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Foundations Board
Foundation courses provide students with the opportunity to gain skills and perspectives fundamental to higher education as well as community participation success.
Therefore, all Foundation requirements should be completed in a student’s first year of enrollment.
Leeward CC’s General Education Committee and Foundations Board are part of the University of Hawaiʻi’s General Education System-wide Foundations Board. For details on membership and campus courses, view the full list and descriptions.
Resources
Please review the following information carefully before submitting your application.
Leeward CC's Foundation Requirements
See the University of Hawaiʻi Foundations Website, including hallmarks
Global & Multicultural Perspectives (FG) (6 credits/two courses)
Global and Multicultural Perspectives courses provide thematic treatments of global processes and cross-cultural interactions from a variety of perspectives. Students will gain a sense of human development from pre-history to modern times through consideration of narratives and artifacts of and from diverse cultures. At least one component of each of these courses will involve the indigenous cultures of Hawaiʻi, the Pacific, and Asia.
- FGA: Global & Multicultural Perspectives – Early (A)
- FGB: Global & Multicultural Perspectives – Modern (B)
- FGC: Global & Multicultural Perspectives – Early to Modern (C)
Symbolic Reasoning (FS)* or Quantitative Reasoning (FQ) (3 credits/1 course)
*No applications for renewal taken. Designation sunsetted in fall 2020. Only students who entered and continuously enrolled in Leeward before fall 2018 have the option to take an FS course to fulfill this designation requirement. All subsequent enrollees or those who entered prior to fall 2018 but stopped attending Leeward at some point must take an FQ course.
Symbolic Reasoning courses expose students to the beauty and power of formal systems, as well as to their clarity and precision; courses do not focus solely on computational skills. Students learn the concept of proof as a chain of inferences. They learn to apply formal rules or algorithms, engage in hypothetical reasoning, and traverse a bridge between theory and practice. In addition, students develop the ability to use appropriate symbolic techniques in the context of problem-solving, and to present and critically evaluate evidence.
Quantitative reasoning is the ability to apply mathematical concepts to the interpretation and analysis of quantifiable information, expressed numerically or graphically, in order to solve a wide range of problems. In Quantitative Reasoning courses, students learn to understand and communicate quantitative information using such tools as variables and equations, graphs and charts, and words/sentences. They learn to apply math skills and judge the reasonableness of results. Students also learn to recognize the limits of mathematical or statistical methods. Note: Students who enter UH in Fall 2018 or later must take a Foundations-Quantitative Reasoning (FQ) course.
Written Communication (FW) (3 credits/1 course)
Written Communication courses introduce students to the rhetorical, conceptual, and stylistic demands of writing at the college level; courses give instruction in composing processes, search strategies, and composing from sources. Courses also provide students with experiences in the library and on the Internet and enhance their skills in accessing and using various types of primary and secondary materials.
Leeward CC's Foundation Requirements
See the University of Hawaiʻi Foundations Website, including hallmarks
Global & Multicultural Perspectives (FG) (6 credits/two courses)
Global and Multicultural Perspectives courses provide thematic treatments of global processes and cross-cultural interactions from a variety of perspectives. Students will gain a sense of human development from pre-history to modern times through consideration of narratives and artifacts of and from diverse cultures. At least one component of each of these courses will involve the indigenous cultures of Hawaiʻi, the Pacific, and Asia.
- FGA: Global & Multicultural Perspectives – Early (A)
- FGB: Global & Multicultural Perspectives – Modern (B)
- FGC: Global & Multicultural Perspectives – Early to Modern (C)
Symbolic Reasoning (FS)* or Quantitative Reasoning (FQ) (3 credits/1 course)
*No applications for renewal taken. Designation sunsetted in fall 2020. Only students who entered and continuously enrolled in Leeward before fall 2018 have the option to take an FS course to fulfill this designation requirement. All subsequent enrollees or those who entered prior to fall 2018 but stopped attending Leeward at some point must take an FQ course.
Symbolic Reasoning courses expose students to the beauty and power of formal systems, as well as to their clarity and precision; courses do not focus solely on computational skills. Students learn the concept of proof as a chain of inferences. They learn to apply formal rules or algorithms, engage in hypothetical reasoning, and traverse a bridge between theory and practice. In addition, students develop the ability to use appropriate symbolic techniques in the context of problem-solving, and to present and critically evaluate evidence.
Quantitative reasoning is the ability to apply mathematical concepts to the interpretation and analysis of quantifiable information, expressed numerically or graphically, in order to solve a wide range of problems. In Quantitative Reasoning courses, students learn to understand and communicate quantitative information using such tools as variables and equations, graphs and charts, and words/sentences. They learn to apply math skills and judge the reasonableness of results. Students also learn to recognize the limits of mathematical or statistical methods. Note: Students who enter UH in Fall 2018 or later must take a Foundations-Quantitative Reasoning (FQ) course.
Written Communication (FW) (3 credits/1 course)
Written Communication courses introduce students to the rhetorical, conceptual, and stylistic demands of writing at the college level; courses give instruction in composing processes, search strategies, and composing from sources. Courses also provide students with experiences in the library and on the Internet and enhance their skills in accessing and using various types of primary and secondary materials.
Applying For and Maintaining Designation
Guidelines and Tips for Foundations Applications
When completing a Foundation Designation application, please keep in mind that:
- All course instructors must agree to meet the appropriate Foundations Hallmarks because all sections will have the Foundations designation every time the course is offered.
- The division and college must approve a new course before submission of the proposal.
- The course description in the upcoming Catalog must be consistent with Foundations Hallmarks. In some cases, this will require modifications to the official course description.
- Once given a Foundations designation, the course cannot have a Focus or Diversification designation.
- If the committee asks for revisions, please highlight them for easy reference and approval.
- Once approved, the designation will be maintained for three years for first-time proposals and five years for renewals. During the approval period, the Foundations Board will assess the course in light of the goals of the Foundations requirement. The division will need to begin the renewal process approximately one year before expiration to maintain continuous approval.
Some tips and tricks for completing the application:
- The application calls for a “master syllabus.” Please ensure it is free from instructor-specific information (name, office hours, office location, etc.). This will serve as a template that future instructors of your course may use.
- In the assessment section, please indicate how the Foundations Hallmarks, not course SLOs, will be met, and confirm that the assessment results will be used to maintain course integrity.
- Since designations are course-specific, please write proposals in the third person and avoid using the first person.
- Fill out all charts. Information should be highlighted, which will then be discussed in the narrative sections.
Application Forms
Application Deadline: There is one application deadline per year. Applicants are advised to submit proposals as early as possible to provide sufficient time for the negotiation process that may be required for designation approval.
Deadline: January 23, 2026
Click on the application form below to apply for a Foundations designation for your course. (Note: Sign into Chrome. Links open in a new window.)
Board Members AY 2024-2025
- Blake Hunrick (Counseling), hunrick@hawaii.edu
- Bruce Lindquist (Social Sciences), brucelin@hawaii.edu
- Eric Matsuoka (Math and Science), eric.matsuoka@hawaii.edu
- Marie McKenzie (Social Sciences, Chair), mariemm@hawaii.edu
- Mellissa Moody (Business), moody7@hawaii.edu
- Lance Morita (Language Arts), lancemor@hawaii.edu
- Jay Sakashita (Arts and Humanities), jsakashi@hawaii.edu