SENDAS Learning Communities
Learning communities are considered a high impact practice (Association of American Colleges & Universities, 2018) by helping students see connections across courses, emphasizing relevance of content and leading to deeper learning for increased student success. The SENDAS Project will initiate a partially integrated learning community model by which instructors teaching early, critical courses in targeted Fields of Interest partner with instructors teaching a paired course to develop shared components of their syllabi, contextualize instructional materials, and develop shared assignments.
Faculty teaching in SENDAS Project learning communities may be eligible for 30 hours of paid course preparation time to collaborate with their partner teacher, develop at least one integrated assignment, and refine their course syllabus. Learning community course deliverables are collected via a Canvas course. Learning community faculty meet with the broader learning community team throughout the academic year to share course developments and engage with interdisciplinary professional development.
What are the benefits of teaching in a SENDAS learning community?
- Interdisciplinary professional development and collaboration
- Learning community students are assigned to a SENDAS case management advisor
- Priority to SENDAS mindfulness and cultural responsiveness professional development activities
- Priority for SENDAS grant activities including embedded tutors and student internships
- Opportunity for grant-related travel for project dissemination
Are you interested in teaching in a SENDAS learning community? Contact megan.garvy@mesacc.edu
Learning Communities at MCC
Access the MCC website to explore current learning community courses.
The SENDAS Project targets early, critical STEM courses for a total of thirty learning communities over grant-funded years. As we make progress towards this goal, additional learning communities will be supported. Learning community payment is limited to grant funding.