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The Liberal Arts Council

LAC Course Approval Process

LAC Course Approval Process

Courses proposed for inclusion in the AY 26-27 catalog must reach the LAC stage of the Workflow by November 1, 2025.

LAC Course Approvals are conducted through the catalog/curriculum workflow following the same general procedures as all other curriculum approvals. More details about UNC's curriculum approval process are available on the Provost Website. More information on the technical aspects of using the Curriculum Workflow is available on the Registrar Website. Courses proposed for inclusion in the LAC must reach the Liberal Arts Council stage of the curriculum workflow by November 1 to be considered for the following academic year catalog.

To be included in the Liberal Arts Curriculum, a course must fulfill the Learning Outcomes for one of the six LAC categories. Courses in the Arts & Humanities, History, and Social & Behavioral Sciences categories may also request an International Studies (IS) or Multicultural Studies (MS) designations. Learning outcomes for the categories and designations can be found on the LAC Outcomes and Assessment page.

In addition, all LAC courses must

  • satisfy all the requirements in Board Policy 2-3-501 Course Outline.
  • be numbered at the 100/200 (lower division) level
    • Exception is CO3/LAW3 courses which can be offered at the 300 level.
  • be offered at least once every two years
  • not be repeatable for credit (e.g., may not be a variable title course)
  • carry gtPathways status (this is automatically secured during the curriculum approval process; the provost office forwards all approved LAC courses to the CDHE for listing on the gtPathways website).

Contact Us

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Phone: 970-351-1519

LAC@unco.edu

LAC Course Submission Process

  • LAC Category Submission
    1. Prepare a syllabus that satisfies all of the gtP/LAC syllabus requirements. The required elements are laid out visually in the provided templates. See sample templates below.  Required elements are also included in all sample syllabi. See sample syllabi below. Per gtP the following MUST be included on the syllabus.
      • The statement, “The Colorado Commission on Higher Education has approved [Course prefix, number] for inclusion in the Guaranteed Transfer (GT) Pathways program in the [GT-@@#] category.  For transferring students, successful completion with a minimum C‒ grade guarantees transfer and application of credit in this GT Pathways category.  For more information on the GT Pathways program, go to ”
      • The GT Pathways content criteria, competencies, and SLOs (need to be verbatim.)
    2. Per UNC LAC requirements, to be approved the syllabus MUST provide course mapping. Course mapping refers to indicating (mapping) the connections between the required gtP SLOs and course material/course content. Incorporating the provided templates is one way to do this. See sample templates and  sample syllabi below .

    3. Prepare the appropriate form in the catalog/curriculum workflow
      • Use a new course form if the course does not already appear in undergraduate catalog
      • Use a revised course form if the course appears in the catalog but does not have LAC status
      • Be sure to check 'Yes' in the Liberal Arts Council Review area at the end of the form. This will ensure your form is routed to the LAC after it has secured approval by the college dean.
    4. Monitor the progress of your form through the workflow.

    5. For feedback or guidance on course proposals, contact either the relevant LAC Curriculum Category Committee Chair or elected LAC representative from your college. You can locate contact information for all Liberal Arts Council Members on the LAC Members and Minutes page.
  • IS/MS Designation Submission

    For a course to be considered for IS (international Studies) or MS (Multicultural Studies) designation, there are additional submission requirements. If the course is not already in the Liberal Arts Curriculum, complete the LAC Category submission process above or if seeking to add the IS or MS designation to a course that already has LAC status use a revised course form and include the IS or MS alignment chart. This chart incorporates the following information:

    1. IS or MS competency statement
    2. Chosen IS or MS SLOs
    3. Couse Mapping to these SLOs.


    For course approval, the alignment chart should be included in two places.

    1. As an attached document in the LAC Supporting Documentation section of the new or revised course form.
    2. In the model syllabus attached in the new or revised course form.


    The IS/MS chart aligns course content and identifies the data collection tool/course-embedded assignment that will be used to assess student learning related to chosen IS/MS SLOs. The alignment chart replaces the template used for gtP/LAC category course mapping. There are slight differences in the chart that is attached in the curriculum workflow and the one included in the model syllabus. These differences are noted on the chart itself. (See IS/MS alignment and sample alignment charts below.)  

    For feedback or guidance on proposals seeking an IS or MS designation, contact the IS/MS Curriculum Category Committee Chair. You can locate contact information for all Liberal Arts Council Members on the LAC Members and Minutes page. 

  • Deadlines
    • Course proposals may be submitted to the catalog/curriculum workflow at any time but must reach the LAC Council stage by November 1 to guarantee consideration for the upcoming academic year catalog.
      • All courses that reach the Council by November 1 will receive a vote before the end of the Fall semester.
      • If the Council votes to deny the course proposal, the unit will be provided with advice about how to revise and resubmit. However, the need for resubmissions will typically delay approval by at least one academic year.
      • To increase the likelihood of approval, units are strongly encouraged to ask the appropriate Liberal Arts Curriculum Category Committee to review their syllabus and IS/MS alignment chart (if needed) prior to formal submission in the workflow.

    • The LAC deadline occurs after the college dean stage and the PEC stage (if relevant) of the catalog/curriculum workflow. Submitters should work with the office of their college dean to allow sufficient time for the course to be reviewed by the College Curriculum Committee and Dean. For detailed information on the stages in the curriculum workflow, locate the registrar's flowchart on the .

    • If a new course is rejected by the Council, units may still request that the course move forward for inclusion in the upcoming year catalog without LAC status.

    • Courses that reach the LAC stage after the November 1 deadline will be considered for the next available catalog (likely two years after the submission).

    NOTE: Courses that do not receive full LAC approval by the December 31st curriculum deadline will automatically roll to the next curriculum cycle. These courses, as well as courses that have been denied for inclusion in the LAC, may still appear in the course catalog, be used to fulfill non-LAC requirements, and serve as university-wide electives.

LAC Sample Templates, Syllabi, and Alignment Charts

In early spring semester, once the catalog cycle for the upcoming AY has closed, the LAC will send a contributions memo to each academic unit with courses in the LAC reminding units of what courses they teach in the Liberal Arts Curriculum and also reminding them of the responsibilities units they have when teaching courses in the LAC.

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