By: Lauren Young

Xavier University’s Ad Hoc Committee for New Core Curriculum Learning Outcomes has created a new core for students. The initial formation of these core curriculum changes has been approved but will be further modified throughout the 2013-14 academic year.

This committee was arranged in January with the goal of innovating Xavier’s now 25-year-old core curriculum. In comparison to the other 27 Jesuit universities in the United States, Xavier has kept its core — also one of the largest — in place for the longest amount of time. The committee consists of several faculty members from each of Xavier’s colleges.

After spending the spring of 2013 engaging in forums and discussions among other faculty, students and the Student Government Association, the committee put together a conclusion of its final goals and presented them to the faculty at the beginning of the summer. Throughout the summer, the committee received feedback and adapted its original concepts. In August, the committee presented its revised goals and received an 85 percent approval rate from faculty votes.

The former committee was then reduced to the Core Curriculum Committee in September of this year with three faculty members representing each of the three colleges at Xavier. They plan to create opportunities for both faculty and students to get involved and share their input on the direction the new core is headed.

It plans to encourage the Xavier community to post comments and lead discussions on its NeXus website.

The committee will hold six Initial Listening Sessions throughout November that will include presentations of core subjects with open discussion following.

Co-chair of the Core Curriculum Committee, Dr. Walker Gollar, notes that many Jesuit universities don’t put the same emphasis on the Jesuit values that Xavier does. The new core will be centered around these values as well but in a way that allows students to implement them in their everyday lives.

“How can Xavier respond to the current realities of students in a way that makes them become better human beings? Becoming a better human being is what it’s all about,” Gollar said.