Student Information and Application
In this program, students and faculty members work together as partners in exploring how we can create more engaging, inclusive, learning-rich environments for every student. Each week of the quarter, student partners visit and observe their faculty partner’s class, and then they and their faculty partners meet to discuss their respective observations, insights, and wonderings. This program is premised on the idea that students and faculty members can learn much from each other regarding the experience of teaching and learning, and that it is through dialogue and sharing of different perspectives that this learning from each other can occur.
What are the goals of this program?
This program is designed to:
- Foster open and constructive student-faculty dialogue to promote understanding, empathy, and connection.
- Engage students and faculty as co-inquirers who learn and work together to analyze and improve educational practice.
- Involve students with a wide variety of experiences, identities, and perspectives in creating an inclusive, engaging learning environment here at DU.
NOTE: Information on the rest of this page is student-focused; faculty interested in this program should go to the faculty information page to learn more/apply.
What’s in it for me?
Through participating in this program, not only will you be paid (see below for more on that!), but you will:
- Play a significant role in creating a more inclusive, engaging learning environment here at DU
- Gain practical experience in voicing your perspective and advocating for change
- Develop personal connections with fellow students and your faculty partner
- Build your leadership, communication, and dialogue skills
- Gain a whole new perspective on teaching and learning that will allow you to be more successful in your time at DU and beyond
How is this program structured and what is the timeline?
We will be inviting student applications for the Spring 2027 program in early 2027. We will select participants and determine student-faculty pairings by early March. If you are selected for the program, here is what you can expect after that:
- In early March, we will have an orientation for all student participants. Also in early March (before Spring break), you and your faculty partner will meet with each other to plan for your Spring 2027 partnership work.
- Every week of the Spring 2027 quarter (starting with week 1 and going through week 7), you will:
- Visit and observe your faculty partner’s classroom and take detailed observation notes.
- Write up your detailed observation notes and share them with your faculty partner
- Meet with your faculty partner so you can discuss with each other your perspectives, wonderings, and insights in regards to your observations.
- Participate in weekly meetings with the other student participants and the program facilitator so that you might support each other in learning from this experience and in figuring out how to best work with your faculty partner.
- Mid-Spring-quarter, you’ll conduct a feedback session/focus group with the students in your faculty partner’s class, compile the feedback, and share it with your faculty partner.
- At the end of the Spring quarter, you will write a final summary for your Faculty Partner highlighting the work you and your partner did together, and will also be invited to share your thoughts on what the partnership experience was like – in writing or in person – with the program facilitator.
How will student participants be compensated, and what is the time commitment?
All students who participate in this program will be paid by the hour for their time. We estimate that the time commitment will be as follows:
- 2 hours in early March for orientation activities
- 2 hours in early March to plan for the partnership
- 6 hours per week in the Spring quarter – starting Week 1 and going through Week 7 – for observing your faculty partners class, writing up your notes/reflections, meeting with your faculty partner, and meeting with the other student participants (will depend primarily on how many hours/week you observe)
- 2 hours for end-of-quarter wrap up activities at the end of Spring quarter.
How will you decide which students will participate?
We will be seeking students who:
- Are undergraduates who have been at DU for at least 2 quarters
- Represent a wide variety of social identities and perspectives
- Are able to communicate with empathy and care; have an interest in understanding alternative perspectives; and will approach this work with curiosity, openness, and a desire to engage as co-learners/co-inquirers with their faculty partner
- Have the time and commitment to follow through on the responsibilities inherent in this role and make this program a success
Our final selection of student participants will be determined in large part by the schedules of student and faculty applications (as we’ll need to ensure that students’ available times mesh with the class times of the participating faculty members). Depending upon number of applications, we may need to prioritize students who are in their junior and senior years.
What faculty will participate and how will you match students and faculty members?
We hope to find faculty members from a range of departments and class types so that we might explore how these partnerships play out in different contexts. In most cases, faculty members with be paired with a student partner who is outside of their discipline, as the idea is that students bring an expertise in what it means to be a student, faculty members bring their expertise in the discipline, and it’s the combination of these two types of “expertise” (along with a mutual desire to learn and work together in creating an inclusive, engaging learning environment) that will lead to great things!
How do I learn more?
If you would like to learn more about this program, please contact Virginia Pitts, who is the facilitator of this program.
