The Educational Policy and Curriculum Committee oversees curriculum planning and educational policy for undergraduate medical education, including medical school degree and certificate programs. The EPCC approves program objectives, monitors program outcomes and evaluates the effectiveness of the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health’s MD educational programs. It is responsible for the overall design, management, integration, evaluation, and enhancement of a coherent and coordinated medical curriculum, in accordance with the mission and vision of the SMPH, and the accreditation requirements of the LCME.
To fulfill this work, the EPCC oversees two standing subcommittees that continuously monitor specific areas of the undergraduate medical education program: Medical Student Curriculum Subcommittee, and Curricular and Assessment Subcommittee. Standing subcommittees develop and implement improvement plans under the direction of EPCC. They also make recommendations to the EPCC regarding policy and standards for the curriculum, including regular reports on compliance and outcomes.
All courses proposed by medical school departments for students in degree programs including MD, PA, DPT, Genetic Counseling and MPH must be approved by the EPCC. Course proposals that are primarily for undergraduate, PhD or other non-clinical degree programs are reviewed by the Graduate Research Council. EPCC also serves as the hearing body for student appeals for the MD degree program. It shall act in the best educational interests of the students, the medical profession, and the people of the state of Wisconsin.
Graduate and continuing medical education will remain under the purview of departments, the Associate Dean for Graduate Medical Education, and the Director for the Office of Continuing Professional Development.
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Membership
The number of voting members shall not exceed fourteen (14) nor be less than ten (10).
Members shall include four student members (one for each year) who are chosen from each class, elected by their peers, for a four-year term shortly after the beginning of the first semester. Should any of these voting student members leave their original class year, they will relinquish their committee membership, and a new student member will be selected by election of their peers.
The remaining voting membership shall include 6-8 faculty members elected from the faculty body and 2 appointed faculty members. The process for election of faculty representatives aligns with the process for other university committees and includes: 1) call for nominations 2) vetting of nominations by the EPCC Executive committee and Dean 3) ballot extended to entire UWSMPH faculty. Voting faculty members serve for three years each, with approximately one‑third of the membership rotating off each year. Term lengths may be shortened by the EPCC Executive committee if needed to ensure one-third of the memberships are rotating each year. Faculty can serve no more than two consecutive terms; serving a partial term counts as one term if the service was for the majority of that term. We will seek members with perspectives from the following areas: Graduate Medical Education and Public Health. No fewer than 2 elected members should be from the Basic or Applied Science Departments and no fewer than 2 elected members should be from the Clinical Departments. This minimum representation will determine if the Chair is a voting member.
Appointed voting faculty members include one non-MD Health Professional Program and one member from one of the State-wide Clinical Campuses. Each appointed member will rotate through specialty or site to ensure the broadest representation.
In the event that a faculty member needs to withdraw from the committee during their term, a replacement will be appointed by the committee chair in consultation with the EPCC Executive committee.
All faculty are approved by the Dean based on election outcome or recommendation of the Executive Committee.
The Chair of EPCC will be appointed from among the EPCC elected faculty members by the Dean on the recommendation of the Executive Committee. If appointed at the end of their term, the chair will extend their voting membership on the committee, if needed to meet a particular designated elected minimum as stated above, if appointed during their term, the term will be extended for the duration of their service as chair. Otherwise the Chair of EPCC will be a non-voting member. Chairs will co-chair alongside the existing chair for one year, before taking on a two-year term, and can be renewed for an additional year at the discretion of the Dean and recommendation of the Executive Committee. In the final year of their term, the chair will work the incoming chair, who will act as their co-chair.
Non‑voting ex officio members who will provide their unique perspectives for the committee by attending meetings as regularly as possible shall include (but not necessarily be limited to): Associate Dean for Medical Student Education and Services, Director for Student Services, Associate Dean for Student Services, Associate Dean for Medical Education, an MSTP student representative, a GMEC resident representative, Associate Dean for Multicultural Affairs, MD Program Phase Directors, and Director of Medical Education and Continuous Quality Improvement.
Additionally, the following individuals will receive electronic communications of meeting agendas and minutes but will not be expected to attend meetings. Unless the meeting is closed they are able to attend as needed. CC members will include Director, Longitudinal Curriculum & Instruction, Director of Evaluation, Director of WARM, Director of TRiUMPH, Senior Associate Dean, Academic Affairs, Director POD Public Health, Director POD Research, Director POD Medical Education, Director POD Bioethics, Director POD International Practice and Education, Phase 3 Curriculum & Electives Manager, SSCI Co-Chairs, and CAS Co-Chairs.
Governance
EPCC will have necessary administrative support from Academic Affairs. EPCC agenda items will be the responsibility of the Executive Committee that is comprised of the chair of EPCC, chair of the assessment subcommittee, chair of the curriculum content subcommittee, chair of the medical student curriculum subcommittee and the Associate Dean for Medical Education. The Executive Committee will appoint members to the assessment subcommittee.
Positive recommendations made by EPCC on course changes or additions (aside from those mentioned below) will be forwarded to the University Curriculum Committee for approval. Recommendations will be approved by majority vote.
Changes to the MD degree curriculum and decisions about the strategic direction of the curriculum will be approved by majority vote, after which they will be referred to APC for approval; after approval, the APC will forward course changes to the University Curriculum Committee.
Internal bylaws
A quorum consists of 51 percent of the committee; in cases of appeal from the Student Promotion Committee (SPC), a quorum will consist of 51 percent of the faculty members.
Meetings of EPCC are open unless it is in executive session.