Students taking a Catholic theology course at a local church can receive three MSU credits this semester.
"We decided to approve (a credit transfer) because it's a course with a reputable content," said Linda Stanford, assistant provost for academic services and university registrar.
The Introductory Catholic Theology course is offered by the University of Notre Dame and taught at St. John's Student Parish, 327 M.A.C. Ave.
The class began this month and will continue through April, said Jason Ardanowski, former service and social justice co-coordinator for St. John's Student Parish. He said MSU approved the credit transfer last semester.
Initially, university officials were concerned if such a class taught at a church could maintain an objective view of Catholicism as an academic study, but Ardanowski said the class is as academic as a legitimate University of Notre Dame course.
"It's meant to be a general sketch of Catholic beliefs," he said. "We are trying to acquaint people with the Catholic church and the beliefs."
The suitability of the course's content for MSU credits was the biggest concern for university officials in approving the transfer, Stanford said. The course will transfer as a University of Notre Dame course for general elective MSU credits, she said.
Although a similar course is offered by the Department of Religious Studies, the University of Notre Dame course won't be accepted as an MSU religious studies course because it focuses on a particular type of Christianity, said Roger Bresnahan, acting chairman of the Department of Religious Studies.
"St. John's course looks at the Catholic religion specifically," he said. "There's nothing wrong with that because the University of Notre Dame is a Catholic institution, but MSU is a secular institution. We are responsible to take a broader range of issues."
A 300-level course about the history of Christianity is the closest to the St. John's course in terms of the content, but the parish's course is an introductory level course, which is another reason for giving elective credits for the class, Bresnahan said.
The approval of the credit transfer is good for this semester only, and the university doesn't have a plan yet to continue it for another semester, Stanford said.
"We decided that for this semester we could do that," she said. "That was a special opportunity where the University of Notre Dame is offering that class for this semester."
It's up to the University of Notre Dame to continue with the course, but whether MSU would continue to allow the credit exchange should be discussed again as a separate matter, Stanford said.
With about 20 MSU students registered for each section, the course is divided into three sections and taught by a theology-in-residence professor from University of Notre Dame, Ardanowski said.
