The College Forms New "Undergradute Division"!

By Alix Schwartz

August 15, 2000

The Undergraduate Division in the College of Letters and Science was inaugurated on July 1, 2000 with the appointment of Kwong-loi Shun, Professor of Philosophy, as dean. Dean Shun will work in partnership with the other Deans in Letters and Science and the Executive Committee to oversee and coordinate undergraduate education in the College. The new division merged the two former Divisions of Undergraduate Services and Undergraduate and Interdisciplinary Studies.

What will this reorganization mean for undergraduates in L & S? According to Dean Shun, "the new Division will ensure that decisions related to undergraduate education and advising are grounded in a shared awareness of the factors affecting undergraduates." Some of the specific goals of the new Division are enhancing access to advising and program-planning assistance, facilitating students' progress towards their degrees, improving access to impacted classes, and strengthening interdisciplinary teaching programs.

A newly expanded Student Advisory Group will ensure that students' voices are heard throughout the decision-making process. Similar advisory groups made up of faculty and student-services staff will also contribute their perspectives. And a new unit within the Undergraduate Division, the Office of Undergraduate Policy and Analysis, will work with existing institutional research offices on the campus to ensure that decisions and policies are based on the careful analysis of relevant data.

The College of Letters and Science educates 76% of the undergraduates at Cal; understandably, undergraduate education has always been an important issue in the College. However, with a few exceptions, most of the responsibility for deciding how best to educate and serve undergraduates has resided in the departments or the divisions within the College. For the first time, we have a mechanism in place to ensure that our efforts to improve the undergraduate educational experience are coordinated. The Divisional Deans in Letters and Science are enthusiastic about this new development. According to Dean Ralph Hexter (Arts and Humanities), "Under Dean Shun's leadership the Division will be perfectly positioned to help our students get the most out of the diverse offerings of the College."

The College of Letters and Science is an intellectual community that transforms lives by challenging the boundaries of knowledge and encouraging the understanding of diverse values. The College's new Undergraduate Division will play a crucial role in carrying out this mission.

Related Story: "College of Letters and Science reinvents itself," Berkeleyan, September 20, 2000.