January 18, 2019 – The Liberal Arts Curriculum (LAC) Committee prepared a faculty meeting, which took place at noon in the Ramez G. Chagoury Faculty of Architecture, Arts & Design (FAAD) Conference Room at Notre-Dame University-Louaize (NDU). The meeting was attended by a group of faculty members teaching Liberal Arts Courses. The purpose was to encourage participants to integrate activities into their courses that would make them both memorable and beneficial to the students’ general education. The NDU LAC is based on the NDU Mission; each of the six categories is correlated to one element of the Mission Statement.
Dr. Carol Kfouri, committee Chair and Professor at the Department of Psychology, Education & Physical Education, welcomed the faculty members; she began by describing the mission of the LAC Committee and introduced the members of the committee, each of whom represented a faculty:
- Dr. Dina Baroud, Assistant Professor, Coordinator of the FAAD;
- Dr. Elie El-Hindy, Associate Professor, Department of Government and International Relations – Faculty of Law and Political Science;
- Dr. Ziad Fahed, Associate Professor, Director Office of University Mission;
- Dr. Jacques Harb, Professor, Director Center for Research on Sustainable Development, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering – Faculty of Engineering;
- Dr. Doris Jaalouk, Associate Professor, Department of Nursing and Health Sciences – Faculty Of Nursing & Health Sciences;
- Joyce Menassa, AVP for Academic Support – Office of Academic Support;
- Nada Saad Saber, Director, Curricular Affairs – Office of Academic Affairs;
- Dr. Hoda Maalouf, Chairperson Department of Computer Science - FNAS.
Dr. Kfouri reminded the audience that the committee members are available to answer any questions concerning the curriculum. She then asked the audience to recall the name of a faculty member that had marked their own university experience; she emphasized that for many of those present that faculty member would be a liberal arts professor. The importance of courses outside one’s major is undeniable and makes up a large part of the students’ university experience.
Dr. Nada Saad Saber then showed a video entitled: “The Importance of a Liberal Arts Education,” featuring prominent business people, such as the former CEO of Accenture, enthusiastically explaining the positive effect a liberal arts education had on their careers.
A panel of five NDU students, Ramy Hankash, Radio TV; Celine Dahdouh, Psychology; Avadis Markarian, Political Science; Peter el-Khoury, Engineering; and Haya Zintani, Psychology; then participated in a discussion on the LAC. They answered questions concerning the challenges expected from LAC courses, the need for them to be reading intensive, but at the same time offer the opportunity to speak, and how they perceive their contributions to society after completing their degrees. All students emphasized how important LAC courses are in expanding their knowledge other than in their major fields. They also requested that professors allot more time in class for discussion based on required readings. Haya Zintani made reference to the special opportunity that short field trips offer to students in the Religion course. Celine Dahdouh mentioned that classroom debates on researched subjects offered students the challenge of exploring other people’s opinions.
During the session, Dr. Elie El-Hindy gave a presentation on the differences between a liberal arts education and a strictly professional one. Dr. Doris Jaalouk presented the Course Proposal Template that can be used by faculty members to propose a course for the LAC, or to update an established syllabus so that the course responds to a liberal arts vision. Dr. Hoda Maalouf then explained that the present LAC is under review. As part of the review, twenty courses have been chosen for assessment. Dr. Jaalouk indicated the method being followed and informed faculty members of the procedure to follow as they present their results. Dr. Ziad Fahed then ended the session by presenting sample activities he had found effective in a liberal arts course. He also encouraged the audience to request that their students fill out the CIMA questionnaire which is available online.
Members of the LAC committee thanked the participants as they left and listened to their suggestions for future projects.