The Council on Academic Affairs tabled two agenda items and approved 15 during their meeting Thursday.

Item numbers 19-027, THA 3335: Musical Theatre Performance and 19-028, THA Course of Study, were both tabled during the meeting.

CAA Chair Marita Gronnvoll said there was a request to table the items because other items should have accompanied the original two items.

“They requested that both items be tabled until next week and then we’ll be getting about a half a dozen more items to add to our agenda and act upon next week so that they can all get into the fall catalog,” Gronnvoll said.

Gronnvoll also presented three agenda items, 19-029, revisions to the Communication and Cultural Diversity minor, 19-030, revisions to the Communication Studies Major and 19-031, revisions to CMN 1310G: Introduction to Speech Communication.

Gronnvoll said revisions will include making the class available online.

“We are putting this through so that we can begin to offer this online,” Gronnvoll said.

One issue she has heard that has come from other schools teaching the course online is students not being able to find the required number of audience members and dropping the class, she said.

“We’re going to see how this goes. Definitely this is a trend, where public speaking is starting to be taught online,” said Gronnvoll. “We’ll have to wait and see how it goes.”

Gronnvoll said she thinks more nontraditional students, such as high school students, might take the class.

“They have so many options with dual-credit and things to be able to satisfy this (general education) requirement,” Gronnvoll said.

Gronnvoll said the course would be piloted during the 2019 summer semester.

Julie Dietz, chair of the Health Promotion department, presented agenda item 19-023, a new Workplace Wellness minor.

Dietz said the minor had been in progress for around 15 years among multiple departments.

“It is simply a reflection of what helps best prepare our students for entering the workplace for a rapidly evolving employment area,” Dietz said.

The required courses for the minor are all currently existing ones.

Agenda items 19-034, Social Media Engagement as a new course, 19-035, Social Media Engagement as a new minor and 19-036, CMN 3980: Strategic Social Media Communication as a new course were all approved by the council.

Agenda item 19-024, course revisions for EIU 4108G: Special Topics in Women’s, Gender and/or Sexuality Studies was presented by Marjorie Worthington, Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality and English professor.

Mathematics chair Marshall Lassak presented agenda items 19-032, revisions to the mathematics major and 19-033 MAT 4700: Seminar in Mathematics.

The council also approved items 19-008, Request for Reasonable & Moderate Extension bachelor’s degree in Fashion Merchandising and Design, 19-025, new course FMD 1244: Survey of Fashion, 19-026, new course.

FMD 3222: Sustainability and Social Change in Fashion and 19-037, ART 2749: Professional Practices were also approved.

Corryn Brock can be reached at 581-2812 or at cebrock@eiu.edu.