Johns Hopkins aspires to develop new model for undergraduate learning experiences

Johns Hopkins University has convened a commission to examine the changing landscape of undergraduate education in the 21st century and develop a new model for providing outstanding learning experiences.

The second Commission on Undergraduate Education—nicknamed CUE2—comes 14 years after the first such initiative offered 34 recommendations to improve undergraduate life at Johns Hopkins. Those ideas focused on the academic experience, advising and career support, diversity, and student life.

The charge to the second commission states that the university's substantial investments and improvements over the past decade "put us now in a position to think big and lead."

The charge states, "Assumptions about the number of years of education; the manner of its delivery; the funding model; the range of participating students, teachers, support personnel, and more are all being questioned, and practices are already changing. Hopkins should be a thought leader in defining the nature of post-secondary education, advanced degree acquisition, and lifelong learning in the 21st century just as it served as the model for the American Research university as we know it today."

CUE2—which will be co-chaired by Krieger School of Arts & Sciences Dean Beverly Wendland and Whiting School of Engineering Dean Ed Schlesinger—will addresses the goal, stated in the Ten by Twenty vision plan, to "offer the very best quality undergraduate experience." It will engage faculty, students, staff, and alumni from across the university who will be asked to think broadly and creatively about:

• How to support and encourage students to define their own education by allowing them to explore and pursue their own interests
• How to create a holistic curricular, co-curricular, and extracurricular experience
• How to develop the pedagogy and infrastructure needed to support these objectives

The commission is seeking input from individuals throughout Johns Hopkins and invites comments via email to CUE2@jhu.edu. It will also hold a series of public events with members of the JHU community, leaders in academia, and peers at other institutions.

"The new commission is urged to be fearless in questioning the assumptions behind traditional models and approaches and to be ambitious with its recommendations," JHU President Ronald J. Daniels and Provost Sunil Kumar wrote in a message announcing the second commission today. The leaders expect the commission to provide a report at the end of the fall 2018 semester.

More information on CUE2 and its membership can be found on the Office of the Provost website.