Meet Goucher’s new associate provost for curriculum
Associate Professor of Environmental Studies Germán Mora has taken on a new role at Goucher as the associate provost for curriculum. In this Q&A, he discusses new programs in development and making sure the curriculum is more than the sum of its parts.
What does the position of associate provost for curriculum entail?
This new position was created to coordinate efforts to improve the different components of our curriculum, particularly those involving our Goucher Commons in the undergraduate side and the non-education programs in the graduate side.
Which programs are you responsible for in the graduate center?
I am responsible for overseeing the non-education graduate programs (i.e., arts administration, historic preservation, nonfiction, cultural sustainability, higher education administration, environmental certificates).
What goals do you have for this role?
I have a number of short-term goals, such as assisting with the development of three new graduate programs that we hope to launch in the next few years, evaluating the effectiveness of our Goucher Commons, streamlining the academic policies that operate in the graduate programs, and facilitating the integration of graduate and undergraduate administrative procedures, among others.
What are areas of the curriculum that need to be reviewed?
We need to ensure that it is better than the sum of its parts.
What works best about Goucher’s curriculum? What’s our advantage?
Besides our terrific majors, the Goucher Commons is an important component of our undergraduate curriculum. Like most colleges and universities across the country, Goucher requires students to be proficient in writing and a foreign language, among other typical college-wide requirements. However, there are three distinct features of the Goucher Commons: We ask students to work collaboratively to address complex problems, examine and promote social and environmental justice, and develop a global perspective.
Are you expecting to look at new programs to launch or programs to overhaul?
We are in the process of developing three new exciting graduate programs in environmental management, social media, and a combined data analytics and policy. These programs will permit students to develop important and relevant skills that will permit them to advance their professional careers. At the same time, we are also exploring the possibility of developing a couple of new majors and minors, but this will take some time.
Are there other things you would want students or the community to know about our curriculum, either now or as we look to the future?
Our curriculum includes innovative components and majors, which are evolving and adapting to the needs of our students. Ultimately, our curriculum should help our students with their intellectual and personal growth.