Provost's Launch 2022-2023 | Kean University

The new General Education Curriculum (GEC) aims to recreate general education at Kean University so that we give our students a unique inquiry- and place-based experiential learning opportunity that will launch them into their major areas of study.

During the initial meeting of May 13, 2022, David Birdsell, Ph.D., Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs, shared a new vision of GEC that is both:

Distinctive
1. Intellectually Vibrant
2. Shared students should receive a similar foundational education
3. Does the lion's share of academic major preparation
4. Interdisciplinary

Legible and Linear
1. Few branches at the base; many at the top
2. Require no backtracking
3. Critical direction of student progress

The GE Taskforce was formed to explore how to apply this vision to Kean. Made of representatives from all colleges and members representing students' interests (see: Taskforce members, link), the GE Taskforce has worked collaboratively to...

Create a genuine, shared core.
Support graduation in four years with a major and up to two minors
Have the general education curriculum accepted by all majors with few or minor modifications
Craft an inquiry-based curriculum
Build the curriculum around concrete observations that will then back into theory.
Derive as much of the curriculum as possible from place and community
Create multiple points of contact throughout the first year, i.e., an integrated curriculum
Emphasize throughout the values of equity, inclusion, analytical rigor, sustainability, and mutual respect.

Summer 2023 GETF Press Release: Transdisciplinary Teams

Summary of Feedback from College-Specific Meetings (April 2023)

GE Taskforce members, Action Team and Working Group