Resources for the Committee on Improving the UW Undergraduate Experience

Committee on Improving the UW Undergraduate Experience
Autumn 2005

Resources Beyond UW

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last updated August 21, 2006 3:35 PM

Resources Beyond UW by Sub-committee

Click on the numbers below to navigate this page of resources by sub-committee.

1 Pre-entry, entry/initiation
2 First year experience
3 Exploration, Self-discovery-- leading to selection of major. Where am I going?
4 The major: depth of experience, integration.
5 What's next. Departure and: job, graduate school, continuing relationship with UW.

The resources listed below are evolving and offer some ideas from other institutions or organizations that are applicable within each committee area. Click on the program of note to explore the website about it.

These resources are just a beginning. If you would like to add a resource, please email specifics about a program or organization, a link to online information about it, and which area it fits into, and a brief description, and it will be added to the list.

1. Pre-entry, entry/initiation Philip Ballinger, Karen Clegg, Stephanie Miller, Julia Parrish

Program(s) of note	Institution/Organization	Brief description, example(s) of excellence
Carolina Summer Reading Program	University of North Carolina	Started in 1999, developed out of 1997 UNC Report of the Chancellor 's Task Force on Intellectual Climate. Students read a provocative book over the summer, then discuss in small groups w/faculty. Here is a link to what's happening in 2005.
Suggestions for Summer Reading	University of California, Berkeley	Berkeley has a non-mandatory summer reading list proposed by faculty members around a general theme. The theme for 2005: Great Discoveries, Voyages, and Adventures.
Freshmen Summer Reading Program	Slippery Rock University
Freshmen Reading Round Up	University of Texas Austin
Mizzou's summer read	University of Missouri
First Year Experience	Ohio State University	Robust first year experience program, includes opportunities such as events, the Buckeye Book Community, Success Series, Distinguished Speaker, and Orientation programming.
Project Interphase	MIT	A pre-orientation program offered through the Office of Minority Education at MIT for admitted freshmen.. MIT also offers an array of other pre-orientation programs including a freshmen arts program and a leadership program as well as others that are more early explorations of majors.
Wilderness Orientation (WO)	University of California, Santa Cruz	Since 1983, WO has offered 10 day wilderness experience for incoming students in groups of 12. Read student comments here.
Fish Camp	Texas A&M University	Started in 1954, Fish Camp is an off-campus program to bring students into the A&M community and traditions. 900 counselors volunteer (students who've done Fish Camp, faculty, staff) and work with incoming students in a 4 day camp experience, lots of discussion, leadership development, and dancing.
Pre-orientation Programs PENNacle, PenQuest, PenCORP	University of Pennsylvania	Penn offers three pre-orientation programs, a leadership program (PENNacle), an outdoor program (PenQuest), and a community-focused program (PenCORP).
List of organizations, general resoures on first year experiences
NODA	National Orientation Directors Association	They have a journal, The Journal of College Orientation and Transition, as well as various listservs, and a resources link.
Association on Higher Education and Disability	Association on Higher Education and Disability	National association includes resources page, publications page.
Sub-committee working documents, notes, etc...
October 18th, Preorientation Notes

2. First year experience Lee Dunbar, Vennie Gore, Ruth Johnston, Devon Peña, Betsy Wilson

Program(s) of note	Institution/Organization	Brief description, example(s) of excellence
First Year Experience (FYE)	Boston College	Includes semi-formal convocation (also called conversations), 48 hours which is a weekend experience especially for transfer students, an orientation program for freshmen and transfers, Cornerstone which is academic programming, and the service-based leadership project.
Your First College Year (YFCY)	UCLA
University College Gateway Course	University of Oklahoma	Graded, 2-credit course to assist in transition to college, focusing on skills, meeting instructors, learning about self and others.
Peer Mentorship Program	Howard University
Residential College in College of Literature, Science, and Art	University of Michigan	The Residential College offers advising, acccess to professors, classrooms, an art gallery within the residence hall where students live for thier firs ttwo years. Students continue in the "RC" through courses and extra-curricular activities. 900 students, 60 faculty. In general, Michigan's residential programs/learning communities are well-regarded within R1s.
Living Learning Program	Cal PolyResidential Life and Education	The Living Learning Program is designed for incoming students to make stronger connections with peers and faculty - includes 6 residence halls, thematic.. CalPoly also has other non-LLP thematic dorms, such as RESPECT House (Residents Engaging in Service Programs and Embracing Cultural Traditions).
Oregon State University Current Dorm Programming	Oregon State University	Dorm programming is thematic, tutors and advisers live in some of the dorms.
Living-Learning Center (LLC)	University of Oregon	Slated to open in 2006, the University of Oregon's new Living-Learning Center is built around a central plaza and is designed to "blur the distinction between residential settings and academic life" through spaces for teaching, advising, informal musical performances, dining, and living.
Faculty in Residence Program at Parkside Commons	Cal State Long Beach	Faculty in residence (they apply), also librarians - they have their own apartments, hold office hours 10 hrs a week.
East Campus Library Outreach	Duke University	Librarians on the move!
BGeXperience	Bowling Green University	First year experience at Bowling Green, includes academic experiences, credit-bearing seminars designed to help students with transitions.
List of organizations, general resoures on first year experiences, books too
Reinvention Center, First Year Experiences List	Reinvention Center	List of first year experiences across the country, learning communities, general education requirements at different institutions, conferences, etc...
National Learning Commons Directory of Initiatives	Washington Center at Evergreen	Database of vast array of learning communities across the nation and some international examples, most focus on the first year experience, very specific details including duration of program, challenges, etc..
Policy Center on the First Year of College	Policy Center on the First Year of College	"Institutions of excellence" categorized by institution size (such as GA State at IUPUI in >20,000 category) in narrative format. Also offers research and assessment on first year initiatives and programs. They also have a robust assessment listserv.
Resource File Index for Residential Life	National Association of College and University Residence Halls	The Resource File Index is searchable within topics such as first year experience, occupancy and recruitment, and getting students involved in res life programming (under apathy).
M. Lee Upcraft, John N. Gardner, Betsy O. Barefoot	Challenging and supporting the first-year student : a handbook for improving the first year of college	Pub info: San Francisco : Jossey-Bass, c2005

3. Exploration, Self-discovery-- leading to selection of major. Where am I going?

Jayme Ballard, Valerie Curtis-Newton, Janice DeCosmo, Gene Edgar, June Hairston, L. Lincoln Johnson, Rick Roth

Program(s) of note	Institution/Organization	Brief description, example(s) of excellence
Core 2.0	Montana State University	Started in 2004, Core 2.0 is Montana State's new core curriculum program. For its history, including reports on the pilot project, click here. "The mission of CORE 2.0 is to enhance students' use of multiple perspectives in making informed critical and ethical judgments in their personal, public, and professional lives through inquiry and research experiences."
International Programs	Occidental College	Participation in study abroad is connected to the college's mission, includes opportunities for students to do research abroad through the Richter Summer Research Program.
Stanford Introductory Seminars	Stanford University	Seminars for freshmen and sophomores offered by esteemed faculty, here is a link to offerings for Autumn 05.
Sophomore Inquiry and Upper Division Clusters	Portland State University	Portland State revamped their curriculum in 1994 and now requires students to engage in University Studies which is their general education requirements. Also includes a senior capstone program that is strongly tied to PSU's commitment to community and service.
Thematic Minors	University of Southern California	USC Thematic Minors. Many non-traditional pathways through the curriculum that are designed to stimulate interdisciplinary student exploration.
Sophomore Series of Events	Colorado College	Events for sophomores, throughout the academic year including the faculty/sophomore dinner series for 20 students at a time, a full-day avoid the sophomore-slump workshop, and more.
Academic Success Center	Oregon State University	Opened in 2004, The Academic Success Center is about student learning and success, supporting undeclared majors, coordinating tutorng, and serving as a hub for advisors and learning centers. Also developing transitional learning communities.
Diagnostic Digital Portfolio	Alverno College	A way for students to create a visual representation of their learning milestones and accomplishments.
The Idea of the University Colloquium The Great Ideas: The University of Chicago and the Ideal of Liberal Education	University of Chicago
Online Advising Handbook	Penn State	The searchable online Advising Handbook also seems like it promotes students' success to navigate what's next at multiple junctures (I need to learn about credit and internships, drop a class, change a major....)
The Sophomore Guide and Exploration Declaration	Stanford University	Website devoted to sophomore academic support, including link to HOW TO CHOOSE A MAJOR SITE.
Minnesota State Co-curricular Transcript University of Minnesota Co Curricular Transcript	Co curricular Transcript	Enables students to document leadership, service, and other relevant co-cuuricular experiences - at MSU, using online tools to create portfolios, or e-folios. Here is how they integrate online portfolios. Here is a sample of a paper version from UofM.
College of Liberal Arts Advising	University of Minnesota Twin Cities	Helps students thematically integrate their learning and experience, as well as access various UMN resources and opportunities. Includes links to -Student Communities. that link students via themes, affinities and issues rather than majors such as language and mathematics.
Service Learning Reuirement	Cal State Universities	The 23 campuses of the CSU are committed to ensuring that all CSU students have the opportunity to participate in service before they graduate. Currently, more than 185,178 CSU students are providing service in California communities. As a specific example, explore CSU Monterey's Service Learning Institute.
Penn State Dance Marathon THON	Penn State University	"..largest student-run philanthropy in the world, the Penn State IFC/Panhellenic Dance Marathon (THON™)! THON is a year round fundraising event benefiting The Four Diamonds Fund, Conquering Childhood Cancer, at the Penn State Children's Hospital in Hershey, PA. The year culminates in a no-sitting, no-sleeping, 48-hour dance marathon held every February. Over the past 30 years, the students of THON have raised over $30 million and have helped thousands of children and families fight pediatric cancer."
SAGES Information on The Journey	Case Western	SAGES stands for Seminar Approach to General Education and Scholarship. Particularly, EVERY undergrad is paired w/ a mentor from the moment they arrive on campus. The Journey is the campus leadership program that is coordinated by the Office of Student Activities and Leadership.
The University School	University of Arizona	Resource for students who are exploring, in transition, etc..Includes online major exploration.
List of organizations, general resoures on sophomore year experience, experiential education, research programs
Experiential Education Resources	Association for Experiential Education	Links to resources page of this organization
Rankings, civic education	Washington Monthly
Greater Expectations	AAC&U
Sophomore Year Resources	National Resource Center for the First Year Experience & Students in Transition	Sophomore year resources include links to listservs, a detailed list of sophomore programming at various institutions Also includes links to first-year program resources and senior year resources.
Sub-committee working documents, notes, etc...
Notes from Lincoln	Santa Clara Univ. (leadership devel: Center for Student Leadership) Texas A&M Univ. (tradition, campus climate, student union) Univ. of Kansas (student activities, student union, tradition) Brown Univ. (leadership devel: Building Understanding Across Differences) Indiana Univ. (student union, student life, climate) Univ. of Michigan (Office of Student Act & Leadership, Ginsberg Center for Community Service & Learning) Univ. of Arizona (student union, leadership develop: Blue Chip Leaders) Davidson College (community service: Bonner Scholars Program) N. Carolina-Chapel Hill (tradition, student life, APPLES service learning) Univ. of Utah (late night programming, climate, 1997 climate report)

4. The major: depth of experience, integration.
Mike Heinekey, Jonathan Lee, Paul LePore, Jill McKinstry, Carmen Sidbury, Barbara Wakimoto

Program(s) of note	Institution/Organization	Brief description, example(s) of excellence
Undergraduate Research Journals	Published by the University of California
The Senior Year Experience	University of South Carolina	This site includes an overview of rationale behind a senior year experience as well as details on how capstone experiences connect with what's next for students in The Capstone Experience: A Primer.
Capstone Courses	University of Nevada-Reno	Offers capstone program both for the major and for students to integrate learning within discipline and cores curriculum.
Undergraduate Posters for National and State Legislatures	The Council for Undergraduate Research	Information from the Council on Undergraduate Research about participants in our annual "Undergraduate Research Posters on the Hill" event, which occurs in late March or April of each year. Sixty competitively selected student posters are displayed on the U.S. Capitol during a late afternoon reception. In the morning of the same day, there is an orientation session, followed by visits from students and their faculty mentors to their Representatives and Senators' offices. This event can easily be adapted for poster sessions in state capitol cities. An article from the CUR Quarterly of December, 1998 entitled "Poster Sessions at Your State Capitol: Excellent Experiences and Lessons Learned" shows how to do such an event.
University of California, Berkeley Bancroft Library, Prize for Undergraduate Research Temple University, Library Prize for Undergraduate Research University of Alaska, The Discovery Award	Various institutions, Academic Library Awards and Press Awards	Proactive programs in academic libraries that get students to conduct research projects and utilize library resources as a core resource for these research efforts are important stimuli for developing a college environment that emphasizes the need for undergraduates to learn research skills so as to better prepare themselves for life-long learning.
The College Park Scholars in Public Leadership	University of Maryland
The Brown Curriculum	Brown University	Students pursue "areas of concentration" in consultation with faculty and advisers - there are over 100 concentrations , many multidisciplinary, and Brown does not have distribution requirements outside of the individual's area of concentration. See also UTRA: Undergraduate Teaching and Research Assistantships.
Interdisciplinary Programs	University of British Columbia	A range of interdisciplinary programs in sciences and engineering. See also The Jade Project for women in computer science.

Integrating Research into Undergraduate Education: The Value Added Developing Resources and Funds to Support a Research-based Undergraduate Education	Reinvention Center

5. What's next. Departure and: job, graduate school, continuing relationship with UW.
Pete Dukes, Eric Godfrey, Adam Grupp

Program(s) of note	Institution/Organization	Brief description, example(s) of excellence
SYE at Berkeley	University of California, Berkeley	A program of the California Alumni Associate, the Senior Year Experience (SYE) program is designed to help seniors through the transition away from college through workshops adn seminars focusing on life planning and decision making, including grad school prep, relocation, buying a car, retirement plans, graduation, and being an alum.
Center for Work and Learning	Northeastern University	Part of initiative to integrate work experience with classroom study to prepare students for life beyond school. Focus is on practice-based learning, the center conducts research and hosts international conference as well as has a good page on resources on practice/action learning approaches as well as adult learning.
Career Center at UofA	University of Arizona	Includes links on statistics on undegrad, grad, and professional salaries and jobs, a focus on connections (internships etc...) and transitions (getting a full time job post-graduation), as well as workshops on resume checking, how to dress for interviews, salary surveys, etc...
Undergraduate Academic Advising	Stanford University	A variety of specific,a cademic advising for students at various junctures - first year, sophomore year, transfers, and for graduate school. Advising site includes a link to learning skills and tutoring, available through their Center for Teaching and Learning.
Career Services UCSD	University of California, San Diego	Career Services Center has subtantial web information on applying to graduate school, mini job fairs for work study and student jobs, workshops on topics such as Life101 and June Job Search Club and information for parents.
FTCAP, First Year Testing Counseling and Advising Program.	Penn State	"Established in 1957, FTCAP gives all entering first-year students (including provisional students) the opportunity to examine their academic abilities, interests, and educational plans before their first semester of classes. Students' families are also encouraged to participate. FTCAP is a comprehensive program of preregistration testing in English, mathematics, and chemistry; individualized educational planning; and academic advising."
Culminating Year Experience	Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute	Includes links for students to activities and events, financial planning, career development, commencement, alumni information, and university "swag".
S\|X Senior Year Experience	Barnard College	Opportunity for students to celebrate, reflect and prepare to leave university - includes workshops on budgeting, health insurance, and investing.
Road Trip Nation	National movement on campuses across the country	"Roadtrip Nation was started when some recent college grads, who had no idea what they wanted to do with their lives, decided to take a roadtrip to figure it out. They bought an old run-down 31-foot RV, painted it neon green, and hit the road for 3 months and 17,000 miles to explore how other individuals found their roads in life. Along the way, they interviewed over 80 people, including: a Lobsterman in Maine, the scientist who decoded the Human Genome, the Director of Saturday Night Live, the stylist for Madonna, and Starbucks Chairman Howard Schultz. All of the leaders shared where they were in their twenties, and how they resisted pressures of conformity to find their roads in life."
Engineering Freshman Academies	University of Southern California	Program for first year students who begin college in their major already, more exposure to faculty, study sessions, small class size (<35), fall semester is issue-based, in spring there is an engineering project.
Junior Senior Advising Center	Columbia University	Advising website that addresses senior's transitional needs and tells seniors where to find advising.

Resources to add? Comments? Send an email!