Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies

Founded in 1967, Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies is an undergraduate division of Western Washington University. Its purpose is to offer students the opportunity to take an uncommon degree of responsibility for the structure and content of their own education where students design their own degree programs by drawing on the resources of a larger University. The college promotes student development in writing and research, critical thought and creative expression, independent judgment and scholarship, self-evaluation and narrative assessment.

As a learning community, Fairhaven is defined by five attributes: (1) interdisciplinary study, (2) student designed studies and evaluations of learning, (3) examination of issues arising from a diverse society, (4) development of leadership and a sense of social responsibility, and (5) curricular, instructional and evaluative innovations.

At Fairhaven, students are challenged to bring what they learn to bear on human concerns and crucial real-world problems, to experiment, to discover and to act. This style of education supports the development of certain values, virtues and skills: self-discipline, resourcefulness, initiative, self-development, adaptability, reasonable risk-taking, leadership, sensitivity to injustice, and respect for persons and the natural world. Fairhaven courses prepare students to listen carefully and engage respectfully in discussion, to value and respect different world-views and to appreciate multiple voices reflecting the diversity of experiences in our society.

Fairhaven College is committed to interdisciplinary study and serving a diverse student body in terms of age, ethnic background, academic interest, and life experience. The College is committed to a gender-conscious and multicultural approach to topics, resources and classroom practices. Courses and other learning experiences provide an opportunity to examine the impacts and contemporary and historical roots of race, class and gender relations.

Fairhaven College’s role in the University is not only to provide a learning environment for students interested in self-designed study and interdisciplinary learning, but also to help the University ask questions about teaching and learning. Members of the Fairhaven community collaborate with and learn from colleagues in other colleges both within and outside of Western.

Fairhaven College also administers the curriculum of the American Cultural Studies Program, which offers significant depth in learning about current and historical topics in the diverse tapestry of people who make up the United States.

A Structure for Learning

The structure of learning at Fairhaven College consists of close working relationships between teachers and students; we are known for our practice of student-centered learning. Classes are small and the emphasis is on open discussion and the exchange of ideas. Our classes are interactive; we believe every student is essential to the discovery and creation of knowledge and, hence, to unleashing the full value of an undergraduate education as a tool for enhancing the lives of individuals, communities, and the world, as creative, actively engaged citizens.

In any given quarter, students may select classes offered across the University and/or design independent study projects in consultation with their faculty advisor. Students are encouraged to formulate and carry out independent research projects. Faculty members sponsor and monitor these projects and help students develop the resources necessary to complete them. Field work, practica, internships, and study abroad can also form important components of a Fairhaven education. Students are encouraged to work outside their comfort zone and to find ways to connect their learning with challenges and opportunities in the real world, ways to understand relationships of thought and action, theory and expertise, ways to cultivate opportunities for applying what they learn through campus and community volunteer activities, and through internships.

Collaborative learning is often used together with independent research. Narrative assessments, including a student self-evaluation and written responses from faculty replace letter grades, promoting a more deeply reflective experience and encouraging a student to take full ownership of their education.

Fairhaven College Learning Goals and Assessment

A culture and pedagogy of self-assessment and reflection have been significant features of teaching and learning at Fairhaven College since its founding as an experimental college. Assessment is valued as an essential part of the learning process.
Students assess their own learning in each course and are also asked to assess the course and the faculty. Students assess their writing skills in the development of a writing plan, and later in their education revisit that plan when they create their college writing portfolio. A cumulative self-assessment, the Summary and Evaluation, is required of all students prior to graduation.

Faculty provide individual narrative assessment of students in each course they teach, and provide on-going assessment of student growth in the advising process. Faculty regularly revisit and respond to outcomes of their teaching through reviewing student self-evaluations, faculty and course evaluations. Faculty peer review of teaching practices happen regularly through team teaching, shared concentration committee mentorship of students, shared advising (often in student transition conferences) and collaborative curriculum review and college governance.

Beyond supporting students in their individualized learning goals, Fairhaven College has also established a set of goals that we aspire all students to achieve by the time they graduate. These goals are integrated into the structure of the core curriculum and are regularly assessed to determine how the core curriculum can be improved.

Fairhaven College Learning Goals

Consider and listen openly to perspectives that are different from their own as they investigate complex issues.

Recognize and trace the development of their own ideas, skills, perspectives and learning processes.

Demonstrate the ability to imagine, problem-solve, and take creative risks.

Articulate the ways in which systems of power, privilege, and oppression shape their experiences as individuals and members of communities.

Develop a sense of personal agency for creating positive social and ecological change within a multicultural and global context.

Effectively communicate complex ideas orally and in writing.

Apply quantitative reasoning to the construction, communication and evaluation of arguments.

Fairhaven Core Curriculum

Fairhaven students complete Fairhaven’s core curriculum in lieu of the WWU General University Requirements (GUR). A student who leaves Fairhaven for another WWU program must complete the GUR. Fairhaven College also offers the opportunity for self-motivated students who have demonstrated exceptional learning skills to design an individualized alternative to parts of the core curriculum using existing course challenge procedures.

The Fairhaven Core Curriculum includes a series of courses designed to widen students’ exposure to various areas of study, to connections among disciplines and to interdisciplinary theory and practice. Its purpose is to help students become perceptive, probing learners who can ask questions and pursue answers with care and confidence. Skills in reading, writing, presentation and analysis are emphasized. Each course deals with methods of knowing and understanding, themes, modes of creativity and practical applications to be found in each area of study.

Elements of this core contribute to its unique character:

There are core courses in each of the three curricular stages: exploratory studies, concentrated studies and advanced studies, as outlined in the degree-specific requirements. Students need not complete one curricular stage before advancing to the next.

Exploratory Studies (Stage One)