The original posters advertising the Active and Collaborative Engagement for Students (ACES) program are still up all over our campus. This program was created to be the Quality Enhancement Plan, a requirement of SACS that all institutions must implement in the current accreditation process. You have also seen the words active learning used countless times by now. If you are still wondering what all of this means, we invite you to attend one or both sessions to be given by ACES Fellow alums at the Faculty Development Fall 2011 Blastoff on August 16. Dr. Jeremy Shelton (2010-11) and Cecil Johnson (2009-10) will each have a session describing the lessons they learned during their year-long course redesign project. These are just two of the 12 sessions planned for the Blastoff. Look for an email in your box this week about more sessions including times and rooms. It all begins at 8:30 a.m. in Galloway. Did you know that Lamar University participates in the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) along with hundreds of other colleges and universities across the U.S.? NSSE measures student opinion on a number of benchmarks. The CT+LE staff are currently in discussion with several faculty about the creation of a new program that will promote continual improvement in our students' cognitive and personal development. The program will provide a unique opportunity for faculty and students to come together in an informal setting to discuss current issues impacting the world. The program, if successful, will address several key NSSE benchmarks including: the degree to which our students work collaboratively with their peers inside and outside of class, the frequency with which our students interact with faculty members and advisers and discuss their ideas with faculty members outside of class, the frequency with which our students interact with those of different racial or ethnic backgrounds and assist those of different ethnicities in coping with nonacademic responsibilities and issues, the rate of opportunity for our students to interact with fellow students of differing values or political opinions, and the degree to which our students promote supportive student-to-student, student-to-faculty, and student-to-administration relations. If you are interested in participating on the steering committee or want more information, contact us at CT+LE.