Recommendation:

That the Faculty recommend to the Dean approval of the proposal to establish a minor in Conservation and Environmental Science as structured in the program description below.

Rationale:

See section 3 below.

1. PROGRAM IDENTIFICATION

1.1 Title of Proposed Program

Minor in Conservation and Environmental Science

1.2 Department or Functional Equivalent

Conservation and Environmental Science Program

1.3 College, School, or Functional Equivalent

College of Letters and Science

1.4 Timetable for Initiation

Spring 2007

2. CONTEXT

Conservation and Environmental Science (CES) is an interdisciplinary undergraduate major within the College of Letters and Sciences. All CES majors are required to complete a set of core courses offered by participating environmental sciences departments, a gateway course (CES 210), a "capstone" course (CES 471), and a senior research experience (usually CES 490). The range of electives available to students accommodates both BA and BS degrees through the College of Letters and Sciences. There currently are about 100 declared and intended majors in the CES Program.

CES evolved out of the Biological Aspects of Conservation program, established in the early 1970s. The major underwent a significant update in the 2000-2001 academic year, which included renaming the program as "Conservation and Environmental Science." The CES Program is governed by an interdisciplinary advisory committee that includes faculty representatives from the Departments of Biological Sciences (2), Geosciences (2), Chemistry (1), and Geography (2), as well as the UWM Field Station (1). Day-to-day administration of the program is carried out by a Director, who is elected by the Advisory Board and approved by the Dean of L&S. Much of the student advising is managed by a full-time Program Coordinator (academic staff position). Two teaching academic staff members contribute the mission of the program.

3. NEED

Student from a wide range of programs have expressed strong interest in environmental issues and sciences. Many of these students, constrained by time and money, are not able to major or double major in CES. Our goal is to establish a minor in CES that will encourage and facilitate students from across campus to gain critical skills and knowledge offered through the CES program. In framing the requirements for the CES minor, we have attempted to keep the curriculum flexible enough to satisfy the needs of students from other majors within Letters and Sciences as well as students from other schools/colleges (Education, Engineering, Architecture and Urban Planning), but we hope especially that this minor will serve students majoring in the contributing departments (Biological Sciences, Geosciences, Chemistry, and Geography) while encouraging them to broaden their understanding of environmental sciences.

4. CURRICULUM/REQUIREMENTS

The Conservation and Environmental Science minor requires completion of minimum of 25 credits distributed among CES courses and approved electives, with at least 12 credits in upper-level (numbered 300 or above) courses. Students must complete at least 9 upper-level credits for the minor in residence at UWM and must attain a 2.5 GPA on all credits attempted for the minor.

1. Introductory Core Requirements:
   1. CES 210   Introduction to Conservation and Environmental Sciences (3 credits)
   2. An introductory course in earth sciences selected from the following (3 credits):

      Geo Sci 100	Introduction to the Earth
      Geog 120	Our Physical Environment

   3. An introductory course in chemistry selected from the following (4 or 5 credits):

      Chem 100	Chemical Science (4 cr)
      Chem 102	General Chemistry (5 cr)
      Chem 105	General Chemistry for Engineering (5 cr)

   4. An introductory course in biology selected from the following (3 or 4 credits):

      Bio Sci 102	Elements of Biology (3 cr)
      Bio Sci 150	Foundations of Biological Sciences I (4 cr)

   Note: Students pursuing BS degrees and those interested in taking upper-level natural science classes such as Bio Sci 310 (General Ecology) should take Chem 102 and Bio Sci 150 as part of their introductory core requirements.

2. Upper-Level Requirements:
   1. One of the following (3 credits):

      CES 471	Principles of Natural Resource Management
      Geog 350	Conservation of Natural Resources

   2. At least 9 upper-level (numbered 300 or above) credits selected from the list of approved elective courses for the CES major. At least 6 of these must be taken outside the student's major program, and at least 3 must be from the natural sciences.

5. BUDGET IMPLICATIONS

In framing the CES minor, we have made certain compromises in order to avoid strain or conflict on our limited teaching resources. Specifically, we have opted to allow student to take Geog 350 or CES 471 to gain knowledge of environmental policy and management. Our fear is that without this option CES 471 would not be able to accommodate the demand. The minor should not have any impact on our current teaching cycle. All required courses already are being offered, and no additional faculty positions are needed.