Reenvisioning the Kent Core

April 1, 2024

Dear Colleagues, 

I am writing to you today to ask for your input on identifying a new framework for our Kent Core.

Since its inception in 1983, the Kent Core has been critical to the mission of Kent State University. The Kent Core general education curricular requirements touch each of our students as they navigate through their undergraduate experience. For the last several semesters, working groups across the campus system have dedicated efforts to re-envision our Kent Core in a way that creates more meaningful experiences for our learners.

After much hard work, the committees developed three distinct frameworks in alignment with our Kent State mission for the university community to review.

Beginning in April, we will host several virtual forums where each framework will be presented. I encourage you to participate by attending a forum and providing feedback to ensure the best framework is chosen for our students. These virtual events will highlight the history of our re-envisioning process, the guidelines used to create the frameworks, and a variety of interactive ways for you to contribute to the ongoing development as we work together to create a distinct general education program for Kent State.  

We are confident that your input and our continued dedication to the process will build a Kent Core curriculum that is distinctive, innovative, exciting to our students, and forward-looking in our disciplines while also aligning with the core values and mission of Kent State.

Visit our webpage to find a full list of dates and times for the Re-envisioning the Kent Core Community Forum sessions. No registration is required.

Your voice is critical to the process, and I hope that you will find time to join us at a session!

My best, 
Melody Tankersley, Ph.D. 
Senior Vice President and Provost
 

RE-EVISIONING THE KENT CORE COMMUNITY FORUM SCHEDULE

Wednesday, April 3, 2024, 9:30 a.m. – 11 a.m. 
Wednesday, April  3, 2024, 1:15 p.m. – 2:45 p.m. 
Thursday, April 4, 2024, 10 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. 
Thursday, April 4, 2024, 2:30 p.m. – 4 p.m. 
Tuesday, April 9, 2024, 10 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. 
Tuesday, April 9, 2024, noon – 1:30 p.m. 
Wednesday, April 10, 2024, 10 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. 
Wednesday, April 10, 2024, 1 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. 
Thursday, April 11, 2024, 8:30 a.m. – 10 a.m. 
Thursday, April 11, 2024, 1:30 p.m. – 3 p.m. 
Monday, April 15, 2024, 8 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. 
Monday, April 15, 2024, 10 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. 
Tuesday, April 16, 2024, 9 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. 
Tuesday, April 16, 2024, 1:30 p.m. – 3 p.m. 
Wednesday, April 17, 2024, 10:30 a.m. – noon 
Wednesday, April 17, 2024, 1 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. 
Thursday, April 18, 2024, 9 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. 
Thursday, April 18, 2024, 2 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. 
Friday, April 19, 2024, 8 a.m. – 9:30 a.m. 

During the 2023-2024 academic year we continued to make progress Re-envisioning the Kent Core.  First, the Model Sprint Team was formed from volunteers that served during the previous academic year on either the Design, Distinctiveness, and/or Budget Subcommittees. These subcommittee members had advanced knowledge of the work associated with general education program re-design. This team created three distinct frameworks for the university to consider. These frameworks were shared with the larger community in t April 2024 through a series of community forums designed to gather input from participants.  The findings of these forums can be found in the “Recourses” tab near the bottom of this webpage. The Model Sprint Team will use this feedback over the summer and early fall of 2024 to create a more “final” draft version to be shared with the entire university community.  

The Administrative Oversight Sprint Team was created and met for a brief period during the Fall 2023 semester. Throughout this process, the re-envisioning teams have learned that the best models for general education are framed as complete programs, rather than series of disconnected courses. The Administrative Oversight Sprint Team was formed to investigate and plan for potential obstacles that may arise as we shift our approach to a more programmatic perspective. This group has proposed a structure that aligns with this perspective and will be examined this upcoming fall by the Office of the Provost and Faculty Senate. The proposed functions and responsibilities of this committee are outlined in Appendix B of the annual report which can be found in the “Resources” tab below.

The Budget Sub-Committee came together in Spring 2024 to discuss the scope of work for the remainder of the re-envisioning process. While the bulk of their work will entail aligning the current budget model with the final general education framework, there was an immediate need to begin discussions with other institutions who have either a) gone through a recent change in their general education offerings or, b) have an existing program that contains specific elements (staffing, assessment, etc.) that appeal to our current approach.  These conversations garnered some best practices to consider as well as things to avoid during the implementation process that will be utilized in the next phase of this project.
 

During the 2023-2024 academic year we have continued moving forward with the re-design of the Kent Core. The Re-envisioning Kent Core Leadership Team has continued to provide oversight and input through each phase of this project. This academic year included the creation of the Model and Administrative Oversight Sprint teams. Additionally, the Budgetary Sub-committee also continued providing input to the overall re-design process. The following report documents the highlights of each of these teams as well as providing recommendations for the next steps in this process.

Three models were presented to the university community in Spring 2024 during a series of online forums.  Participants were asked to consider the elements of each model that they liked (or that gave them reason for concern), and their feedback was captured in an online survey.  A summary of the results can be found in the Resource tab below.

The models:

• Leading a Life of Impact: In this model students explore complex problems facing society today, engage in analyzing the problem, and posing solutions to it. These courses will fit within an OT 36 bucket (e.g. natural sciences, humanities, etc.) but will be taught using an interdisciplinary lens. Each course will explicitly require students to reflect on how they engage with the problem using skills, knowledge, and dispositions that are woven throughout the curriculum.
• CLICK Pathways: This framework was inspired by the four themes developed by the Distinctiveness Subcommittee. These themes include a) culture of care, access, and community, b) local to international partnerships leading to cross-cultural learning, c) innovative thinking to improve the world, and d) civic responsibility building from the past toward a future vision. Inspired by these themes, students would choose a “pathway” of connected courses from different disciplines that explored and proposed solutions for real world problems. Students would meet the requirements of the Ohio Transfer module as they select themes that interested them and their future endeavors.
• Pyramid Plus: Students follow a structured approach which builds from career and life skills into solving complex problems through interdisciplinary courses and themes. This model was inspired by feedback from employers that highlighted the importance of students developing “real world” skills. This framework provides opportunities for micro-credentials and a portfolio experience that allows students to document their educational growth at Kent State.

• Faculty Senate – Summer 2024 Presentation (PDF)
• Leading a Life of Impact (PDF)
• CLICK Pathways (PDF)
• Pyramid Plus (PDF)
• Summary of Community Forum Data (PDF)
• Guidelines & Procedures for Academic Program Review, Ohio Department of Higher Education
• Kent Core (General Education Requirement)
• Kent Core
• Ohio Transfer 36
• American Association of Colleges and Universities
• What Liberal Education Looks Like, AAC&U

History of Kent State’s General Education Requirement

1983: Kent State establishes the General Education Requirements. Previously, each college had separate and different general education requirements. The structure for the university-wide requirement is modeled after the one in the College of Arts and Sciences.

1985: The General Education Requirements is renamed the Liberal Education Requirements.

1990: The state-wide Ohio Transfer Module is implemented, patterned after Kent State’s general education requirements. The Ohio Transfer Module (now called Ohio Transfer 36) comprises 36-40 credit hours from five categories: English Composition (minimum 3 credit hours); Mathematics, Statistics and Logic (minimum 3 semester); Arts and Humanities (minimum 6 credit hours); Social and Behavioral Sciences (minimum 6 credit hours); and Natural Sciences (minimum 6 credit hours).

1999: The Liberal Education Requirements is reduced in total credit hours, and more course options added.

2006: The Liberal Education Requirements is revised to comply with a state mandate to align with the Ohio Transfer Module, specifically in the mathematics (foreign languages removed) and natural sciences (one lab required) categories. The mathematics category is renamed, and the Additional category is created to allow two courses from separate categories to be applied.

2010: The Liberal Education Requirements is revised to remove the restriction that students’ major courses cannot count toward the requirement. The requirement is renamed the Kent Core.

2011: Following a mandate from the state, an abbreviated Kent Core is required for all applied associate degrees (e.g., A.A.B., A.A.S., A.T.S.).

2013: The Kent Core is revised to allow courses from any category to count toward the Additional category.

2021: For the past 10 years, Faculty Senate has attempted to minimize growth of the Kent Core by requiring any new additions to be accompanied by removals, except for mathematics courses mandated by the state.

University Catalog Kent Core (General Education Requirement)​

Leadership Team

• Alison Smith, Ph.D., Dean
• Scott Sheridan, Interim Associate Provost and Professor
• David Dees, Ph.D., Associate Professor
• Jennifer Newberger, M.Ed., Research and Evaluation, Project Manager

Steering Committee

• Denise Bartell, Senior Associate VP, Regional Campus System Faculty & Student Success 
• Edward Dauterich, Ph.D., Professor
• Claudia Gomez, Ph.D., Associate Professor
• Mary Kutchin, MSN, RN, Associate Lecturer
• Jenny Marcinkiewicz, Ph.D., Director Center for Teaching and Learning
• Mandy Munro-Stasiuk, Ph.D., Dean 
• Liz Piatt, Ph.D., Interim Dean
• Amy Quillen, Ph.D., Student Ombuds
• C. Lockwood Reynolds, Ph.D., Associate Professor
• Sean Veney, Ph.D., Associate Professor
• Kathy Zarges, Assistant Dean, Advising Student Success, and Licensure

Model Sprint Team

• David Dees, Ph.D., Associate Professor (chair)
• Jenny Marcinkiewicz, Ph.D., Director Center for Teaching and Learning (co-chair)
• Robin Vande Zande, Ph.D., Professor
• Andrew Barnes, Ph.D., Associate Professor
• Tina Bhargava, Dr.PH., Associate Professor
• Laurie Camp, Director I
• Neil Cooper, Ph.D., Director and Professor
• Ben Hollis, Ph.D., Executive Director
• Joanna Liedel, M.Ed., Director of Academic Partnerships
• Shelley Marshall, M.T., Lecturer
• James Redfearn, Ph.D., Assistant Professor
• Renee Roll, M.F.A., Associate Professor
• Kathy Zarges, Assistant Dean, Advising Student Success, and Licensure

Model Advisory Team

• Craig Berger, Associate Director
• Jen Cunningham, Ph.D., Associate Professor
• Carla Goar, Ph.D., Director, Anti-Racism and Equity Institute and Professor
• Vicki Gutierez, Senior Instructional Designer
• Ellie Hansen, M.A., Director
• Jay Hays, Ph.D., Academic Program Director
• Jonghan Hyun, Ph.D., Assistant Professor
• Jennifer McCullough, Ph.D., Assistant Professor
• Dirk Remley, Ph.D., Professor
• Liz Sinclair, M.Ed., Assistant Dean Of Undergraduate Programs And Assessment
• Deb C. Smith, Ph.D., Professor
• Melissa Zullo, Ph.D., Associate Dean and Professor

Budgetary Team

• Mandy Munro-Stasiuk, Ph.D., Dean (Co-Chair)
• C. Lockwood Reynolds, Ph.D., Associate Professor (Co-Chair)
• Andrew Barnes, Ph.D., Associate Professor
• Alicia Crowe, Ph.D., Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education and Student Services and Professor
• Brad Bielski, Ph.D., Dean and Chief Administrative Officer
• Ryan Hediger, Ph.D., Professor
• Ben Hollis, Ph.D., Executive Director
• Michael Johnson, M.B.A., Associate Vice President
• Aloysius Kasturiarachi, Ph.D., Associate Professor
• Darci Kracht, Ph.D., Professor
• Mary Kutchin, MSN, RN, Associate Lecturer
• Deepraj Mukherjee, Ph.D., Professor
• Dirk Remley, Ph.D., Professor
• Sean Veney, Ph.D., Associate Professor