Faculty Senate approves two Degrees of the Future

The Faculty Senate approved two more Degrees of the Future during its Jan. 28 meeting. Senators have now approved five of six proposed Degrees of the Future as a funded initiative of the 2022-2031 strategic plan. Degrees of the Future address student and workplace demands and spur innovation in the curriculum.

Senators approved an interdisciplinary bachelor's degree from the agronomy and agricultural and biosystems engineering departments in digital and precision agriculture (PDF), and a master's degree in financial technology (PDF) offered by the colleges of Liberal Arts and Sciences and Business. Precision agriculture relies on data to improve the economic, environmental and social sustainability of agriculture. Financial technology focuses on financial analysis, computational methods and business analytics.

An online master's degree in digital health (PDF) launched in 2024 and a bachelor's degree in game design (PDF) have been approved by the Iowa Board of Regents. A bachelor's in integrated health sciences (PDF) is on the regents' docket for approval in February. The final degree, a bachelor's degree in digital storytelling, led by the Greenlee School of Journalism and Communication and the music and theatre department, is expected to reach the senate for review yet this semester.

Cyclone Civics

Catt Center and Cyclone Civics director and professor of political science Karen Kedrowski shared with senators what Cyclone Civics is and reminded them of the upcoming professional development conference for all faculty and staff.

"The goal of Cyclone Civics is to ensure our students progress through different levels of understanding about civics," she said. "We want them to have civic literacy, civic skills and a civic disposition."

Kedrowski said civic literacy will give students a basic understanding of the functions of government, skills to help them fully participate in a democracy and a commitment to democratic processes. In March, Iowa State seniors will be asked to complete a civic literacy test.

"This will give us information on what our students know as they are about to depart the university," she said.

New focus areas

Senators will vote next month on a pair of proposed new graduate focus areas:

• The College of Health and Human Sciences would add a family and community services (PDF) focus area to the master of family and consumer sciences degree. The online coursework-only program would broaden a focus area already part of the Innovation Digital Education Alliance (IDEA), a consortium of universities that offer online, affordable programs. 
• The College of Veterinary Medicine would add five focus areas to the master of veterinary preventive medicine (PDF). Students still could choose to follow the core program. The focus area will be noted on a student's transcript and confirm training consistency. Thirty credits would be required for a thesis master's degree and 36 for a creative component degree. The five areas are:

o Diagnostic pathology

o Food animal toxicology

o Veterinary epidemiology

o Swine population medicine

o Animal welfare

President-elect

Michael Olsen, professor in mechanical engineering, was chosen as the senate's next president-elect. He'll take office in May, when president Rahul Parsa (finance) passes the gavel to president-elect Meghan Gillette (human development and family studies).

Joint meeting

Student Government invited the Faculty Senate to conduct a joint meeting on Monday, Feb. 17 (5-6 p.m., MU Sun Room). Students and senators will discuss issues that impact both groups. An agenda for the meeting is in development.

Other business

The Faculty Senate approved:

• A certificate program in real estate (PDF) focused on legal, economic and financial aspects. It is open to all students and prepares them for jobs in real estate sales, property management, mortgage lending and asset management. It was approved after previous discussion delayed a second vote.

• An online master's in supply chain management (PDF). The coursework-only program provides practical training to develop supply chain professionals with advanced managerial and analytical tools and skills that will help address the significant supply chain manager shortage in the state and across the nation.

• An amendment to the degree planning policy that allows students to pursue a minor or certificate before earning a major of the same name if it does not occur in the same semester.

• Removing guidelines from the Faculty Handbook regarding the percentage of term faculty instructors in a department or at the university. In their place is an annual review of the breakdown of tenured, tenure-eligible and term faculty to assure an appropriate balance for teaching, research and extension responsibilities.

• A name change to the animal ecology undergraduate major, to wildlife and fisheries conservation and ecology (PDF).

Senators will vote in February on:

• A proposed undergraduate minor (PDF) in sports media communication to complement the major the senate approved last spring from the Greenlee School of Journalism and Communication. Students will gain an understanding of the processes that shape how sports are portrayed, promoted and analyzed. The minor allows students to try some of the new courses and help generate interest from students majoring in kinesiology, event management and others.
• Proposed changes to the academic progress policy (PDF) to mirror recent changes on academic dismissal, clarify how academic standing is determined and discontinue combining summer session GPA with previous semesters to determine academic standing, unless it results in a cumulative GPA below 2.0.
• The  interdisciplinary minor (PDF) in user experience design in the graphic design and industrial design departments. More time was requested to review the electives for the minor.