In recent years, there has been a surge of interest in competency-based degree programs at the postsecondary level. These programs are promising for the future of higher education because they establish clear expectations for what graduates must know and be able to do, and many models have been designed to allow students to learn and earn a degree…

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University--Worldwide serves more than 36,000 online students across the globe, many of whom are military and other non-traditional students, offering 34 undergraduate, graduate, and professional education/workforce certificate programs, presented both online and via blended delivery modes. The centralized model of online…

This issue of Metropolitan Universities includes papers emanating from the work of the Community-Engaged Scholarship for Health Collaborative, a three-year (2004-2007) initiative designed to build capacity for community-engaged scholarship (CES) in health professional schools. As the core principles and challenges of CES are similar across…

Specific teaching programs in dental care for the handicapped at each of The Robert Wood Johnson grant-supported institutions are summarized. Curriculum, clinical experience, student-faculty attitudes, community impact, patient procurement, and didactic instruction are reviewed. (JMF)

Community-engaged scholarship (CES) is gaining legitimacy in higher education. However, challenges of institutionalizing and sustaining it as a core value remain. Significant barriers exist for faculty choosing to incorporate CES into their teaching and research. Faculty development programs are a key mechanism for advancing faculty skills as well…

With the introduction of humanistic perspectives in the curricula of medical schools in recent years, the role of medical history in education warrants reassessment. Examines the reasons for giving medical students an historical perspective and presents a model of the program in use at the University of Wisconsin Medical School. (Editor/PG)

A comprehensive model for student personnel education is presented. Based on student development principles, the model is a synthesis of elements of learner-centered and competency-based education. The authors present the philosophy behind the model's development, a description of its implementation in a master's degree program, and implications…

The findings of the evaluation of the three-year Community-Engaged Scholarship for Health Collaborative are presented, describing changes in institutional capacity for community-engaged scholarship, and changes in promotion and tenure policies and processes. The change process in the participating institutions is assessed using the Kotter model of…

During 1973-74, the Illinois Guidance and Personnel Association Senate constituted a Competency-Based Concerns Committee. This committee was charged with examining alternative approaches to competency-based counselor certification as well as alternative methods of upgrading the professional skills of counselors in Illinois. This workshop presents…

A model program in dentistry for the handicapped offered at the University of Tennessee and supported by a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation grant is described. The program includes didactic instruction, observation and seminar, and clinical practice. (JMF)

The Peer Review Workgroup of the Community-Engaged Scholarship for Health Collaborative developed a novel set of quality community-engaged scholarship characteristics and a resource package aimed at two primary audiences: faculty seeking promotion or tenure based on community-engaged scholarship; and review, promotion, and tenure committee members…

Communities across our nation--whether geographic, ethnic, or issue-based in their composition--are struggling to be healthy, to grow, and thrive. The production of knowledge and the sharing of knowledge by both the community and the higher education institution is the key to helping our communities improve. Retaining and valuing community-engaged…

A model of graduate experiential learning assessment is proposed, based on the work of the Council for the Advancement of Experiential Learning. Present program practices in 12 programs are related directly to the model so that sound practices can be identified and replicated in other programs. (MLW)

Evaluation of the clinical competence of medical faculty in teaching hospitals is discussed. Different approaches to clinical assessment and theoretical and practical problems in assessing clinical faculty's performance are discussed. A University of Virginia medical school system for evaluation that combines objective and subjective assessment is…

The Interdisciplinary General Education (IGE) Program at California State Polytechnic University is described in this report. The program is designed students in professional and math-based degree programs and offers an integrative-thematic approach to the humanities and social sciences components of the University General Education Program. It…