THE STATE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT / THE UNIVERSITY OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK / ALBANY, NY 12234

 

TO:	The Honorable the Members of the Board of Regents
FROM:	Johanna Duncan-Poitier
COMMITTEE:	Higher Education and Professional Practice
TITLE OF ITEM:	Master Plan Amendment: The King’s College, Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics
DATE OF SUBMISSION:	December 20, 2004
PROPOSED HANDLING:	Approval (Consent Agenda)
RATIONALE FOR ITEM:	Master plan amendment is required when an institution seeks to offer its first program in a discipline at a particular degree level. Regents authorization is required in order for The King’s College to offer its first baccalaureate degree in a new discipline area.
STRATEGIC GOAL:	Goals 2 and 4
AUTHORIZATION(S):

 

SUMMARY:

 

The King’s College has requested amendment of its master plan in order to offer a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) degree program in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics.  Master plan amendment is required because this would be the College’s first baccalaureate program in the discipline area of the humanities.

 

The Office of Higher Education has determined that the proposed program, if approved, would meet the standards for registration set forth in the Regulations of the Commissioner of Education.

 

Recommendation:    I recommend that the Regents take the following action:

 

VOTED, that The King’s College be authorized by master plan amendment, effective January 11, 2005, to offer the Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) degree in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics.  This amendment will be effective until January 31, 2006, unless the Department registers the program prior to that date, in which case master plan amendment shall be without term.

 

Attachment

 

 

 

 

 

 

THE KING’S COLLEGE

Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics

 

Academic Review

 

          The mission of The King's College is to prepare students for leadership in America’s strategic national institutions: government, media, education, the courts, business, and the church.  To fulfill its mission, the College delivers a common core.  In addition to courses in politics, philosophy, and economics, the core offers courses in history and theology and features classical works within each field.  The proposed program in Politics, Philosophy and Economics leading to a Bachelor of Arts degree builds on the two-year core.  The College also offers baccalaureate degrees in Business Management and Childhood Education, which both share the vision and values of the common core.

 A. Curriculum

The proposed curriculum includes five courses in theology, four in philosophy, eight in economics, six in politics, six in history, and other courses in the liberal arts that provide an interdisciplinary treatment of the topics.  The goals of this new program are to provide skills in analytical thinking, important ideas, universal principles, and the practical realties that guide decision-making for graduates who pursue careers in the nation’s strategic national institutions.  A comprehensive understanding of the Bible will be foundational to this approach and makes the College’s program unique in its mission and context.

Augmented by a co-curricular program in leadership development and spiritual formation, graduates will be prepared for further studies and careers in law, education, business, media, government and the church.

B. Students

          To enter this program, students must have an SAT score of 1000 or higher, a high school diploma or its equivalent, and demonstrate leadership potential.  Transfer students will be required to take six courses from the common core. 

Presently, students from 30 states and 25 countries attend The King's College, and approximately 40 percent of the students are from New York City with women constituting 60 percent of the total.  While similar diversity will mark the prospective student population, recruitment efforts will increasingly focus on highly motivated, high performing students aspiring toward leadership.  Upon opening, 65 students are expected to enroll and a total of 340 students are expected to select this major by the fifth year of operation.

C. Faculty

          Four full-time faculty members, several adjuncts, and three Distinguished Visiting Professors will support the proposed program initially.  All full-time and all but two of the other faculty members (who have master’s degrees) have Ph.D.’s in disciplines appropriate to their teaching responsibilities.  The standard teaching load is four courses or sections per semester.  The College indicates it plans to double the number of full-time faculty once the program is approved.

          D. Resources

Plans are under way to lease 11,000 additional square feet of classroom and faculty space to augment the current facilities of 40,000 square feet located in the Empire State Building in New York City.  All classrooms are state-of-the-art, including wireless technology, and have been outfitted with white boards, digital projectors and laptop computers.

The College’s library contains books, journals and videos that support its curricula. Additional resources on politics, philosophy and economics to augment the collection of 100,000 books are being purchased. The College has also invested in on-line subscriptions to databases of full-text journal, magazine, and newspaper articles.  In addition to the College’s own library, students have ready access to the resources of three New York City public libraries located within easy walking distance.

The Department’s review included a fiscal soundness analysis that found that the College has adequate financial resources to proceed with the proposal.

Planning Review

          Ten colleges and universities responded to a canvass of all institutions in the New York City region.  None expressed concern or felt that the specialized program proposed by The King’s College would have a negative effect on their institutions.