Community Leadership and Civic Engagement (LIBA/CLCE)

The Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Studies with a concentration in Community Leadership and Civic Engagement (LIBA/CLCE) is an option for students seeking to operationalize their individualized liberal studies learning plans in community-engaged ways. 

While satisfying the normal requirements for the LIBA degree, students also focus on specially-designated CLCE courses that utilize project-based, experiential, and service-focused learning, or otherwise emphasize knowledge, values and skills central to community leadership and engagement.

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For LIBA/CLCE, students work with an academic advisor to design a complete 128-credit interdisciplinary program suited to their individual needs and plans.  Like the regular LIBA degree, the LIBA/CLCE degree provides extraordinary opportunities for creativity in educational planning, and allows students to take advantage of a wide range of ��˾��������’s courses and resources for applied, experiential learning within campus and community networks. 

LIBA/CLCE incorporates a core set of specially-designated General Studies classes and other disciplinary courses into students’ individualized learning plans.  Like any ��˾�������� degree program, LIBA/CLCE must show coherence, breadth of education and depth of study in a particular area, in addition to incorporating the CLCE-designated courses.  These courses have been designated as CLCE courses because they focus on operationalized learning: community-engaged, experiential, project-based and service learning courses are central to the concentration, as are independent studies and internships that situate learning in community-engaged contexts.

Students may choose from: FINALIZED CURRICULUM TO FOLLOW. HYPERLINK TO NEW PAGE WITH JUST THE CURRICULUM.  CLICK HERE FOR LIBA/CLCE courses electives

To become a LIBA/CLCE major, students must work with their advisor to prepare a proposal for multidisciplinary study, and must have that proposal approved by the CLCE convenor and the dean of General Studies. 

LIBA/CLCE majors are not exempt from the university General Studies requirement, which must be taken separately from their pursuit of a CLCE concentration.  Therefore, LIBA/CLCE courses within specific General Studies categories (GAH, GSS, GNM) must be taken in addition to the regular 32 credits of General Studies courses required of all students in all majors.

Although proposals resembling an existing degree program may be approved, the LIBA/CLCE major may not replicate or replace an established program in another school.  Students pursuing a specific career or graduate study will be advised to solicit and consider the advice of faculty in similar or related disciplines and programs.

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Organization

The organization of a Liberal Studies B.A. may take several forms depending on the particular interests and needs of the student. The course of study, and the proposal describing it, must reflect a central unifying purpose or theme.

In recent years, students have pursued the following interests through the LIBA Program:

Thematic/topical — interdisciplinary exploration of a particular theme or topic (e.g., “Freedom and Constraint” and “The World, Its People, and Their Art”);
Expanded study in a topical program (e.g., gerontology, Women’s Studies, American studies or humanities)
Pre-professional — interdisciplinary study intended to prepare the student either to enter a particular career field (e.g., wildlife illustration or fine arts management), or to attend graduate or professional school in a variety of areas.