Update: January 04, 2013

The Faculty Committees and Steering Committee have worked together to develop initial recommendations for the statewide general education core competencies and courses (the first 15 hours, determined by the state).  Please review this document for those recommendations, and an updated timeline.  This document has been shared with the chief academic officers at each Florida college and university. 

Please see "Updates" for further information about the process for feedback on these recommendations.  In the coming weeks we will work collaboratively on our campus to provide feedback to the Steering Committee on these preliminary recommendations.

   ********

During the previous legislative session, the Florida legislature passed a bill (HB 7135) that changes the General Education Program (GEP) for all Florida colleges and universities. The changes include a reduction in the hours of the GEP from 36 to 30 hours and the creation of a list of up to five courses in each of the five content areas of General Education (communication, mathematics, humanities, social sciences, natural sciences). Students will be required to take at least one course from each area on this list, which will be the same across the State University System (SUS) and the state and Florida College System (FCS). These changes will be implemented in fall 2014.

 Here are some relevant excerpts from the bill:

 “General Education core course options shall consist of a maximum of five courses within each of the subject areas . . . and must contain high-level academic and critical thinking skills and common competencies . . . . Each student must complete at least one course in each subject area . . . . All . . . institutions shall offer and accept these courses . . . .”

 “The remaining General Education course requirements shall be identified by each institution . . .and shall include 30 semester hours . . . .”

Image updated December, 2012

For a copy of the bill, go to http://www.flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2012/7135/BillText/e1/PDF (scroll down to page 16-18).

The official state website for these changes: http://www.fldoe.org/articulation/hb7135gep.asp?style=print