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Now it's time for a special hearing committee to gather this feedback into a series of recommendations.
The committee was formed earlier this year to gather feedback on 24 recommendations contained in a controversial report written by another committee, the Task Force on the First Year Experience.
"It will take a good part of the spring semester to produce a set of recommendations in several categories," said Dr. Jean-Robert Leguey-Feilleux, chair of the hearing committee and associate professor of political science. "Our task is to review the voluminous amount of suggestions we heard from the Saint Louis University community."
Leguey-Feilleux said that after his committee assembles a series of recommendations, a draft of the report will be circulated to the University community. This will lead to another round of revisions as members of the University community will be given a chance to examine the recommendations.
"As people react to what we have put together, we are very likely to make further changes," Leguey-Feilleux said, adding that it was impossible to gauge how long such a process could take.
The first-year task force's original report had six recommendations focusing on creating a structure for a University core curriculum; six dealing with other academic issues, such as freshman seminars and creating a freshman faculty; and 12 dealing with improving the quality of student life.
Any governance changes dealing with curriculum, however, will be handled by a special committee being formed by Interim Provost Sandra Johnson. Johnson said that changes in curriculum belong in the hands of the faculty.
Johnson said this committee consists of two representatives from each of the University's schools and colleges that offer undergraduate programs. She hopes this committee will start meeting in January.
Johnson said the group will consider governance structures the University might use that are "most appropriate for dealing with cross-school curricular issues."
Each of the University's schools and colleges has a committee for decisions concerning curriculum, she said, but any consideration of a University-wide core presents challenges to that traditional governance structure.
"The committee is to identify how we can all take a step forward in allowing the University to respond to change, including cooperation across schools, while preserving faculty governance of the curriculum," she said.
This committee will report its recommendations to Johnson, who will refer the recommendations to the appropriate governance body in each school or college for consideration and action.
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