration Through post- Employment in desired graduation graduation and application of graduation professional field outcome questionnaire knowledge questionnaire
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IUPUI Principles of Undergraduate Learning (PULs)
The Principles of Undergraduate Learning are the essential ingredients of the undergraduate educational experience at Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis. These principles form a conceptual framework for all students' general education but necessarily permeate the curriculum in the major field of study as well. More specific expectations for IUPUI's graduates are determined by the faculty in a student's major field of study. Together, these expectations speak to what graduates of IUPUI will know and what they will be able to do upon completion of their degree.
I. Core Communication and Quantitative Skills [Definition:] The ability of students to express and interpret information, perform quantitative analysis, and use information resources and technology--the foundational skills necessary for all IUPUI students to succeed. [Outcomes:] Core communication and quantitative skills are demonstrated by the student’s ability to a. express ideas and facts to others effectively in a variety of formats, particularly written, oral, and visual formats; b. comprehend, interpret, and analyze ideas and facts; c. communicate effectively in a range of settings; d. identify and propose solutions for problems using quantitative tools and reasoning; e. make effective use of information resources and technology.
II. Critical Thinking [Definition:] The ability of students to engage in a process of disciplined thinking that informs beliefs and actions. A student who demonstrates critical thinking applies the process of disciplined thinking by remaining open-minded, reconsidering previous beliefs and actions, and adjusting his or her thinking, beliefs and actions based on new information. [Outcomes:] The process of critical thinking begins with the ability of students to remember and understand, but it is truly realized when the student demonstrates the ability to a. apply, b. analyze, c. evaluate, and d. create knowledge, procedures, processes, or products to discern bias, challenge assumptions, identify consequences, arrive at reasoned conclusions, generate and explore new questions, solve challenging and complex problems, and make informed decisions.
III. Integration and Application of Knowledge [Definition:] The ability of students to use information and concepts from studies in multiple disciplines in their intellectual, professional, and community lives. [Outcomes:] Integration and application of knowledge are demonstrated by the student’s ability to
7 IUPUI Form for Creation of a New Minor a. enhance their personal lives; b. meet professional standards and competencies; c. further the goals of society; and d. work across traditional course and disciplinary boundaries.
IV. Intellectual Depth, Breadth, and Adaptiveness [Definition:] The ability of students to examine and organize disciplinary ways of knowing and to apply them to specific issues and problems. [Outcomes:] Intellectual depth, breadth, and adaptiveness are demonstrated by the student’s ability to a. show substantial knowledge and understanding of at least one field of study; b. compare and contrast approaches to knowledge in different disciplines; c. modify one's approach to an issue or problem based on the contexts and requirements of particular situations.
V. Understanding Society and Culture [Definition:] The ability of students to recognize their own cultural traditions and to understand and appreciate the diversity of the human experience. [Outcomes:] Understanding society and culture is demonstrated by the student’s ability to a. compare and contrast the range of diversity and universality in human history, societies, and ways of life; b. analyze and understand the interconnectedness of global and local communities; and c. operate with civility in a complex world.
VI. Values and Ethics [Definition:] The ability of students to make sound decisions with respect to individual conduct, citizenship, and aesthetics. [Outcomes:] A sense of values and ethics is demonstrated by the student’s ability to a. make informed and principled choices and to foresee consequences of these choices; b. explore, understand, and cultivate an appreciation for beauty and art; c. understand ethical principles within diverse cultural, social, environmental and personal settings.
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Course descriptions of minor coursework
SPEA-V 170 Introduction to Public Affairs (3 credits) Broad coverage of public affairs through critical and analytical inquiry into policy making at all levels of government. Particular emphasis on intergovernmental relations as they affect policy in the federal system.
SPEA-V 222 Principles of Sustainability (3 credits) -- Meeting the needs of the present without jeopardizing the future involves an interrelationship between environmental, social, and economic systems. This course introduces and investigates the interrelationships between these approaches to synthesize a basic understanding that can lead to sustainable policies in the public, nonprofit and for-profit sectors.
SPEA-V 322 Sustainable Management (3 credits) – This course examines the role of management in public and nonprofit organizations. Special attention is given to the application of the principles of sustainability to management, methods for public and interest group participation, communication and conflict resolution, and evidence based management designed to track organizational progress.
SPEA-V 323 Sustainable Policy (3 credits) -- This course investigates the difficulties of incorporating long-term environmental, social, and economic concerns into policy proposals. The principles of sustainability are applied to policy considerations and existing policies are analyzed for their long- term impact.
SPEA-V 311 Natural Resources and Environmental Policy (3 credits) – This course focuses on the role of the public sector in natural resource and environmental protection. Current and prior environmental policies at the state and federal levels are reviewed, organizations which address international policies are identified, and the intended and unintended outcomes of these initiatives are discussed.
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