Post date: Sep 13, 2011 2:05:56 PM
From: PRESIDENTS.OFFICE
Subject: [pim70] Memo from Adam Weinberg
Date: August 25, 2011 8:53:56 PM GMT+05:30
Dear Off-Campus Graduate Students:
As the fall quickly approaches, we are excited to welcome about 170 students to campus. As we prepare for them to arrive, I wanted to send a short letter to our off-campus students.
Over the summer we have made great progress towards three goals: ensure the absolute highest academic quality and rigor; improve the practicum and job placement process; and create an environment where experimentation can thrive. I wanted to highlight a few of the steps we have taken:
· Practicum and Career Service Support- In order to enhance the delivery of career services to our graduate students, we have contracted with two career development experts to provide career coaching and workshops. They will help us expand our ability to provide internship and practicum opportunities to students as part of an overall enhancement of services. They will also work with us over the next year to help us build an expanded career service program. A lot of emphasis will be placed on providing web-based services that you can access from anyplace at anytime. This should lead to some positive improvements for on-campus and off-campus students.
· The Academic Resources Exchange (Library)- Responding to ideas from past students, we are going to make much more of the library virtual. To do this, we are shifting resources from the traditional stacks to e-books and databases. Very few people browse the stacks, but we constantly get requests for more electronic services. For example: on an average day we have 3 people browse the stacks, whereas we have 70 students access the electronic materials. This will be an evolving process as the library staff works with current on campus students to make sure they have what they need, but you will notice some nice changes that will give you more access content during the RPP and capstone phases of the program.
· Systems Improvement Process- As an organization World Learning is undergoing a process to make sure that we are using every resource to best meet the needs of our students and program participants. Every organization should undergo this type of review every 10 years or so. The process is inclusive and bottom up. Thus far, staff have made over 300 recommendations for things we could do differently/better. The process has occasionally created some anxiety – change is often not entirely comfortable - but it is also leading to a lot of positive changes. For example: we are putting in a new Constituent Relations Management system that will improve the admissions and on-line application process. The new systems will also make it much easier to experiment with new kinds of programs, as our processes and systems will be much more flexible and adaptable.
· The Campus- We have made some investments in the Campus over the summer. This included putting in a new generator into the IC. My intent is to work with our staff over the next few months to put together a plan to do some much needed painting, landscaping and other forms of work that should take our beautiful campus and make it even prettier over the next 12-18 months.
We are poised for a year of growth and innovation. I want to thank you for all the ideas and positive energy you have put into the SIT Graduate Institute. This is a very special program that is providing transformative opportunities to people who are making the world a more peaceful and just place.
Adam
Adam Weinberg
President and CEO
World Learning
(802) 258-3357
www.worldlearning.org