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The Core Curriculum is the Liberal Arts foundation of a La Roche College education. As students progress through a diverse yet coordinated succession of Core courses, they are challenged to develop the fundamental proficiencies necessary for success in any field of study; to read, write, think, and act critically and creatively in diverse areas of intellectual inquiry; to explore within interdisciplinary settings the individual, local, and global contexts in which they live; and to develop standards of ethical belief and behavior in their academic and personal lives. As such, the Core prepares students to participate intellectually, ethically, creatively, and spiritually within their communities, professions, and world.
Upon successful completion of the Core, students are expected to demonstrate the following characteristics, in addition to the learning outcomes described for each component and the component courses of the curriculum.
• Competence in the fundamental activities necessary for success in any field of study.
• The power to pose academic questions in areas of intellectual inquiry outside the student's major field of study, and to draw on the principles, methodologies, and resources native to those areas in addressing these questions.
• The ability to recognize the complex, interdisciplinary nature of knowledge as it is generated in the world today, and the corresponding ability to approach issues from a variety of perspectives and with a variety of analytical tools.
• The imaginative capacity to conceptualize the interrelationships between local and global communities, and the moral capacity to act on that awareness to further freedom, peace, justice, and well-being for all the world's people.
• The conviction that academic study is infused with ethical choices and concerns, and the courage to promote ethical beliefs and behavior in their academic and personal lives.
The La Roche College Core Curriculum consists of the following components: the La Roche Experience, Fundamental Skills, Select courses, and Community & Global courses. Specific learning outcomes for each component of the Core Curriculum can be found here. (Core Curriculum Learning Outcomes)
• I. The La Roche Experience (4 credits) – The La Roche Experience is composed of four 1-credit courses taken over four semesters. The course emphasizes the history of La Roche College and introduces students to issues in Diversity and Discrimination, Regions of Conflict, and Economic Justice.
• II. Fundamental Skills (12 credits) - These courses provide a foundation of skills for lifelong learning, including writing, mathematics, analytical thinking, problem solving, computer applications, information literacy, and basic knowledge of a foreign language. Students may test out of these requirements. Those who test out of a fundamental course can use the credits for electives.
EN 111/A - College Writing: Exposition I
EN 112 - College Writing: Exposition II
One course beyond MT 106 - Analytic Thinking and Problem Solving
CIS 105W - Practical Computer Applications
Foreign Language – Students must complete at least one introductory-level foreign language course.
• III. Select Courses - These courses emphasize broad-based, liberal education and challenge students to explore the principles, methodologies, and resources within areas of intellectual inquiry outside their major field of study. . A minimum of 12 credits is required, including study within each of the following domains:
History
Science
Literature
Social and Cultural Systems
Religion or Philosophy
Aesthetics
Students can fulfill six domains with four courses because: 1) some courses may investigate two domains and will thus carry more than one domain designation; 2) students may fulfill a domain requirement through courses taken in their major, e.g., a literature major would necessarily have "in-depth study of the principles" of literature.
Community Courses and Global Courses (6 credits) – These courses emphasize the integration of knowledge and the interconnections between the local and the global. Students are required to take one Community course and one Global course. These courses should be taken in sequence, with the Global course taken after the Community course.