How UT-Austin's Bold Plan for Reinvention Went Belly Up
Lindsay Ellis
This article provides a cautionary tale about large institutional efforts to redesign undergraduate education and the challenges of measuring what works. In 2016, UT Austin pledged to revamp undergraduate education, adding state-of-the-art online classes, redesigned curricula, and short courses, among others, to produce less expensive degrees, teach practical skills and expand access via technology. Dubbed "Project 2021" it also committed to measure what worked and adjust accordingly. By 2019, the project was deemed too ambitious and lacked support to continue. Several lessons about the impact of changes in undergraduate teaching are useful. For example, implementing regular quizzes in large classes narrowed grade disparities between students from different socioeconomic groups. Massive online classes modeled after late-nighttalk shows were hailed as a national model for using technology to deliver remote instruction and billed as next-generation undergraduate programs. Yet, while students rated the online courses highly, evaluations of student learning showed no advantage to the course delivering mode, and the cost for the heavily produced studio quality courses was high. Key conclusions from the project evaluation is that it was very complicated and lacked direction, got caught in bureaucratic processes, and was expensive.

Change as a Scholarly Act: Higher Education Research Transfer to Practice
× Change as a Scholarly Act: Higher Education Research Transfer to Practice This article offers a university president's perspective on research pathways higher education researchers ought to pursue to ...

Institutional commitment to teaching excellence: Assessing the impacts and outcomes of faculty development
Catherine Haras; Steven C. Taylor; Mary Deane Sorcinelli; Linda von Hoene

The Economic Impact of Increasing College Completion
Sophia Koropeckyj; Chris Lafakis; Adam Ozimek
While this report does not include institutional-level guidance on measuring costs and benefits of instructional improvement, it does offer helpful context for broader economic effects of student success and degree completion. Many institutions are working to be responsive to demands by the public and policy- makers that they articulate their economic impact. Arguments and data included in this report can be helpful in that messaging, and can help change leaders tie program improvement to broader outcomes, which may help to garner leadership support.

Understanding Interventions that Broaden Participation in Science Careers
Understanding Interventions that Broaden Participation in Science Careers Network of individuals: Our broader mission is to positively impact the outcomes of efforts aimed at broadening participation in research ...

Barriers and Opportunities for 2-Year and 4-Year STEM Degrees: Systemic Change to Support Diverse Student Pathway
Barriers and Opportunities for 2-Year and 4-Year STEM Degrees: Systemic Change to Support Diverse Student Pathway Report outlining career pathways in STEM, including issues of identity and belonging, instructional ...

New York State Open Educational Resources Funds: CUNY Year Two Report
CUNY Report
As of Fall 2019, the growth of CUNY's OER programs, courses, and enrollments has skyrocketed as illustrated by the following numbers: 23,661 sections across CUNY have converted from expensive proprietary materials to open educational resources. IMPACT: 469,000 students have enrolled in courses with zero textbook cost. Students saved an estimated .9 million from Fall 2017 - Fall 2019. BENEFITS ANALYSIS: .86 in savings for every of NYS Funding.

Benefit–Cost Analysis of Undergraduate Education Programs: An Example Analysis of the Freshman Research Initiative
Rebecca L. Walcott; Phaedra S. Corso; Stacia E. Rodenbusch; and Erin L. Dolan
The authors comprehensively describe how to conduct a cost-benefit analysis of an undergraduate education program, using a detailed real-life example to illustrate the process. Principal conclusion: the university's investment in Freshman Research Initiative generates a positive return for students in the form of increased future earning potential (p. 1).

SFES: Science Faculty with Education Specialties Research Site.
× SFES: Science Faculty with Education Specialties Research Site. This site collects the publications of the SFES Research Team at San Francisco State University. Suggested Citation SFES: Science Faculty ...

Connecting the Stakeholders: Departments, Policy, and Research in Undergraduate Mathematics Education
Naneh Apkarian, Western Michigan University; Dana Kirin, Portland State University; Jessica Gehrtz, Colorado State University; Kristen Vroom, Portland State University
This article reports on major themes that arose from discussions at the Mathematical Association of America's Precalculus to Calculus: Insights and Innovations Conference.