The Process
Successful applicants to the Curriculum (Re)Design program will receive customized, high-touch support from experienced CTE team members. Our approach attends to each unit’s unique context and goals, but all projects are organized around the following key process steps.
The process phases include some or all of the following steps, depending on project needs. See Process Examples for different ways this can play out for different types of projects.
Plan Project
Assessing unit readiness and capacity
Analyzing stakeholder landscape
Determining project scope and plan
Gathering and analyzing relevant data
Articulate Learning Outcomes
Determining goals for student learning, with full unit input
Drafting program-level learning outcomes and sub-outcomes
Iterating to refine the learning outcomes
Program-Level Design
Mapping curriculum
Developing and/or revising course requirements and student pathways through curriculum
Planning program assessment
Course-Level Design
Identifying course design priorities
Developing and/or revising courses and assignments
Coordinating course design across sections and sequences
Implement and Assess
Securing relevant curriculum approvals
Revising advising procedures and communications with students about curriculum
Teaching new and revised courses
Collecting and analyzing evidence for program assessment
Making ongoing revisions to curriculum based on assessment results
How We Work Together
Successful applicants to the Curriculum (Re)Design program will receive customized, high-touch support from experienced CTE team members and up to $15,000 in funding to support the project. We spend considerable time and attention during the application process working with you to outline the most appropriate type of support and level of funding for your project, as well as developing an initial timeline and project plan. Most projects take between 18-36 months.
This is a collaborative process, combining your expertise in your discipline and students with our expertise in curriculum design and department-based change processes. Through an approach that is both clearly structured and customizable, the CTE can help you stay on track and keep your curriculum project moving forward. We know the common challenges in curriculum development and can help you avoid them, all while helping you ensure that the curriculum you design is equitable and aligned with your goals for student learning.
Your Role
Cultivating support for the project from the unit’s faculty and leadership
Avoiding major competing priorities during the expected duration of the project
Forming a “curriculum development team”— a group of three to five people, ideally representing different faculty constituents, who will lead the project from within the unit
Appointing a chair of the curriculum development team, who will be the primary liaison between the CTE and the unit
Meeting and communicating regularly with the CTE
Upholding an equitable, purposeful, transparent, learning-centered, and aligned process
Making all decisions related to your curriculum
Managing any school, institution, state, or accrediting body approval processes that may be required for the curriculum
Our Role
Getting to know your unit’s history and culture, your existing curriculum, and how you like to work, in order to customize a plan for your curriculum project that best meets your needs
Taking an active role in project management and holding your unit accountable to your goals
Facilitating working sessions with the curriculum development team and 1-3 full-unit retreats in such a way that your time and expertise are used most effectively and efficiently
Helping you collect and analyze data to inform your project
Collaborating with Organizational Excellence and Institutional Research and Analytics to bring in their expertise to support your work
Financially supporting your curriculum project, with the amount determined during the application process based on your project needs
We will discuss the details of what this looks like for your project over the course of the application process, and we will check in periodically throughout the project to ensure that everything is working well for you
More about our approach to Curriculum (Re)Design.
See examples of the process in action.
Interested in applying for funding and support for your curriculum project?
List of participating units from 2020 to the present.
Frequently asked questions about the program.