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Ignatian Teaching Fellowship

Each semester, the Reinert Center for Transformative Teaching & Learning awards Ignatian Teaching Fellowships to faculty selected to teach in Saint Louis University's Learning Studio through a competitive application process.

Applications are solicited at the beginning of the fall and spring semesters. Fellowships are for a two-semester period, with course development taking place the first semester and teaching in the Learning Studio taking place in the second semester.

Our current Call for Applications can be found on the Current Calls page.

Fellowship Options

The Ignatian Teaching Fellowship supports faculty in the designing a new course, or undertaking a significant redesign of an existing course in one of three categories:

  • Teaching in the Learning Studio (a highly-flexible, technology-rich experimental classroom)
    This option serves those faculty who are (re)designing an in-person course to incorporate innovative pedagogical strategies and learning technologies. During the teaching term of the fellowship, the course must be taught in the Reinert Center’s Learning Studio (Des Peres Hall, 213).
    *Note: Des Peres 213 can hold up to 25 students.
  • Teaching a Large Enrollment Course (40 or more students)
    This option serves faculty who are (re)designing an in-person course that enrolls 40 or more students per section to develop innovative pedagogical approaches to active learning in large classes. During the teaching term of the fellowship, the course will be taught in the classroom normally assigned by the registrar for that course.
  • Teaching a Distance Course.
    This option serves faculty who are (re)designing a distance course to create engaging and accessible learning opportunities. During the teaching term of the fellowship, the course will be taught online and asynchronously.

Eligibility Requirements

All full-time, permanent teaching faculty at Saint Louis University are eligible to apply for an Ignatian Teaching Fellowship. Priority consideration is given to applicants who have not previously received the Fellowship. (Note: No faculty member may receive an Ignatian Teaching Fellowship in two consecutive years.)

Application Process

The application process for the Ignatian Teaching Fellowship includes the following steps: 1) attend a required Pre-Application Information Session; 2) secure approval of your chair/director and dean on the required form; and 3) prepare and submit a complete application.

The purpose of the information session is to provide additional information about the Learning Studio, the Fellowship, and the application process.

Faculty also may choose to attend an optional Pre-Application Consultation with Reinert Center staff prior to submitting their applications. These consultations provide an opportunity for faculty to share their ideas with an instructional developer and to ask questions about the application form. Pre-application consultations will occur after the information sessions and before the application deadline.

Applications will be reviewed by the Ignatian Teaching Fellowship committee.  Successful applications will provide clear and thorough answers to all application questions and will make visible that the location/format (Learning Studio, large classroom, online) of the course is central to the (re)design goals.  Priority consideration will be given to applications that:

  • Include creative ideas for maximizing the use of the Learning Studio, large classroom, or digital space and technologies to support student learning;
  • Contain a method for assessing the impact of the proposed (re)designed course;
  • Identify ways to serve as an instructional model for use by other SLU faculty; and
  • Identify ways to contribute to the research on teaching in innovative, technology-rich spaces.

Applicants also are encouraged to consider including collaborative distance learning projects.

Benefits to Recipients

Benefits of receiving an Ignatian Teaching Fellowship include:

  • Professional development in teaching and learning, especially through work with Reinert Center staff on course (re)design, technology integration, instructional methods, and assessment of student learning; 
  • One semester, one course reduction in teaching load, or stipend, to support course (re)design work; 
  • Use of the Learning Studio (as applicable), with on-site support from Reinert Center staff, to explore new ways of engaging students and achieving learning goals; and,
  • Opportunity to interact and share ideas with other Ignatian Teaching Fellows and Center staff.

Fellowship Expectations

  1. Meet regularly (approximately weekly during the course development term) with a Reinert Center Instructional Developer to articulate course learning goals and to explore specific teaching strategies, learning technologies, and room configurations (learning space design) that will help meet your teaching and learning goals.  (To better understand the relationship between Fellows and Instructional Developers, see the Statement of Practice.)
  2. Reflect and report on course development work at mid-term and end-of-term.
  3. Teach according to the design developed during the fellowship, in the place and format stipulated by the fellowship option chosen. 
  4. Share innovative teaching practices, experiences, and results of teaching during the fellowship period with the academic community.

For a list of current and previous Fellows and their bios, visit Ignatian Teaching Fellows.