by Bruce Vandal and Robert Todd, University System of Georgia
Catalyzed through its participation in the NASH TS3 Equitable High Impact Practices (HIPs) project 2018-2020, the University System of Georgia (USG) has embarked on a systemwide initiative to ensure equitable access to HIPs at each of its 26 postsecondary institutions. USG has also set ambitious goals to increase participation in experiential learning via a multi-year effort at scale across the state. To achieve these goals, it is partnering with a respected network of leaders committed to the scaling of HIPs, enlisting these leaders to support faculty and administrators, and has built a data infrastructure for tracking access to and success in college courses that integrate HIPs into instruction.
Setting a System Goal to Increase Participation in Experiential Leaning
The Board of Regents for the University System of Georgia have set specific goals for increasing student participation in experiential learning experiences to include HIPs in its Strategic Plan 2024. Participation in experiential learning is seen as a critical strategy for the system to work with communities to positively impact the quality of life for Georgians. According to the strategic plan, “these (experiential learning) experiences prepare students for a lifetime of engagement by exposing them to a range of communities, making them aware of local needs, building skills to meet those needs and illustrating the impact their engagement can make.” With these broad community impact goals in mind, the strategic plan seeks to increase student participation in experiential learning from 42,129 students in 2019 to 150,000 in 2024.
The University System of Georgia and LEAP State Georgia Alliance
In order to dramatically increase participation in experiential learning across the system, USG and Liberal Education for America’s Promise (LEAP) State Georgia have entered into an alliance to work with teams of faculty from all 26 USG institutions to develop strategies to scale HIPs at their institutions. LEAP State Georgia is an organization of faculty and administrators from USG institutions who have committed to working collaboratively to support institutional implementation of the American Association of Colleges & Universities (AAC&U) LEAP Vision for Learning. Promoting the implementation of HIPs at USG institutions has been a key priority for LEAP State Georgia.
The alliance allows USG to leverage its convening power and LEAP State Georgia to activate its deeply experienced institutional leaders to assist USG institutions with incorporating HIPs into their institutional Momentum Approach plans to dramatically increase postsecondary attainment. The integration of HIPs into USG’s Momentum Approach student success strategy acknowledges that part of the system’s definition of student success must include offering experiential learning opportunities that enable students to acquire the skills to achieve their personal and academic goals.
Beginning in Fall, 2020, USG and LEAP State Georgia have initiated a set of planning, implementation, and professional development opportunities to support HIPs institution teams as they increase access to courses that incorporate HIPs. Each effort includes goals to increase the availability and effectiveness of HIPs for all students, referencing data on race, ethnicity, and income across enrollment and completion, according to the state’s Momentum Approach.
Tracking HIPs Implementation Systemwide
A further component of USG’s statewide effort to expand equitable access to HIPs is tracking student participation in those HIPs by adding appropriate attributes to its statewide BANNER Student Information System. Doing so will allow faculty and institution leaders to report and define course sections that have been qualified by their institution as offering HIPs. In addition to asking institutions to track the implementation of HIPs, USG is assisting institutions on the development of processes for evaluating whether course sections meet the institution’s minimum standards of a HIP. By supporting effective evaluation of courses against recognized criteria of HIPs, institutions will be able to more reliably determine if the experiential opportunities offered to students are of sufficient quality to ensure that all students can benefit from consistently high-quality experiential opportunities.
Equitable HIPs at Scale Statewide, Flexible Implementation
The team has designed the evaluation, implementation and data capture processes to include sufficient uniformity to provide meaningful comparability but also allow for flexibility in accordance with the USG Momentum Approach, preserving institution culture. The HIPs evaluation process uses a set of standard Taxonomies created by the USG team but promotes institution-led committees of faculty to make decisions. Each institution contains a team of leaders chosen by its Provost in the form of HIPs Implementation Faculty, supported by a stipend by the USG. These local faculty teams lead the joint work on campuses and provide the knowledge to ensure a more lasting and effective implementation. Finally, these faculty teams engage in training to adapt the HIPs transformation in data reporting and communication within the institution and at the state level.
It is expected that by Fall, 2021, institutions will have taken meaningful steps to expand access to HIPs and to track student participation to enable the system to evaluate progress toward system goals and to determine whether participation in HIPs is equitable and contributes to improved student outcomes.