Initiatives & Special Projects

The goal of the Four-Credit Transition Initiative is to move faculty from teaching three 3-credit courses a semester to two 4-credit courses, thus ultimately freeing up faculty time to focus on research, course development, implementing innovations in teaching or developing new programs.

The Future of Work Task Force's charge is to develop principles and recommendations that will support workplace models for employees on the Dearborn Campus. The group’s work is intended to create an institutional framework to aid colleges and units with decision-making, as well as provide tools, resources, and training to support them. In addition, the group will identify key success indicators necessary, post-pandemic, to sustain workforce excellence through the balance of flexibility, accountability and inclusivity.

In Spring 2022, UM-Dearborn was one of the 4 Michigan postsecondary institutions selected to participate in the Curriculum and Courses in Urban Ecosystems (CCUE) program. This program represents a partnership with the John N. Gardner Institute to improve students outcomes in high-risk courses.

The charge of the Open Education Committee (OEC) is to explore, learn about, and support all things Open in the disciplines and fields in higher education. This includes Open Educational Resources (OERs) as well as Open Pedagogies and Open Practices.

PBL encompasses curricular and co-curricular experiences that require students to apply, analyze, evaluate, or create knowledge often in collaboration with others and across disciplinary boundaries. The aim of PBL is to promote a deeper understanding of core concepts through their application, and to provide students with the opportunity to assess and learn from natural consequences, mistakes, and successes. PBL coursework is built upon student centered projects often associated with complex, authentic problems.