Grant helps Augustana revise 1st year curriculum

A new grant is helping Augustana College revise its first year general education curriculum and offer professional development for its faculty.

College Provost Dr. Dianna Shandy says Augustana has been awarded a $25,000 Cornerstone: Learning for Living planning grant from the Teagle Foundation . The funds will be used for faculty professional development and to revise the college’s first-year general education curriculum.

Teagle is a New York-based nonprofit that works to strengthen liberal arts education by improving teaching and learning in the arts and sciences while addressing financial sustainability and accountability in higher education.

“This Cornerstone grant is pivotal to Augustana’s future curricular renewal efforts,” said Dr. Shandy. “It’s wonderful for our community to receive this external validation of the excellent work that is happening and will continue to unfold at Augustana.”

Augustana faculty have used Teagle funding to create a list of shared transformative texts that will be incorporated into first-year courses for all incoming students this fall. The redesigned first-year curriculum features interdisciplinary faculty teams and vocational exploration. Courses will be conducted in a seminar-style setting with 20 or fewer students.

“The new first-year curriculum uses the humanities as a lens to help students apply critical thinking across all majors and fields of study,” she said. “It also emphasizes how big questions can be approached from different disciplinary perspectives to yield fresh insights.”

Dr. Shandy says help with the grant proposal came from Augustana faculty members Dr. Umme al-Wazedi, professor of English and division dean for the humanities; Dr. Rob Elfine, professor of music and Faculty Council member; and Dr. Brian Leech, associate professor of history and Faculty Council chair. Dr. Shandy said they were asked to work on the proposal because of their focus on the arts and humanities and their leadership roles on campus.

“It is giving us a chance to bring instructors together as we work hard to create a meaningful first-year experience,” said Dr. Leech. “With this support, we will also be able to form a team to explore new possibilities for the common courses that we ask all students to take beyond the first year.”

Receiving this Cornerstone grant means the college can apply for a higher-level Teagle implementation grant this spring, which could bring $150,000 or more to the college. These funds could be used to build on the Cornerstone grant work, including curricular renewal.

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