Eastern Connecticut State University
AC-2: Learning Outcomes

To graduate, all students at the university must complete courses in the "Liberal Arts Core" (LAC). The LAC in turn, incorporates five liberal arts learning outcomes: 1) Critical Thinking; 2) Ethical Reasoning; 3) Communication; 4) Creativity; and 5) Quantitative Literacy. Learning Outcome #2 is particularly appropriate with respect to sustainability as viewed from the vantage point of social justice and equity. According to the spring 2020 Senate Bill that proposes adoption of these learning outcomes: ‘These five learning outcomes focus on a range of skills that are central to the ways that thoughtful, liberally educated people approach the world. They cut across disciplines—creativity is not only for artists, but for scientists and social workers as well; quantitative literacy is for poets as well as statisticians. Developing these skills prepares all Eastern students, regardless of major, to face complexity and ambiguity in the many domains they will confront after graduation.’ Refer to page 10 of the following linked PDF: https://www.easternct.edu/career/_documents/employability-council-report-and-plan-11-23-20.pdf

Matt Hancock, Assistant Director of Planning and Institutional Research, provided the total number of graduates from degree programs (which includes both graduate and undergraduate students) and the number of graduates from degree programs that require an understanding of the concept of sustainability, which include Environmental Earth Science majors, Sustainable Energy Science concentration, Sustainable Energy Studies minor, Biology majors, Biology minors, Early Childhood Education majors, Elementary Education majors, Liberal Studies majors, Physical Education majors, Secondary Education majors, Health minors, Physical Education minors, English majors, English minors, Womens and Gender Studies majors, Womens and Gender Studies minors, Writing minors, Sociology majors, Sociology minors, Theatre and Performance Media majors, Theatre majors, Acting concentrations, Dance & World Performance concentrations, Design, Technology & Management concentrations, Directing, Dramaturgy, & Cultural Performance concentrations, Performance Media concentrations, Theatre minors, Costume & Fashion Design minors, and Film Studies minors.

The Environmental Earth Science Department offers students a Sustainable Energy Science concentration within the EES major and a separate Sustainable Energy Studies minor.

The Sustainable Energy Science concentration and related minor prepares students for careers in the new clean energy economy as climate change, sustainability and clean energy initiatives return to the public forefront. EES students are thus trained to be leaders in energy policy, energy science and the energy economy.

The EES major (including Sustainable Energy) provides a broad earth science education, with a firm grounding in geology. The curriculum emphasizes a thorough understanding of earth materials, processes, and features, and the means by which environmental earth scientists address environmental problems. EES students are also required to take a year of chemistry, physics, and a semester of advanced mathematics.

EES students are thus provided the diverse academic training necessary for analyzing and resolving environmental challenges such as geologic hazards and groundwater contamination.

The EES Dept. also offers independent studies, practicums and internships to students. These opportunities can integrate field, laboratory, technical writing, and/or computer skills in the investigation of environmental issues.

The Biology program also incorporates sustainability into its learning outcomes. Biology students will - Complete comprehensive course curriculum in ecology/population biology. Develop competence in techniques used in field and laboratory work. Demonstrate ability to use scientific instruments and equipment via relevant hands-on lab and field experiences. Become engaged in a meaningful liberal arts experience. a. Students can explain how biology and its method of study are integrated into a multidisciplinary context. b. Students attend and present at professional conferences and workshops. c. Students act in an informed and ethical manner within the University and society at-large.

The Education program includes a cultural competence learning outcome, that "includes both understanding and appreciating cultural, learner, and linguistic diversity but also practicing a pedagogy that views school-family relationships as partnerships in learning." All Education majors must meet this competency, including Early Childhood Education, Elementary Education, Liberal Studies, Physical Education, and Secondary Education.
https://www.easternct.edu/education/learning-outcomes/education-program-learning-outcomes.html

The English program includes a learning goal that "English majors should be able to engage with writers from a range of backgrounds and worldviews, and articulate an understanding of how cultural, historical, and ideological contexts can shape both the creation and the reception of texts across time and now." This goal is facilitated through the studying culturally diverse texts, including those that address various interconnected environmental, climate, and social/societal factors. Majors and minors that must meet achieve this outcome include the English Major and Minor, the Liberal Studies Major, Womens and Gender Studies Major and Minor (see more below), and the Writing Minor.
https://www.easternct.edu/english/learning-outcomes1/learning-outcomes.html

The Sociology program also ensures that "students will understand the sociological relevance of issues related to global diversity, including gender, race, class, sexual orientation, etc." This learning outcome applies to all Sociology Majors and Minors.
https://www.easternct.edu/sociology/learning-outcomes/sociology-learning-outcomes.html

The Theatre program includes an ethical reasoning learning outcome that "requires students to recognize ethical issues, identify their own ethical positions and analyze other ethical perspectives in real-world situations in order to consider the impact of decisions and actions on other individuals, society and the environment." This outcome applies to the Theatre and Performance Media Major, the Theatre Major, Acting, Dance & World Performance, Design, Technology & Management, Directing, Dramaturgy, & Cultural Performance, and Performance Media concentrations, and Theatre, Costume & Fashion Design, and Film Studies Minors.
https://www.easternct.edu/theatre/theatre-program-learning-outcomes.html

The Women's and Gender Studies program includes the learning outcomes to "identify some of the intersecting dynamics of identity, gender, economic status, nationality, race, region, disability and sexuality" and "demonstrate knowledge of some of the ways existing social inequalities develop, function and change, as well as an understanding of possibilities for social change." These outcomes are required of students pursuing the Womens and Gender Studies Major and Women’s Studies Minor.
https://www.easternct.edu/womens-studies/womens-and-gender-studies-major-learning-goals-and-outcomes.html

Information for this credit was provided by Steve Nathan, Associate Professor and Department Chair of the Environmental Earth Science Department, and gathered from department websites by Ciara Tennis, University Assistant for Climate and Sustainability Initiatives. Data on the number of graduates from degree programs provided by Matt Hancock, Assistant Director of Institutional Research.