Category I proposals are used to designate major curricular changes that require approval at the state level (Oregon University System Chancellor's Office and/or Oregon State Board of Higher Education). There are two types of Category I proposals: full and abbreviated.
The Office of Academic Planning and Assessment supports the curricular proposal process, so feel free to contact us at 737-8246 if you need help during the proposal process.
Be sure that you are well-informed about the repercussions of the proposed change, and communicate early with key stakeholders to ensure that the proposal has their support. Before it is officially submitted, the proposal must be reviewed and approved by the appropriate curriculum committees within the department(s) and college(s), and liaison must be solicited from affected units within or outside of OSU.
Once you have written a draft of your proposal, contact the Office of Academic Planning and Assessment at 737-9560 to schedule a meeting to review the draft. This meeting is intended to guide revisions and to strengthen the proposal for the official review process. A CIP code for new programs will be assigned at the meeting. (The meeting will include a representative from the proposing unit, one from the Office of Academic Programs, the chair of the Curriculum Council, and, if it's a graduate proposal, a representative from the Graduate School.)
After the draft review meeting, make any necessary revisions to your proposal and request a library evaluation (see "Supporting Documentation " below). When you receive their report, prepare or revise the budget forms for your proposal. The Office of Budgets and Fiscal Planning (x7-4121) can help you prepare an accurate and complete budget, which will improve the efficiency of subsequent stages of review.
Submit the complete proposal, including all the necessary supporting documentation to the Office of Academic Planning and Assessment.
Category I approvals can take anywhere from a few months to approximately one year. Well-prepared proposals with complete supporting documentation will move more quickly through the process.
See a flow chart of the Category I approval process.
Once a proposal has been submitted to the Office of Academic Planning and Assessment, it is sent first to the Budgets and Fiscal Planning Committee of the Faculty Senate for approval. Next it is sent to the Curriculum Council or to the Graduate Council if it concerns a graduate program.
Often the proposal will be sent back for revisions after these reviews, and in some cases will need to be brought before the Curriculum Council again before proceeding. Full Category I proposals, and some abbreviated Category I proposals, will then be considered by the Executive Committee of the Faculty Senate and finally, will go before the Faculty Senate itself.
If the provost concurs with the favorable review of the proposal by the appropriate faculty governance bodies on campus, OSU sends it to the OUS Provost's Council. If the proposed program is at the graduate level, an external review will be required. The proposal is ultimately sent to the Oregon State Board of Higher Education for final approval. For more information about the criteria and review process at the OUS level, see the OUS Academic Planning and Assessment Policies and Processes.
Category I proposals are handled throughout the approval process by the Office of Academic Planning and Assessment, and are logged into a Curricular Proposal Database where they can be tracked on the Web. If you have questions about your proposal at any time, contact the Office of Academic Planning and Assessment at 737-8246.
Category I Transmittal Sheet - This serves as the title page, classifies the type of Category I proposal, and contains all required signature lines from the OSU college(s) and department(s) involved. [Note: Proposals that involve multiple departments/colleges will need to attach the supplemental signature page]. The Dean and Department Chair signatures indicate that the proposal "has been reviewed and approved by the appropriate Department and College committees."
Budget Forms - Any proposal with budgetary impact must include a budget analysis. Please use the Category I Proposal Budget Outline (combined OUS and OSU). Complete one sheet for each of the first four operating years. If you would like assistance contact The Office of Budgets & Fiscal Planning, x7-4121.
The table budget outline should be completed from the viewpoint of the budgetary unit that will be responsible for the program. Determine what the budgetary unit will be doing (in terms of new or additional activities) that it is not now doing and show what these activities will cost--whether financed and staffed by shifting of assignments, reallocation of resources within the institution, special appropriation of the legislature, or gift/grant/other funds.
If the program is simply a rearrangement of courses already being offered, relying on access to library resources available for other programs, with no requirements for new or additional specialized facilities, equipment or technology, and with no increase or decrease in students served by the budgetary unit responsible for the program, the budgetary impact would be near zero and should be so reported on the worksheet.
If FTE faculty or support staff assignment to the budgetary unit must be increased to handle increased workload a result of the new program, indicate the total resources required to handle the new activities and workload by specifying (1) how much of this total figure is from reassignment within the budgetary unit (Column A), and (2) how much is from resources new to the budgetary unit (Columns B-F). Please provide line item totals in Column G.
Liaison Correspondence - Feedback should be solicited from all campus units and other OUS institutions whose program or students could be affected by the proposal, and/or from those units whose common subject matter pertains to the subject matter of the proposal. (See OSU Curriculum Liaison List). Appropriate liaison with other academic units is a mandatory element of every curricular proposal. If liaison is omitted, the proposal is considered incomplete, and will generally be sent back to its originator. The purposes of liaison are:
E-mail correspondence is an acceptable form of liaison. See Format for Letter or E-mail of Liaison.
Faculty Curriculum Vitae - Required for proposals for new instructional programs.
Library Evaluation - This evaluation is required of all full Category I proposals and some abbreviated Category I proposals. It is performed by the Library. After completion of a draft review meeting with Academic Planning and Assessment, the APA coordinator will send a copy of the proposal and a request to the Head of Collection Services at the Library, allowing at least three weeks for their review. Once completed, the proposing unit will receive a copy of the report. Attach this to the proposal prior to submission and modify the budget table if needed. Note that funds required by the library to support new programs will be transfered by the Office of Budgets & Fiscal Planning upon approval of the Category I Proposal. See Allocation of Funding to the Library for New Programs
To write an abbreviated Category I proposal, follow the Outline and Guidelines for Abbreviated Category I Proposals. Answer the nine questions as indicated, and write "not applicable" if the questions are not relevant to your proposal. Note that a Transmittal Sheet (and supplemental signature page] if proposal involves multiple departments/colleges) and Budget Forms are required of all Category I proposals, including abbreviated.
All Category I proposals, full and abbreviated, should be submitted to the Director of Academic Planning and Assessment in hard copy and in electronic format to:
After your proposal has been submitted to the Office of Academic Planning and Assessment, you can track its progress on the Curricular Proposal Database.
If your Category I proposal is for a new degree or certificate program, there will be a three-year and a five-year follow up review to ensure that adequate progress is being made toward the goals of the program. Both reviews will be initiated by the Office of Academic Planning and Assessment. See Policy on Three- and Five-Year Year Follow Up Review.
