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Rollins students receiving the Bachelor of Arts degree are required to complete the Rollins Foundations in the Liberal Arts (rFLA) curriculum. This curriculum is for all students matriculating in fall 2018 or later. Students who matriculated prior to fall 2018 may elect to follow the new rFLA requirements with permission of the academic adviser. Students under rFLA requirements in effect prior to fall 2018 and who withdraw or take a leave of absence for more than two years must follow the rFLA requirements in effect at the time of readmission.
As preparation for responsible citizenship and ethical leadership in local and global communities, as articulated in the Rollins College mission statement, students need both breadth and depth in their learning experience. By majoring in at least one area of knowledge, students gain the depth necessary for disciplinary expertise, whereas the rFLA curriculum in the College of Liberal Arts exposes students to varied perspectives and domains of knowledge. Upon successful completion of this general education curriculum, students will be able:
- To demonstrate knowledge of the distinctive methodologies and subject matter of the sciences, social sciences, expressive arts, and humanities.
- To read, think, write, and speak critically and analytically.
- To identify and articulate moral and ethical dimensions of personal and social issues.
Additionally, in keeping with the mission of the College of Liberal Arts, which is, in part, “to provide a rigorous liberal arts baccalaureate education of the highest quality,” the rFLA curriculum exposes students to the ways various areas of knowledge may reinforce and enrich each other.
rFLA has three components: the Rollins College Conference (RCC), Competencies, and Foundations Seminars.
1. The Rollins College Conference
All first-year students enroll in a Rollins College Conference (RCC 100) during the Fall semester. Most students live in the same residence hall as their RCC classmates as part of the Living Learning Community program. The RCC is an interactive seminar class on a broad range of topics. Professors are drawn from all academic disciplines encompassing the arts, the sciences, the humanities, and the social sciences. Throughout the first semester, the RCC professor joins students in educational activities and co-curricular experiences that supplement and enhance the course. Upper-class peer mentors assist in the RCC and help first-year students with the transition to academics and life at the College. The faculty member teaching this seminar course also serves as the student’s faculty advisor during their first year.
Students may not withdraw from or elect credit/no credit grading in their RCC course. Students who fail their RCC course are not required to retake the class.
Transfer students with fewer than 12 transferrable credits are required to enroll in RCC 100; transfer students with 12 or more transferrable credits are required to enroll in RCC 200 in their first semester of enrollment.
2. The Competencies
Writing (WCMP): In a contemporary global society, one must be able to write coherently and thoughtfully in both public and professional spheres. To master the skills and rhetorical practices of writing within a given discipline, students must move beyond basic instruction to the complexities of audience analysis and engagement in the larger queries of an informed citizenry. Writing coursework requires students to produce a series of written assignments intended both to extend facility in English composition and to deepen understanding of course content.
Writing competency courses may NOT be double-counted toward a major or minor. Students will complete this requirement by earning a C or better in any Rollins course that carries the writing competency (WCMP) designation (typically ENG 140), earning a C or better in an approved transfer course, or achieving an AP English Language and Composition exam score of 4 or 5.
Foreign Language (FCMP): Foreign language study has an intimate and necessary connection with the educational goal of learning about oneself and one’s relationship to the world. Language is not just the primary vehicle for the communication of culture; it is culture. As such, foreign language study offers a unique window of perception regarding non-English speaking cultures, a window through which students can learn to communicate in a language other than their native tongue, learn how other people live and what they value, or, in the case of ancient languages, delve into our rich culture and philological heritage. Second language study also provides insights into the nature of language and its power to shape ideas and expression.
Foreign language competency courses may be double-counted toward a major. Courses which satisfy the foreign language competency must be at the 200 level or above. Students can complete this requirement by earning a C- or better in any Rollins course that carries the foreign language competency (FCMP) designation, earning a C- or better in an approved 200-level or higher transfer course, achieving an AP Language exam score of 4 or 5, achieving an IB Language exam higher level score of 6 or 7, or being an International Student admitted to Rollins College based on TOEFL score.
Mathematical Thinking (MCMP): Responsible citizens make decisions that shape their lives, their society, and the world. Decision-making requires a variety of skills that will be strengthened as students complete a Mathematical Thinking competency course. Students will develop and sharpen their deductive reasoning and critical-thinking skills, enabling them to construct and articulate sound, precise, and convincing arguments and to evaluate the arguments of others. They will build and study mathematical and/or statistical models for real-world phenomena, and they will hone their ability to make estimates, develop the skills needed to draw well-founded conclusions and make reliable predictions. Students will demonstrate mastery of these skills as they apply to issues they will encounter in their subsequent course work, career, and daily life.
Mathematical thinking competency courses may be double-counted toward a major. Students will complete this requirement by earning a C- or better in any Rollins course that carries the mathematical thinking competency (MCMP) designation; earning a C- or better in an approved transfer course, achieving an AP Statistics exam score of 4 or 5, achieving an AP Calculus exam (A/B or B/C) score of 4 or 5, or achieving an IB Mathematics exam score of 4 or better.
Ethical Reasoning (ECMP):
Through ethical values and moral principles, people find meaning in and justification of their actions as individuals, and as participants in their communities. Ethical reasoning courses improve students’ abilities to articulate and evaluate the ethical principles involved in important decisions, in their own personal lives, or in society (either contemporary or historical).
Ethical reasoning competency courses may be double-counted toward a major, minor, or Foundations Seminar. Students will complete this requirement by earning a C- or better in any Rollins course that carries the Ethical Reasoning Competency (ECMP) designation or earning a C- or better in an approved transfer course.
Health and Wellness (BCMP): Personal health decisions are critical examples of people assimilating, understanding, and applying academic knowledge. In Health and Wellness courses students will learn to apply basic scientific, sociological and psychological constructs to everyday decisions that impact personal health. They will learn to discern facts from anecdotal stories in order to form intelligent models of behavior. Students will demonstrate mastery of these skills by assessing, on an individual basis, their own fitness level and lifestyle decisions and then analyzing those decisions using research-based models. This analysis will lead to an understanding of what constitutes a balanced and healthy lifestyle.
Students will complete this requirement by 1) earning a C- or better in any Rollins course that carries the Health and Wellness competency (BCMP) designation or earning a C- or better in an approved transfer course and 2) completing two (2) non-credit-bearing PEA requirements or participating in varsity sports for at least two seasons. Students may receive a medical exemption for the PEA requirement with appropriate documentation.
3. Foundations Seminars
To be eligible for a Bachelor of Arts Degree, students must complete five (5) Foundations Seminars. This series of courses is designed to be developmental and integrative. As students progress from the 100 to the 300 level, they will learn how different academic disciplines approach significant questions and will gain the core, transferable skills of information literacy, critical thinking, and written communication. Foundations Seminars are organized under themes-pressing questions like cultural collision or innovation-and students may select courses by staying within a single theme or by combining themes to explore new concepts with each class.
In the spring of their first year, students will take their first Foundations Seminar at the 100 level. Students must then take three (3) classes at the 200 level. The Foundations Seminars culminate with an interdisciplinary 300-level practicum, which demonstrates how integrating different disciplines can equip us to solve complex, real world problems.
Foundations courses at the 100 and 200 level are given an additional disciplinary designation of social sciences (C), expressive arts (A), sciences (S), and humanities (H); students are required to complete at least one course in each area. Students may also choose to take one course from an approved list of Rollins courses. Courses from the approved list will count toward the divisional requirement at the 200 level. These approved rFLA courses offered outside the Foundations Seminars will be designated in the Course Schedule published each semester by the Office of Student Records (rFLA-C, rFLA-A, rFLA-S, rFLA-H).
Students may double count one (1) Foundations Seminar toward their major or minor.
In order to count a course toward their Foundations curriculum, students must earn a C- or better in any course with the rFLA designation or an equivalent transfer course. The Associate Dean of Academics may approve courses at regionally accredited institutions of higher education other than Rollins for rFLA credit.
In order to advance to the 200 level, students must earn a C- or better in their 100-level course. Students who withdraw from or receive less than a C- in a 100-level course may be co-enrolled in 100- and 200-level courses in a subsequent semester.
The mathematical thinking and writing competencies must be completed before the student enrolls in the 300-level practicum. Students should complete the foreign language competency before enrolling in the practicum, but may be co-enrolled if necessary.
Transfer Students and rFLA
Students entering Rollins with an associate of arts (AA) degree from any regionally accredited college or university are exempt from the rFLA requirements with the exception of the Rollins College Conference (RCC 200).
Transfer students entering Rollins without an AA degree will receive, as part of the transfer credit evaluation, an individual audit of their prior coursework to determine which transfer credits, if any, can be used to count toward competency requirements and/or Foundations Seminars disciplinary designations.
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