ASU's New College unveils summer classes

Spanish, ecology, persuasive writing, Arizona politics, and mathematics are just a few of the topics addressed by more than 100 summer classes offered by Arizona State University’s New College of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences.

Three convenient summer school sessions will be offered this year. A fast-paced, 14-day Intersession will run from May 14 through May 28, followed by the Summer One session from June 1 through July 2 and Summer Two from July 6 through Aug. 6.

Most in-person courses offered by New College are taught on ASU’s West campus in northwest Phoenix. Nearly half of the offerings are online courses that may be taken by students across metropolitan Phoenix and beyond.

“We take great pride in the quality and rigor of our online classes,” said Elizabeth Langland, Dean of New College. Two years ago Langland and New College professor Rob Taylor initiated a unique organization within the college known as OLEg (Online Education Group), which provides mandatory workshops for faculty proposing online courses.

“Online courses are not deemed ready for delivery until they have passed through a rigorous development and course-building process with checks and balances built in at every stage,” Taylor said. “We utilize a system of quality control to ensure that the quality of the teaching and learning experience in online New College courses is as high as or better than face-to-face offerings. These courses offer a convenient way for students to get ahead more quickly in their chosen fields.”

Scott Ruggles is a West campus student who is currently enrolled in the online class IAS 420, Multicultural Autobiographies. He says taking the class online enables him to work full-time and exercise time management skills.

“Dr. McGovern maintains exceptional contact with the students,” Ruggles said in reference to Tom McGovern, a New College faculty member and former Professor of the Year for Arizona who teaches the class. “His frequent updates and detailed course materials have been outstanding.”

All of New College’s summer courses are taught by full-time faculty or experienced faculty associates who are specialists in their field.

 Offerings include new language courses in Spanish (SPA 101 and SPA 102 are both offered this year), plus many courses meeting ASU General Studies requirements in areas including humanities, literacy, numeracy, and social and behavioral sciences. Junior- and senior-level courses in psychology, literature, math, history, science, adult career development, arts, problem-solving and leadership are offered as well.

“By taking classes this summer, students can get closer to graduation before tuition increases take effect this fall,” Taylor said.

Registration for summer classes is now under way. New College academic advisers may be reached at (602) 543-7000. Details about New College degree programs are available at http://newcollegenow.asu.edu/.