A team has been chosen to showcase U of A High Impact Educational Practices at the American Colleges and University's 2021 Virtual Institute on High-Impact Practices and Student Success from June 15-18.

The team's goal for the institute is to strategize how to promote and support High Impact Educational Practices, or HIPs, to ensure underrepresented student engagement.

Newest campus initiatives include the opening of the Student Success Center and expansion of the Multicultural Center to further support affinity groups with the creation of the Cultural Identity Centers. Plans are underway to support the following campus affinity groups: Black, Latinx/Hispanic, Indigenous, Asian and Asian Pacific Islander, and LGBTQIA+. The creation of the Student Success Center and the Cultural Identity Centers function as a bridge to assist students in these traditionally marginalized populations to engage in HIPs.

The team plans to focus on two initiatives during the institute:

1. Be intentional about creating a portfolio of HIP opportunities for underrepresented and first-generation students.
2. Integrate HIPs within the creation of the Cultural Identity Centers and Student Success Center.

Tia Brown McNair, vice president for diversity, equity and student success and executive director for the Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation Campus Centers, Association of American Colleges and Universities, said, "Your acceptance reflects our belief in your team's capacity to make progress toward the goals you described in the application."

Prior to attending the institute, the team is reaching out to campus stakeholders to curate a list of HIPs at the U of A and how these HIPs are assessed. According to AAC&U, the 11 High Impact Practices are First-Year Seminars, Common Intellectual Experiences, Learning Communities, Writing-Intensive Courses, Collaborative Assignments and Projects, Undergraduate Research, Diversity/Global Learning, ePortfolios, Service learning/Community-Based Learning, Internships, and Capstone Courses and Projects.

If your work includes one of these HIPs, please be sure to contact the team leader, Deb Korth, dkorth@uark.edu  to ensure that your work is included in the U of A Portfolio of High Impact Practices.

The team chosen to attend the institute include Deb Korth, team leader, teaching professor and director of Student Success for Arts and Sciences; Stephanie G. Adams, director of faculty development; Anthony DiNicola, inclusion liaison for the Office of the Chancellor; Trevor Francis, director of student success and associate vice provost, Student Success Center; C.J. Mathis, director of TRIO Student Support Services; and Lynn Meade, instructor in the Department of Communication and co-director of Teaching Faculty and Support Center.