College of Letters and Science
The Pointer
jmath438@uwsp.edu
An abundance of change, including new faculty and programs, brings new light upon the College of Letters and Science at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point this semester.
The CLS has instituted new programs and kept tradition going this semester and into the next. The first change was made in July, 2008, when Lance Grahn, former dean of the college, accepted a job at the University of Central Arkansas as vice president of academic affairs. Currently filling Grahn’s position as interim dean is Charles Clark. Clark has been a member of UW-SP faculty since 1993.
As interim dean, Clark will only be filling the position until an applicant is chosen to fill it full time.
“Whoever would serve as interim would not be an applicant for the dean’s position,” said Clark.
The community/campus lecture series is another addition to the CLS that has taken root this year. The series is a number of lectures open to students and community members. Subjects of the lectures range from fieldwork in anthropology to bioacoustics.
“My hope is this is a series that will continue on,” said Clark.
The lectures have had varied attendance from as few as 15 to as many as 50. The most recent, titled, “Mind and Brain in Life,” was held on Thursday, Dec. 11, at the Portage County Library.
The general degree requirement review is making a big impact in the CLS. With many GDRs being taught within the CLS, many changes are expected.
“We anticipate that a very large portion of the revised ‘gen. eds’ would be located in the CLS,” said Clark.
The college is also expanding its boundaries and has been approved to add two new majors to its curriculum.
The social work minor is being changed to allow an opportunity to earn a major in that field. The CLS hopes to institute this in the fall of 2010.
GeoScience has also received Board of Regent approval to be added to the listed majors. A start date is not yet known.
The tenth annual CLS Undergraduate Research Symposium is also on the agenda. The event highlights undergraduate research done with a faculty mentor.
“We typically have approximately 70 presentations,” said Clark. Every discipline, especially the sciences, are well represented. Over 100 students are involved.
