Engaged Learning and Mentoring
BOLDLY ELON will magnify the transformative power of student- and learning-centered relationships. With Elon’s characteristic drive for continual improvement, we will deepen engaged learning, providing every student with access to high-impact experiences. Through a groundbreaking mentoring model, students will learn to build developmental networks that include peers, staff and faculty, as well as others beyond the university.
This lifelong constellation of mentors will emerge as a hallmark of an Elon education, engaging all students in developing essential skills and fluencies – writing, speaking, creative problem solving, collaboration, intercultural learning, data competency, media literacy, ethics and personal and professional agility.
Objectives and Progress
Last updated: December 2024
Objectives
- Create a four-year mentoring model, teaching every student to build a network of mentors, including peers, faculty, staff and others beyond the university.
- Provide financial resources to ensure all students have access to internships.
- Achieve 100 percent participation in course-embedded undergraduate research and engage one-third of undergraduates in one-on-one, deeply mentored undergraduate research.
- Deepen our #1-ranked study abroad program, making it accessible to all students and increasing students’ acquisition of second languages.
- Advance a national model of civic engagement that prepares all students to be active participants in local communities.
- Promote leadership development through peer mentoring, student employment and student organizations.
- Provide all students the opportunity to work closely with faculty or staff members to design and complete deep and culminating signature projects.
- Endow the Center for Engaged Learning as it becomes the leading international center for research on engaged learning.
Key:
- Developing
- Progressing
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Progress Report
- Elon has completed seven pilot programs in support of its mentoring initiative, exploring different approaches to enhancing mentoring connections. A Mentoring in Meaningful Relationships Summit brought together teams from multiple institutions to share and learn about approaches to mentoring.
- Elon regained its IIE Open Door’s #1 ranking for study abroad in 2023 and is ranked #2 in the nation for study abroad by U.S. News and World Report. Five new sections have been added to Winter Term study abroad opportunities for 2025. To expand the number of programs available in the future, the Global Education Curriculum Committee (GECC) is streamlining the faculty program proposal process.
- For the first time in nearly 15 years, Elon launched a Study Abroad Fair during International Education Week, which included providers, partner universities, and on-campus offices that work with study abroad students.
- We continue to progress on the Global Education Center’s 52-point Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion plan. The GEC is creating programs to serve students in majors and with identities that are historically underrepresented in study abroad. For example, a program for nursing students is being launched in Cuba in Winter Term 2025, a new Business Fellows semester track will be offered in Sydney, Australia, and a replacement center for Shanghai is planned to be launched for Fall 2025.
- A working group developed characteristics for Elon course-embedded research and will develop recommendations to expand to 100 percent participation in course-embedded undergraduate research.
- Progress is being made on providing access to students with financial need to complete internships. In the spring of 2024, the Women of Elon Network chose endowment growth for internships as its primary philanthropic priority, and since then, $700,000 has been raised toward a 2026 goals of $2.5 million in endowment for this purpose. Additionally, annual giving opportunities have been created as well.
