M E M O R A N D U M May 10, 2012 To: Members of the Board of Trustees From: Nancy L. Zimpher, Chancellor Subject: Degree Authorization for the State University College at Old Westbury I recommend that the Board of Trustees adopt the following resolution: Resolved that the Chancellor be, and hereby is, directed to seek the authorization of the Board of Regents for the State University College at Old Westbury to confer the degree of Bachelor of Fine Arts (B.F.A.). Background Approval of this resolution will authorize the State University College at Old Westbury to confer the Bachelor of Fine Arts (B.F.A.) degree, subject to the approval of the Board of Regents. Degree authorization is necessary as the award represents the College’s first use of the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. The Bachelor of Fine Arts degree is consistent with the mission of the College at Old Westbury. Since 1982 the College has offered the Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in Visual Arts and the Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Visual Arts: Electronic Media. Building on decades of experience in offering baccalaureate-level visual arts education, the more specialized B.F.A. program will provide access to professional preparation for graduate school, careers in art and design, and art education, while the existing B.A. and B.S. programs will continue to serve those students who desire a broader undergraduate experience. The projected full- and part-time enrollment in the B.F.A. program will be approximately 10 students in the first year, growing to 25 students after the fifth year. The B.F.A. degree program has two concentrations, both offering an interdisciplinary approach. One, in Studio Art, includes drawing, painting, photography, and sculpture. The other, in Electronic Media, includes print media, web design, multimedia design, three-dimensional modeling, animation, and video. Within the 120-credit curriculum, 72 credits are required in the major, including a 24-credit lower division core that is common to all visual arts majors and a 48-credit upper division core for each concentration that includes 20 credits of electives. The upper division core includes the heart of the program, a sequence of tutorials that provide direct, one-on-one interaction with the faculty and culminate in a senior project capstone course, as well as a 4-credit internship. The proposed B.F.A. program was positively reviewed by external evaluators, one of whom observed that the curriculum was “not only quite feasible but also necessary given the advanced quality of the work and the sophistication of the majors.” The proposed B.F.A. program allows students to experiment with various creative abilities, capitalizing on the strengths of the College’s existing visual arts courses, which combine theory and practice, through a series of tutorials that increase in difficulty and complexity. The tutorial sequence is designed to offer the necessary flexibility in creative approach to open students to the large array of possibilities and creative tools that are crucial for their future professional development. It demands that they develop their own way of thinking, in contrast to project-based exercises that have a specified goal. Rather than focus on media-specific courses, as most art department curricula do, the proposed program expects students to develop their own independent production, which will be exhibited in the College’s public art gallery, as a requirement for graduation. Besides the specialized courses unique to each concentration, required coursework also includes courses in art history and the fundamentals of the visual arts. The College has the necessary resources to offer the program, including studio space, equipment, and sufficient faculty. The College will be submitting a proposal to SUNY for the approval of fees for art studio courses. Funding for capital expenditures associated with the program over the next five years has been allocated from the College’s capital plan. This program will provide an exceptional learning experience at a reasonable cost to those students not able to afford a degree from local private institutions. Students who want to pursue graduate studies will have the preferred degree to apply and be accepted into graduate fine arts programs. Consistent with SUNY’s strategic priorities for enhancing New York State’s economic vitality, the B.F.A. program will also prepare graduates to enter the New York State workforce. The New York State Department of Labor lists artists as having “very favorable” prospects, and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Occupational Outlook Handbook predicts that the field will grow about as fast as the average for all occupations through 2018, projecting an increase of approximately 12 percent. The College at Old Westbury’s B.F.A. program will help meet the need for artists in the areas of art and design, and art education. In keeping with SUNY’s strategic priorities for student mobility, the B.F.A. program is responsive to the needs of community college transfer students on Long Island. Both Nassau Community College and Suffolk County Community College have indicated that specialized study in the B.F.A. program would be a good fit for the many graduates of their arts programs, providing opportunity for seamless transfer. The Visual Arts Department at SUNY College at Old Westbury, both through its existing degrees and the proposed B.F.A. degree, supports the mission of the College as well as SUNY’s strategic priorities for diversity, with its commitment to diversity in its faculty, student body, curriculum, and the on-campus art gallery’s programming and staff. B.F.A. faculty come from Great Britain, France and Uruguay, and the Wallace Gallery Director is from South Korea. The proposed program’s students are expected to reflect the diversity of current visual arts majors: about equal numbers of men and women, 37% African-American, 22% Hispanic, and 8% Asian-American. The B.F.A.’s curricular requirements—especially its art history courses—demand a thorough knowledge of contemporary global arts and cultures. The Amelie A. Wallace Gallery presents four exhibitions each academic year that integrate diversity by featuring a broad array of artwork by artists of various origins and backgrounds. 1 -3- Board Resolution May 10, 2012 Board Resolution -2- May 10, 2012