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QUAKER CAMPUS NOV. 13, 2025

VOLUME 24 — ISSUE 6

THE VOICE OF WHITTIER COLLEGE SINCE 1914

Confusion Around the New Curriculum

Courtesy of Whittier College Whittier College is making changes to their academic curriculum. Ethan Ramillano STAFF WRITER Whittier College’s new Liberal Education curriculum has been in place since the beginning of the 2025-26 school year. It was implemented as a revision to the old curriculum to be more relevant for students moving into an ever-changing world. These changes, which only apply to new and incoming students, include adjustments to the Liberal Education curriculum and Breadth Requirements. To explain a few of the changes, the previous Cultural Perspectives and Breadth Requirements on DegreeWorks have been revamped into a singular section of breadth inquiry. Rather than taking a multitude of courses in four cultural regions and distinct subjects, like Humanities and Natural Sciences, new students have a wider variety of courses that fulfill the four new categories: Natural Science Inquiry, Creative Expression, Culture and Language, and Engage Diversity. It has been nearly four months since these changes were introduced at the beginning of the Fall semester, so how do students and faculty feel about the new curriculum so far? According to a recent survey sent out by the Quaker Campus that asked for student opinions on the new curriculum. 80 percent of students are either unaware of the curriculum changes or do not

know what kinds of changes were made. More concerningly, out of the students who were aware of the curriculum changes, none of the respondents felt that the new requirements would be beneficial for their future career plans. One fourth-year student, who identifies as a White and Hispanic/Latino female, expressed uncertainty about whether the new curriculum applied to her or not, despite the number of courses she had taken so far. Julie Collins-Dogrul, professor of Sociology, commented that she has not had any conversations with students over any confusion with the new curriculum. While she hasn’t found advising to be

participate more effectively in our society, from democratic participation to employment […] Having a wide skill and knowledge base is useful.” Many of her courses already fit within the new curriculum, but she is revising other courses by incorporating components, like quantitative reasoning, to qualify for the requirement. CollinsDogrul has suggested that the faculty require more training in the new curriculum, stressing, “We need to communicate not just the nuts and bolts—but the vision. We need to find better ways to articulate the value of this curriculum to students.” Professor of Political Science, Deborah Norden, also noted a lack of questions from current students over the new curriculum, as they remain under the catalogue they enrolled in. However, at the start of the semester with her first-year students, she remembers having to work out confusion over the breadth inquiry. Many students found courses which qualified for multiple categories at once (i.e., double-dipping into Culture and Language and Engage Diversity requirement). This has been corrected, and allows students to choose which courses can apply under the requirements they need, which they can change through the MyWhittier website. Norden added that the changes to course requirements will shift the availability of classes and student interests. For example, she noted

“We need to communicate not just the nuts and bolts—but the vision [and] find better ways to articulate the [...] curriculum to students.” - Professor Julie Collins-Dogrul any more complicated than before, she also doesn’t think that the new curriculum provides more interdisciplinary learning than the previous standards already did. At the same time, CollinsDogrul agrees that the curriculum supports Whittier College’s identity as a Liberal Arts college, saying “[The curriculum] helps students

that without the previous Latin American cultural perspective requirement, her Latin American Politics course has had lower student enrollment numbers than in previous semesters. Despite this, Norden emphasizes that, just like the new curriculum, “...the professors have to adapt to what students need today […] [but]

has become a top institutional priority. The College’s student retention rates have fluctuated in recent years, but show gradual progress toward improvement. College Factual reports that the College’s freshman retention rate, the percentage of first-

year students who return for their sophomore year, has been around 70 percent. Research.com lists the rate at approximately 82 percent, while Data USA reports a lower figure of 53 percent for first-time, full-time undergraduates in 2023. Although the figures vary

sometimes they’ll nudge what they think they should learn.” As the Chair of Faculty from 2022 to 2024, Norden reflects on the long and arduous process behind implementing the new curriculum, with discussions occurring before the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. She recalls how every new element and change implemented in the curriculum required multiple discussions and revisions, with each piece requiring a consensus before going to the administration for approval. This lengthy process was further compounded by collaboration with the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) to ensure that the new curriculum complied with the College’s accreditation. Norden recalls that constant leadership changes within these committees further slowed the curriculum’s process. As she became Chair when the bulk of the new curriculum was already passed, Norden admits to using her position to “bully” other professors to meet the established deadlines and pushing for votes when the faculty were stuck at impasses. While all professors continued to ask what was good for the students when designing the new curriculum, Norden recalls that faculty, inherently, had to consider the interests of their departments, debating how new requirements would impact their student enrollment. Despite her encouragement, the new curriculum took a year longer than scheduled to implement. The extensive efforts the faculty took behind the scenes only come to prove the faith professors have in the new curriculum. Norden describes it as a “new mandate for experiential learning.” She sees the greater implementation of interdisciplinary content and career-oriented projects across the curriculum as in the best interests of new students and also upperclassmen enrolled in the previous catalog. Of course, these are new revisions that will take time for students and faculty to adjust to, as seen with the current uncertainty among the student body on the worth of the new requirements. Ultimately, the new curriculum is designed to enable students to best apply what they learn for their futures.

Whittier Keeps 'em Coming Back Paola Ruiz NEWS EDITOR

As Whittier College continues to position itself for long-term stability and student success, improving the retention rate of continuing students

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due to different data sources and definitions, the overall trend suggests effective efforts to strengthen student persistence and completion.

World Recap • On Tuesday, Nov. 11, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) announced that "... essential items, including syringes to vaccinate children and bottles for baby formula, are being denied entry into Gaza by Israel,” states Reuters. These resources have been sent since Sunday to get around 40,000 children under three to get vaccines against polio, measles, and pneumonia. • On Monday, Nov. 10, Typhoon Fung-won hit the Philippines causing floods, landslides, power outages and at least 18 deaths, shares AP News. Last week, Typhoon Kalmaegi hit the central provinces and at least 232 people died, later hitting Vietnam where it killed at least five. • On late Monday night, Nov. 10, the United States Senate passed the bill to reopen the government with seven Democrats and one independent voting, breaking the majority tie with 60 to 40. The legislation has now been passed onto the U.S. House to try to get their approval as well, shares The Guardian. • On Sunday, Nov. 9, the Sudan Doctors Network accused the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) of trying to “conceal evidence of mass killings in Darfur by burning bodies or burying them in mass graves,” reports Al Jazeera. The Independent shares that he organization criticizes the disposal as “one of the most inhumane acts in recent days [...] these crimes cannot be erased through concealment or burning." • Through last week and this week, India’s air quality index, specifically New Delhi, was at 425, a level that is “severe” and dangerous to breathe in. According to CBS News, “Authorities in India’s capital have urged elementary schools to hold classes online, banned construction and urged people to work from home.”

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