Ford Says Departments May Interpret 10% Rule

University officials indicated yesterday that the "ten per cent rule" for departmental contributions to General Education will have whatever effect the departments want it to have.

Dean Ford predicted that the Committee on Educational Policy will not spell out detailed provisions for the rule, which calls for departments to devote ten per cent of their teaching time to Gen Ed.

Five department chairmen have already said they would interpret the requirement in such a way that their departments would not have to create any new General Education courses.

But Paul M. Doty, professor of Chemistry, last night attacked that interpretation as having "no sense." He said that the rule as suggested by the Doty Committee and adopted by the Faculty last week, was aimed at increasing the number of Gen Ed courses offered, perhaps by as much as 25 per cent.

Doty said that ten per cent is a "guide, not a demand," but he indicated that if a large department could offer enough suitable Gen Ed courses and failed to do so, "the deficiency should be a matter of concern [to the Dean of Faculty] in the next appointments."

Dean Ford said, however, that he regarded the rule as "more a symbolic pledge." If a department does not want to comply with a particular interpretation of the rule, he added, "there's not much you can do beyond reminding them."

John H. Finley Jr, '25, chairman of the Committee on General Education, agreed that the rule would be useful in applying "moral leverage" on department chairman to persuade them to channel more teaching time into the Gen Ed program.

"In considering the program of his department, any chairman would have in the back of his mind this obligation to take into account," said Finley.

Doty suggested that either the CEP or the Gen Ed committee should clarify the rule making it applicable only to existing Gen Ed courses or entirely new courses created for Gen Ed.