Editor’s Note

General education reform is sometimes challenging since faculty from very diverse fields teach a wide array of courses. Despite these challenges, there are key attributes of leadership that make a difference during the implementation of general education reform. Gano-Phillips et al. utilized three case studies to explore the characteristics of academic leaders who facilitate change in general education. In their article, “Rethinking the Role of Leadership in General Education Reform,” they find that collaboration in leadership among a group of faculty is essential to forming a team that can facilitate change. They also find that developing trust among stakeholders and acting as stewards of the institution were crucial for leaders.

One major curriculum reform that is occurring across college and university campuses is the integration of civic engagement. Billings and Terkla describe research in their article “Using a Structural Equation Model to Describe the Infusion of Civic Engagement in the Campus Culture” that provides evidence that students who participated in civic engagement activities had strong civic values and beliefs. Tufts University weaves the principles of active citizenship across the campus community. Billings and Terkla discuss the impact civic engagement activities can have on participating students.

Another curriculum innovation that is represented across many colleges and universities is the first-year seminar. Jessup-Anger discusses the results from a case study in her article “What’s the Point? An Exploration of Students’ Motivation to Learn in a First-Year Seminar.” She examined students’ motivation to learn in a one-credit first-year seminar. She finds that initially there were motivational barriers but as students connected more with the subject matter, their motivation to learn increased.

Multiculturalism has often been infused throughout the general education curriculum. Nelson Laird and Engberg investigated the diversity requirements at one hundred colleges and universities in the United States. In their article “Establishing Differences Between Diversity Requirements and Other Courses with Varying Degrees of Diversity Inclusion,” they use an alternative method to examine this important topic. They measured the diversity inclusivity of each course and found a group of highly inclusive, nonrequired diversity courses that were equal in size to the number of courses that satisfied the diversity requirements of departments or the entire college. They present additional information about the faculty who teach these courses and the differences in effective teaching.

Together, these articles represent current perspectives and meaningful evidence about the effect of curriculum innovations within general education. I hope that you find these articles useful and that you might consider joining the dialogue by contributing an article to our journal.