Faculty Senate cuts 16 education degrees, not enough interest
It’s a struggle to sustain an entire degree program when only one student enrolls every few years, according to Corinne Mantle-Bromley, dean of the University of Idaho College of Education.
“I don’t think any of us can create programs for one or two students,” Mantle-Bromley said, speaking to UI Faculty Senate Tuesday. “And that’s the difficulty we have.”
Faculty Senate voted to discontinue 16 major and minor programs in the College of Education, including teaching degrees in theatre, psychology and Latin, among other programs.
Mantle-Bromley said the college recommended discontinuing the courses for one of two reasons. Either many of Idaho’s K-12 schools no longer offered classes associated with the degrees, or the programs had such few students each year that it was a burden on the college’s faculty.
The program cuts were not associated with the “Focus for the Future” program prioritization effort by the university, she said.
Mantle-Bromley said many public schools no longer hire full-time teaching positions related to the discontinued degrees. She said if the college continued to offer the programs it would give students false hope in finding a full-time position in their selected area of study after graduation.
“It’s not going to be the thing that gets you a full-time position,” she said.
Additionally, Mantle-Bromley said the college has not recommended students take these majors and minors in past years because of the lack of job opportunities throughout the state.
Mantle-Bromley said cutting the programs is a reaction to a shifting trend in school curriculum throughout Idaho — schools focusing on core subjects at the expense of electives and liberal arts classes.
“Every subject area that is not a part of the national reporting or testing is being squeezed out of the curriculum,” she said. “It’s a sad statement on what’s happening in K-12 schools.”
Michael Murphy, a music professor and Faculty Senate member, said he was bothered that the large majority of the discontinued majors and minors were associated with the liberal arts. He said he would like to see UI continue to allow students to major in their chosen area of study and receive teaching degrees associated with their major.
Murphy said UI should be a catalyst for change within Idaho by continuing the programs that support a liberal arts education.
For specific teaching degrees like Theatre Arts, Mantle-Bromley said faculty were required to gather performance evidence and keep track of a student’s progress within their specified field. She said the task of collecting that information and reestablishing the program was difficult and time consuming for the faculty.
“They didn’t see it as their job, and certainly didn’t feel like they had the time to add this to their responsibilities,” she said.
Mantle-Bromley said the college’s faculty, along with other UI curriculum committees, approved the discontinuation.
Marty Ytreberg, Faculty Senate chair, said the University Curriculum Committee also approved of the discontinuation.
Mantle-Bromley said other degrees were discontinued because the college felt it did not offer enough courses in the subject to effectively educate enrolled students.
“We just don’t think it’s deep enough content area to be representative of the teachers we want,” she said.
Ryan Tarinelli can be reached at [email protected]