It is a pleasure to introduce myself as the Faculty Director of the Center for Teaching and Learning. Over the summer, the CTL team and I have been analyzing and integrating the feedback faculty and university leaders shared last spring as we clarified a vision for CTL’s future. I encourage you to read our new Vision and Mission Statement, which reflects that extensive conversation and will guide the work ahead.
Our new tagline, “Bringing purpose, adventure, and joy to the practice of teaching” captures an aspiration that I find deeply compelling.
Purpose: Humans—including college instructors—thrive when they find purpose in their work. Teaching, at its best, is inherently generative: it applies our knowledge and capabilities toward outcomes that will outlast us. When we nurture students’ growth, we set in motion changes that will ripple through their lives and communities. Reconnecting with the reasons we teach can strengthen not only our practice, but also our sense of purpose.
Adventure: Teaching invites us into the productive uncertainty of discovery. No course, classroom, or group of students is ever exactly the same, and that unpredictability calls us to be curious, adaptable, and willing to experiment. The adventure lies in never being perfect, but in exploring new possibilities along with our students.
Joy: Teaching is real, demanding work, and it can sometimes be frustrating or stressful. It is also filled with energizing moments of connection, curiosity, growth, and shared accomplishment—moments that sustain us and remind us why the work matters.
Whether you are revising a familiar course, trying something new, or reflecting on a teaching challenge, I invite you to let this tagline prompt a question: What might bring a little more purpose, adventure, or joy to your teaching this semester? The CTL looks forward to learning alongside you.