ATLANTA (Sept. 22, 2015) -- The U.S. Department of Education, in an effort to drive innovation and keep higher education within reach for all Americans, awarded Spelman College $2.7 million as part of its
First in the World (FITW) grant program. Spelman was among 17 colleges and universities to receive nearly $60 million in funding.
The College will use the funds to incorporate new teaching and learning strategies into its curriculum and student experience. It will also train faculty and peer tutors on "metacognitive learning," which can lead to an increasing "growth mindset" and other positive student outcomes.
The grant, which will be administered beginning in fall 2015, will allow Spelman faculty and staff to deepen their commitment of educating the whole woman by implementing metacognitive practices. This "thinking about thinking" process strengthens the faculty-student engagement by employing techniques that guide students to a greater awareness of their own thinking and learning.
This self-awareness will lead to improvement in students' ability to monitor what they know and what they need to learn - habits that are critical towards earning a college degree, as well as being prepared to take on the world's most complex challenges as global change agents.
The program will be directed by Francesina Jackson, Ph.D., director of Spelman's
Center for Academic Planning and Success and
Jimmeka Guillory, Ph.D., assistant professor of psychology. They are supported by experimental economist
Angelino Viceisza, Ph.D., sociologist
Bruce Wade, Ph.D., and quantitative psychologist
A. Nayena Blankson, Ph.D., as well as an advisory committee of researchers and educators from around the country.