After a few months of work on the part of myself, Tyler Gardner, Dan Murphy, and Br. George Klawaitter, the proposal for the new English major at Holy Cross College is finally complete and off to committee!
The new major offers four tracks, a traditional English major, one for students double-majoring in business/communication studies, one for students double-majoring in social sciences & sciences, and one for those double-majoring in education. It includes proposals for 17 new and overhauled classes, and culminates in an internship and major research project.
While we have traditional “core” courses in national literatures and historical periods, I’m particularly excited about the ENGL 360 classes that represent the heart of the major. These courses explicitly integrate the study of literature with the spheres of science, medicine, industry, business, and education.“ENGL 360” designates both the course level and, more importantly, the 360-degree view this major is attempting to take. It is a global view, a view that looks outward and returns, knowing the discipline and its practices anew.
I’ve spent much of this term sharing the vision for the new major with first- and second-year students at Holy Cross. The students are getting very excited about the new course offerings and we’re already seeing a sharp increase in the number of new majors. At this point, the major has tripled since I was hired in July!
Last week, the major was unanimously approved by the division heads and is awaiting final approval from the academic council on Oct 30th. When that comes, I’ll share some of the new courses and descriptions.
grace & peace,
Holy Cross College
Follow me @