This dissertation retells the history of women's studies from a global perspective, challenging traditional U.S. and Eurocentric narratives about this emerging interdisciplinary field. Beginning with questions about why women's, gender, and sexuality studies has incited backlash across a range of cultural and geographic locations, this study draws…

Curriculum has become a core element of universities' competitive positioning, internationally and nationally. This paper presents a longitudinal analysis of policy processes and outcomes associated with 'radical' university curriculum reforms that resulted in divergence from institutions' own historical patterns and national conventions and…

The interaction of proximate research universities is a multifaceted and increasingly relevant phenomenon in today's higher education landscape. The three essays herein add to science policy and innovation literature by exploring the challenges, opportunities, and expectations that arise when multiple universities operate in a region. The first…

Experimental archaeology is a vibrant and fascinating field that offers great opportunities for hands-on student learning in history. Although it is typically taught by archaeologists and anthropologists, it is certainly accessible and easily adapted to history courses. In addition to teaching "Introduction to Experimental Archaeology"…

Prompted by William Newell's 2013 call for the Association of Interdisciplinary Studies (AIS) to consider whether to rethink its mission in light of other organizations' interests, this article begins by reflecting on similarities and differences among five of the founding organizations of a recently formed Global Alliance for Inter- and…

Problem-based learning (PBL) has emerged as a suitable approach to shift from teacher-centered to learner-centered education. However, higher education institutions (HEIs) experience obstacles stemming from lecturers' and students' reservations as well as organizational challenges. Following action research, the author reflects on her…

Privacy workforce development is a growing need as organizations struggle to find qualified privacy professionals such as Data Protection Officers and privacy engineers. Little has been written about the availability of formal privacy education opportunities that could satisfy this demand. This study inventoried the current state of formal privacy…

The purpose for this study was to examine the perceptions of students' preparation and development of cultural competence during university coursework in the field of dietetics. A secondary aim of the study was to examine if cultural competency training is provided in the university curriculum for prospective nutrition professionals in their role…

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine how the process of creating and implementing sustainability competencies across a university illuminate dynamics of organizational change. The push to advance education for sustainable development in higher education will likely require transformation of existing policies and practices. A set of…

Emerging careers in technology-focused fields such as data science coupled with necessary graduate outcomes mandate the need for a truly interdisciplinary pedagogical approach. However, the rapid pace of curriculum development in this field of inquiry has meant that curricula across universities has largely evolved in line with the internal…

A multi-disciplinary academic unit at a Canadian university completed an evaluation of course syllabi used in its undergraduate programmes over the previous five years. This paper examines the reasons for the evaluation, the processes employed to collect and analyse the data, and how the results will be incorporated into the next steps of the…

Over the past twenty years, universities have increasingly employed credit-­based modular curriculum structures in an attempt to cater to the needs of more diverse student groups and to allow students greater flexibility and choice in managing their studies. With the increasing pressures placed on Australian universities to better support teaching…

Environmental challenges are often global in scope and require solutions that integrate knowledge across disciplines, cultures, and organizations. Solutions to these challenges will come from diverse teams and not from individuals or single academic disciplines; therefore, graduate students must be trained to work in these diverse teams. In this…

Realizing the ideal of the interdisciplinary university has been problematic. The interdisciplinary system may not be able to survive in the university because of the educational process, which is unused to operating as an open system. The University of Houston-Clear Lake City experience is described. (MSE)

The curriculum of the Western College Program at Miami University is used to illustrate the effective use of the interdisciplinary approach to undergraduate curriculum. The importance of finding the right question and stating it so the disciplines can complement, not talk past, one another is emphasized. (MSE)