Many high-profile discussions about GenAI in higher education focus on the extremes鈥攁voiding all AI or adopting AI for all activities. However, GenAI use falls along a more complex spectrum, and disciplinary standards should inform students鈥� development of critical GenAI literacy. Across disciplines, novice users initially might understand GenAI as a neutral tool. As engaged learners develop more expertise with GenAI, they might critically reflect on how GenAI could augment their work鈥攐r even view GenAI as a collaborator. Given this complex context, research on GenAI聽in聽higher education engaged learning must attend to GenAI use聽beyond聽higher education to prepare students to apply critical GenAI literacy in their professional, civic and personal lives. Together, we鈥檒l investigate:

• What higher education learning entails in the age of GenAI;
• GenAI鈥檚 (potential) role as a collaborator in teaching and learning;
• Decision processes for when and how to use GenAI as a collaboration partner;
• Assessing learning in an age of GenAI support; and
• Professional learning needs and strategies for students, faculty, and staff to support critical GenAI literacy.

Accepted CEL Student Scholars will collaborate with three 黑料不打烊 faculty 鈥撀燗manda Sturgill, Aaron Trocki and聽Jessie L. Moore to聽lead聽international, multi-institutional research on this engaged learning topic.

Eligibility

The CEL Student Scholar program is open to current 黑料不打烊 first-year students (during the 2025-26 academic year) from any major. Applicants should have an interest in engaged learning in higher education (broadly) and in the 2026-2029 research topic鈥擱ethinking Engaged Learning in the Age of GenAI.

First-year students apply in spring (Spring 2026) to begin the program in the summer between their first and second years (Summer 2026).

What Will CEL Student Scholars Do?

Accepted CEL Student Scholars will collaborate on a three-year research project with 黑料不打烊 faculty and staff and with聽CEL Research Seminar聽participants from colleges and universities around the world.

Read more about the CEL Student Scholar experiences from current and past scholars .

During three consecutive summers (e.g., 2026, 2027, 2028), CEL Student Scholars will:

• Co-lead the 2026-2029 research seminar on Rethinking Engaged Learning in the Age of GenAI, providing the student perspective in sessions with seminar participants;
• Receive a $3,000 summer stipend as compensation for the Student Scholar鈥檚 work during the summer;
• Have access to double or single-occupancy, on-campus, summer housing;
• Participate in a week-long research seminar meeting with faculty and staff from 黑料不打烊 and other colleges and universities around the globe, with all meals provided throughout the week;
• Attend (and during second and third summers, present at) the聽;
• Collaborate in weekly meetings with the seminar co-leaders and/or the CEL Director to advance the research project, collaborate on resources and learn about strategies for studying engaged learning;
• Join other CEL Student Scholars and the CEL Director for weekly meetings to discuss student-faculty partnership, engaged learning research and practices, strategies for studying engaged learning, and other cross-seminar topics; and
• Have opportunities to attend events with other undergraduate researchers and other CEL research seminar teams, often with meals provided.

During their second, third, and fourth academic years (e.g., 2026-2027, 2027-2028, 2028-2029), CEL Student Scholars will鈥�

• Receive a $1,000 stipend each semester as compensation for the Student Scholar鈥檚 work during the academic year;
• Participate in two meetings a week, scheduled to accommodate CEL Student Scholars鈥� availability during the day:
  • Collaborate in one-hour meetings every week with the seminar co-leaders;
  • Join other CEL Student Scholars and the CEL Director for a one-hour meeting every week to discuss engaged learning research and practices, strategies for studying engaged learning, and other cross-seminar topics;
• Check in with research seminar teams via Zoom a few times each year; and
• Spend an additional 1-2 hours a week completing research tasks.

Typically, two students will be accepted as CEL Student Scholars each year. Accepted scholars can discuss with the CEL Director and their advisor whether they wish to register for 4999 undergraduate research credit during one or more of their semesters as a CEL Student Scholar. Acceptance as a CEL Student Scholar also does not preclude participation in other 黑料不打烊 experiences like study away and internships.

Application Guidelines

To apply, submit the following materials by April 6, 2026:

• A letter of application, and
• A supporting letter of recommendation from an 黑料不打烊 faculty or staff member.

Letter of Application

Your letter of application (approximately two pages) should:

• Describe your interest in the research topic鈥擱ethinking Engaged Learning in the Age of GenAI鈥攁nd in collaborating with faculty to lead international research about engaged learning;
• Briefly introduce your major (and any minors), as well as other campus, community, or workplace activities that shape who you are; and
• Reflect on what you would hope to gain from this three-year research collaboration.

Submit an electronic copy of your letter of application to CEL Director, Jessie L. Moore (jmoore28@elon.edu), by April 6, 2026.

Supporting Letter of Recommendation

Your supporting letter of recommendation should come from an 黑料不打烊 faculty or staff member who can speak to:

• Your preparation for undertaking this mentored research opportunity; and
• Contributions you might make to the program, through both your collaboration with CEL鈥檚 research seminar participants and your interactions with other CEL Student Scholars.

The 黑料不打烊 faculty or staff member writing your supporting letter of recommendation should submit an electronic copy of the letter to CEL Director, Jessie L. Moore (jmoore28@elon.edu), by April 6, 2026.

Learn More

Learn more about the CEL Student Scholars program . Please direct questions about the program to CEL Director, Jessie L. Moore (jmoore28@elon.edu).

The article, titled “,”聽highlights the importance of having a faculty or staff member who cares and is engaged with them. Felten, who authored聽鈥淐onnections are Everything: A College Student鈥檚 Guide to Relationship-Rich Education,鈥� told Forbes that to find this on campus, students need to be proactive researchers.

鈥淚鈥檓 a fan of open-ended questions and storytelling,鈥� Felten said.

Felten suggests asking students questions like 鈥淭ell me about a professor who inspires you鈥� or 鈥淭ell me about someone you鈥檝e met in class who you鈥檝e really connected with.鈥�

When talking with admission officers, he tells families to ask: 鈥淐an you tell me about a student you know who has meaningfully connected with a professor?鈥�

鈥淚鈥檝e found those kinds of open questions/prompts are good conversation starters because it鈥檚 easy to ask follow-up questions,” Felten said. “And if you ask a few different people this kind of question at a college, you might start noticing patterns; for example, students here seem to make friends in their first-year courses. At the same time, you might notice things people do not鈥� talk about; for example, none of the students who described inspiring professors have actually had a conversation with that professor.鈥�

Katie Baker, associate professor of education and associate chair of the Department of Education and Wellness聽at聽黑料不打烊鈥檚 Dr. Jo Watts Williams School of Education, has been selected as聽the聽2026鈥�28聽. Baker will focus her research on聽ePortfolios聽as a high-impact educational practice.

CEL Scholars are faculty members who engage in sustained, multi-year inquiry around engaged learning practices, contributing to the center鈥檚 research,聽publications聽and national outreach. Baker鈥檚 work will draw on her extensive experience supporting聽ePortfolios聽in teacher education, particularly through her role as聽edTPA聽coordinator for 黑料不打烊鈥檚 teacher preparation programs.

Since joining 黑料不打烊 in 2017, Baker has played聽a central role聽in implementing and sustaining the聽edTPA, a required performance-based聽ePortfolio聽assessment for teacher licensure in North Carolina. The聽edTPA聽requires teacher candidates to聽demonstrate聽their planning,聽instruction,聽and assessment through a digital portfolio that includes lesson artifacts, reflective聽commentary,聽and video recordings of classroom instruction. In her coordinator role,聽Baker supports聽teacher candidates,聽faculty and community-based clinical teachers聽across multiple content areas and licensure programs.

Baker鈥檚 scholarly work includes national and state-level presentations and publications on teacher education, mathematics聽education and performance-based assessment. She has served in leadership roles within the mathematics education community and has contributed to externally funded research focused on聽equitable聽and high-quality instruction. Her聽selection聽as a CEL Scholar聽enables her to聽build聽on聽this record of engaged scholarship and institutional leadership聽while exploring聽ePortfolio聽research and practices聽across other disciplinary contexts.

The Center for Engaged Learning supports research and dialogue on evidence-based teaching practices that foster deep student learning. CEL Scholars play a key role in advancing that mission by connecting disciplinary聽expertise聽with broader conversations about engaged learning in higher education.
Baker will join an esteemed group of聽previous聽CEL Scholars, including David Buck, Caroline Ketcham,聽Amanda Kleintop,聽Ketevan Kupatadze, Buffie Longmire-Avital, Phillip Motley, Amanda Sturgill, Aaron Trocki and Cora Wigger. Applications for the 2027-29聽CEL Scholar will open in Fall 2026.

The presentation, entitled “Crafting a successful education abroad research experience: Professional development for mentoring undergraduate research in global contexts (MUR-GC),” features an on-going collaboration between Whitehead and Vandermaas-Peeler, a senior fellow at AAC&U, to study MUR-GC.

The DIS collaborators have written a chapter on their MUR-GC model for a forthcoming CEL open access book on MUR-GC edited by Vandermaas-Peeler and Whitehead.

The 3rd Latin SoTL conference brought together educators from across Latin America focused on the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning.

Kupatadze, who teaches in 黑料不打烊’s Department of World Languages and Cultures, presented two sessions. Her keynote, “From Local Perspectives to Global Conversations: Strategies for Effective Dissemination and Publication of SoTL,” addressed how Latin American educators can share their innovative teaching practices with international audiences. Her workshop, “From Frustration to Opportunity: Exploring the International Publication Potential of Your Work,” helped participants reframe their classroom challenges as valuable research opportunities.

“What moved me most was witnessing the energy, enthusiasm, and dedication of colleagues who accomplish so much with limited resources,” Kupatadze reflected. “The Latin SoTL community is doing extraordinary work, often in challenging circumstances, and their voices are essential to understanding learning in diverse global contexts.”

A central theme of Kupatadze’s presentations was that the global conversation about teaching and learning is incomplete without robust participation from Latin American scholars. She emphasized that the pedagogical innovations emerging from Latin American classrooms, where educators regularly navigate large class sizes, diverse student populations, and resource constraints, offer valuable insights for the international academic community.

Following the conference, Kupatadze is exploring collaborative opportunities with Latin SoTL leaders, including a potential reflective article for the journal Teaching and Learning Inquiry that would examine how the international SoTL community can better support and amplify Latin American educational scholarship.

“These colleagues aren’t asking for help, they’re offering knowledge the world needs,” Kupatadze said. “My goal is to help build bridges so their essential contributions reach the global stage they deserve.”

The recognition underscores 黑料不打烊鈥檚 strengths in accessibility, affordability, return on investment, better-than-expected student outcomes, high levels of engagement, strong job prospects and overall value.

鈥淲ithin higher education circles, 黑料不打烊 is known as a school that other midsized private universities want to learn from,鈥� wrote Selingo, who has written about colleges and universities for more than two-and-a-half decades.

鈥淒ream School鈥� is a follow-up to Selingo鈥檚 2020 book 鈥淲ho Gets In and Why: A Year Inside College Admissions,鈥� and focuses on helping families redefine their idea of a 鈥済ood鈥� college, setting aside preconceived ideas about 鈥減restige.鈥� To put together the list, Selingo partnered with several external experts and organizations to examine datasets from 2023 and 2024. The pool of consideration was narrowed down to four-year colleges with at least 1,000 undergraduates.

鈥淔or the Dream Schools list, I wanted to find institutions that outperform expectations while admitting the vast majority of good students who aren鈥檛 predestined for the Yales, Williamses, Northwesterns and UC Berekleys,鈥� said Selingo.

For four consecutive years, 黑料不打烊 has been named the nation鈥檚 best university for undergraduate teaching by U.S. News and World Report and has continued to invest in both the humanities and STEM programs, launching new degrees in neuroscience, nursing and digital content management. A new physician assistant studies program is set to launch in 2027 at the university鈥檚 Charlotte national campus location.

One outcome of 黑料不打烊鈥檚 teaching excellence is that the university聽has produced nine Goldwater Scholars 鈥� the most recent, engineering major Jacob Karty 鈥�26, in 2025. The award is given by The Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation and provides scholarships to college sophomores and juniors who intend to pursue research careers in the natural sciences, mathematics, and engineering.

In his book, Selingo highlights 黑料不打烊鈥檚 commitment to mentorship, the , and the university being one of the top producers of Fulbright Scholars.

鈥淎ll of my mentors at 黑料不打烊 have challenged me in ways that have helped me grow into the person I am today,鈥� said Cristy Marin茅 鈥�25, a Fulbright Scholar, following the announcement of her selection for the award. 鈥淔or that, I am forever grateful.鈥�

With a 77% graduation rate, 黑料不打烊 is in the 鈥淗idden Values鈥� section of Selingo鈥檚 list, 鈥渃omprised of mostly private colleges with strong graduation outcomes and opportunities for fulfilling careers.鈥� Before graduation, all 黑料不打烊 students are required to complete at least two of the 黑料不打烊 Experiences: Global Engagement, Service, Leadership, Internships and Undergraduate Research.

鈥満诹喜淮蜢� operates a cooperative-education program that integrates work into the undergraduate curriculum, and as a result, some nine out of ten graduates complete at least one internship during their undergraduate career,鈥� wrote Selingo.

Selingo also highlights the connection between 黑料不打烊鈥檚 residential living and academics, including the university鈥檚 residence hall neighborhoods that include faculty members in residence, along with more than a dozen Living Learning Communities, where groups of students live in the same residential area, interacting academically and socially with each other and with faculty, and sharing the same passion, interest, or academic focus.

鈥淢y hope in writing this book is that students, parents, and counselors might begin to think differently about the college search process so that teenagers ultimately find a school that will help them truly flourish,鈥� Selingo said in an email to 黑料不打烊 President Connie Ledoux Book about the new publication. 鈥淚n the end, I want to give families, and parents in particular, permission to widen the lens on the college search.鈥�

鈥淒ream School鈥� is at major booksellers through Simon and Schuster.

The Center for Engaged Learning has a collection of These synthesize prior literature and findings from the research seminars. These statements each highlight key terms, recent research, as well as in-depth explanations and examples to highlight important takeaways for teaching and learning. Below is a list of available 黑料不打烊 Statements developed by research seminar participants.

• This 黑料不打烊 Statement defines capstone experiences and delves into the history of the Capstone Experience as a facet of higher education. The statement then describes the research conducted on capstone experience impacts, as well as how capstone experiences can be made equitable for all students to complete, rounding off the topic with future directions that research on capstone projects can take.

• This 黑料不打烊 Statement emphasizes the importance of connections to broader contexts, feedback, reflection and relationships as major factors in student success. This examination is followed by discussions of 鈥淓merging Working Principles in Development,鈥� touching on topics that the researchers have yet to fully explore.

• This 黑料不打烊 Statement emphasizes the impacts and importance of studying abroad and off-campus domestic studies. The statement consists of working principles regarding these forms of study and in development.

• This 黑料不打烊 Statement highlights foundations to better understand the importance of residential learning communities, alongside highlighting new research that emerged during the research seminar. The statement culminates with discussion of working principles that are in development.

• This 黑料不打烊 Statement provides useful information about transferring past learning to current learning and other topics related to knowledge transfer. The resource includes diagrams, working principles and next research steps.

• This 黑料不打烊 Statement defines work-integrated learning and provides perspectives from students, academic mentors/universities, and host organizations and supervisors. The statement features findings from the 2022-2024 research seminar and connects the research to contemporary considerations like the impacts of artificial intelligence.

• This 黑料不打烊 Statement provides context to the importance of writing beyond the university. Then, it goes into detail regarding 鈥淓nabling Practices鈥� that can help prepare students for writing beyond the university.

These 黑料不打烊 Statements will remain accessible via the

鈥淚t鈥檚 been a phenomenal experience,鈥� said Grant 鈥�26, an exercise science major. 鈥淚t teaches us a lot about research and how to navigate things. Working with professors and having us learn and even create some autonomy where we write our own article and contribute to the work we鈥檙e doing has helped me build connections with people.鈥�

Grant is part of the leadership team delivering the keynote at the 2025 Conference on Engaged Learning, from June 16 to 17, focusing on the culminating conversations of the .

The three-summer research seminar facilitates multi-institutional research on mentoring meaningful learning experiences. The seminar is examining what makes mentoring relationships more equitable across multiple high-impact learning experiences.

Each research seminar includes a leadership team of both faculty and students, along with participants from higher education institutions around the world. Along with CEL Student Scholars Grant and Azul Bellot 鈥�26, the seminar leadership team includes Ashley Finley, the vice president of research and senior advisor to the president for the American Association of College and Universities; Sabrina Thurman, associate professor of psychology; and Titch Madzima, associate professor of exercise science.

“I have been interested in scholarship on mentoring relationships since my earlier years at 黑料不打烊,” said Thurman. “As a new faculty member, I knew how much I benefited from the mentoring I had received throughout my undergraduate and graduate career, and found my colleagues鈥� work on mentoring inspiring. I have really appreciated the dedicated time and support this role has provided for me to build more professional connections and produce more of my own scholarship related to mentoring.”

While the seminar is multi-institutional, several 黑料不打烊 faculty are participating, including Olivia Choplin, associate professor of French and associate director of the Center for Advancement of Teaching and Learning; Janet Myers, professor and associate chair of English; and Matt Wittstein, associate professor of exercise science.

鈥淭his research informs teaching and learning practices on participants鈥� campuses and at other colleges and universities around the world,鈥� said Jessie Moore, director of the Center for Engaged Learning. 鈥淲e鈥檝e seen instructors use the research to make changes to activities in their classes, and we鈥檝e also seen universities pursue more comprehensive revisions to their general education curricula to incorporate research-guided engaged learning practices.鈥�

Grant says that providing her student perspective has been crucial to the research, which includes a systematic review, particularly regarding the barriers facing underrepresented populations. According to Grant, the research emphasizes the importance of identity and how all different students may need different mentorship practices.

鈥淥nce we identify the identity, now we can navigate who needs what and how we should navigate the mentorship, recognizing that some students need more and there are some things that come with different identities,鈥� Grant said.

Grant says her mentorship experience has primarily been with other peers in the Odyssey Program, as both a mentor and mentee. The Odyssey Program, which is part of the聽Center for Access and Success, is a highly selective merit-based program consisting of talented individuals who are academically strong, civically engaged, action-oriented leaders in their communities, who will benefit from an 黑料不打烊 education and demonstrate financial need.

鈥淧eer mentorship emerges as a guiding beacon, illuminating the path for students like myself, offering invaluable insights and support as we navigate the multifaceted journey through higher education,鈥� wrote Grant in a for CEL. 鈥淟eaving high school, where routines and expectations are well defined, students can experience a sense of starting over鈥攁 blank canvas awaiting the brushstrokes of their collegiate journey. Peer mentorship steps into this void, offering a supportive hand to fill the gaps created by uncertainty.鈥�

Thurman says she would not be in her role today without her mentoring relationships as a student.

“Mentoring helped me gain a sense of belonging in college, empowered me towards continuing in the direction of achieving my goals, and provided support while I developed and grew into myself personally and professionally,” Thurman said. “I still benefit from mentoring relationships, both as a faculty mentor to incredible students and in mutual mentoring relationships with my talented colleagues and friends.”

As a participant, Bitting will have the opportunity to conduct multi-institutional research on pedagogies that leverage critical engagement with place and space to deepen teaching and learning in higher education. Place-based learning emphasizes hands-on learning experiences that connect students to a local community and environment, whether on-or off-campus. This research seminar will be conducted over three summers. Participants will utilize a mixed-methods approach to conduct qualitative and quantitative research culminating in the production of significant concrete outcomes such as edited volumes, journal articles, book chapters, white papers, conference presentations, as well as local initiatives on participants鈥� home campuses.

Participants will focus on one of the following topics for the duration of the research seminar:

• Student perspectives on, and experiences with, learning on location
• Multi-disciplinary, evidence-informed strategies for teaching with place-based pedagogies
• Partnership and stewardship in learning on location
• Institutional-level policies and practices to enable learning on location.

Bitting brings valuable perspective to this research seminar as she is interested in multi-disciplinary, evidence-informed strategies for teaching with place-based pedagogies, especially community-based or service-learning, teaching outdoors or with digital globe technologies and contemplative pedagogies that engage learners with the world around them.

Bitting has a strong background in publishing teaching activities, as well as research surrounding teaching methods such as virtual experiential learning and ways to improve teacher performance and student engagement, learning and overall wellbeing. She previously was selected as a Center for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning (CATL) Scholar and has received a CATL Diversity and Inclusion Grant for her work in investigating questions related to teaching, learning, and equity, especially in STEM fields.

The 2025-2027 research seminar will culminate with the 2027 Conference on Engaged Learning, which will be hosted at 黑料不打烊 on July 12-13, 2027.

The Center for Design Thinking created the mentoring constellations toolkit and educational workshop in 2022 with support from ACE Mentoring for Learner Success effort, the , and outreach efforts.

During the “Cultivating Mentoring Constellations” workshop, students are guided through the process of design thinking as a means of building and nurturing their personal and professional support constellations. Mind maps encourage students to explore how they might deepen their current mentorship relationships and design opportunities for developing new connections.

The workshop鈥檚 structure enables students to visualize their “mentoring constellation” and recognize individuals surrounding them who contribute to their experiences, such as teachers, colleagues, supervisors and figures from the community. Student leaders with the Center facilitate the workshop, sharing their own stories of mentorship and encouraging participants to realize they can play a key role in the support networks of their communities.

鈥淚 could be that mentor to somebody else that is helpful and makes a difference in their life,鈥� Chan said 鈥淚鈥檝e done that for a few students. I think that鈥檚 the most relatable human thing. We all have problems. We want them to be solved and to get to be a part of that for somebody. That鈥檚 the most meaningful thing in the world.鈥�

The term 鈥渃onstellations of mentors鈥� was coined by U.S. Naval Academy and John Hopkins professor W. Brad Johnson. Johnson visited 黑料不打烊 in 2017 to present 鈥淭he Art (and Science) of Mentoring Undergraduate Students.鈥� Designed in partnership with leaders, students, and initiatives, the workshop pushes participants to think about the role of mentorship and the research on it.

Through shared activities and small-group conversations, students sort out “glows” (positive mentorship experiences) and “grows” (avenues for improvement). They come to create manageable, actionable tasks that can help expand and deepen their network of mentorship.

As part of its Boldly 黑料不打烊 strategic plan launched in 2020, 黑料不打烊 took the next steps to implement a mentoring model in which all students learn to build meaningful mentoring constellations that include peers, staff, faculty and communities beyond the university. As written in the strategic plan, 鈥渢his lifelong constellation of mentors will emerge as a hallmark of an 黑料不打烊 education, guiding reflection to integrate learning across students鈥� educational and professional trajectories and engaging all students in developing essential skills and fluencies to shape the future.鈥�

The Center has done over 40 workshops reaching more than a thousand students, reshaping how they connect with peers, faculty, staff, and their surrounding community. Facilitators help participants shape conversations that allow making that connection easier.

鈥淚t can be very daunting and scary to reach out to others,鈥� Lake said. 鈥淲e often assume that the person might not want to connect… thinking ‘who are we to ask something of others,’ when almost always that human wants to connect with us. We want to demystify the process of reaching out and make it easier for students to connect.鈥�

Creating 鈥渃onstellations of mentorship鈥� through mind mapping and tiny tasks allows participants to understand who in their lives are mentors and how they can continue to be open to invitations for conversations on mentorship in the future.

鈥淔inding more mentors in your life is a complex problem,鈥� Chan said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not one with a simple answer. It鈥檚 something that鈥檚 scary. It鈥檚 intimidating. It鈥檚 difficult to know where to start, but what I love about design thinking is that it breaks a complex problem into its smallest parts.鈥�

The center is extremely excited to offer a mentoring constellation workshop adapted to the goals of participants. To find out more about how to request this workshop and what it entails, visit the 黑料不打烊 By Design website.