Goals of a Bates Education 2005-2006

In 2003-2004 the Bates faculty began a discussion of the General Education curriculum by considering the goals of a Bates Education.  This work culminated in a list of goals and the decision to continue the process in the 2004-2005 academic year through the work of a Coordinating Committee and Design Team.  During the 04-05 academic year, these Committees reviewed, developed, and presented to the campus a number of ways to organized a curriculum and articulated the rationale for each approach.  At year’s end, three models articulating different ways to approach the goals were presented to the campus.  Since then, faculty, students and staff have provided comments, observations and feedback which have served as the basis for the next draft of a proposed curriculum.

This website will present notes from the many open meetings sponsored by the Bates Education Committee, copies of emails and other ideas, discussions and topics to inform our thinking and discussion.  We hope that faculty will use the website as a means of learning what their colleagues are thinking.  We are also always interested in comments from faculty, staff and students about the information presented here, or other thoughts related to the goals for a Bates education.

Bates Education Committee :

John Cole
Matt Côté
Marie Hemmelgarn
Sue Houchins
Lynne Lewis
Kirk Read
Bonnie Shulman
John Strong

Charge: In the summer of 2005, the Bates Education Committee was created from members of the Coordinating Committee and Design Team to begin a process of compiling information that colleagues have presented and put together a comprehensive draft of possible legislation to present during the fall semester of 2005.