2017-2018 Catalog Blackburn College is a private, four-year liberal arts college located in Carlinville, Illinois. A town of nearly 6,000 people, Carlinville is the county seat of Macoupin County. The beautiful 80 acre campus is 40 miles southwest of Springfield and 60 miles northeast of St. Louis, Missouri. Amtrak stops twice daily, linking the town with other Midwestern cities. Visitors are welcome at Blackburn and offices are open Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Tour appointments can be made by calling (800) 233-3550, ext. 5517 during business hours; or by writing the Office of Admissions, Blackburn College, Carlinville, Illinois 62626; or by e-mail to [email protected]. Visit our web site at: www.blackburn.edu. 1 EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES The Faculty of Blackburn College expects each student to make progress toward achieving each of the following specific objectives of our concept of an effective modern liberal education: (Adopted by the faculty on January 20, 2005). 1. A Blackburn graduate should be able to think and communicate clearly and effectively. 2. A Blackburn graduate should be able to demonstrate depth in a field of knowledge. 3. A Blackburn graduate should be able to think critically about the ways in which humanity gains and applies knowledge. Specifically, the graduate should have an informed understanding of a. the aesthetic and intellectual experience of literature and the arts; b. history and the concepts and analytic techniques of social science as modes of understanding current issues, problems, and the nature of human experience; and c. mathematics and the experimental and analytical methods of the physical and biological sciences. 4. A Blackburn graduate should be able to think substantively about philosophical, moral and ethical issues and problems. 5. A Blackburn graduate should be able to understand other cultures and other cultural frames or perspectives for understanding and interpreting experience. 6. A Blackburn graduate should appreciate the value and dignity of human labor. 7. A Blackburn graduate should be adaptable and demonstrate self-reliance and intellectual independence. 8. A Blackburn graduate should develop the habits and skills to sustain and cultivate a life of intellectual, physical, spiritual and emotional well-being. 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES ........................................................................................2 GENERAL INFORMATION .............................................................................................4 EDUCATION AT BLACKBURN COLLEGE ..................................................................4 ACADEMIC CALENDAR 2017-2018 ...............................................................................5 A BRIEF LOOK BACK .......................................................................................................7 ADMISSION TO THE COLLEGE ...................................................................................8 HOW TO APPLY ................................................................................................................8 ACADEMIC PROGRAMS ...............................................................................................12 TUITION, FEES & REFUNDS .......................................................................................18 THE WORK PROGRAM .................................................................................................23 CAMPUS FACILITIES .....................................................................................................25 FINANCIAL AID ..............................................................................................................28 SCHOLARSHIPS ..............................................................................................................32 LOAN PROGRAMS ..........................................................................................................35 STUDENT LIFE AT BLACKBURN ................................................................................36 ACADEMIC REGULATIONS .........................................................................................51 REQUIREMENTS FOR A BACHELOR OF ARTS DEGREE ......................................58 DIVISIONS AND COURSES OF INSTRUCTION ......................................................60 COLLEGE PERSONNEL ..............................................................................................159 THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES .......................................................................................159 THE FACULTY ...............................................................................................................162 ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF ...........................................................................................166 INDEX ............................................................................................................................169 3 GENERAL INFORMATION EDUCATION AT BLACKBURN COLLEGE Blackburn College, founded in 1837, is primarily a residential college and currently enrolls approximately 600 students. The College has been co-educational since 1864; the enrollment is almost equally divided between men and women. Students enroll from all parts of the nation and from several other countries, but the majority comes from the Midwestern states. The College seeks a student body from diverse, social, economic, and cultural backgrounds. Its relatively small size and democratic, open tradition permit and encourage wide participation by all. Blackburn is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA) and is actively committed to helping students develop their own life values and religious perspectives. Blackburn has long enjoyed a reputation for academic quality. Over 80% of the faculty has the highest graduate degree, usually the doctorate, which is available in their fields of study. Students and faculty have the opportunity to work together in small classes frequently having no more than 15 students; class discussion and individual attention are a normal part of a Blackburn education. This personal attention makes it possible for interested students to undertake independent study projects under faculty supervision or to work with a faculty member on a research project. Students who attend Blackburn are expected to have a high school academic preparation well above the average for college students. Most institutions of higher education today focus only on the individual, establishing competitive, rather than cooperative, learning environments in which students are tested on their individual abilities to survive. But an individual’s credentials and skills are not enough to prepare for the complex organizations and diverse communities that students will encounter after graduation. Collective problems require a common effort by those educated to cope with the diversity of race, gender, religion and ethnic identity, by those who have already learned from the experience of membership in a community, what it means to share a commitment, serve interests beyond their own, and contribute to a common good. And here Blackburn has much to offer as it uses its work program and GENERAL INFORMATION attentive staff and faculty to build community on campus during a student’s important undergraduate years. Blackburn historically has been committed to providing access to all academically qualified students regardless of economic need. The total costs of attending Blackburn are kept lower than at other academically selective independent colleges through the Work Program, internships, major income received from the College’s endowment funds, and generous gifts that come to Blackburn each year from alumni and friends of the College throughout the nation. Approximately 90% of the Blackburn student body receives financial aid of one kind or another. 4 ACADEMIC CALENDAR 2017-2018 Fall Semester 2017 Tuesday, August 1 Tuition, room, board, and other charges are due and payable to avoid $100 late payment fee. Friday, August 18 Returning students arrive on campus. Saturday, August 19 New students arrive on campus. Matriculation Ceremony, 4:00 p.m. Sunday, August 20 Orientation and Week of Welcome events Monday, August 21 Orientation and Week of Welcome events ACADEMIC CALENDAR 2017-2018 Tuesday, August 22 Work Program training day Wednesday, August 23 Classes begin. All College Convocation, 4:00 p.m. Thursday, August 31 Last day to register, add a course, declare a course to be taken pass/fail or drop a course without a “W” grade or fee. Monday, September 4 Labor Day Holiday Fri., Sept. 29-Sun., Oct. 1 Homecoming Weekend Friday, October 13 Fall midterm break begins at 5 p.m. Monday, October 16 Mid-term grade rosters due. Wednesday, October 18 Course instruction resumes at 8 a.m. Wednesday, October 25 Last day to drop a class with a “W” grade. Monday, October 30 Early registration of currently registered students begins for the Spring 2018 semester. Friday, November 10 Veterans Day Convocation, 11:00 a.m. Last day of early registration for Spring 2018 semester. Tuesday, November 21 Last day to withdraw passing from a class. Thanksgiving acationv begins at 9 p.m. Monday, November 27 Course instruction resumes at 8 a.m. Tuesday, December 12 Double instruction periods begin. Friday, December 15 Double instruction periods end and course instruction ends. 5 ACADEMIC CALENDAR 2017-2018 Spring Semester 2018 Friday, January 5 Tuition, room, board, and other charges are due and payable to avoid $100 late