POLICY ON COURSES OFFERED AS A PART

OF THE REGULAR UNIVERSITY PROGRAM AT THE
COACHELLA VALLEY CENTER

FAM 441

FSD 87-14
Educational Policy Committee

The Coachella Valley Center is a recognized satellite campus of the University not subject to the reporting requirements in FSD 75-268, Rev I (Policy on Off-Campus Courses). Courses and programs previously approved by the Faculty Senate may be offered at the Coachella Valley Center, subject to the prior written approval of the relevant department head or coordinator, school dean, and the Coachella Valley Center Director. Courses and programs not previously regularly approved on the main campus may not be offered at the Coachella Valley Center. When courses or programs are offered for the first time at the Coachella Valley Center, the Center Director shall forward a memorandum to the University Curriculum Committee, the Council of Academic Deans, and the Office of Academic Programs as an information item. The memorandum shall specify the proposed initial course and/or program offerings, and be signed by the affected chair/coordinator, dean, and the Center Director.

JUSTIFICATION:

Although geographically distant from the main campus, the satellite in Palm Desert does not really provide "off-campus" instruction. Rather it is a state-supported upper-division and graduate branch of the University with full-time academic and student services staff and its own classroom, library, and office facilities. Therefore, it seems reasonable to consider the Center as "on-campus" and to institute a fairly simple mechanism for keeping the University informed about program development at the satellite.

This policy would substitute a memorandum for the cumbersome proposal process outlined in FSD 75-268, Rev. I. The three signatures required would provide different kinds of assurances. The chair or coordinator would indicate that there is sufficient department support to offer a program equivalent to that on the main campus; the school dean would determine that the planned expansion was compatible with other school priorities; the Director of the Center would ensure that there is sufficient space to support the program and that there is enough advance notice to let potential students know about its existence.