I haven’t see anything on here about this (Correct me if I am mistaken), but W&L’s new curriculum appears to be prepared to take effect for the class of 2031. Named the “Compass Curriculum,” it replaces the previous “Foundations & Distribution Requirements” (nicknamed FDRs). This is a serious overhaul and reclassification of classes into new categories.
The actual content seems to be locked behind W&L credentials but the Ring-tum Phi has good reporting on it. I’ve posted some quotes from what I can see on my end below as well.
Structure
The new general education curriculum includes a high-impact, integrative structure (First Year Seminar and Integrations) combined with a skills-based distribution (Modes of Inquiry).
- First Year Seminars may not qualify for any Integrations or Modes of Inquiry
- Courses may qualify for at most one Mode of Inquiry
- Courses may qualify for multiple Integrations while also qualifying for a Mode of Inquiry
- Thus, students must complete at least 32 Credits from at least 13 distinct courses
First Year Seminar
Students must complete:
- First Year Seminar that is also Writing Intensive (≥ 3 credits)
Modes of Inquiry
Students must complete the requisite credits in each of the following Modes of Inquiry:
- Creative Making (≥ 3 credits)
- Ethical Reasoning (≥ 3 credits)
- Humanistic Inquiry and Analysis (≥ 3 credits)
- Quantitative Reasoning (≥ 3 credits)
- Social Scientific Inquiry and Analysis (≥ 3 credits)
- Scientific Inquiry and Analysis (≥ 4 credits)
- Intercultural Communication (≥ 6 credits from 2 courses in 1 language)
- Physical Education and Wellness (≥ 4 credits, including ≥ 3 one-credit Physical Education courses)
Integrations
Students must complete:
- Writing Intensive (≥ 6 additional credits from 2 courses, totaling ≥ 9 credits of WI)
- Cultures and Contexts (≥ 6 credits, from 2 courses)
- Historical Perspectives (≥ 3 credits)
- 3 Course Path (≥ 9 credits from 3 courses tracing a theme through different disciplines)
- Signature Experience (≥ 3 credits)
If anyone would like the specifics for each of these, please let me know and I’d be happy to provide. This has been in progress for ~8 years I’m told, and was originally supposed to take place with the class of 2030 but was pushed back to 2031.
The largest change for this new curriculum is the slashing of transferable credits to fufill requirements. With FDRs, AP/IB courses could count for those credits, but with the Compass curriculum not so many can anymore.
Thus, students must complete at least 32 Credits from at least 13 distinct courses
To quote the Phi’s reporting:
Students can still transfer in AP credits towards their 120 for graduation, but they won’t count for Gen Ed requirements, said Paige Gance, a member of the General Education Implementation Committee.
Overall I’m unsure of how well this transition will go, as this is a sudden 90-degree shift from the FDRs that many students are used to. While this new compass curriculum would only apply to new incoming FYs, professors have had to reclassify all of their classes to fit this new curriculum.
My main concern is that the University hasn’t announced how FDRs and Compass curriculum will co-exist for the few years that FDRs would still be done by Upper Division students. Some classes that would count towards FDRs like Fine Art won’t be counted under the new “fine arts” component of the Compass Curriculum, for example.
While I’ll be a senior next year and have near if not all of my FDRs done at this point, those in the class of 2030 will have to navigate classes that both incorporate into FDRs and compass curriculums. In addition it feels like we’re sort of in the dark about this new curriculum. There hasn’t been much communication from the Deans, Provosts, or President’s office about this change (even if it doesn’t affect current students). I don’t see anything on the public-facing admissions webpage about this new curriculum, only if you search up “Gen Eds.” Will be interesting to see how this pans out.