UWG’s LEAP West Program
September, 2016
The College of Arts and Humanities at UWG is taking part in an exciting and progressive national educational initiative known as LEAP (Liberal Education and America’s Promise). The initiative was organized by the Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U), and was launched in 2005. The University System of Georgia formally approved Georgia’s status as a LEAP state in 2016, and the University of West Georgia was among the charter institutions in the USG’s petitioning group. Now a part of over 400 educational institutions nationwide, LEAP responds to the changing demands of the twenty-first century and to the necessity for better prepared college-educated workers and more engaged and informed citizens in a diverse democracy.While the demand for degrees in the liberal arts has declined in recent years, it is the professional and interpersonal skills that a liberal arts curriculum develops that are in highest demand in an ever-changing global job market. With a focus on high-quality, well-rounded education, LEAP West has a goal of creating professionally versatile and successful students who are capable of navigating “real-world” problems.
What sets LEAP apart from other educational initiatives is its emphasis on the types of critically-engaged learning and professional skills that have long been hallmarks of disciplines within the College of Arts of Humanities. LEAP institutions are guided by a set of shared principles. These include developing Knowledge of Human Cultures and the Physical and Natural World through study in the sciences and mathematics, social sciences, humanities, histories, languages, and the arts; emphasizing Intellectual and Practical Skills, including inquiry and analysis, critical and creative thinking, written and oral communication, quantitative and information literacy and teamwork and problem solving, which are practiced extensively across the curriculum, in the context of progressively more challenging problems, projects, and standards for performance; the formation of Personal and Social Responsibility through civic knowledge and engagement at the local and global level, intercultural knowledge, ethical reasoning and action, and foundations and skills for life-long learning that are anchored through active involvement with diverse communities and real-world challenges; and offering opportunities for Integrative and Applied Learning that begin as part of students’ general education such as first year seminars and learning communities and are synthesized through high impact practices such as capstone seminars, internships, service learning, and study abroad.
LEAP West! at the University of West Georgia will encourage and support collaboration among colleges and departments in the development of some university-wide initiatives like revisions to first-year seminars and learning communities. However, LEAP guiding principles can also be used by departments and programs to address their own specific strategic goals such as strengthening student participation in major and minor programs, revising capstone seminars, creating guided pathways within programs, and developing more experiential learning opportunities for students.
This past summer, the Provost’s Office held a faculty symposium that brought together faculty from across campus to work on initial recommendations for a campus-wide LEAP West! Action Plan. A similar symposium is scheduled for UWG staff in Student Affairs in September. A steering committee comprised of faculty, staff, and student representatives will be working to coordinate the different discussions and recommendations emerging across campus with the goal of presenting a proposal for an initial LEAP West! Action Plan in May 2017. Over the coming year, there will be many ways to become involved in LEAP West! Committees will be forming to explore strategic areas associated with the LEAP Guiding Principles. Discussion and information sessions will be offered to help faculty, staff, and students learn more about LEAP and to solicit feedback on emerging recommendations.
For more information on the LEAP initiative, visit If you would like information on how to get involved, please contact the Coordinator for LEAP West Initiatives, Dr. David Newton, at . Departments and programs can also request meetings to explore how LEAP might enhance their own strategic planning.