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Experiential Learning Institute

The OSUN Experiential Learning Institute (ELI) aims to explore, foster, and promote "learning by doing" as an integral pedagogical approach for the liberal arts and sciences classroom. ELI does this by cultivating reciprocal partnerships among members while expanding OSUN's Community Engaged Liberal Arts and Sciences (CELAS) course offerings. CELAS seeks to connect students’ classroom experiences with their local communities to enhance learning and promote co-curricular engagement.
ELI focuses on:

ELI focuses on:

  • Course development and pedagogical support focused on experiential learning to help faculty create and design courses within this framework.
  • Articulating, sharing, and developing context-specific student-centered pedagogies that are uniquely suited to the CELAS course model.
  • Creating community within the network so others can see the power of collaboration and gain tools needed to create sustainable programs.
  • Connecting with the long term vision of experiential learning within the network.
  • Fostering a culture of learning and knowledge sharing among network partners.
  • Promoting program development and project cohesion.
The institute is modeled as a Community of Practice for OSUN faculty, administrators, and scholars interested in designing and teaching CELAS courses at their institution and supporting the links between OSUN partners and a global community of experts and practitioners in experiential learning.

Impacts

  • "Innovative Newark" History Course at Bard High School Early College Newark
    Jazmin Puicón, a faculty member at Bard High School Early College in Newark, New Jersey, created a history course documenting the achievements of Black and brown people in Newark. In addition to learning about local communities' less heralded contributions, students were encouraged to partner with Newark community groups to design projects that find solutions to local challenges.
  • Ethical Leadership course
    A new Network Collaborative Course on Ethical Leadership, developed by ELI faculty in 2023, approaches leadership as a discipline focused on action. Students from Bangladesh, Colombia, Ghana, Myanmar, and the US learn collaboratively from case studies. 
  • Project Srijon and Project ORCO at BRAC University
    The projects focus on improving the lives of children from low-income families living nearby the BRACU campus in Bangladesh. The children are often unable to afford formal education, so BRAC faculty are helping them finish secondary school and are teaching them important life skills.

Neka Da Costa, Lecturer, Theater and Performance
University of the Witwatersrand

“Where the Experiential Learning Institute online sessions were informative, the in-person workshops were transformative. I was so grateful to be able to embody the theory learned in the online sessions and I became a better teacher and course-designer as a result."

Elenora Lozano Rodriguez, Dean of Universidad De Los Andes Law School, Bogotá, Colombia



“We now have many instruments to reimagine teaching methods and create courses that authentically connect classroom learning with impactful community engagement.”

Leadership

Erica Kaufman, Bard College
[email protected]
Brian Mateo, Bard College
[email protected]
Caitlin O’Donnell, Bard College
[email protected]

News

“Learning by Doing”: the Experiential Learning Institute Trains Faculty Across OSUN in Civically Engaged Pedagogy
Post Date: January 10, 2024
"No Shortcuts": Course Design Workshops Help Faculty Bridge the Gap Between Classroom and Community
Post Date: August 3, 2023