RESOLUTION TO ESTABLISH GRADUATE WRITING CERTIFICATES AND APPROVE EARLY CHILDHOOD AND ELEMENTARY EDUCATION PROGRAM MODIFICATIONS

WHEREAS, Winthrop University provides a wide range of academic programs serving the people of South Carolina, and in particular the north central region of the state; and

WHEREAS, the Graduate Certificates in Creative Writing and Digital Writing and Rhetoric will allow students the opportunity to gain professional skills in writing, editing, and/or producing content for digital media through skill-based learning and hands-on coursework, as well as extensive experience in composing texts for the twenty-first century workplace and writing professions; and

WHEREAS, the Winthrop University College of Arts and Sciences has developed the Graduate Certificates through courses currently offered in the Master of Arts degree program in English to constitute a professional credential for existing graduate students and for students with a baccalaureate degree who are seeking professional skills but who are not at present pursuing a graduate degree; and

WHEREAS, modifications to our undergraduate course sequencing in the BS programs in Early Childhood and Elementary Education will improve the learning outcomes of existing students and reduce transfer barriers for new students; and

WHEREAS, the proposed degrees and program modifications are consistent with Winthrop University's Mission Statement wherein the University will help “Winthrop students acquire and develop knowledge, skills, capabilities and values that enrich their lives and prepare them to meet the needs and challenges of the contemporary world, including the ability to communicate effectively, appreciate diversity, work collaboratively, synthesize knowledge, solve complex problems and adapt to change”;

THEREFORE, LET IT BE RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF WINTHROP UNIVERSITY that the Graduate Certificates in Creative Writing and Digital Writing and Rhetoric be established, and the education program modifications described here be

APPROVED, this 8th day of April, 2022.