Offer Residential College Seminars in Spring 2011 & Beyond

We, the undersigned, call on the administration of Yale College to ensure that a full list of residential college seminars are offered in Spring 2011 and beyond.

BACKGROUND:

Dean Mary Miller recently announced that the University has halted receipt of proposals for Spring 2011 residential college seminars while a committee evaluates the program. Catherine Suttle, the seminar program coordinator, has indicated that the administration plans to suspend the seminars for all of 2011.

Residential college seminars fulfill the mission stated on the program's website; they do indeed augment "the Yale College curriculum with innovative and experimental courses in the arts, humanities, and sciences," and "expose undergraduates to topics and modes of inquiry not available within Yale's departmental framework."

In recent years, the seminars have included such outstanding courses as "Foreign Correspondence," taught by the Washington Post's war correspondent Jon Finer and "Understanding Politics and Politicians" co-taught by presidential candidate and former chair of the Democratic National Committee Governor Howard Dean and his Yale College roommate, organizational psychologist Dr. David Berg. The opportunity to learn from experts who may not otherwise teach courses in the College is one of the unique experiences that makes an undergraduate education at Yale so fulfilling.

We do not oppose a committee review of the residential college seminar program, nor are we necessarily opposed to changes in the application procedure for prospective seminars. However, we firmly believe that halting this program during that review process deprives students of one of the most dynamic parts of the undergraduate program. We strongly implore the administration to ensure that residential college seminars are offered in Spring 2011 and beyond.

If you have had an experience you feel strongly about in a residential college seminar, please feel free to use the box provided to tell your story. After you sign the petition, please contact Ali Weiner DC '11 at [email protected] to learn how else you can contribute to this effort. Thank you in advance for your support.

To read more, see the recent YDN story on this issue: http://www.yaledailynews.com/news/university-news/2010/08/08/college-seminars-hold-review/