College of Arts and Sciences

Dean: Prof Mark Smith

Phone number: (773) 995-3788

Office location: HWH, Room 330

Programs in the liberal arts and sciences prepare students for a wide variety of occupational opportunities and for graduate work. Programs are designed to produce graduates who are broadly educated and who have special knowledge and competence in their major field of study.

Mission

The College of Arts and Sciences provides the intellectual nucleus of the University. The College prepares its students to be competitive in challenging careers in the humanities, the visual and performing arts, the social and behavioral sciences, and the STEM disciplines of life science, physical sciences, technology, engineering, and mathematics. The College provides students throughout the university with broad interdisciplinary awareness and competence to equip them for citizenship in the 21st century environment of diversity, globalization, and social justice.

Vision

The College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) will be recognized for its depth and breadth of scholarship; its commitment to utilizing pedagogies that effectively teach students while equipping them for the workplace; its student and community engagement in research and creative activities to foster economic growth, social justice, and lifelong personal development; its support of all education programs in the University by teaching critical thinking, numeracy and creative and purposeful writing. It will be recognized for engagement in major issues that both challenge and foster democratic thought.

Admission to the programs in the College of Arts and Sciences is contingent upon good academic standing and acceptance by the appropriate academic department. Programs leading to Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degrees are offered in the following fields: Art, Biological Sciences, Chemistry, Media Arts, Computer Science, Criminal Justice, English, General Studies, History and Africana Studies, Liberal Studies, Mathematics (admissions suspended), Music, Physics, Political Science, Psychology, Sociology and Spanish. CAS also offers minor sequences in the above listed fields and pre-professional programs in pre-law and pre-medical education. Students interested in a career in engineering can enroll in our Engineering Studies program. Students interested in a career in education should select one of the following preK-12 or secondary teaching options the College of Arts and Sciences offers: art, biology, chemistry, English, history, mathematics, music, physics and Spanish. General degree requirements are outlined in the pages that follow. Specific requirements for each major sequence appear subsumed under the appropriate/respective academic departmental listings in the pages that follow.

Accreditations

Information on the programmatic accreditations held by programs in the College of Arts and Sciences can be found at https://www.csu.edu/accreditation/

College of Arts and Sciences Requirements

Core Requirements from University General Education Requirements (12 credits)
1. English Composition (6 credits)
2. Oral Communication (3 credits)
3. Mathematics (3 credits)
General Requirements from University General Education Requirements (24 credits)
1. Humanities/Fine Arts (9 credits) must include one humanities course and one fine arts course
2. Social Sciences (9 credits) at least two disciplines
3. Natural Sciences (6 credits) one physical science (chemistry, geography, physical science, or physics) and one biology; one must be a lab
CAS General Education Requirements beyond University requirements (3 credits)
1. Foreign Language (3 credits)*
2. Diversity (embedded; see list of approved General Education courses)*

*For students who have entered the university with fewer than 30 credits
(Total of 39 credits. General Education courses must come from the list of approved courses, available online at: http://www.csu.edu/provost/UGEC/genedurequirements.htm)

The General Education Curriculum for the College of Arts & Sciences reflects the Illinois Board of Higher Education’s General Education Core Curriculum (GECC).In addition to the above, students with majors in the College of Arts & Sciences are required to take three (3) credits of a foreign language and to satisfy an embedded diversity course requirement. Please note that these two are College requirements. General Education Requirements in Teacher Education Options

See the departmental listings in this catalog for the specific general education requirements of the teacher education programs in art, biology, chemistry, English, history, mathematics, music, physics, and Spanish.

Professional Education Requirements

All teacher education programs in the College of Arts and Sciences require coursework in professional education offered through the College of Education. See individual departmental majors for details.Refer to the College of Education requirements for information regarding requirements for Professional Educator Licensure (PEL).

edTPA

All teacher candidates for licensure must pass the edTPA assessment in order to complete our Education Preparation Program (EPP) and apply for licensure. Students failing to pass key assessments will not be eligible for licensure or licensure degree completion.

College of Arts and Sciences Departmental Uniform Grievance Policy and Procedures

Introduction

The purpose of the student grievance procedure is to provide an impartial review process and to protect the rights of all parties involved in student-faculty disputes. Disputes include, but are not limited to, grading and grading policies, expectations, and standards.

The initial discussion between the student and the faculty member and the department chair, director, or coordinator may be informal. The departmental and college committee levels of the process require a formal request and clear documentation of the complaint. At each step of the complaint process, however, an interaction report is completed to document the purpose and outcome of the meeting and to indicate agreement or to identify next steps. A uniform interaction report form is available from all programs in the College of Arts and Sciences.

NOTE: Petitions by students based on circumstances that could constitute a request for an academic adjustment or modification on the basis of a disability as defined by Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 will be referred to and processed by the Abilities Office for Disability Services.

Departmental Process

Any student who believes he or she has a grievance should first utilize the departmental process as listed herein.

Step One
A student who has a grievance against a faculty member should make an appointment with the faculty member within 30 calendar days of the incident to discuss and resolve the dispute. If the student feels that a satisfactory solution or relief has not been provided, the student should follow the procedures outlined in step two.

Step Two
The student should make an appointment with the chairperson, director, or coordinator of the department within ten days after the initial meeting with the faculty member. The chairperson, director, or coordinator will attempt to resolve the dispute or request the student to submit the complaint in writing for a hearing by the departmental Faculty-Student Relations Committee (FSRC), which is only needed if the student moves to step three. If the student feels that a satisfactory solution has not been provided, the student should follow the procedures outlined in step three.

Step Three
The student must submit a written complaint within 60 days of the incident (e.g., rendering of the final grade) to the chairperson, director, or coordinator. The written complaint must include supporting documents and must clearly state a resolution within the authority of the department (e.g., changing a grade from D to C). The chairperson, director, or coordinator will convene the departmental FSRC and distribute the written complaint, along with any supporting documents, to its members and to the faculty member involved in the grievance. At this point, the faculty member must submit a written response with any supporting documentation. The faculty documents are then forwarded to the departmental FSRC.

The departmental Faculty-Student Relations Committee shall comprise a minimum of five faculty members and a minimum of one student. The department chairperson, director, or coordinator will appoint one of the five faculty members to serve as committee chairperson. When the departmental FSRC is convened to hear a grievance, decisions of the committee will be determined by a simple majority vote, provided 75 percent of the membership is present, including one student representative. The selection process for the departmental

Faculty-Student Relations Committee is as follows:

The faculty members (adjuncts will be eligible at the discretion of the department chairperson, director, or coordinator) will be appointed by the chairperson, director, or coordinator of the department or according to departmental bylaws.
The student representative will be selected from a student organization within the department or program and may change depending on criteria 3 (below).
The student representative should not be enrolled in any classes of the grievant or the faculty member grieved.
The faculty member against whom the grievance is lodged should not be a member of the grievance committee.

The departmental FSRC shall have authority and/or responsibility only to make recommendations to the chairperson, director, or coordinator of the department. The final departmental decision will be made by the chairperson, director, or coordinator in writing, with a copy of the decision sent to the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.

The departmental Faculty-Student Relations Committee will have a hearing with all parties present within 30 calendar days of receipt of the complaint. Within 10 calendar days after the committee has met, the committee chairperson will send recommendation(s) to the department chairperson, director, or coordinator and will also send a copy to the dean. Within 10 days of receipt of the committee’s recommendations, the department chairperson, director, or coordinator, or dean will render a written decision to all parties involved and will send a copy to the dean. All meetings of the departmental Faculty-Student Relations Committee shall be closed to protect the confidentiality of both parties and to protect their rights of privacy. The departmental Faculty-Student Relations Committee must approve all witnesses in advance.

NOTE: Departments cannot host virtual meetings. All meetings must be face-to-face.

Step Four
The student may request to have the grievance considered by the CAS FSRC within 15 days after receipt of the written notice from the department chairperson, director, or coordinator. If the decision is unsatisfactory to either party, the CAS FSRC will convene for the specific purpose of hearing an academic grievance as needed. All materials must be forwarded to the CAS FSRC Committee within 15 days. (See College Process.)

College Process

When a student or faculty members initiates an appeal to the dean, the procedures are as follows:

Step One
The petitioner must file the grievance in writing, stating the reasons the appeal is being made and the facts upon which the appeal is based. He or she also must state clearly the resolution sought; however, the resolution must be within the authority of the dean to grant.

The petitioner must attach to the written petition: 1. a copy of the original complaint, 2. a copy of the instructor’s reply, if applicable, and 3. the chairperson’s, director’s or coordinator’s reply and any other supporting documentation connected with the case, as well as any new documents. No new or unrelated allegations shall be added to this petition.

Step Two
The dean will forward the written complaint to the CAS FSRC Chairperson within 10 calendar days. This committee will include a minimum of nine faculty members, and a minimum of two students. The dean will appoint the committee chairperson.

Step Three
Within 10 calendar days of the distribution of the grievance statement, the faculty member involved must submit a written response to the chairperson of the CAS FSRC. Copies will be distributed to committee members.

Step Four

Within 30 calendar days of receipt of all materials, the CAS FSRC will schedule a meeting to review the grievance. Both parties involved (student and faculty member) will be expected to attend the meeting.
All meetings of the CAS FSRC shall be closed to protect the confidentiality of both parties and to protect their rights of privacy.
The chairperson of the CAS FSRC shall approve all witnesses.
Only members of the CAS FSRC may ask questions of the parties involved.
When the CAS FSRC is convened to hear a grievance, decisions of the committee will be by a simple majority vote, provided 75 percent of the membership is present, including one student representative.
Following the final discussion of the CAS FSRC meeting, the chair of the committee within five calendar days will submit written recommendations to the dean, along with any supporting documentation.
Within 10 calendar days of receipt of the recommendations from the CAS FSRC, the dean shall inform the student, faculty member, and department chairperson, director, or coordinator of the decision made in writing. Parties may then appeal to the dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. The decision of the dean will be final.

Pre-Health Professions

The Pre-Health Professions Programs (PPP) assist individuals interested in allopathic medicine, osteopathic medicine, chiropractic medicine, dentistry, veterinary medicine, optometry, pharmacy, podiatric medicine, and physician-assistant programs to prepare for and gain admission into health professions schools or programs. In addition, PPP provides students with information, direction and assistance in preparing for admissions examinations for professional schools and for career options.

Students interested in medicine may select any major offered by the university. Medical and related health professions schools do not require potential applicants to major in any particular area of study. However, in choosing a major, two factors should be assessed: interest and aptitude. Most students participating in PPP are either biological sciences or chemistry majors. Students who hold a bachelor’s degree or beyond are welcomed and encouraged to complete their pre-professional course work for any of the health professions at Chicago State University. Faculty members serve as advisors in the academic major. However, since professional schools’ entrance requirements vary, students are strongly encouraged to work closely with the Office of Pre-Health Professions Programs.

Significant factors in gaining entry to professional schools include academic performance in college, results on the designated admissions test, letters of evaluation, a possible interview, and involvement in extracurricular activities. Medical and related professional schools are most concerned with the overall quality and scope of the undergraduate academic performance.

Therefore, the importance of establishing and maintaining an above-average academic record from the freshman through the senior year cannot be overemphasized.