OATdb Archive - Sam Houston State University

OATdb Archive

2008 - 2009

Dance MFA

Goal

Expand Course Offerings At The Graduate Level

Following the official expansion of the MFA in Dance from a 48 to a 60 hour program in 2007, the dance program has relied on numerous independent studies and senior undergraduate courses to fulfill the additional 12 hour curriculum. A larger inventory of courses needs to be available.

Objective

Add Two Courses For The MFA Program

Two new courses were submitted to the curriculum review committee this spring, Dance and Technology, and Career Resources for Dance.

Action

Schedule The Courses

Career Resources for Dance was offered as a special topics course in the spring, 2009. Dance and Technology will be offered as a special topic course in the fall, 2009. All students in the grad program have been advised into the dance and technology course. ASsuming tht the courses are passed for inclusion in the curriculum, faculty and students' feedback will be sought as we determine whether the courses should be electives or requirements.

Update to previous cycle's plan for continuous improvement

Plan for continuous improvement Beyond adding the courses to the curriculum and planning for additional courses in the future, we will be assessing how to offer the courses in a regular cycle that coordinates with the schedule and availability of faculty. It is already apparent that we will have to consider how to stretch our faculty to cover the undergraduate and graduate courses in dance. At best, this requires careful scheduling. It may also prove necessary to consider limiting times at which students can be admitted to the program, so that courses might be run on a longer cycle to accommodate all candidates in the program, while insuring sufficient enrollment in a given semester. Among other possibilities, we may consider the model of programs such as the MFA in dance at U T Austin which admits a small group of students as a "cohort" that begin and end together before the next cohort begins the program.