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2023 Transforming Institutions Conference Takeaways


Posted: Aug 15 2023 by

Casey Wright
Western Michigan University
Casey Wright, Western Michigan University

Change Topics (Working Groups): Guiding Theories, Change Leaders, Assessment, Communication, Policy, Costs and Benefits, Equity and Inclusion, Faculty Evaluation
Target Audience: College/University Staff, Non-tenure Track Faculty, Tenured/Tenure-track Faculty, Institution Administration, Teaching/Learning Assistants, Graduate Students, Post-doctoral Fellows
Program Components: Professional Development:Accessibility, Diversity/Inclusion, Institutional Systems:Incentive/Reward Systems, Evaluating Teaching, Supporting Students:Student Engagement, Learning Communities

The 2023 Transforming Institutions Conference was held June 12-13, 2023, in Minneapolis, MN. With this most recent convening, we are proud to have brought together change researchers and change agents for 12 years. The meeting was made possible by the efforts of a conference planning committee consisting of 10 change agents convened by NSEC (Network of STEM Education Centers) and ASCN (Accelerating Systemic Change Network), supported by 40 reviewers from the systemic change community. Now that the dust has settled, we would like to share some key takeaways, attendee feedback, and future conference plans to continue to build momentum for our community to thrive with change. More

From Civic Engagement to Civic Courage—Science Education's Next Chapter


Posted: Jun 8 2023 by

Eliza Jane Reilly
National Center for Science and Civic Engagement
Eliza Jane Reilly, Executive Director, National Center for Science and Civic Engagement

Change Topics (Working Groups): Guiding Theories, Equity and Inclusion
Target Audience: College/University Staff, Non-tenure Track Faculty, Tenured/Tenure-track Faculty, Institution Administration, Graduate Students, Post-doctoral Fellows
Program Components: Professional Development:Diversity/Inclusion, Pedagogical Training, Supporting Students:Student Engagement, Outreach:Inter-Institutional Collaboration

It is hard to escape the fact that the relationship of evidence-based or scientific thinking to civic life in a democracy--which had been acknowledged by the science advocacy community for over a century--has attained a new urgency in the age of fake news and alternative facts. Recently a colleague remarked that the project I helped found and now lead, Science Education for New Civic Engagements and Responsibilities (SENCER) "was ahead of its time," and I've been reflecting on that idea. Historians love to quote the philosopher Kierkegaard who observed, "we live forward, but understand backward." And I've spent a lot of time this year trying to "understand backward" the broader cultural and educational context that produced SENCER to consider whether SENCER was indeed "ahead," or more accurately an embodiment of the best thinking available in its own time.[1]  I'm especially concerned with considering what elements of our collective past can support a future of civically and socially-engaged learning in science, despite a dramatically altered academic landscape. This changed landscape includes the precarity of faculty status and autonomy, the contraction of institutional finances, unprecedented student needs and expectations, and frankly, the decline of administrative leadership in the face of political pressure, which has provided much less space for creativity and academic innovation. More

Happy National Mentoring Month!


Posted: Jan 31 2023 by

Patricia Marsteller
Emory University
Patricia Marsteller, Emory University

Change Topics (Working Groups): Change Leaders, Equity and Inclusion
Target Audience: College/University Staff, Non-tenure Track Faculty, Tenured/Tenure-track Faculty, Institution Administration, Graduate Students, Post-doctoral Fellows
Program Components: Professional Development:Advising and Mentoring, Diversity/Inclusion, Supporting Students:Mentoring Program

Since Odysseus left Mentor in charge of his family, estates, and his son, the art and science of mentoring has been critical to guiding career and educational development. Like Mentor, I aim to be a wise and trusted counselor, guide, guardian, and teacher or as the title of a widely read book indicates, an Adviser, Teacher, Role Model, Friend (National Academies of Sciences, 1997). I have learned that mentoring is an alliance between people and that both mentors and mentees benefit from agreements about how the relationship will evolve and how to include social support, career development, and growth. With faculty, graduate students, and undergraduates, mentoring often involves getting to know the whole person, their aims and aspirations, and their qualms about the future. Connecting students to the right resources or empowering them to bring up difficult questions with their faculty or research mentors requires that you be open, listen carefully, and know them as persons. More

Transforming Institutions Takeaways


Posted: Jun 24 2021 by

Rachel Renbarger
Western Michigan University
Rachel Renbarger, Western Michigan University

Change Topics (Working Groups): Guiding Theories, Change Leaders, Assessment, Policy, Costs and Benefits, Equity and Inclusion, Faculty Evaluation
Target Audience: In-Service K12 Teachers, College/University Staff, Non-tenure Track Faculty, Tenured/Tenure-track Faculty, Institution Administration
Program Components: Professional Development:Diversity/Inclusion, Cultural Competency, Institutional Systems:Interdepartmental Collaboration, Supporting Students:Professional Preparation, Outreach:Policy Change, Inter-Institutional Collaboration

Last week concluded the 2021 Transforming Institutions Conference that marked the 10th year of convening like-minded change leaders. The event was a rousing success; we had over 250 participants from at least 3 continents with over 40 concurrent presentations, 60+ posters, and 4 workshops containing research-based strategies for improving higher education. What did we learn from such an amazing event? More

Implementing Integrated Comprehensive Student Programs in STEM: Challenges and Facilitators from the CSU STEM Collaboratives


Posted: Mar 21 2018 by
Elizabeth Holcombe
Indiana University-Bloomington
Elizabeth Holcombe, University of Southern California
Change Topics (Working Groups): Guiding Theories, Equity and Inclusion
Target Audience: College/University Staff, Non-tenure Track Faculty, Tenured/Tenure-track Faculty, Institution Administration
Program Components: Institutional Systems:Strategic Planning, Supporting Students:Mentoring Program, Academic Support

In my last post, I described the benefits of integrated support programs for underrepresented students in STEM. These integrated programs bridge organizational silos and build a unified community of support, in which faculty and staff work together to break down barriers to student success. The campuses that participated in the CSU STEM Collaboratives project saw increased student success and other organizational benefits as a result of creating integrated programs.

While integration across functional areas represents a promising strategy for supporting student success, it represents a new way of working in higher education. Implementing integrated programs presents some unique challenges that may not be evident when implementing other types of interventions. In this post, I will briefly discuss a few of these challenges, as well as some strategies that STEM Collaboratives campuses used to overcome them. More

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