Being involved in an internship opportunity has proven to enhance the educational experience for LU students. Experiential learning also provides the skills that employers are looking for from our graduates. If you are looking for quality opportunities for your students or want to learn more about the current program, register to attend the Student Internships: Present and Future of Experiential Learning faculty development workshop this Wednesday (April 4). In this session, Deidra Mayer will facilitate a discussion about best practices, current legal issues surrounding internships, as well as the support offered through Career Services. Join us for what promises to be an enlightening workshop about this terrific opportunity. The session begins at 1:30 PM and will be held in the CT+LE Commons located on the 6th floor of the Mary & John Gray Library (MJGL) behind the CT+LE suite. The Campaign for the Future of Higher Education has released its debut report which is focused on the “completion agenda” and its heavy emphasis on workforce development, a fixation that the report said threatens academic quality and student access, as well as social mobility. The report, dubbed "Closing the Door, Increasing the Gap: Who's not going to (community) college?" focused on California, where a state task force has successfully pushed for the system to prioritize students who appear most likely to earn a credential. “Policy makers are narrowing the focus of community colleges to fulfilling a short-term work-force development role that prepares workers for relatively low-wage jobs rather than bachelor degree programs into which students could transfer,” according to the center. “This rebooting and narrowing of the community college mission to the lower rungs of that economy works against expansion of the middle class and building a strong economy.” The report said the reason community colleges are being forced to turn away students is simple: They don’t have enough money because of state and federal disinvestment. The 2012 U.S. Professors of the Year Awards Program—sponsored by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and the Council for Advancement and Support of Education—is accepting nominations for outstanding undergraduate teachers. The program, now in its 32nd year, is the only national initiative that focuses solely on excellent undergraduate teaching and mentoring. The program is open to educators in all types of undergraduate settings nationwide—public and private, two- and four-year institutions. Four national winners will each receive $5,000 and an all-expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C., including an invitation to speak at the 2012 awards luncheon in November. State winners will receive complimentary attendance for two at the luncheon, along with recognition at the event and in the media. National and state award winners will also be honored at an early-evening congressional reception. Entries are due by Friday, April 16, 2012.