CUE Discusses Diplomas

The topics discussed at yesterday's Committee on Undergraduate Education (CUE) meeting ranged from Latin diplomas to textbooks to CUE guide questions.

CUE members voted to forward an Undergraduate Council bill for Latin diplomas to the Faculty Council for its consideration.

The council bill, which was signed by Dean of the College Harry R. Lewis '68, reinstated Latin as the official language for diplomas.

Eric M. Nelson '99 co-sponsored the bill in the council. He cited tradition as the reason for returning to Latin diplomas.

"A diploma belongs to a historical legacy, and you should make a decision about the language of the diploma that reflects the legacy," Nelson said.

Some members of CUE debated the reason for the change. However, the bill passed with only one vote in opposition.

The CUE also continued a discussion from their March meeting about text-book prices at the Coop. John Paul Rollert '00 and other council members surveyed textbook prices at various universities and found that books were 10 percent more expensive at the Coop on average.

"I think that the difference is significant," Rollert said. "Harvard should take a step back and try to consider what the Coop is to the University."

CUE members decided that the next step will be to talk to Coop management. The CUE will invite Coop President Jeremiah P. Murphy, Jr. '73 to a future meeting.

"The Coop politics are not impossible to work," said Susan W. Lewis, director of the Core program. "The U.C. doesn't place book orders, and I think The Coop needs to hear from the people who do know about these concerns."

The CUE also addressed the questions on the CUE form and the material included in the annual ratings guide it publishes each year.

The Committee debated the validity of using the same survey form for all courses.

"This one form is made up to serve all courses--in the humanities, social sciences and hard sciences--and it is simply not appropriate for all of them," said William Paul, Mallinckrodt professor of applied physics and professor of physics.

Soon-to-be-formed focus groups, which will discuss the CUE questions and forms, will address this issue.

CUE members also discussed the elimination of highlighting lauded teaching fellows' names in the guide.

Reasons for eliminating this feature included overcrowded sections and irrelevancy because many teaching fellows do not return the following year.

They decided to discuss further what would replace this feature before making any formal recommendations to guide editors.