Grant Summary
$25,000 over 12 months to plan for Röd Tråd, or “Red Thread,” as it is referred to in Swedish literature and describes something that follows a theme. Through Augustana’s Röd Tråd program, the Augustana faculty will redesign the general education curriculum to feature (1) a new first-year gateway course for all students anchored in transformative texts selected from a consensus list developed by the faculty (2) new thematic threads (e.g., “food and society”) for completing general education elective requirements so that students can understand how big issues can be tackled from different disciplinary perspectives. During the planning period, Augustana faculty will create a consensus list of transformative texts to be used in a new first-year gateway course, oversee and assess the pilot implementation of the new first-year course, and create thematic threads that will appeal to students pursuing STEM and health sciences majors.