Earlier this summer, we shared that 18 higher ed leaders have joined ACUE’s Advisory Board to help advance our mission: student success and equity through quality instruction, in every class. We wanted you to hear directly from a few members about why they’re joining:

“For faculty who complete the program, the impact on student learning is clear: Students in classes taught by ACUE-credentialed faculty experience higher retention rates and increased learning,” said Dr. Audrey Dentith of North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (NC A&T) at the college’s first ACUE pinning ceremony. “This is particularly significant among students of color and first-generation students.”

ACUE's partnership with North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (NC A&T) began less than a year ago and already the success and enthusiasm of these pioneering educators have paved the way for many more faculty to participate. Fast forward to this summer — we came together to celebrate this first cohort’s successful completion during NC A&T’s first ACUE Pinning Ceremony.

North Carolina A&T's Center for Teaching Excellence deserves a lot of credit for the partnership's success and growing impact. From day one, Dr. Audrey Dentith, the center's director, and her team have shown a commitment to putting quality teaching at the heart of student success. With support from institutional leadership, including Dr. Tonya Smith-Jackson, interim provost and executive vice-chancellor of academic affairs, ACUE is helping to scale these efforts. 

Congratulations to the newly ACUE Certified faculty members! We look forward to continued success in the months and years to come. 

Reinvigorate your teaching by becoming ACUE Certified. Gain the knowledge and skills to implement evidence-based teaching practices that are proven to increase student engagement, ignite deeper levels of learning, and improve persistence to graduation. Our next open enrollment, microcredential courses launch on August 6:

• Creating an Inclusive and Supportive Learning Environment

• Designing Learner-Centered and Equitable Courses

• Promoting Active Learning Online

• Inspiring Inquiry and Preparing Lifelong Learners in Your Online Course

You can contact us directly at courses@acue.org or complete our streamlined application process now.

How can colleges and universities drive student success and equity — and also tell a powerful data-driven impact story about it? 

At our American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU) Summer Meeting focus group last weekend, we heard from higher ed leaders about the types of eye-popping impact stories they seek to tell.

As our participants made crystal clear: effective teaching matters, and it is key to driving greater student outcomes. At the same time, college and university leaders need to be able to tell powerful stories centered on data and rigorous evaluation. That’s what ACUE has focused on since our inception.

At AASCU, Dr. Amy L. Chasteen shared The University of Southern Mississippi's powerful story. In 2016, USM launched the ACUE Faculty Development Institute, working hand-in-hand with ACUE to lead high-quality, large-scale research to measure the direct impact of ACUE Certified faculty on student outcomes. 

The result? ACUE partners like USM can point to measurable outcomes: higher student retention, completion rates and achievement, lower DFW rates, narrowed and closed equity gaps as a result of their investment in their faculty.

News in Brief

Faculty Focus on Belonging Can Improve Student Experiences and Grades, Report Finds

The Student Experience Project surveyed 10,000 students across the country and found when learning environments promote social belonging, students are more likely to take advantage of campus resources and succeed in college. Moreover, the project emphasizes that faculty are essential to improving the student experience and can do so with the right resources and institutional support. (Higher Ed Dive)

5 Ways Online Learning Benefited Some Students

Karen Powell Sears reminds educators of some key benefits of remote learning. For example, she believes that remote classes accommodated students with disabilities in ways that a physical classroom could not. She also opines that virtual learning places students on equal footing and is more inclusive in many cases. (Inside Higher Ed)

Teaching: A New Approach to Supporting Faculty Members This Fall

According to Andrea Aebersold, after months of pandemic teaching, faculty at the University of California at Irvine were “completely burned out and experiencing compassion fatigue.” So, she and a colleague proposed a new position: pedagogical wellness specialist. This position involves working with faculty on teaching practices with an eye on students’ mental health, as well as advocating for instructors. (The Chronicle of Higher Education Teaching Newsletter)

10 Arguments for Inciting Learning

Research shows that active learning methods are more effective than traditional modes, write Cathy N. Davidson and Christina Katopodis, who outline how the approach incites students to learn. According to the authors, active learning is rigorous, empowering, effective, accessible, and equitable. They also describe how specific activities, such as think-pair-share, are widely applicable. (Inside Higher Ed)

If a Recession Hits, Community College Enrollment May Worsen—Plan Now

With a potential recession on the horizon, Shalin Jyotishi proposes that community college leaders should see it as an opportunity to convince students to come back to school. Ideas include improving the quality of workforce offerings and wraparound services, along with focusing on “earn and learn” opportunities. (New America)