Committee
Co-chairs
- Yvonne Luna, VP Academic and Workforce Alliances
- Kyle Winfree, Assoc. Professor, School of Informatics, Computing and Cyber Security
Program expert
- Emily Manone, Director of General Studies Program
Faculty representatives
- Jeremy LaBuff (CAL)
- Christina Lee Baze (COE)
- Dierdra Kay Bycura (CHHS)
- Jermaine Robert Martinez (SBS)
- Miriam Espinoza (Yuma)
- Theresa Bierer (FCB)
- Roy St. Laurent (CEFNS)
Student representative
- ASNAU representative
Ex officio
- Michael Smith — Faculty Senate President
- Monica Bai — University Advising
- Mikhael Star — Program Manager
- Melinda Treml — Staff Support
- Kerry Thompson — Consultant
GenEd2028
General Studies for what comes next
The students who begin NAU’s new General Studies program in Fall 2028 will carry what they learn into a world that will continue to change throughout their time at NAU and long after graduation.
GenEd2028 is NAU’s faculty-led effort to design what comes next for General Studies. Building on the work that brought us to this point, the redesign asks what every NAU graduate should know and be able to do, how students can successfully navigate the program, and how General Studies can continue to evolve as learning, technology, and the world around us change.
The work is guided by a commitment to academic excellence and to creating a program NAU can reliably deliver.
GenEd2028 Steering Committee Bylaws
What are we designing for?
The GenEd2028 Steering Committee’s work is organized around three interconnected priorities
Dependable pathways
A program students can understand and navigate, with meaningful opportunities to explore and timely access to the courses they need.
Demonstrable learning
A program in which students can recognize and explain what they have learned through General Studies, not simply which requirements they have completed.
Sustainable delivery
A program NAU can staff, schedule, support, and continuously improve as needs and circumstances change.
What should every NAU graduate know?
That question is at the center of GenEd2028. As the steering committee considers what students should learn through General Studies and how that learning connects with their majors, it is exploring questions that will help shape the future program:
- What should every NAU graduate share?
- How should knowledge areas and essential skills be organized?
- How should students engage with diverse histories, cultures, perspectives, and Indigenous Peoples?
- Should students have broad freedom to explore, or should courses be connected through a common core or thematic pathways?
- How should General Studies learning connect with what students learn in their majors?
- What does AI change—both in how the program is designed and in how students demonstrate what they have learned?
Throughout this work, student learning, growth, and success will remain central to the committee’s decisions. The redesign must also balance academic excellence with a program NAU can reliably implement, support, and improve.
Read the GenEd2028 Design Charter
GenEd2028 updates
Follow the work of the GenEd2028 Steering Committee as ideas are developed, shared with the university community, and advanced through the governance process. Community feedback will be collected and consolidated by Kerry Thompson, Associate Vice Provost for Curriculum, Assessment & General Studies, and shared with the GenEd2028 Steering Committee for review and discussion. Updates and outcomes resulting from that process will be posted here as the work progresses.
Where are we headed?
2026–27 – Design and consultation
The steering committee will develop learning outcomes and design alternatives, consult with the NAU community, and bring a recommendation forward through the university’s governance process.
June 2027 – Target for ABOR consideration
The current goal is to present a new General Studies program to the Arizona Board of Regents.
2027–28 – Implementation
Following approval, NAU will prepare for implementation of the redesigned program.
Fall 2028 – Launch
The new General Studies program is planned to launch for students beginning in Fall 2028.
Help shape what comes next
The redesign will be stronger with the experience, ideas, questions, and evidence of the NAU community. As proposals develop, we invite you to help test them and shape the General Studies program that comes next.
Share your feedback
Prefer email? GenEd2028@nau.edu