Seminar:  Seminar is a cornerstone of program work and a crucible for the life of our learning community. Traditionally, seminar is student centered and student led, but every seminar is different, and interpersonal dynamics have as much to do with a successful seminar as do preparedness and intellectual engagement in conversation. The faculty will determine seminar groups, and each group will spend time developing a seminar covenant and a variety of strategies for success.

Ticket to Seminar– seminar is a privilege and each of you is expected to be well prepared in advance for each of these discussions.  The preparation that we ask of you will look different each week.  We may ask for a written paper, an expressive response to the reading, a piece of visual art, a poem, or any other idea we conceive of.

Financial Health Homework – we will work weekly with the Quantitative and Symbolic Reasoning Center to develop healthy personal financial skills.  As a part of the work, you will have regular homework.

Peer Groups – you will divide into small groups during week one’s seminar meetings.  These peer groups will each be assigned one seminar discussion to facilitate and will form the basis of individual study groups.  Your peer groups will be expected to meet every Wednesday to review program materials and peer review your writing and other project work.  You should document this in your Awareness log and include it in your final portfolio.

Integrative Journal – Get an 8 ½ x11″ sketch journal and put your name on it. The purpose of this journal is to keep a record of how you are integrating the program work into your daily life. This is where you will collect reflective writings, synthesis pages (see below), and drawings that we assign in class as well as writing and other work that you will do at home.  It is a place where you can explore the patterns that have helped shape the relationship between your mind, body and spirit, and where you can develop a deeper understanding of the way program themes relate to you as an individual and as a member of our learning community.  The journal will serve as a reservoir of information about yourself from which you will be able to draw rich material for many program activities.

At the end of each week, create a one-page written synthesis and a visual image, poem, or song that demonstrates the connections you have made with program work.  Date and title these entries and clearly mark them as your weekly syntheses.  Other entries will be made during some of the class activities.  Bring your Integrative Journal and art supplies every Thursday afternoon.

At the end of the quarter, you can either include your entire journal in your portfolio, or copy the synthesis pages and other important content for inclusion in your portfolio.

Academic Health Project –This two-quarter project is designed to provide you with the opportunity to: explore a topic that is central to our program’s guiding questions, improve your library research knowledge and skills, create an annotated bibliography, and work to present your findings in a professional manner.  Your fall quarter work will conclude with a research prospectus.  You will continue this research in the winter, where your project will culminate in a 15-page paper and a presentation of some sort.  Specific assignment details follow.

Expressive Arts Lab –Exploring and refining your core values includes learning about the connections between your mind, body, and spirit.  To facilitate this understanding, we will participate in a movement and/or integrative expressive arts experience together each week.

Bring your Integrative Journal and art supplies to our expressive arts lab every Thursday afternoon. We will supply each student with pastels and colored pencils (feel free to bring your own supplies as well).

In-class exams – there will be two of these:  one at mid-term and one at the end of each quarter.

Additional Items – Other assignments may include questions for guest speakers, unannounced in-class essays on the assigned readings, in-class writings in a journal intended specifically for your personal insights.

Program Portfolio:  You will post your work electronically in your forum site on Moodle.  We will discuss this in class.  A final portfolio (a big 3-ring binder) displaying your quarter’s work is a requirement for credit.  It should be well organized and reflect pride in your accomplishments. Don’t throw anything away until the program is over.  You are responsible for keeping copies of your work.  You’ll receive additional information about how to organize your portfolio before it is due for submission.

Academic Statement and Evaluations – In keeping with the wisdom with which the college was founded, self-assessment is an integral part of learning in our program.  During weeks 6 and 10 you will be asked to reflect upon and integrate your own learning into a narrative self-evaluation.  In addition, you will also be asked to think about and your education from a broader perspective in the form of your Academic Statement.  Your initial Entrance exam from Orientation week, or your self-evaluations from previous programs if you are a returning student, will serve as starting points for this work.  Your final copies should be submitted from your my.evergreen account.

Evaluation Conferences – Students will meet individually with their seminar faculty at the end of each quarter, except for students who are continuing into the spring and have earned full credit up to that time (specifics to follow).  DO NOT schedule travel for the end of the quarter until you have scheduled your evaluation conference.  DO NOT let anyone else schedule travel for you, either.  Failure to be present for your evaluation conference can result in a loss of credit.