At Fort Lewis College, we are working to create the best educational experience possible for our students. But what does “best” mean? Our students want an inspirational education that fulfills their desire for meaning—meaningful classes, a meaningful career, a meaningful life’s journey. At the same time, our students want to make sure that their education and their role in it matters—that they are seen and understood, and that they can use their education to make a difference! At FLC, students find both meaning and mattering. Our “Meaning Matters” initiative expresses these essential goals.
Academic Affairs is analyzing how to ensure that students experience an education that provides meaning, resulting in increased student engagement, satisfaction, and persistence. Our “Meaning Matters” initiative connects traditional quantitative measures of student success, such as grades, with qualitative forms of data that reveal deeper educational aspirations, such as surveys and focus groups. By connecting quantitative and qualitative data, we aim to uncover—and then resolve—equity gaps in student success.
Our "Meaning Matters" Data Visualization materials can be found in our CAS-protected Strategic Initiatives folders. Our work on generating meaningful student-centered data is being supported by the AASCU Student Success Equity Intensive--we are proud to be part of this national team, working together to address equity gaps in student success.
FLC is creating new opportunities for students to live an education that matters. In these handouts, faculty share their latest initiatives that encourage students to define and then enact a meaningful education: