As faculty, what does changemaking mean to you?

In the United States, a collegiate education is a gift AND a responsibility. Only 1/3 of Americans earn a college degree which is often a gateway to upward social mobility—the American Dream of hard work. As taxpayers collectively have offset the price of all public college educations to create an active citizenry and dynamic workforce, a changemaking education empowers students to become engaged citizens to improve their communities, nation and world through positive actions. Changemakers not only make the lives of others better, but their lives as well as scientific studies on well-being consistently show that kindness, sense of social belonging, using your strengths, and gratitude are hallmarks of a happy, well-lived life.

How do you define what changemaking education is to a faculty peer who's never heard the term?

Changemaking is EMPOWERING students to take positive actions to make their community better by applying their professional and academic skills and knowledge.

Why do you consider yourself a changemaker faculty? What issues are at the center of your changemaking work?

ALL faculty have had the experience of being a Changemaker, and many are Changemakers every day.  I have never found even a single faculty colleague that does not have a story of going out of their way to help one of their students—that student that you helped may be a life that you have saved.  I am invested in Changemaking as it was a faculty member that saved my life in college by reaching out while I was struggling with mental health issues of depression, poverty, isolation, poor academic preparation, self-doubt of my academic abilities and career path, etc.  Many of my personal struggles are our MDC's student struggles today.  As such, my goal as a faculty member is to inspire students that they ALL CAN and WILL succeed provided that they are willing to put in the effort.  My students all design their own semester-long social issue engagement project to show them that their lives matter and can make their community better in at least a small way in a matter of a few months. 

My own personal academic research focuses on UN SDG's #4, 6 and 10 as I consult on human rights issues especially with women and children in Africa. 

To be a changemaker, it is important to care, deeply care, about each and every one of your students. Changemakers EMPOWER students to make their education more meaningful through the application of new professional and academic skills and knowledge in the pursuit of prosocial community change. 
 

What would you tell a faculty peer who would like to consider enhancing their teaching with a changemaking lens?

Welcome to the team—the world needs all the help it can get.  You are entering the forefront of pedagogical experiential teaching—this field of Changemaking--active worldly learning using your academic content-- is only 15 years old. 

To start your journey:  Pilot a changemaking lens in a single class one term.  Focus some content on a few particular UN Sustainable Development Goals that underpin your academic field and plan an initial changemaking action (Civic Action Scorecard, Academic Service Learning, student led action expanding your academic content into the real world).  And remember you are not alone.  We have an ever expanding cohort of MDC Changemakers across disciplines, and I am always happy to help your create a Changemaking experience—it is the most engaging part of my current work.