The Essentials at JCC
A curriculum to guide every journey forward
Thriving in today’s world requires more than advanced knowledge. As technologies evolve, distances shrink, and information expands, you will need to be able to adapt to new situations, collaborate with people of different backgrounds, and evaluate evidence with a critical eye. JCC can’t teach you everything you will need to know, but the Essentials will give you the tools you need to continue to grow, wherever your journey leads.
JCC’s Essentials forge a path for lifelong learning that promotes innovative thinking and prepares you to make a positive difference in our diverse and changing world.
General education redefined
General education requirements have been around for eons at colleges to ensure that students get a well-rounded education, but they often turn into a laundry list of courses that don’t seem to connect to students’ goals. JCC’s Essentials are different. They are carefully designed to:
- Eliminate the disconnect between “gen ed” and your major. You will cover at least one of the Essentials in every course you take at JCC.
- Give you hands-on practice. From Semester One onward, JCC will challenge you to apply your learning to the real world.
- Defy academic boundaries. Real-world questions don’t neatly align within academic subjects, so why should all of your courses? Interdisciplinary courses allow you to explore innovative connections across fields.
- Tie your courses together under a simple but meaningful framework.
Do the Essentials fulfill SUNY requirements? Yes! SUNY requirements are built into the design.
Three levels of learning
The Essentials are spread across three levels of learning. These same levels form the basis for every degree program at JCC. As you advance along your JCC journey you will:
Level 1: INQUIRE into complex questions with a critical eye for evidence and differing perspectives.
Learning begins with a question. Completed during the first year of study, Level 1 courses examine multi-faceted questions through a critical lens, giving you the opportunity to explore different perspectives and types of sources outside the limits of any one field.
Minimum course requirements:
- INT 1555 Inquire or an approved inquiry-based course (required beginning in fall 2020)
- ENG 1510 College Composition I
Level 2: GROW the versatile toolkit of skills and knowledge essential to success in the twenty-first century.
Courses in this level expand your knowledge and skills, both within and outside your major. You will be exposed to new intellectual experiences as you build college-level proficiency in a range of areas, including key SUNY categories of learning.
Minimum course requirements:
- ENG 1530 English Composition II
- One college-level mathematics (MAT) course
- One course in the SUNY Natural Sciences
- One course in the SUNY Social Sciences
- One JCC Cultural Understanding course
- Individual courses may not be used to fulfill more than one Level 2 requirement.
Level 3: CONNECT your learning to the real world and consider the impact of your actions.
Level 3 challenges you to apply your learning to a hands-on project, internship, fieldwork, study abroad or related opportunity. Courses in this level also deepen your worldview and sense of citizenship, reinforcing the importance of community and ethical decision-making.
Minimum course requirements:
- One JCC Global Perspectives course
- One JCC Applied Learning course or experience (required beginning in fall 2020)
- One program core course addressing Values and Ethics
- Courses within this level may also be used to fulfill other requirements.
