Humanities Department Program Review - Art - Music - Philosophy - World Languages - AY 2009-2015

Oct 3, 2026

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Humanities Department Program Review at Fitchburg State University covering AY 2009-AY2014, with selected context from AY 2015 or Fall 2015. The review documents processes and contributions across four humanities areas—Art, Music, Philosophy, and World Languages—plus sections prepared for Interdisciplinary Studies and Humanities Graduate Programs. It outlines organizational mission and departmental goals, emphasizing excellence in teaching, cross-disciplinary inquiry, creative and critical thinking, and lifelong learning foundations for diverse student populations.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages145

Reading Time6 h 5 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Art Area Overview

Art Area Faculty

Art Area Curriculum

Art Area Five Year Plans / Plans for Change

Music Area Overview

Music Area Faculty

Music Area Curriculum

Music Area Five Year Plans / Plans for Change

Philosophy Area Overview

Philosophy Area Faculty

Philosophy Area Curriculum

Philosophy Area Five Year Plans / Plans for Change

World Language Area Overview

World Language Area Faculty

World Language Area Curriculum

World Language Area Five Year Plans / Plans for Change

Interdisciplinary Studies Area Overview

Interdisciplinary Studies Area Faculty

Interdisciplinary Studies Area Curriculum

Interdisciplinary Studies Area Five Year Plans / Plans for Change

Humanities Graduate Programs

HUMANITIES DEPARTMENT PROGRAM REVIEW Art – Music – Philosophy – World Languages Interdisciplinary Studies Graduate Programs AY 2009-2015 FITCHBURG STATE UNIVERSITY HUMANITIES DEPARTMENT PROGRAM REVIEW INDEX Introduction p. 3 Art Area Overview p. 9 Art Area Faculty p. 14 Art Area Curriculum p. 17 Art Area Five Year Plans / Plans for Change p.22 Art Area Appendices p. 27 Music Area Overview p. 32 Music Area Faculty p. 54 Music Area Curriculum p. 59 Music Area Five Year Plans / Plans for Change p. 65 Music Area Appendices p. 67 Philosophy Area Overview p. 78 Philosophy Area Faculty p. 81 Philosophy Area Curriculum p. 82 Philosophy Area Five Year Plans / Plans for Change p.90 Philosophy Area Appendices p. 91 World Language Area Overview p. 94 World Language Area Faculty p. 101 World Language Area Curriculum p. 105 World Language Area Five Year Plans / Plans for Change p.112 World Language Area Appendices p. 118 Interdisciplinary Studies Area Overview p. 120 Interdisciplinary Studies Area Faculty p. 126 Interdisciplinary Studies Area Curriculum p. 127 Interdisciplinary Studies Area Five Year Plans / Plans for Change p.134 Interdisciplinary Studies Area Appendices p. 137 Humanities Graduate Programs p. 139 Humanities Program Review 2015-Introduction THE PROCESS This Program Review was begun by the Humanities Department during AY 14, under the leadership of Chairperson Dr. Rala Diakité . Fourteen faculty members participated in this process. Each of the four areas in Humanities – Art, Music, Philosophy, and World Language – was tasked with documenting their minors and curriculum, and faculty collaborated within their areas. In addition, Dr. Diakite wrote the section on Interdisciplinary Studies Major and Petri Flint wrote the section on Humanities Graduate Programs. This was the first time the Humanities Department was asked to include information on the Interdisciplinary degree, of which we are not the creators but the caretakers, and on the three graduate programs in Humanities. The work and process was discussed regularly in department meetings, and Dr. Diakite met with faculty to assist them when necessary. Several offices at the University were generous in providing materials and directing us to data. Our Dean Jane Fiske provided guidance as well. Due to various circumstances, the work continued into AY15, which was an unusually challenging year, due to the fact that 6 out of the 10 tenured faculty members had a sabbatical, and another faculty member moved to administration; this left us with many adjuncts, and full-time faculty stretched thin with departmental tasks. A draft of the Program Review was presented to Academic Affairs in November of 2015, and after input from Jane Fiske, Interim Dean of Liberal Arts and Sciences, this was revised by faculty and resubmitted in February of 2016. Officially, this review covers the period AY 2009-AY2014, but we included information from AY 2015 or Fall 15 in some cases. The faculty in Humanities are confident that this Program Review accurately reflects the state of our department and programs and our hopes for the future, and that it will help orient us as we enter a period of new leadership at the University. OUR DEPARTMENT AND ITS MISSION “Humanities” might seem an unusually ambitious term for our four disciplines; because while Art, Languages, Music and Philosophy are certainly Humanities fields, our department does not contain all disciplines at the University that might be termed Humanistic, for example; Literature (housed in English Studies), History (in Economics, History and Political Science) and Theatre (Communications Media) . Historical factors and institutional choices have created a somewhat unnatural divide between what would otherwise be allied departments. Nonetheless, we embrace our title and all the meanings that it carries with great pride and dedication. For an authoritative definition of the Human

FAQs

What period does the program review cover?

The review officially covers AY 2009 through AY 2014, with additional information from AY 2015 or Fall 2015 included in some cases.

How was the program review process carried out?

Faculty participated across the four humanities areas, documenting minors and curricula, with guidance from the Dean and support from the Humanities chair. Additional sections were authored for Interdisciplinary Studies and Humanities Graduate Programs.

What is the mission emphasized in the document?

The Humanities Department mission focuses on excellence in teaching and learning through investigations of artistic, cultural, and social contexts that inform contemporary global society, supported by inquiry, self-reflection, and cross-disciplinary thinking.

Oct 3, 2026

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