Curriculum

Purpose

The Merritt College Curriculum Committee, a committee of the Merritt College Academic Senate, makes recommendations on matters pertaining to curriculum and instruction to the Vice President of Instruction, the Academic Senate, and the Board of Trustees.

Charge

1. To review and make recommendations on all curricular matters, including approval of new programs and courses, course modifications or deactivations, prerequisites and corequisites, and placement of courses within disciplines.
2. To review and evaluate courses and programs periodically and make recommendations.
3. To review and recommend changes in general education and graduation requirements.
4. To recommend procedures and policies affecting curriculum.
5. To engage in self-directed study, to meet its regulatory obligations under Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations, and to maintain authority delegated by the State Chancellor’s Office.

Membership

Voting

1. Six (6) faculty representatives, preferably two (2) from each instructional division, appointed by the Academic Senate. Terms of office for all committee members should be 2 years, with members being able to succeed themselves if so appointed by the Academic Senate, and staggered to develop and retain experienced curriculum committee members.
2. One (1) faculty counselor
3. One (1) faculty librarian
4. One (1) classified professional staff from Student Services appointed by the Vice President of Instruction
5. One (1) student representative appointed by the Associated Students of Merritt College (ASMC). The term of office will be one year, with voting privileges conferred starting the second semester. Reappointments will be allowed, in which case the student representative will have voting privileges for the full term of the reappointment.
6. Articulation Officer (ex officio)
7. Curriculum Specialist (ex officio)
8. Distance Education Coordinator or designee from DE Committee (ex officio)

Non-Voting

1. The Vice Presidents and Instructional Deans are ex-officio, non-voting members and will regularly attend Curriculum Committee meetings to participate in discussion on matters that affect their areas.

Appointments, Vacancies, and Election of Chairperson

1. During March of each year, the Curriculum Committee Chairperson will inform the Merritt Academic Senate President of any vacancies for the following fall semester. Appointments to fill those vacancies will be forwarded to the Curriculum Committee Chairperson by March 30.
2. A vacancy may be declared when a member is absent for three Curriculum Committee meetings within one semester. The Curriculum Committee Chairperson will then inform the Academic Senate President of the vacancy, who will appoint a replacement within two weeks.
3. If an appointed position becomes vacant during the regular school year, or an appointee becomes inactive, the Curriculum Committee Chairperson will notify the officer (i.e., the College President, Academic Senate President, or ASMC President) who made the appointment within two weeks. That officer will appoint a replacement to serve the remainder of the term of the original appointee and will notify the Chairperson within one week of the appointment. The terms of office of all regularly appointed members will begin with the first regular meeting of the fall semester. The term of office of members appointed to fill vacancies during the year will begin with the next regular meeting. If the Chair resigns or is unable to complete his or her term, the Vice Chair will fill out the term.
4. Every even year, in May, the Curriculum Committee will elect a Chair and a Vice Chair from among its faculty members, subject to the advice and consent of the Academic Senate. No person may serve more than two (2) consecutive terms as Chairperson unless authorized by the Academic Senate.

Chairperson Duties

(Taken directly from California Community College Academic Senate publication, “The Curriculum Committee: Role, Structure, Duties, and Standards of Good Practice,” adopted Fall 1996.)

The role of the faculty Chair includes the following:

1. Prepare the agendas with the help of the Curriculum Specialist.
2. Conduct the council meetings.
3. Set the calendar of council meetings.
4. Keep informed of curriculum standards (including Title 5, the CCCCO Program and Course Approval Handbook, the Peralta Program and Course Approval Process Manual, intersegmental and accreditation standards).
5. Supervise the orientation of new members and on-going training of continuing members.
6. Assist discipline faculty in the curriculum development process
7. Assure that committee functions take place smoothly: Technical review, prerequisite review, distance education review, library sign-off, and program review reports to the committee.
8. Report regularly to the Academic Senate.
9. Present final version of curriculum recommendations to the Council on Instruction, Planning, and Development (CIPD).
10. Review catalog drafts for concurrence with approved changes.

Procedures

1. Regular meetings will normally be held twice a month, but shall meet at least once a month, during the regular academic year. The Curriculum Committee Chairperson may call extra meetings if special needs require them.
2. A quorum will be six (6) of the active voting members. A quorum must be present in order for the Curriculum Committee to vote..
3. The Curriculum Committee Chairperson and the Curriculum Specialist, in consultation with the Vice President of Instruction, will determine the agenda for each meeting. Materials for the agenda must be submitted to the Chairperson at least two (2) weeks prior to the scheduled meeting.
4. The agenda, minutes of the previous meeting, and pertinent materials will be distributed to the following parties at least 72 hours preceding a scheduled meeting:
   • Physically posted for public viewing
   • Curriculum Committee Members
   • College President
   • Vice Presidents
   • Deans
   • Department Chairs
   • Academic Senate President
   • Merritt Library
   • Campus Website (posted)
   • Other campus communication systems reaching all faculty and staff
5. Individuals with business before the Curriculum Committee are required to be present, or to send a knowledgeable representative, when that business is on the agenda. Items for which there is no appropriate representation present may be postponed to a later meeting at the discretion of the Chairperson.
6. When considering a proposal, the Curriculum Committee may vote to approve, to disapprove, or to refer the proposal back to the originator with instructions to revise.
7. At least once a month the Curriculum Chairperson (or his/her designee) will present to the Academic Senate, in person or in writing, a report of all official actions taken by the Curriculum Committee.
8. Only actions that are approved by the Curriculum Committee and reported to the Academic Senate, reviewed by the Vice President of Instruction/President will be forwarded to the District Council on Instruction, Planning and Development (CIPD), and the District Chancellor and Board of Trustees for final approval.
9. On a regular basis the Vice President of Instruction will report to the Curriculum Committee any matters considered by the Institutional Effectiveness Committee that pertain to procedures or policies related to curriculum.
10. The Curriculum Specialist will record and distribute minutes and other pertinent materials.

Amendments

Amendments to the bylaws of the Curriculum Committee are made by written and adopted resolution of the Academic Senate after consultation with the Curriculum Committee and the Vice President of Instruction, provided that such amendments do not conflict with the policies of the CIPD.

* Approved by Curriculum Committee, May 14, 2020
* Ratified by Academic Senate, May 21, 2020

Calendar for Fall and Spring 2023/2024

MCCC meets from 12 noon to 1:30 on the 2nd and 4th Thursday of each month.

*Cutoff date for publication in the 2024-25 college catalog

The Curriculum Committee is a committee of the Academic Senate, responsible for making recommendations on all matters relating to curriculum development and approval. Curriculum Committee faculty representatives are appointed by the Academic Senate.

Curriculum Review Criteria

Starting with the comprehensive program review cycle in 2018-2019, the College has implemented a regular and systematic process of curriculum review to ensure the quality and integrity of all active courses and programs in accordance with five essential criteria established by the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office:

1. Appropriateness to Mission
2. Need
3. Curriculum Standards
4. Adequate Resources
5. Compliance

These criteria are based on “statute, regulation, intersegmental agreements, guidelines provided by transfer institutions and industry, recommendations of accrediting institutions, and the standards of good practice established in the field of curriculum design” (Program & Course Approval Handbook, 8th Edition, p. 24).

Curriculum Review Requirement

Various statutes, regulations, policies, standards, and guidelines, at both the state and local levels, mandate periodic review of curriculum in the California Community Colleges. For more details, see Requirement for Periodic Curriculum Review.

Curriculum Review Cycle

Based on the requirements outlined above, the Curriculum Committee has determined that:

1. Non-CE curriculum should be reviewed in a three-year process aligned to the comprehensive program review cycle; and
2. CE curriculum should be reviewed in a two-year process in conjunction with the program review/annual program update cycle.

Non-CE Courses & Programs

CE Courses & Programs

Curriculum Review Resources

• Procedure with Step-by-Step Instructions
• Course Checklist
• ADT Program Checklist
• CE Program Checklist
• Interdisciplinary Program Checklist
• Non-CE Program Checklist

Curriculum Review Procedure Click Here!

Consultation is a process of communicating curriculum proposals with colleagues and having acknowledgement and/or discussion of the curriculum proposal.

The following document is designed to present protocols for consultation, allow for increased
communication/collaboration among peers, and build consistency in curriculum across the district. This process cannot account for every consultation circumstance that may arise, yet provides a framework for which discussions may be initiated.

Consultation of courses among Colleges is necessary to ensure:

1. Appropriate use of district resources
2. Course delivery to students in convenient locations
3. Adequate enrollment in all courses at all colleges
4. Curriculum taught at more than one college has identical information per UCN policy requirements/state mandates
5. There is no unnecessary overlap of curriculum across the district

Situations which require consultation (New or modified programs do not require consultation):

• Requesting to clone a course from another campus, (Cloning course assumptions: Cloner will not change any items that would affect catalog or be a substantial change)
• Developing a new course
• Reactivating a course
• Updating any items in the list below to an existing course

Peralta CCD Consultation Form

Please use this form any time that you create a new course, clone a course or make changes to course descriptions of existing courses that are offered at the other Peralta Colleges

CurriQunet is a web-based curriculum management system for the development, review, and approval of academic courses and programs. It provides a searchable database of Merritt’s entire curriculum inventory for both the college community and the general public.

Supported web browsers include Apple Safari, Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, and Mozilla Firefox. CurriQunet is not currently optimized for mobile devices such as tablets and smart phones.

CurriQunet for Faculty

http://peralta.curriqunet.com/

CurriQunet for Public

http://peralta.curriqunet.com/PublicSearch/Index

CurriQunet User Guide

The following CurriQunet User Guide contains proprietary information that may not be distributed publicly. After clicking on the link, log into your Peralta Office 365 account to access the document.

 A curriQūnet account is required to access the system to search, create, and modify curriculum proposals.

Full-time faculty members should already have accounts. Part-time faculty and newly hired full-time faculty may email LaShaune Fitch, Curriculum Specialist, at lfitch@peralta.edu to request an account. In the email, provide your Peralta email address and HR-approved faculty service areas (i.e., subjects you are credentialed to teach).

If you already have a curriQūnet account, but do not know or remember your password, click on the Forgot your password? link on the curriQūnet login page and enter your Peralta email address to generate an email message with a link to reset your password.

Curriculum Development and Approval

• CCCCO Program & Course Approval Handbook 8th Edition
• CCCCO Submission and Approval Technical Manual
• PCCD Program & Course Approval Handbook 4th Edition
  • How to Complete the Course Proposal
  • How to Complete the Program Proposal
• ASCCC COR Curriculum Reference Guide Revisited
• Curriculum Approval Timeframe 2023-2024

Curriculum Review

• Curriculum Review Step-by-Step Procedures
• Curriculum Review Course Checklist
• Curriculum Review Program Checklist
• Curriculum Review Career Education Program Checklist

CurriQunet

The following CurriQunet training materials contain proprietary information that may not be distributed publicly. After clicking on the links, log into your Peralta Office 365 account to access the documents.

• Introduction to New META Search
• CurricUNET META User Guide

Noncredit Curriculum

• Noncredit Courses and Programs
• Workforce Development & Continuing Education Noncredit FAQ
• Workforce Development & Continuing Education Noncredit Presentation

The Chancellor's Office Curriculum Inventory System (COCI)

Login here