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Strategic Plan

Mission 

The Center for the Advancement of Teaching (CAT) aims to advance passionate, reflective, and evidence-informed teaching. We contribute to Wake Forest’s distinctive mission by encouraging the development of teacher-student relationships that prepare all students to live examined, purposeful lives. 

Through our work, we hope to strengthen community, promote a growth-oriented mindset, change teaching practices, improve systems, and advance knowledge. We strive for continuous improvement by aligning our programs, services, and activities with our strategic goals and evaluating achievement of those goals on a systematic basis.  Across all of our work, we seek to serve educators from all demographics and to motivate faculty to improve their teaching. Additionally, we have identified five goals with associated outcomes to guide our efforts.

Goals and Outcomes

GOAL 1: FOSTER A SUPPORTIVE AND ENCOURAGING TEACHING CULTURE.
CAT programs, services, and activities will…

  • Outcome 1.1: encourage the development of relationships that enhance teaching.
  • Outcome 1.2: enable collaboration, sharing, encouragement amongst Wake teachers.
  • Outcome 1.3: celebrate teachers and their practices within the WFU community.

*Teaching refers to all activities (inside and outside of the classroom) that support student learning through the creation of learning experiences

GOAL 2: CULTIVATE CONTINUALLY CURIOUS, REFLECTIVE TEACHERS.
CAT programs, services, and activites will…

  • Outcome 2.1: promote growth in discipline-specific teaching expertise.
  • Outcome 2.2: increase knowledge of findings from teaching and learning research.
  • Outcome 2.3: engage faculty in reflection and iteration of their teaching.

GOAL 3: ADVANCE DESIGN AND FACILITATION PRACTICES CENTERED ON STUDENT SUCCESS.
CAT programs, services, and activities will…

  • Outcome 3.1: guide faculty to use design principles to create assignments, courses, and curriculum.
  • Outcome 3.2: promote implementation of evidence-based strategies, technologies, and facilitation techniques that support student learning.
  • Outcome 3.3: encourage the development of a holistic student-centered perspective.

GOAL 4: SUPPORT ORGANIZATIONAL SYSTEMS TO POSITIVELY IMPACT WFU TEACHING AND TEACHERS.
The CAT will…

  • Outcome 4.1: advocate for evidence-based teaching policies and practices.
  • Outcome 4.2: advance teaching initatives that align with the institutional mission and goals.
  • Outcome 4.3: contribute to the design and revision of structures and processes that support teaching.

GOAL 5: CONTRIBUTE TO THE BROADER HIGHER EDUCATION COMMUNITY.
The CAT will…

  • Outcome 5.1: contribute to regional, national, and international conversations about higher education.
  • Outcome 5.2: support faculty engaging in scholarship of teaching and learning research.