The work in the Dean's Office includes the Dean of the College of Liberal Art, Dr. Richard Fallis; two Associate Deans , Dr. Dale Moore and Dr. Edward Weintraut, and two administrative assistants, Ms. Wanda Polite and Ms. Penni Hartley.

 

Dr. Fallis is primarily responsible for supervising and offering guidance on matters pertaining to the governance, budget, curriculum and personnel of the College of Liberal Arts.

 

Dr. Moore is primarily responsible for addressing matters pertaining to course scheduling and faculty employment.

 

Dr. Weintraut is primarily responsible for addressing concerns or issues affecting students.

The Dean's Office is located on the ground floor of the Administration Building. Dr. Weintraut's office is located in 202 Knight Hall, the building adjacent to the Administration Building.

Below are some of the key services the Dean's Office provides to students.

• Provides certificates of achievement to students on the Dean's List.
• Identifies students to be placed on Academic Warning, Academic Probation, and Suspension.
• Reviews requests for readmission into the College and withdrawal from courses.
• Issues excused absences for documented and verifiable circumstances.
• Reviews and resolves special requests, complaints, or grievances presented by students.
• Adjudicates appeals of Honor Council decisions.
• Upholds and enforces university and college policies on academic matters (e.g. academic deadlines; curricular requirements).
• Reviews graduation audits for seniors.
• Advises students on course selection or professional preparation.

Generally speaking, students should direct their concerns to Dr. Weintraut. Appointments can be arranged with his secretary, Penni Hartley, at 301-2916. If Dr. Weintraut is unavailable and the concern is critically urgent, the student should ask to consult with Dr. Moore about the matter.

The Dean's Office addresses virtually all issues that affect the academic aspects of college life. One of the most common exceptions to this rule pertains to students seeking the grade of INCOMPLETE in a course; such arrangements are determined exclusively by the student and the professor of a course.

 

We do not and cannot offer assistance in non-academic matters.  For example, if you have questions about housing, you should contact someone in Residence Life. Questions about financial considerations should be addressed to your Financial Aid advisor or one of the counselors in the Bursar's Office. Questions about security should be addressed to the Mercer Police.

The Great Books program consists of eight three-hour courses that give students the opportunity to explore critically some of the most influential texts of Western civilization, ranging from the ancient Greeks to twentieth-century writers. All Great Books courses are structured as seminars: emphasis is placed heavily on discussion; lecturing is discouraged. If you enjoy reading and writing, and wish to gain a critical understanding of the trajectory of Western thought and belief, Great Books might be the best option for you.

 

Please keep in mind that the introductory courses in Great Books (GBK 101 and GBK 202) are included in the more traditional Distributional Program. In other words, these courses count for credit in both of our General Education tracks. If you are initially inclined to pursue the Great Books track but discover after one or two semesters that it is not right for you, you can still switch to the Distributional Program without losing any ground towards meeting graduation requirements.

During Summer Orientation you are assigned a temporary academic advisor who will help determine which set of courses best meets your interests while fulfilling basic graduation requirements. Once the Fall Semester begins, your FYS 101 or UNV 101 instructor will serve as your academic advisor until you declare a major in a particular academic field. At that point, the department chair of your major field will assign you a new academic advisor.

Students in the College of Liberal Arts are not permitted to declare a major until they have earned at least 30 semester hours of credit. The major must be declared before 65 hours are earned.

To earn a Bachelor of Arts or a Bachelor of Science degree, at least 120 semester hours of credit must be completed. Each student must complete 29 hours in the Common Core and 24 hours in one of our two General Education Tracks. In addition, each student must satisfy the requirements for a Major and for Additional Depth. Descriptions of all these requirements can be found in the University Catalog.

A major is a set of courses in a particular field of inquiry that a student must satisfactorily complete in order to earn a degree in that field. In the College of Liberal Arts, we offer majors in 24 distinct fields of inquiry; each major comprises a minimum of 27 hours of credit. The requirements for each major are described at length in the University Catalog.

The Additional Depth Requirement is a unique feature of the College of Liberal Arts. Students are required to demonstrate their intellectual versatility by completing higher-level courses in fields other than their primary major. This can be done by earning a grade-point-average of 2.00 or higher in a second major, a minor, or by completing five 300-level courses from any part of the undergraduate curriculum.

A minor is a limited set of courses in a particular field of inquiry that a student must satisfactorily complete in order to show an intermediate level of competence in that field. In the College of Liberal Arts, we offer minors in 27 distinct fields of inquiry; each minor comprises a minimum of 15 hours of credit. The requirements for each minor are described at length in the University Catalog.

Students interesting in pursuing degrees that do not require special skills in mathematics are strongly advised to enroll in Finite Mathematics (MAT 104). All other students should arrange to take the online placement test. The results of this test, combined with your SAT scores, will help the Mathematics Department determine the course in which you will have the best degree of success.

The College of Liberal Arts requires each student to demonstrate a basic level of competency in at least one of the languages taught at Mercer University (French, German, Greek, Latin, or Spanish). There are three ways of completing this requirement.

 

First, if you have studied a foreign language for two or more years in high school, you are required to take a placement examination, the results of which will indicate whether you are eligible to exempt the requirement or earn additional hours toward graduation.

 

Second, if you have not had two years of language study in high school, you may enroll in and successfully complete a two-semester elementary sequence in one language.

 

Finally, if you are fluent in a language not taught at Mercer, you may fulfill the language requirement by providing evidence of your skills to the Foreign Language Department.