University Values

A graduate with a baccalaureate degree should have an understanding and appreciation of the following core areas:

Values Orientation (UVVO)

1. Describe and analyze diverse value systems and the historical, social, and psychological backgrounds from which they emerge.
2. Situate and critique one’s own values within a conscious value system and social context.

Community and Diversity (UVCD)

1. Identify and analyze the significance human beings attach to their differences.
2. Describe and analyze the effects of prejudice, exclusion, subordination, and ideologies of racial superiority on affected groups and individuals.
3. Demostrate an understanding that diversity is a key factor for the flourishing of communities (social, environmental, and/or economic) and that a lack of diversity can compromise future generations.

Lifelong Learning (UVLL)

1. Demonstrate proficiency in skills that sustain lifelong learning, particularly the abilities to think both critically and responsibly and to access, evaluate, and integrate information.
2. Demonstrate the ability to determine and use the appropriate technology to support information search and discovery methods.

Community Service (UVCS)

1. Reflect on service as a component of active citizenship, community engagement, and social responsibility
2. Demonstrate reciprocity and responsiveness in service work with a community organization
3. Describe and analyze the social issues relevant to community organization.

*Courses must include a minimum of 20 hours of unpaid, active participation assisting an off-campus community organization in the achievement of its goals, not simply observing the work of the organization.

Interdisciplinary Thinking (INTD)

A graduate with a baccalaureate degree should be able to:

1. Identify the different frameworks, tools, perspectives, methods, fundamental underlying questions and contributions of different academic disciplines.
2. Demonstrate how the synthesis of disciplines can establish a new level of discourse and integration of knowledge to provide a broader analysis of complex issues.

Critical Skills

A graduate with a baccalaureate degree should have competency in the following skill areas and be able to:

Written Communication A: Writing Process (CSWA)

1. Communicate effectively and with purpose in multiple creative and academic writing genres by applying Standard American English.
2. Understand and apply the stages of the writing process to academic communications: composition, organization, revision, and editing of Standard American English mechanics.

Written Communication B: Research and Reading Comprehension (CSWB)

1. Critically analyze modes of writing and writing components in popular and academic texts.
2. Understand and apply a variety of documentation styles to cite research in written compositions for specific purposes and designated audiences.

Oral Communication (CSOC)

1. Analyze how communication theory, including the study of nonverbal behavior, helps guide the organization, interpretation, and presentation of messages and their effects.
2. Understand and practice public speeches in various formats and contexts, including self-written and self-portrayed speeches.

Quantitative Reasoning (CSQR)

1. Represent mathematical information symbolically, visually, numerically, and verbally, and interpret and draw inferences from mathematical models such as formulas, graphs, tables, and schematics.
2. Apply arithmetical, algebraic, geometric and statistical methods with appropriate technological tools to solve problems.
3. Think critically and apply common sense in estimating and checking answers to mathematical problems in order to determine reasonableness, identify alternatives, and select optimal results.

Areas of Knowledge

A graduate with a baccalaureate degree should have acquired the knowledge of the following breadth areas and should be able to:

Social and Behavioral Sciences (ASBH, ASEC, ASPS, ASIA)

1. Understand and describe the use of elementary methods of social science inquiry.
2. Articulate the impact of societal institutions on the experiences and needs of individuals, groups, and/or organizations.

Humanities (AHFA, AHFL, AHHT, AHLT, AHMM, AHPR, AHIA)

1. Analyze, interpret, evaluate, and appreciate human intellectual and imaginative creations and the context of their production.
2. Recognize how various works of cultural production illuminate enduring human concerns and changes in the human condition.

The Natural World (ANSL, ANSP, ALAB)

1. Demonstrate an understanding of the basic principles, concepts, discovery process, power, and limitations of the life and/or physical sciences.
2. Apply the principles, concepts, and methods of the life and/or physical sciences to everyday life.
3. Demonstrate an understanding of the roles of science and technology in society and their impact on the sustainability of the planet.

Creative and Artistic Expression (ACAE)

1. Produce works of art through written, visual, digital, and/or performance expression that communicate to diverse audiences through demonstrated understanding and fluency of expressive forms.

Lifelong Fitness (AFFL)

1. Demonstrate the ability to physically meet the demands of everyday life.
2. Demonstrate an understanding of the benefits of physical activity and its effect on intellectual, emotional, and physical well-being.