The Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University

The Undergraduate Curriculum Committee (UGCC) was empanelled by the Dean of the Conservatory in August 2008 and was charged to conduct a thorough overview of each undergraduate curriculum currently offered and to present recommendations for curricular revisions/improvements to the Academic Council for ratification.

Accordingly, the UGCC makes the following 23 recommendations to streamline and restructure the current curriculum in support of a more efficient use of the limited time available to Peabody undergraduates, and with the threefold goal of focused musical training, a rigorous educational program, and demonstrated performance and leadership abilities.

[These recommendations were approved by the Peabody Academic Council on 18 May 2009.]

1. Upon ratification by the Academic Council and with the concurrent review by NASM, the recommendations of the UGCC should become high-priority action items. The Associate Dean for Academic Affairs should be tasked with implementing the action items with the advice and consent of the Undergraduate Committee. The Academic Council should require a report in each semester until the recommendations are implemented. Action items may only be abandoned or significantly altered with the consent of the Academic Council. 
2. Direct the Undergraduate Committee to liaise with the Director of Financial Aid and the chairs of academic departments to consider the benchmarks for satisfactory academic progress 
3. Direct the Undergraduate Committee to Consider a Policy to Allow Students to repeat a class once, space permitting, for an improved grade. 
4. Allow the Offices of Academic Affairs and Student Affairs to advise freshmen and sophomore students on the schedule and the curriculum until the students complete their 209 jury. 
5. The 109, 209 and 309 juries (including the 309 recital) should be reduced from 2 credits each to 1 credit each. 
6. The 209 jury, while still graded for the actual performance, should include a broader consideration of the student's overall record and result in a more detailed recommendation for future achievement. 
7. The Composition and Computer Music Departments should adopt the equivalent of a 209 jury. 
8. The Humanities curriculum should be condensed and restructured. 
9. With the exception of Voice majors, the study of foreign language should no longer be a requirement for undergraduates. Foreign language classes should be offered as electives. 
10. Recognizing the recent streamlining of inter-divisional registration (IDR) procedures, the Conservatory should create more scheduling opportunities for students to take classes at Homewood. Peabody students and faculty must be made aware of the opportunities that already exist. 
11. The Music Theory Department should compress its current curriculum into five semesters plus a one-semester elective. 
12. Music Theory should implement and staff a parallel theory track for students needing remediation. 
13. Convene a working group of selected members from Musicology and other departments to assess the Music History curriculum and recommend alternatives to increase credit hours and contact time to better meet the needs of the students. 
14. For most majors, Basic Conducting should be an elective, not a requirement.
15. Appoint the UGCC to work with representatives from the Ensembles Office, the Concert Office, the Opera Department, and the Conservatory Dean's Staff to address the logistical problems of space and scheduling and to address the teaching mission of the large ensembles and their role in recruitment, admissions and retention. Put all parties on a short reporting schedule for implementing changes in the 2010-2011 school year. 
16. Increase the overall number of electives offered, with special attention for career-oriented courses. For some majors, classes currently taken as requirements might be offered as electives. 
17. The distinction between music electives and electives should be eliminated. 
18. The Associate Dean of Academic Affairs should coordinate courses that are not associated with an extant department, including such offerings as The Business of Music, Arts Administration, and Anatomy and Injury Prevention. 
19. Any change to the requirements of undergraduate degree programs should require the approval of both the Undergraduate Committee and the Academic Council. 
20. The Conservatory should grant provisional authorization for departments to prepare "minors" or "concentrations." Such concentrations should begin with the extant model for the Liberal Arts concentration and should require the approval of the Undergraduate Committee and the Academic Council. 
21. The Conservatory should institute and monitor a process to forge appropriate linkages between the Musicology, Music Theory and Humanities curricula. 
22. The Conservatory should conduct a review of writing requirements and writing instruction across the undergraduate curriculum. The review should be conducted by a faculty committee appointed by the Faculty Assembly, include the chairs of academic departments, and seek the advice of the University's Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education. 
23. All departments should prepare and submit a report about how they meet the guidelines for NASM and MSCHE. The reports should be submitted to the Associate Dean of academic affairs by the end of the 2009-2010 school year for presentation to the Academic Council in the fall of 2011.

THE UNDERGRADUATE CURRICULUM COMMITTEE

Phyllis Bryn-Julson 
— Chair of the Voice Department • Member of the DMA Committee
Michael Formanek
—Jazz Faculty • Member of the Undergraduate Committee
Michael Kannen
—Chair of Chamber Music • Member of the Undergraduate Committee
Sharon Levy
—Music Theory Faculty • Member of the DMA Committee • Alumna
Robert Muckenfuss
—Vocal Coaching Faculty • Chair of the Faculty Assembly • Alumnus
Hollis Robbins
—Humanities Faculty • Chair of the Undergraduate Committee • JHU Alumna
Andrew Talle
—Chair of the Musicology Department • Member of the Academic Council 
Keng-Yuen Tseng
—Yong Siew Toh Music Conservatory Chair in Strings at the Peabody Conservatory

Jenny Beck (Scribe)
—Academic Program Coordinator (2008–2009) • Alumna
Paul Mathews (Chair)
—Music Theory Faculty • Interim Associate Dean of Academic Affairs • Alumnus
Mellasenah Y. Morris (Ex officio)
—Dean of the Conservatory and Deputy Director of the Institute • Alumna