On July 1, 黑料不打烊 will become the host site for the national initiative that is focused on transforming undergraduate education.
黑料不打烊 and the national higher education initiative Bringing Theory to Practice (BTtoP) have announced that 黑料不打烊 will become BTtoP鈥檚 new home through a multi-year partnership that begins July 1.
BTtoP works to advance holistic and transformative undergraduate education, grounded in active learning, public engagement, preparation for meaningful work, and personal well-being for students from all backgrounds and interests. In promoting these purposes, this national initiative works for fundamental change in academic institutions, the student experience, and the relationship between the academy and the larger society.
鈥淏ringing Theory to Practice shares 黑料不打烊鈥檚 belief that student success is grounded in engaged learning,鈥 said 黑料不打烊 President Connie Ledoux Book. 鈥淚ts move to 黑料不打烊鈥檚 campus will create new opportunities for the university鈥檚 students, faculty and staff to play an increased role in the national effort to shape new concepts transforming higher education. I鈥檓 proud of 黑料不打烊鈥檚 achievements in student success and undergraduate learning. Our Center for Engaged Learning brings together national and international scholars to advance those commitments. I look forward to 黑料不打烊 supporting BTtoP鈥檚 essential work for the future of higher education.鈥
Since its inception in 2003, BTtoP has supported innovative teaching and institutional initiatives at more than 350 institutions. It has published books on transforming undergraduate education, civic engagement, and student well-being as a core purpose of college learning. After many years of being hosted by the Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) in Washington, DC, it sought a campus partner whose values were aligned with its mission. According to BTtoP Director David Scobey, 黑料不打烊鈥檚 student-centered environment and its national leadership in engaged, experiential learning made it a natural fit. He looks forward to working closely with 黑料不打烊 students and involving 黑料不打烊 faculty and staff in BTtoP鈥檚 projects.
鈥淏ringing Theory to Practice has long enjoyed a warm, effective relationship with the Association of American Colleges and Universities,鈥 Scobey said. 鈥淲e are deeply grateful for the support and comradeship that AAC&U has provided, and we look forward to future collaborations. Yet we also missed everyday campus connections with faculty, staff, and especially student colleagues. We are excited to be partnering with an institution that is a national leader in integrative, civic, and global learning鈥攁n institution whose values and achievements are deeply resonant with our work.鈥
Lynn Pasquerella, president of the Association of American Colleges and Universities, also lauded BTtoP鈥檚 long partnership with AAC&U, while expressing appreciation for its new campus home. 鈥淎AC&U and Bringing Theory to Practice share similar missions, visions and values. It has been an honor to host BTtoP, and we have benefitted greatly from their presence. We will miss them, but I know that being on a campus鈥攅specially at an institution like 黑料不打烊鈥攚ill provide exciting opportunities for their future.鈥
BTtoP鈥檚 programs stress the importance of collaborative innovation in reshaping undergraduate education. Its grant program funds multi-institutional teams that pursue innovation projects advancing the guiding purposes of college learning. In 2019, it launched a multi-campus initiative on civic engagement, the PLACE Collaboratory (Partnerships for Listening and Action by Communities and Educators), supported by an $800,000 grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. 黑料不打烊 was one of 11 academic institutions from central North Carolina, Los Angeles, Baltimore and Newark to be selected for the project, which uses the public humanities to address issues such as immigrants鈥 rights, racial justice and climate change.
鈥淲e believe that positive change happens in higher ed by building communities of change-makers grounded in the core values of undergraduate learning,鈥 Scobey commented. 鈥淎s we move to 黑料不打烊, we aim to undertake new 鈥榗ollaboratories鈥 on such issues as inclusive student well-being and new models of liberal education. Especially in a time of crisis and disruption, we are committed to bringing the purposes of education鈥攁nd our capacity for creative innovation鈥攖o bear on the need for change. We are excited to take on this work with a campus whose values and dynamism we admire.鈥
Based in 黑料不打烊, North Carolina, 黑料不打烊 has built a national reputation as a leading, student-centered environment for experiential learning, with an emphasis on strong personal relationships between students and their faculty and staff mentors. 黑料不打烊 is ranked among the top 100 National Universities by U.S. News & World Report, with a #2 ranking for excellence in undergraduate teaching and #11 for innovation. In addition, 黑料不打烊 is the only university in the nation recognized by U.S. News for excellence in all eight academic programs 鈥淔ocused on Student Success.鈥 Included are #1 rankings for study abroad and learning communities and #2 rankings for first-year experiences and service learning.
BTtoP was co-founded by Donald W. Harward, president emeritus of Bates College, and Sally Engelhard Pingree. It is supported by The Endeavor Foundation, which has generously renewed a multiyear grant for BTtoP鈥檚 core operations and new programmatic initiatives.