General Education Curriculum Implementation (GECI)

Intro
On January 24th, 2022, the faculty of Ohio Wesleyan University voted to adopt and implement a reimagined General Education Curriculum. These significant and substantive changes, the first since the early 1970’s, are the product of more than a year of concentrated effort by the Committee on Academic Programs (CAP). The vote to move forward with this student-centered proposal is a vote to better address the needs and concerns of today's students while strengthening and reaffirming OWU’s historic commitment to the liberal arts. 

The General Education Curriculum adopted by the faculty will help OWU students develop habits of mind that they will carry with them throughout their lives and careers, both of which will take forms that they cannot anticipate at the start (or even the end) of their college education. Despite the uncertainty of the future, OWU students will be intellectually equipped to adjust to a changing world, be in a strong position to understand how changes affect people in different ways, make meaningful contributions to the world, and live a fulfilling life. You can view the status of the implementation on the following page.

The new General Education Curriculum consists of the the following key components:

CNX 110: The First Year Seminar
This interdisciplinary course will introduce students to the liberal arts and provide foundational academic skills they will need for academic success at OWU. The first year seminar (FYS) will be centered on a single complex problem that students will address using critical reading and information literacy skills, applied problem solving practice, and approaches to learning from across the curriculum.

CNX/ENG 105 College Writing
English 105 will introduce students to college-level writing. The primary emphasis will be the use of writing as a tool for learning and communication. Students will write multiple papers, working through each stage of the research and writing process.

Core Competencies 
Although all courses are multifaceted and inculcate multiple skills and ways of understanding the world, the courses that satisfy the Core Competency requirement will pay particular attention to the skills listed below. All courses that satisfy an individual competency will share a common set of learning objectives. Students will take one course in each of the following categories and no more than two may not count no more than two courses with the same prefix toward the competency requirement. Please see this link for definitions of each core competency. 

  • Think Aesthetically 
  • Reason Formally & Quantitatively
  • Question Scientifically
  • Listen, Imagine, & Understand
  • Write & Speak Effectively
  • Learn a Second Language 
  • Examine Power & Inequities
  • Engage Diversity
  • Act Responsibly 

CX Connection eXperience 
A Connection experience is a significant and sustained experiential learning activity that allows students to connect their academic knowledge with opportunities outside the traditional classroom. All students will participate in a Connection Conference, which will combine elements of the student symposium, along with class-specific academic and career advising. Students can choose experiences, credited or uncredited, from the following categories:

Undergraduate Research; e.g. independent studies, summer science research

Study Away; e.g., study abroad/away, travel-learning courses

Career Connections; e.g., internships, externships

Community-based Learning; e.g., student leadership positions/programs, long term volunteering, service learning courses.

For questions, please contact:

Kira Bailey (Chair of CAP)

Dave Markwardt

Brian Rellinger

Dale Brugh