Flexible Learning Committee

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The Flexible Learning Committee was developed by President Brown as a result of feedback provided during the September 2022 Planning Council meeting and the fact that flexible learning has been a recurring goal throughout  the previous strategic plans. Eleven faculty members and administrators were charged with identifying and  executing pilot initiatives that would demonstrate ways that the college could achieve flexibility in the curriculum and throughout the degree programs in each undergraduate school. During the Fall 2022 Semester, the committee focused on the following tasks:

  • Identify flexible learning pilot initiatives.
  • Examine and articulate opportunities to pursue studies outside of a student’s major.
  • Draft a goal implementation plan.
  • Develop plans to launch and monitor pilot initiatives.

The committee convened for three working sessions, where they discussed options to achieve their goals. They evaluated current course curriculum attributes and identified flexible learning opportunities that could create  collaborative learning experiences for students. They also focused on how the college’s academic culture and  protocols supported or limited the possibilities for advancing flexible learning.

Committee's Proposed Ideas for Flexible Learning

  1.  Leverage current related area courses as a possible solution for bringing together students
    from B&T, A&D, and LAS majors.
    a. Consider creating a graduation requirement to ensure that all students enroll in six credits in the AAS and six credits in the BS/BFA programs, whereby the course content is multidisciplinary.
    b. Revise current related area courses in order to create cross-listing pairs across degree programs.
    c. Develop special topics courses in collaboration with departments across schools.
  2. Provide credit for group or competition projects, using the Retail World Congress as an example.
  3. Introduce a shared first-year and third-year experience into all degree programs.
  4. Increase curriculum flexibility by incorporating special topic courses as well as utilizing courses with no prerequisites.
  5. Unlock elective restrictions.
  6. Incorporate additional advising support, so students are informed about the various elective options and how to pursue them.
  7. Reassess course numbering to facilitate easier registration.
  8. Build flexibility by means of remote and synchronous courses and programs.
  9. Apply a model like COIL to introduce collaborative learning opportunities among multiple classes.
  10. Create flexibility in learning formats by means of remote and synchronous courses and programs.
  11. Utilize faculty and industry guest speakers in classes to bring different industry learning perspectives into the classroom across disciplines.

Proposed Pilots for Spring 2023 Cross-Disciplinary Project

During Spring 2023, Menswear 256 and Fashion Merchandising 205 will  collaborate on a joint curriculum project designed and implemented under the direction of instructors from both classes. The classes will run separately during the semester, with the exception of 3 joint class meetings to discuss the integration of the two areas on the joint project. Professors will only grade their own students on the project.

With the goal of supporting the scaling of this cross-disciplinary project, the professors will be invited to address the faculty to describe the process, the execution, and the outcomes of the project.

Utilize a special topics course enabling students from different schools and majors to register for the course. The proposed special topics course to be piloted during the Fall 2023 semester is FM 480- Structural Racism and the Challenges of Diversity in the Fashion Business Retail Industry. Because this course is able to be taught from multiple perspectives, a call would go out to instructors from each school to create a course based on this topic from their discipline of study.

A key point raised during the committee’s discussions was that regardless of the flexible solution presented, there is a need for marketing and advising to ensure that students are aware of these courses. The committee members presented ideas such as leveraging the school’s social media platforms, creating course hashtags, and the use of SGA members to spread the word and help with the promotion of the opportunities to participate in these courses. As with students, there is a need for faculty to be aware of the opportunity to create flexible learning collaborations. The committee suggested that faculty be informed about and encouraged to participate in these efforts and that college-wide communications be utilized to inform faculty about these opportunities.

In fall 2023, the SUNY-mandated Gen Ed replacement timeline will be in effect. These considerations may facilitate the development of greater flexibility in some of our curricular areas.

Committee Members

Shawn Grain Carter, Associate Professor, Fashion Business Management
Roberta Ellins , Professor, Marketing Communications
Keith Ellenbogen, Associate Professor, Photography
Yasemin Jones, Interim Vice President for Academic Affairs
Robin Sackin Litwinsky, Assistant Professor, Fashion Business Management
Ajoy Sakar, Professor, Textile Development and Marketing
Christie Shin, Associate Professor, Communication Design Pathways
Carli Spina, Librarian and Head of Research and Institutional Services, Gladys Marcus Library
Calvin Williamson, Professor, Science and Math, and President of the Faculty Senate
Mary Wilson, Acting Associate Dean, School of Art and Design
Lauren Zodel, Assistant Professor, Fashion Design—Art