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Serving nonprofit leaders, fundraisers, grant makers, and others involved in the philanthropic enterprise with news, advice, resources, and listings of career opportunities.

The Dean of Students Office supports student success by ensuring a civil and inclusive learning environment based on academic and personal integrity. The Dean of Students Office supports personal and community accountability and addresses conduct inconsistent with the Spartan Code of Honor with honesty, respect, and fairness. The Dean of Students Office responds to issues related to academic integrity, conflict resolution, student conduct, and medical leave. 
You can also find resources to support:

Dealing with disruptive students
Conflict Resolution

 

Photo by Tra Nguyen on Unsplash
 
The first day of class sets the tone for the entire semester. Student achievement is directly tied to how well a teacher establishes and implements classroom procedures, norms, and behaviors. Plan carefully for the first day of class, and implement those plans with energy, kindness, and rigor.
*note: distancing and other precautions required during the COVID19 pandemic may influence how some of these tips look in your face-to-face/hybrid classes 
Post a schedule and objectives 

Arrive early to prep the room
Objectives and agenda give students a sense of direction

Put students to work

Give students a meaningful task to complete immediately 
Set the tone for productivity to give students purpose

Assign seats

Place students intentionally so they can function as groups
Give students a sense of place in the room

Greet students at the door

Welcome students as they enter, introducing yourself
Interact personally to give students a sense of belonging

“You will either win or lose your class on the first days of school.” Wong, H. K., & Wong, R. T. (1998). The First Days of School: How to Be an Effective Teacher.
The first day is your only shot to define the terms of the class. What is the subject matter? What are the most important ideas? What does a successful student look like? Instill in the students a growth mindset and make it clear to them that they have a voice and they need to use it in class daily.
Review critical procedures

Set expectations of students, defining their boundaries
Let students voice their expectations

Teach students how to learn

Define what learning looks like in your class
Chart a path for success and give students agency

Focus on ways of being

Let the first day be about role setting
Define classroom culture before addressing subject matter

Engage in goal setting

Show students what they’ll know by semester’s end
Have students write their goals for the class

 
Resources
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Andragogy is a useful framework for talking about adult learning. While no theory is perfect, andragogy, as presented by researcher Malcolm Knowles, provides educators of adults with much food for thought regarding how adults learn, and, in turn, how we can facilitate their learning. 
Most theories, including this one, are basing assumptions on an ideal learner. In the case of andragogy, much of the theory assumes that adult learners are self-directed and motivated, and this is not always the case. Here's a short elearning module on Andragogy, and a chart of assumptions and their applications, below. 
Andragogy:  The Art and Science of Helping Adults Learn




Assumption


Explanation


Application




Need to know
“Do I need to know this?”
 


Meaningful learning happens when teachers know the learners enough to be able to show them why they should care.  


Help adults understand why they need to know something. Use diagnostic self-assessments to reveal the gaps in their knowledge and share these results with them (individually).
Think of the learners and learn about them beforehand. Who are they? What are their needs? What is their context? Start with where THEY are on the topic, not where you are. Focus on what they NEED and not just on all you know.




Self-concept (self-directed)
“Is this my choice to learn? Am I in control of learning it?”
 


Adults need to feel self-directed and be seen by others as such. They want to take responsibility for their own learning and feel like it is a choice. Adults are rich in life experiences and they are partners in the learning process. This can create a problem: If an adult walks into a situation labeled as “training” or “education,” and is treated like a student, they may take up the attitude of a kid in school: passive, with a “teach me” attitude.


Do not let participants slip into the “teach me” attitude of a passive child in school.  Make it clear that the burden of learning is on them. Let them have choices. Use self-study or group collaboration projects that involve minimal instructor intervention. Ask participants to help set learning objectives. Think of yourself as a facilitator, and set up the instructional space as such.




Readiness & relevancy
“Do I need and want to learn this?”
 


Adults typically become ready to learn when they experience a need to cope with a life situation or perform a task.
Make learning timely. Adults are concerned with what they need to know RIGHT now. People want to learn something when they are ready to and need to learn it.


Teach them what they need at the right time.
Having online self-access materials aligns well with this principle, since the learner can then learn what they need at the time they need to.
Use realistic scenarios, stories, and problems to introduce concepts.




Experience as foundation
“What do I already know about this? How does it relate to my experiences?”
 


The older we get, the more life experiences we have. These experiences shape us as people and shape how we learn. Adults have more life experience than children do, and are more apt to define themselves through these experiences.
Life experiences form the lens through which new information, or learning, must pass. When the two are in harmony, it helps learners understand and integrate the new information into their mental representation of the world.
When new information does not fit in with their life experiences, this can block learning.
 


Often learners themselves are your best resource for teaching. Use techniques that tap this resource:

Group discussions
Peer teaching
Simulations and role plays
Problem solving, scenarios  and case studies
Laboratory and hands-on learning

When new material does not fit into their life experiences, you have to help adults think critically and challenge their assumptions.




Orientation to learning
“What problem does this solve in my life?”
 


Adults have an orientation to learning that is based on their immediate needs – on completing a task or solving a problem.  This is very different compared to how kids learn by subject in traditional schools. Adults want answers to the question: “What problem does this solve in my life?”


Use problem solving, scenarios, and case studies. Start with the problem, not the solution or the information. Let them work together at solving the problem, and learn from the process.
Make use of this orientation to learning by introducing a topic by presenting the problem first.  The process of solving the problem can be intertwined with the discovery of new ideas and concepts.
 




Motivation to learn
“Why do I care? What is driving me to learn?”


In adults, internal incentives become an important form of motivation for people as they mature. These internal incentives include notions such as self-esteem, quality of life, and personal achievement. 


Find out what motivation they have, or what problem they want to solve. Focus on that.




Do you also work with youth? Think about how the concepts in this module also apply to working with youth. Most of them do to some extent or another, especially when the youth are choosing to engage with the subject they are learning about.Some of these tenants of andragogy may or may not fit well with your teaching context. If you have a rigid curriculum, then you may not having the luxury of co-creating learning objectives with your audience, for example. But perhaps you can honor their input on which objectives to spend more time on, or on how they want to acheive those objectives. 
Reference:
Knowles, M. S., Holton, E. F., & Swanson, R. A. (2010). The adult learner: The definitive classic in adult education and human resource development. Amsterdam: Elsevier. 
 

The American Association of University Women (AAUW) is a nationwide organization that provides advocacy, information, articles, and resources related to equity for women in university settings.

MSU Council of Graduate Students (COGS) represents graduate and professional students at MSU through advocacy and development of best practices.

Alicia Jenner:
Within the landscape of higher education, Alicia Jenner stands out as a beacon of innovation and empathy. As a key member of Michigan State University’s Center for Teaching and Learning Innovation [CTLI], Alicia is dedicated to making education more accessible and equitable for all learners. 
Alicia’s path to educational leadership wasn’t linear. Growing up in Marquette and graduating from Northern Michigan University, she initially aspired to become a speech pathologist. However, a conversation with a former professor at Northern Michigan University introduced her to the field of instructional design. 
“I knew I liked working with people and making connections,” Alicia reflects. This insight, combined with her extensive knowledge of educational practices, directed her towards her current career path.
After earning her master’s degree in Curriculum and Instructional Technology, Alicia’s career took her to Iowa State University. There, she played an essential role in preparing engineering faculty to teach online and to embrace online education, an experience that broadened her understanding of the ‘scale of ability’ with technology among faculty and students alike.
Now at CTLI, Alicia leads projects that are reshaping the landscape of online and continuing education. As the project lead for online.msu.edu, she’s at the forefront of building digital infrastructure that serves both for-credit and non-credit programming. .
“In everything we do at the CTLI, it’s a team effort,” Alicia emphasizes. “We all bring our own areas of expertise to advance initiatives.” Her work spans from analyzing enrollment and financial data to tackling retention and recruitment challenges, all with the goal of making online education at MSU more equitable. She has built and rebuilt online.msu.edu twice and is currently working on its third update, focusing on community engagement and developing a centralized registration system for non-credit programs to make lifelong learning more accessible.
Alicia’s commitment to equity extends beyond the university walls. Her involvement with UPCEA [the Online and Professional Education Association] allows her to collaborate with professionals across multiple regions in North America, discussing emerging trends and challenges in the field.
True to her passion for education, Alicia is currently pursuing a Doctorate of Education in Leadership for Education Equity in Higher Education from the University of Colorado Denver. Balancing her studies with her full-time work at CTLI, Alicia embodies the spirit of lifelong learning that she champions for others.
“If I have an opportunity to get out of my little bubble, I will always take it,”  Alicia says, reflecting on her constant desire to learn and grow.
As Alicia continues her journey in educational leadership, her focus remains clear: to create more accessible learning opportunities for all. Her work aligns closely with the MSU 2030 Strategic Plan, particularly in recruiting and supporting the success of a more diverse student body in Graduate and Professional programs.
Through her dedication, empathy, and innovative spirit, Alicia Jenner truly embodies what it means to be an Educator of Impact, continuously working to break down barriers and open doors in the world of higher education.

Leadership Fellows

2016-2017: Christine Pacewicz
2016-2018: Tayo Moss
2018-2020: Stephanie Aguilar-Smith
2019-2020: Adrianna Crossing
2020-2021: Briana Green & Madison Allen
2021-2022: Sarah Galvin & Amit Sharma
2021-2023: Sanfeng Miao

 
Christine Pacewicz (2016-2017) and Tayo Moss (2016-2018)The first two College of Education Leadership Fellows, Christine and Tayo, worked to build recognition for the Leadership Fellows Program among graduate students and College leadership. Tayo organized a pizza night to promote the Leadership Institute’s resources and build community among College of Education graduate students. Tayo also conducted a needs assessment survey with graduate students to gain a greater understanding of the resources needed to best support their teaching and research. He then presented these findings in a meeting with the Associate Deans. Christine and Tayo ended their Fellowship working to recruit Fellows to take their place the following year.Stephanie Aguilar-Smith (2018-2020) and Adrianna Crossing (2019-2020)Stephanie Aguilar-Smith and Adrianna Crossing worked together to identify leadership opportunities for graduate student within the College’s governance. After meeting with the department chairs in the College of Ed for the purposes of needs assessment and data gathering, Stephanie and Adrianna learned about existing structures for shared governance, graduate student opportunities represented in department bylaws, and areas of potential growth for shared governance. One example of shared governance opportunities uncovered by Stephanie and Adrianna was the Student Advisory Committee (SAC), a joint body composed of graduate and undergraduate students who bi-annually advise the dean. This Committee had never been convened. After a year and a half of work, the CoE released a call for applications for representatives of SAC.
Stephanie and Adrianna’s work inspired Associate Dean Bowman to request a graduate student advisory council to advise her office. Stephanie and Adrianna devised a plan consisting of qualifications, number of students from each department, recruitment strategy, application form, and recruitment email. Work on establishing the council was unfortunately suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Stephanie and Adrianna’s work was incredibly important for both the College of Education and the Leadership Institute, as it drew attention to the tendency of undergraduate student representation to dominate the spaces of shared governance outlined in many Colleges’ bylaws.Madison Allen (2020-2021)Madison worked with seven other women PhD students to call attention to barriers to education for BIPOC students in the wake of the murders of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd. Together, they authored an open letter to the administrators, faculty, and staff of the Counseling, Educational Psychology, and Special Education (CEPSE) department. After working with College- and department-level leadership, the authors of the letter, Madison Allen, Joi Claiborne, Andryce Clinkscales, Adrianna E. Crossing, Briana Green, Brook Harris-Thomas, Lindsay Poole, and Briana J. Williams, were catalysts for change within the CEPSE department admissions requirements and student representation.Briana Green (2020-2021)Briana decided to broaden her project focus beyond the College and sought to support Teaching Assistants (TAs) across the university with digital support for their remote learning experience. In partnership with the organizers of DISC, a Digital Instruction Support Community, based out the College of Education, she increased awareness of this support community across campus and offered a mini-series of workshops this spring semester to TAs that are catered to their specific needs. Briana Green also worked with Madison Allen to author an open letter to the Counseling, Educational Psychology, and Special Education department that led to real and lasting change within the department’s admissions requirements and student representation.Sarah Galvin (2021-2022)Sarah wanted to work collaboratively with other Fellows while retaining a focus on curriculum development for her own professional development. She worked with College of Ag & Natural Resources Fellow, Liz Stebbins, to find ways to connect graduate students, old and new, to community resources within and external to MSU. They made plans for an involvement fair to be launched in the Fall of 2022. Sarah also worked as a curriculum consultant for the Leadership Fellows Program. Her goal was to center the Fellows Program curriculum around a holistic approach to leadership and to bring disparate elements of our curriculum into alignment. She met with our leadership team and began assessing the existing learning outcomes, curriculum, and assessment plans as well as exploring content organization options. She outlined ideas for how to best incorporate leadership and wellness topics into all learning experiences within the Fellowship. Her comprehensive curriculum plan included ideas for Leadership Huddles, small groups of Fellows meeting monthly around a common interest. We put all of her ideas into effect for the 2022-2023 Fellowship, and our curriculum has never been stronger or more cohesive.Amit Sharma (2021-2022)Amit wanted to increase the sense of community in his living environment on campus at 1855 Place where a number of international graduate student families live. He started a community garden last summer and wanted to extend the used of that space. He developed plans to create a community learning space.  Sanfeng Miao (2021-2022)Sanfeng was interested in learning about professional development resources and workshops for graduate students in the College of Ed. As she explored what had been done before, she got connected to Associate Dean Kristine Bowman. This interested turned into a paid position where Sanfeng is helping plan professional development workshops. She is also exploring the idea of rebooting a professional development Graduate Student Organization within the College of Ed.