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wedenday, September 13, 1989 / University Daily Kansan
Regents analyze specialized majors
By Doug Fishback Kansan staff writer
Some University of Kansas interdisciplinary program enrollments are too low to suit the Board of Regents.
Martine Hammond, Regents director of academic affairs, said the Regents' recommended minimum enrollment figure for undergraduate university programs was 50 students.
College enrollment records from last spring show that some interdisciplinary programs met that figure. Others did not.
The human biology program enrollment was 159, and 114 students were majoring in environmental
On the other hand, only three KU students were enrolled in the history and philosophy of science program last spring. Only 16 students were pursuing a degree in women's studies.
Interdisciplinary programs are administered through the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and are taught by faculty from various departments who come together to explore a common interest, said Del Brinkman, vice chancellor for academic affairs.
Brinkman said he did not think the Regents should evaluate the specialized interdisciplinary programs under the same criteria used for more mainstream majors.
"The interdisciplinary programs need to be looked at in a slightly different way," Brinkman said.
The programs are not intended to attract high numbers of majors, he said.
"Interdisciplinary programs are set up mainly as enrichment programs in the first place," Brinkman said, meaning they cater to students
'The interdisciplinary programs need to be looked at in a slightly different way.'
who want to augment their education with knowledge of a specific field.
Hammond said she agreed with the spirit of academic cooperation and investigation behind the interdisciplinary programs.
"I think there is an opportunity for enrichment," she said. "I strongly endorse that concept."
Vice chancellor for academic affairs
But the Regents said that its minimum enrollment figures should be applied to the interdisciplinary programs as they were to other majors, Hammond said.
"The view is that it should be consistent," she said.
"It's just a part of the normal process of program review," he said.
Brinkman said the report showed that program courses were offered frequently enough to satisfy student demand.
The Regents' questions about interdisciplinary programs resulted from a 1987 study, which was a routine part of a comprehensive five-year review cycle that evaluates various aspects of Regents institutions, he said. The Interdisciplinary Studies review was not necessarily bottle. Brinkman said
Brinkman will answer Board of Regents' questions Thursday about the strength of Interdisciplinary Studies at the University of Kansas.
Brinkman last week mailed Hammond information about course availability in three of the University's 10 interdisciplinary programs. He offered a number of courses and humanities program were among the three.
The Regents were concerned with whether the interdisciplinary programs were adequately staffed, whether they provided students with sufficient advising and with the effects of small class sizes on the quality of education, Hammond said.
She said programs that were too small amounted to independent study for some majors.
Another problem is that the volunteer faculty can become preoccupied with duties in the departments in which normally teach, Hammond said.
"When that happens, you don't have a critical mass of students for interaction," she said.
He said commitment and quality were the standards by which the programs should be measured.
James Carothers, associate dean of the college, said the voluntary nature of the teaching brought a spirit of commitment and quality to the programs.
"Quality is very difficult to measure," Carothers said. "It's a subjective term, but we think we know it when we see it."
"We don't think the number of majors is the best or is the only way to evaluate a program," he said.
Economics did not come into play when evaluating the programs, Brinkman said, because the faculty was employed by other departments and taught interdisciplinary programs as volunteers.
He said efforts to save money by discontinuing the programs would be misguided.
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