By Sarah Carlson, Arts Editor

Faculty discussions about the General Education Review will continue throughout the semester with no clear sign of a rewritten proposal being ready, said Dr. Jeff Arrington, associate dean of Campus Life and co-chair of the General Education Review Committee.

The original suggested goal for the rewritten curriculum proposal was April 1. The committee presented faculty members with three proposals before the beginning of the semester. The committee, which is reviewing the university’s core courses- classes all students are required to take, such as exercise science, math and English.

“I think that there is enough interest and diversity in thought that we will not have a proposal at that time,” Arrington said.

He said the committee is dealing with large, new ideas presented by faculty members and needs time for the faculty to come together on an agreement.

“I think that we’re going to be into the next year before we can get everything done,” he said.

Pat Simpson, professor of education and co-chair of the committee, agreed and said faculty members need plenty of time to discuss the proposals and send a clear signal of what they want.

“Until the faculty really finishes discussions, we’re not going to be ready to rewrite the proposal,” Simpson said, adding that more discussions will take place after a new proposal is written.

Faculty members have expressed three sentiments to the three proposed curriculum changes, Arrington said; some are excited, some unhappy and others are mainly concerned with practical issues at stake, such as how the plans will be implemented, what they will look like in practice and whether they will be more effective than current curriculum.

“The complexity of that response is why we are going to have to wait before we have a final plan,” Arrington said.

The next faculty meeting will be Monday, and general education discussions are on the agenda, among other items, Simpson said.

“We hope the faculty feel free to voice all of their concerns, as well as what they like,” Simpson said.

More discussions amongst faculty and the committee will take place during the remainder of the semester. Because of the varying opinions at hand, he said it is important for more discussions to take place in order to reach a more representative consensus.

The General Education Steering Committee meets every Friday, and Simpson said this week’s meeting will focus on processing the feedback from the faculty and trying to find a majority opinion, Simpson said.

“What we finally propose should represent what we as a faculty feel will be best for General Education,” Arrington said.