Dear Computer Science Colleagues:

Many of you may already know about the work of IMPAC, the Intersegmental Major Preparation Articulated Curriculum, and many have participated in the regional and statewide meetings over the past few years. We would like to request that you seriously consider participating in one of the regional meetings this academic year.
Last year we spent most of our meeting time completing the lower division CS core requirements and these subsequently developed into the CS core for the Lower Division Transfer Patterns (LDTP).

On November 19, we will hold the first of two regional meetings to review the status of this core and its implications; however it is also time to move on and address our other concerns. We may have the opportunity to discuss our relation with CIS as well as the future of Computer Science articulation between the CSUs and CCs. This first, Southern section meeting, will be held Saturday, November 19, 2005 at the LA Sheraton Gateway (6101 West Century Boulevard Los Angeles, CA, Phone: 310-642 4822). The Northern section meeting will be January 21, 2006 in the San Francisco bay Area (SFO Westin Hotel, 1 Old Bayshore, Burlingame, CA, Phone: 650-872-8107)

The IMPAC project, funded by a grant, enables faculty from the state’s three higher education systems to meet regionally at intervals throughout the year in order to address potential problems of established curriculum requirements and procedures that may impede the smooth progress of a transferring student. These meetings provide a forum where faculty may review and reconcile the prerequisites of course work both within their particular disciplines and between disciplines.

Some of your colleagues may have attended the meetings held this past year in San Francisco and Los Angeles. At these gatherings in 2004-2005, the IMPAC project brought together faculty from 33 different disciplines, and this term six more are being incorporated into the discussions.

Please visit the project’s website at www.cal-impac.org for a listing of all 39 of the specific disciplines, as well as the subject clusters into which they are grouped.

We ask of you the following:
(1) Please urge representatives of your department or program to attend the IMPAC regional and statewide meetings now scheduled for 2005-2006. (See the attached announcement.) South and Metro regions attend the regional meeting scheduled on November 19th at LAX Sheraton Gateway, and North, Central, and Bay regions on January 21st at San Francisco Westin.
(2) Ask your representatives to share their IMPAC experiences with those colleagues who are responsible for the baccalaureate education of transfer students in their major.
(3) Encourage your department’s faculty to keep abreast of the IMPAC project by regularly visiting our website at www.cal-impac.org.

Please be aware that your department's participation is critical to IMPAC's work, and ultimately to the ability of California faculty to enhance the successful transfer of community college students. So, we are looking forward to having you and your faculty members attend our meetings this year.

Please bring information on enrollment trends as well as any special course or program developments. I will be happy to add items to the agenda right up to the last minute; please contact me at cs@cs.sjsu.edu if you have items you would like to see of the agenda.

Cordially,

David F. Hayes
IMPAC Lead Coordinator for Computer Science