Initial campus conversations with 90 campus leaders

-SOTL needed support

-RFP resulted in 9 funded SOTL projects

Sample research question: Do new teaching methods in introductory engineering affect students’ learning?

Support for SOTL teams includes these elements:

-$5,000 per team for student time, equipment, supplies, faculty time

-Consulting with methodology experts

-Group meetings 2x/semester for mutual support

-Help in dissemination of results

Notre Dame’s approach – to develop a community of scholars and define SOTL by example – is similar to the approach in Bloomington. The impediments are similar too … like faculty reluctance to engage in a scholarship for which they feel they have no training.

The Notre Dame SOTL initiative features faculty research projects, campus conversations, and a Carnegie Scholar. Barbara Walvoord and her team of “experts” provide support to investigators in regional institutions as well as at Notre Dame. E-mail to Barbara