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By Larry B. Dendy
ldendy@uga.edu
The university is taking a major step into the fast-evolving world of technology-based communications with creation of a New Media Institute and a certificate program in new-media studies.
The University Council, at its final meeting of the academic year on April 27, approved establishing the institute as an independent unit reporting to the senior vice president for academic affairs.
Defined as “the use of technology to create new communication experiences,” new media is a young and growing field with applications in academic disciplines ranging from drama and English to computer science and management and information systems, according to the proposal.
Journalism professor Scott Shamp, a member of the 15-person committee that developed the proposal, said the institute will have a small administrative staff and core faculty. It will be strongly interdisciplinary, drawing on faculty “affiliates” from across the university who are interested in new media to teach some new classes as well as classes already in the curriculum.
Shamp said the institute already has a commitment of $250,000 from the Georgia Research Alliance, and will aggressively seek more outside funding, especially from Internet companies. The institute will not draw from the budgets of any existing university schools, colleges or departments, he said.
The institute will offer an interdisciplinary certificate program to help prepare students for new-media jobs. Students will study both the theory and philosophy of new media, as well as technical aspects of the field such as approaches to structuring narrative, application of mark-up language, and digital-media standards.
The council also approved a new master’s degree program in Internet technology. The degree will be offered through the Graduate School and is independent of the New Media Institute. The degree includes courses in Internet software development, taught through the computer science department; courses in information systems management and e-commerce, taught through the department of management and information systems in the Terry College of Business; and courses in Internet design and production, taught through the Dowden Center in the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication.
In other action, the council adopted an academic calendar for the 2001-2002 academic year that sets spring break for March 18-22, 2002. Council members chose this calendar over an alternative calendar, which had spring break March 4-8, to facilitate coordinating UGA’s spring break with either the Clarke or Oconee county school systems, both of which traditionally have spring break in late March. Neither has scheduled its break for 2002, and the council hopes one or both of them will be able to match UGA’s break.
The council also approved a request from its Curriculum Committee for a plus-minus grading system. To be implemented, the proposal must be approved by the University System Board of Regents, which refused to act on similar requests from UGA in 1990 and 1993. In approving the proposal, the council eliminated a provision that a plus-minus system could be used at an instructor’s discretion.
The council also gave first reading to proposed changes in the University Statutes and council by-laws that would make the president of Staff Council an ex-officio voting member of University Council and the council’s Executive Committee, and would give Staff Council permanent seats on University Council standing committees on libraries, facilities and student affairs. The proposals will come up for second reading and a vote at the University Council’s first meeting in the fall.
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