Six interdisciplinary studies programs at Wright State have been consolidated under other departments. Before the change, the programs used to be “stand-alone units,” according to Linda Caron, dean of the College of Liberal Arts.
“We’ve brought them into the department structure," Caron said. "It's really just an administrative consolidation. The curriculum hasn't changed; the courses haven't changed; the student experience hasn't changed. Nothing has changed except their administrative home."
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The affected programs include African and African American studies, Women and Gender studies, Crime and Justice studies, International Studies, Liberal Studies and Social Science.
Before the changes, a few of the programs had a directorship and all programs had a faculty committee. The directorships were removed but control over the curriculum is “pretty much the same,” Caron said. The responsibilities of directorship now belong to the faculty committee.
The consolidations were part of cost-saving measures to improve administrative efficiency, according to Caron. “Anything that saves money and doesn't impact students is a good move,” she said.
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The changes were made carefully to ensure that students were not impacted, according to Caron. She stated that, “The first question we ask when we make any decision is: will it negatively impact students?”
These changes were made amid renewed national discussion about the value of the Liberal Arts. "It is so evident to me how vital the liberal arts are, not just generally, but to this country and this region right now,” Caron said. “We need to do a much better job at getting our word out about how valuable the liberal arts are.”
