According to the Hamline website, the Hamline Plan is designed to give students a well rounded education before graduation.The plan aims to “round out” the experience by requiring students to  take classes in a variety of different fields in order to graduate. A main section of the Hamline Plan is the Disciplinary Breadth area, which calls for students to accumulate a total of eight credits in Natural Sciences (N), Social Sciences (S), Fine Arts (F) and the Humanities (H). However, changes have been proposed to change this section of the Hamline Plan.

“One part of one proposal is to reduce all disciplinary breadth requirements from eight to four credits,” said John Mazis, a professor at Hamline and the President of the Faculty Council. “The way the proposals are presented, either all disciplinary breadth requirements (N, S, F and H) will be reduced or none of them will.”

These changes have been considered for quite some time.

“In [academic year] 2015-16, both [Hamline’s School of Business] and [the College of Liberal Arts] went through a long process of internal and external review. The proposed changes are the result of that process,” Mazis explained.

Some students who are aware of these proposed changes are in favor of it.

“I think it’s a good idea,” first-year Gwen Fairlie said. “It lets us focus on what’s important to us and what interests us without eliminating our breadth of study completely.”

Other students are ambivalent about the changes.

“The disciplinary breadth credits are very essential to a liberal arts college and I would like it if students were encouraged to participate in classes outside of their immediate interest, as they currently are,” junior Sherina Dyrma said.“However, I also think it is important to give students more liberty in choosing classes they enjoy rather than classes that they are forced to take.”

Some students stand firmly against these proposed changes.

“I came to this school for a reason; I wanted a liberal arts education,” first-year Anns Greathouse said. “I think it is important for everyone in every major to branch out of their comfort zones, because being at least a little bit educated in every field will make you a better, more well-rounded person. With that said, I completely disagree with the idea of less required credits in those areas. It’s defeating the purpose of a liberal arts education.”

Mazis reassured that both students and faculty were consulted for both of their opinions.  

“One might agree or disagree with the proposals, but I am satisfied that the views of the faculty were taken into account. A number of faculty colleagues performed a great service to this institution by spending many hours evaluating the results of the reviews and seeking the best possible solutions.”

Voting for the proposed adjustments to the Hamline Plan will occur later in December, with the Faculty Council deciding on the form in which the voting will take place prior to the voting day.

Whether or not the changes are approved, Mazis notes, “The Hamline Plan, however good it may be, needs to be periodically evaluated and changed as the needs of our students change.”