About Us: Letter from the Dean

Welcome to IUPUI and University College. University College is the home for entering students at IUPUI. The work of students, faculty, and staff in designing, implementing, and assessing good programs for those students has resulted in national recognition for IUPUI in US News and World Report, in the naming of IUPUI as an Institution of Excellence by the Policy Center for the First Year of College, and in citations in Tagg's "The Learning Paradigm College."

Students succeed in higher education when they have high expectations, where they are involved in their learning, and where there is a climate of assessment-both for programs and for individuals' work.

Please join us in articulating and supporting high expectations for students at IUPUI, in finding increasing ways to involve students with one another and their learning (on- and off-campus) and in giving us feedback on our work.

You will find information for parents and family members, key partners in supporting students. You will find research reports and program evaluations. You will find descriptions of programs.

When students ask me for recommendations on how to do better in college, I cite Russ Edgerton's list of powerful pedagogies. Among them are the following:

1. Learning Communities (http://uc.iupui.edu/staff/research_learnComm.asp)
2. Service Learning (http://csl.iupui.edu/ )
3. Undergraduate Research (http://www.urop.iupui.edu/ )
4. Internships (http://www.solutioncenter.iupui.edu/internships.htm )
5. Study Abroad (http://www.iupui.edu/~oia/SA/studyabroad.html )

I urge you to consider IUPUI's outstanding programs in these areas.

IUPUI participated in the Foundations of Excellence project (http://www.fyfoundations.org/ ), designed to help campuses improve their work with entering students. This is an aspirational model. What would be the very best programs for students? What students would be best served by what efforts? Thanks to our participation in the Foundations project, we are on our way to enhance efforts here at IUPUI.

This website describes what goes on at IUPUI, particularly in University College, to serve students. We welcome your feedback. Please let us know if you have questions or have feedback on our work.

Scott Evenbeck
Dean