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Reinventing the Core Curriculum
"In spite of the rich array of available resources, general education for lower division undergraduates
seems only rarely to stand out in a university's profile as integral to a coherent educational vision, as a major factor in strengthening lifelong
habits of learning and inquiry, as a compelling stage for the best and wisest faculty to introduce
freshmen and sophomores to how knowledge is made and human experience understood, or as an opportunity for
utilizing the special attributes of a research university." Hewlett Foundation RFP
The College of Letters and Science received a grant from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation's Division of General Education in Research Universities. With this grant, faculty from all the colleges of Montana State University initiated a campus wide reconsideration of undergraduate core curriculum and piloted an alternative approach, which serves as a model for campus-wide discussion and revision of the core. The goal was to reposition the core curriculum as the foundation of undergraduate instruction, and to create a philosophically coherent program that builds on the expertise of the faculty.
Some of the fundamental questions considered included:
| What knowledge and what abilities should all our students have? |
| How are the disciplines and faculty in a highly departmentalized institution related to one another and to the educational mission as a whole? |
| How can the liberal arts tradition flourish at a contemporary research institution? |
Questions about this page or the Hewlett grant project can be directed to vholznagel@montana.edu at the College of Letters and Science Dean's office, (406)994-4288.
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