English Composition

Courses fulfilling this requirement must be baccalaureate-level and include expository and argumentative writing. 

Upon successful completion of the English Composition General Education requirement, the student will be able to:

• Write a well-developed essay with a thesis that adequately responds to the writing prompt, utilizing appropriate evidence, effective discussion/analysis, and details and examples.
• Organize a thesis-driven essay with paragraphs containing topic sentences, transitions, logical sequence, and strong coherency.
• Write an essay demonstrating college-level competency in syntax, grammar, and mechanics.
• Use MLA to accurately document information from appropriate academic sources with in-text parenthetical citations keyed to a properly formatted Works Cited list.

Oral Communication and Critical Thinking

Courses fulfilling this requirement must be baccalaureate-level and may include oral communication and critical thinking courses.

Upon successful completion of the Oral Communication and Critical Thinking General Education requirement, the student will be able to:

• Demonstrate an understanding of the principles of clear and coherent communication.   
• Develop logical and rational thinking skills. 
• Identify and create well-structured arguments that contain supporting evidence.
• Evaluate the validity of arguments based on the relevance of data and information.
• Demonstrate acceptable ethical standards in research and presentation of materials, including proper citations. 

Mathematical Concepts and Quantitative Reasoning

Courses fulfilling this requirement must be at least college-level and may include mathematics or quantitative reasoning courses, including logic, statistics, computer languages, and related disciplines.

Upon successful completion of the Mathematical Concepts and Quantitative Reasoning General Education requirement, the student will be able to:

• Develop logical and rational thinking skills.
• Properly use quantitative and qualitative symbolic expressions to evaluate and understand argumentation and/or problem solving.
• Use mathematical concepts and quantitative reasoning to solve problems, both in a pure mathematical context and in real-world contexts.
• Use mathematical, statistical, or computational methods strategically to build or apply models and interpret results in context.
• Draw appropriate conclusions based on the quantitative analysis of data, recognizing any underlying assumptions or limits of this analysis.

Arts and Humanities

Courses in the humanities study the cultural activities and artistic expressions of human beings. Such courses develop students’ awareness of how people throughout the ages and in different cultures respond to themselves and the world around them in artistic and cultural creation, and develop students’ aesthetic understandings and abilities to make value judgments. Courses fulfilling this requirement may include introductory or integrative baccalaureate-level courses in the visual and performing arts, art history, foreign languages, literature, philosophy, religion, and related disciplines.

Upon successful completion of the Arts and Humanities General Education requirement, the student will be able to:

• Describe and analyze the development of artistic, philosophical, and intellectual traditions that have shaped human experience across different historical periods and cultural contexts.

• Apply humanistic, theoretical, and/or philosophical methods to critically analyze creative, literary, and performative works, considering their historical, social, and ethical dimensions

• Engage in informed discourse on artistic and humanistic topics—including literature, film, music, dance, theater, architecture, visual arts, and philosophy—while reflecting on the relationship between these works and personal or contemporary experiences.

• Evaluate artistic and intellectual traditions from diverse global cultures, exploring their intersections, influences, and contributions to shared human experiences through literature, philosophy, religion, architecture, visual and performing arts, history, politics, and language.

Social and Behavioral Sciences

Courses in the social and behavioral sciences focus on people as members of society and develop awareness in the methods of inquiry used by the social and behavioral sciences. They stimulate critical thinking about how people act and have acted in response to their societies and promote appreciation of how societies and social subgroups operate. Courses fulfilling this requirement may include introductory or integrative baccalaureate-level courses in cultural anthropology, cultural geography, economics, history, political science, psychology, sociology, and related disciplines.

Upon successful completion of the Social and Behavioral Sciences General Education requirement, the student will be able to:

• Demonstrate an understanding of human behavior, including social interaction and individual behavior in relation to social, cultural, political, psychological, economic, linguistic, biological, physical and other contexts and variables
• Articulate how societies, cultures and subcultures develop and change over time, and how they influence human behavior within specific contexts, including historic contexts
• Articulate how decisions are made in economic or political systems
• Demonstrate ability to utilize the research information technologies, reading abilities and theoretical frameworks that support lifelong learning about the study of human beings and their psychology, their behavior, their social interactions, their cultural diversity and the richness of their human heritages.
• Apply critical thinking and methods of inquiry, including qualitative and quantitative analysis,  appropriate to social science disciplines
• Communicate clearly ideas and facts regarding the human condition and how humans respond, adapt and intentionally change those conditions
• Demonstrate an ability to consider the ethics of human behavior and the human impact of planetary conditions and cycles
• Demonstrate the ability to self-assess their learning regarding social science learning outcomes.
• Articulate the importance of responsible participation in their government and economic decision-making process, community and society
• Identify the skills they have learned in college that prepare them for lifelong learning
• Explain the significance of cooperation and peaceful resolution in addressing societal conflicts

Natural Sciences 

Courses in the natural sciences examine the physical universe, its life forms, and its natural phenomena, helping students appreciate and understand the scientific method and the relationships between science and other human activities. Courses fulfilling this requirement may include introductory or integrative baccalaureate-level courses in astronomy, biology, chemistry, general physical science, geology, meteorology, oceanography, physical geography, physical anthropology, physics, and other scientific disciplines.

Upon successful completion of the Natural Science General Education requirement, the student will be able to:

• Utilize critical thinking skills in evaluating reports of scientific information regarding source, bias, and scientific method. 
• Apply aspects of the scientific method to problem solving in daily life.
• Evaluate and explain the relationships between science and other human activities and how this may impact decision making and personal and social values
• Interpret and analyze pertinent data using quantitative and qualitative methods.

Ethnic Studies

Courses fulfilling this requirement may include baccalaureate-level courses in the four autonomous disciplines within Ethnic Studies: Black Studies; African American Studies; Africana Studies; Native American Studies; Chicano/a/x Studies; Latino/a/x La Raza Studies; and Asian American Studies.

Upon successful completion of the Ethnic Studies General Education requirement, the student will be able to:

• Apply theory and knowledge produced by Native American, African American, Asian American, and/or Latina and Latino American communities to describe the critical events, histories, cultures, intellectual traditions, contributions, lived-experiences and social struggles of those groups with a particular emphasis on agency and group- affirmation.

• Critically analyze the intersection of race and racism as they relate to class, gender, sexuality, religion, spirituality, national origin, immigration status, ability, tribal citizenship, sovereignty, language, and/or age in Native American, African American, Asian American, and/or Latina and Latino American communities.

• Critically review how struggle, resistance, racial and social justice, solidarity, and liberation, as experienced and enacted by Native Americans, African Americans, Asian Americans and/or Latina and Latino Americans are relevant to current and structural issues such as communal, national, international, and transnational politics as, for example, in immigration, reparations, settler-colonialism, multiculturalism, language policies.

• Describe and actively engage with anti-racist and anti-colonial issues and the practices and movements in Native American, African American, Asian American and/or Latina and Latino communities and a just and equitable society.

Health, Wellness, Counseling and Career Planning 

Courses in health or wellness will be designed to give students the knowledge and skills necessary to maintain a healthy lifestyle, by providing information and training in physical and mental health topics, managing stress, nutrition, exercise, fitness, and safety. Courses in counseling or career planning will prepare students for academic success, address academic and personal challenges, choose careers, and develop education, career, and/or transfer plans that meet their personal and professional goals.

Upon successful completion of the Health, Wellness, Counseling, and Career Planning General Education requirement, the student will be able to:

• Assess behavior change opportunities to improve one or more Dimension of Wellness including reducing stress.
• Implement wellness behaviors that promote a sense of self as an integrated physiological, psychological, and social being. 
• Develop strategies to overcome academic, personal, and emotional challenges using available resources and support systems. 
• Apply proactive strategies that support personal, academic, and career goals.