Doing it the Engelhard Way
The little-known project makes its way into Georgetown classrooms
Greg Gangelhoff and Brian Oxman
Issue date: 2/28/07 Section: News
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A program entitled the Engelhard Project was quietly implemented at Georgetown University in the summer of 2005, funded by a grant from the American Association of Colleges and Universities. Georgetown was one of seven universities to receive the grant, and the project was implemented here with the help of the Center for New Designs in Learning and Scholarship (CNDLS).
According to Mindy McWilliams, Assistant Director for Assessment at CNDLS, the program was started with the aim "to improve the culture on campus of educating the whole person." This means that personal and mental health issues are infused into course curriculums in an effort to allow students to discuss their issues with trusted faculty members and to "expand the safety net on campus."
Professors are at liberty to direct their courses as they see fit, but potential permutations of the Engelhard influence include guest lecturers, additional in-class exercises that focus on specific issues, and the participation of health professionals to further inform students.
Freshman Meredith McGrath inadvertently took an Engelhard-sponsored course last semester. She took "An Issues Approach to Biology" with Maria Donoghue, and received a surprise in the form of the additional information infused into the course. As she explains it, "Professor Donoghue mentioned the project at some point early in the semester, but since I didn't really have a clear understanding of what Engelhard was, I didn't think much about it again until I was asked to participate in a focus group to assess what I had gotten out of the class."
In order to evaluate the success, the program surveys students after they have completed the courses and holds focus groups with students and faculty to monitor the project's progress. The issue of whether to notify students beforehand that their course is Engelhard-sponsored does not seem to weigh heavily on either the faculty or students involved. While Randall Bass, the Executive Director of the program, thinks that the idea of pre-identifying Engelhard courses is "interesting and exciting," his current goal is "to strive for touching the whole first-year class" with Engelhard-related courses.
Ms. McGrath did not know of the Engelhard influence going into the course, but she says that she "would definitely consider signing up for a course if I saw that it was affiliated with the Engelhard program." This is perhaps a testament to the method of infusion used by the project: the classroom, which Ms. McWilliams characterizes as a "safe space for the discussion of issues." Math Professor James Sandefur acknowledges that students "have been inundated with this material through high school and college and have a tendency to tune out these messages." Professor Sandefur reckons that "by having a different approach, I think I get the attention of many of the students."
Ms. McGrath agrees, saying that the methods employed by the project "made the material much more accessible and relevant to our [the students'] daily lives."
The Engelhard project appeals to teachers of all curriculums-from Mathematics to Biology-and teachers can voluntarily sign up to incorporate the project into their courses. Some teachers choose to incorporate the project because it helps them succeed in the goals they already have. Professor Sandefur explains, "I was already doing some of what they wanted by talking about alcohol, gambling, and eating in my class. This project offered chance of getting support in doing this better." Professor Sandefur incorporates weight gain and alcohol-related information as models in his math class so that students are able to use real world information while learning math.
While alcohol and others substance abuse issues are a primary focus of the project, Ms. McWilliams explains that the project also deals with weight loss, nutrition and a "smattering" of other issues, such as tobacco use. Professor Bass expands the potential range of topics even further, adding "feelings of 'flourishing' as a person, a sense of purpose, sexual activity," and stress to the already-long list.
Regardless of what is being discussed, feedback seems to be positive. Ms. McGrath is grateful for the influence of Engelhard, adding that "I think the purpose of the project is very admirable-college students need to feel like they have a support system on campus."
Ms. McWilliams feels that the program has been "an overwhelming success," with the biggest challenge being that the health professionals who visit the classes-and are available for support-are feeling the increased demand.
Professor Bass also considers the program a smashing success. For him, one of the greatest victories of the program has been the temporary vanquishing of one of Georgetown's oldest nemeses, bureaucracy. He lauds the project as "one of the most interesting projects with which I have been involved at GU… because of the close partnership between Students Affairs, faculty and academic administration. It is rare to see such intense collaboration between the student affairs and academic sides of the campus."
Gangelhoff is editor in chief and a Culture and Politics sophomore. Oxman is associate editor and a Spanish sophomore.
According to Mindy McWilliams, Assistant Director for Assessment at CNDLS, the program was started with the aim "to improve the culture on campus of educating the whole person." This means that personal and mental health issues are infused into course curriculums in an effort to allow students to discuss their issues with trusted faculty members and to "expand the safety net on campus."
Professors are at liberty to direct their courses as they see fit, but potential permutations of the Engelhard influence include guest lecturers, additional in-class exercises that focus on specific issues, and the participation of health professionals to further inform students.
Freshman Meredith McGrath inadvertently took an Engelhard-sponsored course last semester. She took "An Issues Approach to Biology" with Maria Donoghue, and received a surprise in the form of the additional information infused into the course. As she explains it, "Professor Donoghue mentioned the project at some point early in the semester, but since I didn't really have a clear understanding of what Engelhard was, I didn't think much about it again until I was asked to participate in a focus group to assess what I had gotten out of the class."
In order to evaluate the success, the program surveys students after they have completed the courses and holds focus groups with students and faculty to monitor the project's progress. The issue of whether to notify students beforehand that their course is Engelhard-sponsored does not seem to weigh heavily on either the faculty or students involved. While Randall Bass, the Executive Director of the program, thinks that the idea of pre-identifying Engelhard courses is "interesting and exciting," his current goal is "to strive for touching the whole first-year class" with Engelhard-related courses.
Ms. McGrath did not know of the Engelhard influence going into the course, but she says that she "would definitely consider signing up for a course if I saw that it was affiliated with the Engelhard program." This is perhaps a testament to the method of infusion used by the project: the classroom, which Ms. McWilliams characterizes as a "safe space for the discussion of issues." Math Professor James Sandefur acknowledges that students "have been inundated with this material through high school and college and have a tendency to tune out these messages." Professor Sandefur reckons that "by having a different approach, I think I get the attention of many of the students."
Ms. McGrath agrees, saying that the methods employed by the project "made the material much more accessible and relevant to our [the students'] daily lives."
The Engelhard project appeals to teachers of all curriculums-from Mathematics to Biology-and teachers can voluntarily sign up to incorporate the project into their courses. Some teachers choose to incorporate the project because it helps them succeed in the goals they already have. Professor Sandefur explains, "I was already doing some of what they wanted by talking about alcohol, gambling, and eating in my class. This project offered chance of getting support in doing this better." Professor Sandefur incorporates weight gain and alcohol-related information as models in his math class so that students are able to use real world information while learning math.
While alcohol and others substance abuse issues are a primary focus of the project, Ms. McWilliams explains that the project also deals with weight loss, nutrition and a "smattering" of other issues, such as tobacco use. Professor Bass expands the potential range of topics even further, adding "feelings of 'flourishing' as a person, a sense of purpose, sexual activity," and stress to the already-long list.
Regardless of what is being discussed, feedback seems to be positive. Ms. McGrath is grateful for the influence of Engelhard, adding that "I think the purpose of the project is very admirable-college students need to feel like they have a support system on campus."
Ms. McWilliams feels that the program has been "an overwhelming success," with the biggest challenge being that the health professionals who visit the classes-and are available for support-are feeling the increased demand.
Professor Bass also considers the program a smashing success. For him, one of the greatest victories of the program has been the temporary vanquishing of one of Georgetown's oldest nemeses, bureaucracy. He lauds the project as "one of the most interesting projects with which I have been involved at GU… because of the close partnership between Students Affairs, faculty and academic administration. It is rare to see such intense collaboration between the student affairs and academic sides of the campus."
Gangelhoff is editor in chief and a Culture and Politics sophomore. Oxman is associate editor and a Spanish sophomore.
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