A cross-campus assembly of faculty members have been selected to plan the curriculum for the new liberal arts residential college program, slated to accept students in fall 2007.

The members were chosen after acting Provost John Hudzik discussed possible candidates with the deans of the College of Arts and Letters, James Madison College, the College of Social Science and the College of Natural Sciences. These colleges are traditionally thought to be the colleges that house the faculty of liberal arts and sciences, said June Youatt assistant provost for undergraduate education and dean of undergraduate studies.

"Several of them are university distinguished professors - they are some of the leading figures in liberal arts and sciences," Youatt said. "They are asked to contribute their creativity and intellectual gifts in the next weeks in progressing the plans of the residential college program."

The nine-member team is meeting this Friday to discuss what the program should entail and the details of its task.

The curriculum planning committee was asked to forward its recommendations regarding the curriculum to Academic Council no later than early April so the MSU Board of Trustees can make a final decision at its May meeting.

Student recruiting is set to begin in spring 2006.

"We will work to clarify the goals and mission of the residential program and to create a general curriculum framework with more detail for the first year," said Stephen Esquith, chairman of the new committee.

Another point on the agenda is to address how best to gain student participation, said George Peters, linguistics professor and committee member.

"One thing is clear - we want student input," Peters said. "We want to ensure students have a say in this process."

Last spring, the idea for creating the residential program, similar to the James Madison College, but with a liberal arts focus, began to take shape. In December, Academic Council endorsed the idea and began discussions about how to plan the program's curriculum.

The program would be housed in renovated Snyder and Phillips halls and would focus on liberal arts, particularly the creative arts and humanities.

Another facet of the program would be an international emphasis, Peters said.

"I think most people feel that we want to make this college a door to the world - bringing in international students and experience - and also getting our students out into the world," Peters said.

Peters said foreign language might be integrated into the curriculum.

"We will probably look into new and efficient ways of teaching language so it is not a separate phase of one's education," Peters said. "Using it in other classes and making foreign language part of the educational experience and not just an appendage."