General Education Framework

Owens CC General Education Framework

Purpose Statement

At Owens Community College, the comprehensive and integrated general education curriculum equips our students with a broad foundation of knowledge, essential skills, and interdisciplinary thinking. Through critical and innovative engagement, students develop effective communication, belonging awareness, ethical decision-making, and the ability to think creatively in a complex, interconnected world.

Guiding Principles

The Ohio Department of Higher Education (ODHE) Articulation & Transfer Policy notes the following:  the Ohio Transfer 36 respects the unique visions for General Education within and among institutions. Although the specific character of each institution’s general education program conveys something distinctive, all of the programs share some general principles in common: They are all designed to provide students not only with a breadth of knowledge, but also to develop foundational skills and abilities to succeed in the 21^st century^, including:

• Knowledge of human cultures and the physical and natural world;
• Intellectual and practical skills, including inquiry and analysis, critical and creative thinking, oral and written communication, quantitative literacy, in­formation literacy, teamwork, and problem solving; and
• Personal and social responsibility, including civic knowledge and engage­ment, intercultural knowledge and competence, ethical reasoning and action, and foundations and skills for lifelong learning.

In addition to the above principles from ODHE, Owens Community College’s General Education is guided by the following foundational values:

1. Owens Community College’s General Education program ensures belonging access to essential academic competencies for all students, regardless of their background, field of study, or campus location. This broad-based liberal education prepares students for continued learning, professional success, and global civic engagement.
2. The General Education curriculum encourages intellectual exploration outside of students’ primary areas of study and promotes a lifelong commitment to personal and academic growth.
3. Owens CC’s General Education reflects the college’s broader mission of fostering meaningful, engaged learning and actively supports student persistence, degree completion, and overall achievement.
4. The program facilitates smooth student transitions within Ohio’s public higher education system by aligning with statewide transfer guidelines and ODHE policies.
5. General Education requirements are structured in alignment with ODHE regulations, institutional accreditation expectations, and applicable external standards, ensuring consistent academic rigor across all relevant programs.
6. The structure and content of General Education are intentionally designed to be clear, well-organized, and easily comprehensible to students, faculty, staff, and both internal and external stakeholders.
7. Student learning outcomes within General Education are explicitly defined and consistently evaluated across campuses to maintain high-quality academic experiences. Additionally, General Education policies undergo a formal review every three years to confirm their relevance, effectiveness, and responsiveness to current educational needs.

Core Competencies, Outcomes, Rubrics

Institutional Competencies

Upon graduation at Owens CC students will…

1. Communicate effectively.
2. Act with professional responsibility.
3. Demonstrate sensitivity to others’ beliefs and values.
4. Think creatively.

Institutional Competency: Communicate effectively.

Outcome: Students will compose written reports or deliver speeches.

Performance Indicators: Audience, Organization, Evidence, and Conventions

Developmental Rubric:

Institutional Competency: Act with professional responsibility.

Outcome: Students will model professional behavior.

Performance Indicators: Accountability, Ethical Conduct, Time Prioritization, Respecting Self and Others

Developmental Rubric:

Institutional Competency: Demonstrate sensitivity to others’ beliefs and values.

Outcome: Students will integrate belonging practices.

Performance Indicators: Awareness/Cognition, Empathy/Recognition, and Application

Developmental Rubric:

Institutional Competency: Think creatively.

Outcome: Students will create innovative solutions to problems.

Performance Indicators: Recognize and define an issue or problem; analyze information, data, evidence collected; differentiate biases, assumptions, and creditability of information; synthesize findings; and generate conclusions and/or viable solutions.

Developmental Rubric:

Procedural Guidance for General Education

The ODHE Guidelines & Procedures for Academic Program Review Manual notes the following under Academic Programs and Requirements for General Education (p.7-8)

• General education is required within every undergraduate degree program and is guided by a mission and specific learning outcomes.
• General education requirements reflect the degree designation (e.g., applied associate degree, associate of arts or associate of science; bachelor of arts; or bachelor of science).
• At a minimum, general education comprises no fewer than 36 semester hours for baccalaureate degrees and associate of arts and associate of science degrees, and no fewer than 15 semester hours for applied associate degrees. Deviations from the 36-semester-hour limit should be explained and justified. The Ohio Department of Higher Education will review and determine whether an exception is granted.
• The general education curriculum reflects a breadth of study (the minimum number of hours in each general education area for baccalaureate, associate of arts, associate of science, and applied associate degrees is outlined in Appendix C). [See p. 45-49 in the manual or the charts below.] Deviations from these standards should be explained and justified. The Ohio Department of Higher Education will review and determine whether an exception is granted.
• General education includes a focus on the following skills and knowledge, including:
  • Knowledge of the physical and natural world;
  • Intellectual and practical skills, including inquiry and analysis; critical and creative thinking; oral and written communication;
  • Quantitative literacy, including artificial intelligence, literacy in science, technology, engineering and math; computational thinking; and information literacy;
  • Teamwork; problem solving; and practical skills necessary for careers and most occupations after graduation, also described as workforce readiness;
  • Personal and social responsibility, including ethical reasoning and action;
  • Knowledge and engagement in civics, culture and society; intercultural knowledge and competence; and foundations and skills for lifelong learning;
  • Entrepreneurship and the principles of innovation.

• Remedial or developmental education courses, including corequisite courses, are not considered part of general education and are not counted toward degree requirements.

The following charts show how Owens Community College’s general education course requirements align to the Ohio Transfer 36 for Applied Associate Degrees and for Associate of Arts or Sciences. The first column shows the Ohio Transfer 36 requirements, and the second column lists the specific institutional general education categories that correspond with each of the Ohio Transfer 36 areas.

ODHE through the OH Transfer 36 also provides common learning outcomes for all courses, as well as learning outcomes by Transfer 36 area.  The intent is these are part of/reflected in the Owens CC’s general education framework so that the spirit of the unique institutional values are also present.

Common Learning Outcomes for All Courses (from Ohio Transfer 36)

Upon completion of the Ohio Transfer 36, students will be able to:

• Communicate effectively - all general education programs include a component for writing; many also include a component for oral communication or presentation.
• Evaluate arguments in a logical fashion - competence in analysis and logical argument are explicit learning goals for most general education programs, although these skills are known by a variety of names (e.g., critical thinking, analysis, logical thinking, etc.).
• Employ the methods of inquiry characteristic of natural sciences, social sciences, and the arts and humanities - the tools for solving problems vary across disciplines; general education introduces students to methods of inquiry in several fields of study and thereby prepares students to integrate information from different disciplines.
• Acquire an understanding of our global and diverse culture and society - many general education programs include a component that introduces students to traditions different from their own and gives them opportunities to work productively with diverse peoples, cultures, and histories.
• Engage in our democratic society - one of the overarching goals of general education is to prepare students to be active and informed citizens; the development of a disposition to participate in and contribute to our democracy is of equal importance to the goal of having the skills to do so intelligently.

For the specific learning outcomes by Transfer area, click here.

Connection between Owens Institutional Competencies and Transfer 36 Area Outcomes