MiLEAP Learning Goals Project

Office of the Provost > Priorities and Initiatives >

The Challenge

The university’s Undergraduate Learning Goals (ULGs) were last revised more than 15 years ago. Since then, the landscape of higher education has shifted dramatically, driven by rapid technological change, evolving workforce expectations, and a growing imperative to define the distinctive value of an MSU degree. Today, we face the challenge of articulating a more current, coherent, and compelling set of learning outcomes that reflect the knowledge, skills, and capacities our graduates need to thrive.

Vision

This initiative aims to create a set of holistic, integrated learning goals that embody MSU’s identity as a global land-grant institution. These goals will align with the university’s Student Success Strategy and support the State of Michigan’s priorities for degree completion, workforce readiness, and educational equity.

Provost's Charge

Project Goals

The Learning Goals Working Committee, in collaboration with the Learning Goals Advisory Committee and the broader MSU community, seeks to:

Goal #1

Develop a set of undergraduate learning goals that reflect the integration of liberal and practical education envisioned in MSU’s land-grant mission, fostering meaningful connections between curricular and co-curricular learning

Goal #2

Ensure alignment between the revised Undergraduate Learning Goals and the Five Opportunity Areas for Student Success, strengthening coherence across institutional strategies and student experience

Timeline & Tracker

A faculty member and student learn on the piano.

Project Timeline

Fall 2025 – Launch working committee, advisory council
Fall 2025–Spring 2026 – Co-design revised undergraduate learning goals and align with five areas of student success
Spring–Summer 2026 – Engage governance & approvals
Fall 2026 – Finalize approval, pilot goals, build governance
Spring 2027 – Approve governance, develop communications & training

Progress Tracker

Executive Sponsors & Leadership

Executive Sponsors

Portrait framed in a circle. Subject is looking at the camera and smiling, seen from the shoulders up. They are wearing a dark jacket and green shirt, wearing glasses, with blonde hair past their shoulders, standing against a dark grey background.

Laura Lee McIntyre

Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs

Portrait in a circle frame. Subject is looking at the camera and can be seen from the shoulders up. They are bald and standing against a white background wearing a grey collared shirt.

Vennie Gore

Executive Vice President for Administration

Portrait framed in a circle. Subject is looking at the camera and smiling, seen from the shoulders up. They are wearing a suit and tie, with short sandy blonde hair, standing in front of a tan backdrop.

James Hintz

Vice President for Student Affairs

Portrait framed in a circle. Subject is looking at the camera and can be seen from the shoulders up. They are standing in an open space, wearing a dark jacket and blouse, with blonde hair to their shoulders.

Patricia A.R. Martinez

Associate Vice President for Division of Residential and Hospitality Services

Portrait framed in circle. Subject is looking at the camera and can be seen from the shoulders up, while wearing a suit and tie with short, dark hair. They are standing against a grey backdrop.

Mark Largent

Vice Provost and Dean of Undergraduate Education

Leadership

Emily Conroy-Krutz

Strategic Curricular Lead - Learning Goals Project & MiLEAP Grant Principal Investigator (PI)
Professor, Department of History, College of Social Science

Portrait framed in a circle. Subject is looking at the camera and can be seen from the shoulders up. They are wearing a grey jacket with a black turtle neck, with blonde hair down past their shoulders, standing against a tan backdrop.

Renee Miller Zientek

Strategic Co-Curricular Lead - Learning Goals Project & MiLEAP Grant Co-PI
Executive Director, Center for Community Engaged Learning (CCEL)

Portrait in a circle frame. Subject is looking at the camera and smiling, seen from the shoulders up. They are wearing glasses and a plaid shirt, against a grey background.

Stephen Thomas

Operational Curricular Lead - Learning Goals Project & MiLEAP Grant Co-PI
Interim Associate Dean for Curriculum in Undergraduate Education
Associate Director, CISGS

Portrait in a circle frame. Subject is seen from the shoulders up wearing dark glasses and smiling at the camera. Their hair is cut short and they are against a blue background.

Helena Gardner

Operational Co-Curricular Lead - Learning Goals Project & MiLEAP Grant Co-PI
Director, Residence Education and Housing Services (REHS)

Portrait in a circle frame. Subject is smiling while looking at the camera, seen from the shoulders up. Their hair is brown and down to their shoulders and they are standing against a dark background.

Renata Opoczynski

MSU MiLEAP Grants Executive Manager (Transfer, Retention, Learning Goals)
Assistant Provost, Undergraduate Student Success
Undergraduate Education

Portrait in a circle frame. Subject is seen from the shoulders up. They are smiling while looking at the camera, with blonde hair to their shoulders while wearing a dark blazer with a teal shirt against a dark backdrop.

Amy Martin

MiLEAP Learning Goals Project Oversight
Associate Dean - Student Success Strategic Initiatives
Undergraduate Education

Portrait in a circle frame. Subject is looking at the camera and smiling. They are seen from the shoulders up, and are wearing a suit jacket with a white shirt a blue-green tie. Their hair is short and dark and they have a beard. They are standing in a building with the background blurred.

Wasek Sazzad

MiLEAP Learning Goals Project Manager
Project Manager - Student Success Initiatives
Undergraduate Education

Working Committee

Ben Oberdick, Librarian, MSU Libraries
Brandy Ellison, Director, Assistant Professor, Integrative Studies, Social Science
Chastity Warren, Assistant Professor, College of Nursing
Coree Newman Coronado, Associate Director, Residence Education and Housing Services (REHS)/Residential and Hospitality Services (RHS)
Ellen Moll, Assistant Dean for Undergraduate Studies, College of Arts & Letters
Heather Shea, Director of Pathways Persistence Programs, Undergraduate Education
Jeff Judge, Assistant Dean of Undergraduate Affairs, James Madison College
Josh Turchan, Clinical Psychologist, MSU Counseling & Psychiatric Services
Julie Koehler, Assistant Professor, Center for Integrative Studies in the Arts & Humanities
Jun Fu, Specialist-Research RHS, Office of the Associate VP
Opal Leeman Bartzis, Assistant Dean for Global Learning and Innovation & Executive Director of Education Abroad, Center for Global Learning and Innovation
Patti Stewart, Director of Education and Development Programs, Inclusive Excellence and Impact
Rebecca Jordan, Professor and Chairperson, College of Agriculture & Natural Resources, Department of Community Sustainability
Sarah Esler, Director, Spartan Experience Record
Stratton Lee, Director, University Advising
Su Webster, Director, Office of Community, Student Affairs and Government Relations
Victoria Morris, Assistant Director, Career Services Network

Advisory Council

Amanda Idema, Assistant Dean, Undergraduate Studies, College of Engineering
Allyn Shaw, Assistant Vice President, Student Development and Leadership and Dean of Students
Amy Greenberg, Director of Student Success, Office of Medical Education Research and Development, College of Human Medicine
Angela Montie, Director of Student-Athlete Development
Ariel Arnold, Student Life Manager
Bess German, Assistant Dean, Honors College
Beth Judge, Director, Experiential Learning
Chamara Kwakye, Assistant Professor - African American and African Studies, College of Arts & Letters
Christina Bridges, Retention Manager, Undergraduate Education
Daniel Bergan, Associate Professor, Director of Master's Studies, College of Communication Arts and Sciences
David Bayliss, Assistant Professor, Center for Integrative Studies, College of Social Science
Davide Norde, Assistant Director, Spartan One-Stop
Debra Stieve, Assistant Professor and RN to Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) Program Coordinator, College of Nursing
Ebony Green, Associate Dean, University Advising
Elyse Aurbach, Assistant Provost, Office of University Outreach and Engagement (UOE)
Emily Gerkin Guerrant, Vice President and Chief Communications Officer
Erica Tobe, Assistant Professor, Department of Human Development and Family Studies, College of Social Sciences
Erin Carter, Chief of Staff, Residential and Hospitality Services
Estrella Torrez, Associate Professor, Residential College in the Arts and Humanities
Filomena Nunes, Professor, Department of Physics & Astronomy, College of Natural Science
Inge Stelitz, Associate Director, Office for Education Abroad
Jeana-Dee Allen, Academic Specialist, Experiential Learning, College of Communication Arts and Sciences
Jorhie Beadle, Interim Program Director, Residential Initiative on the Study of the Environment (RISE)
Josh Durbin, Senior Associate Director, Care and Intervention, Office of Student Support and Accountability
Karin Hanson, Director, Career Services Network
Kathryn Harding, ASMSU President
Keith Williams, Executive Director, Office of Financial Aid
Kenneth Prouty, Associate Professor, Musicology and Jazz Studies, College of Music
Kristin Traskie, Executive Director, Health Promotion, Engagement, Accessibility and Accommodations
Kyle Carter, Assistant Director, Residence Education
Laleah Fernandez, Associate Director, Institutional Research
Lance Sharp, Associate Director, Spartan Experiences
Laura Bix, Associate Dean - College of Agriculture and Natural Resources and Professor & Interim Director - School of Packaging
Laurel Ofstein, Associate Professor, Management and Senior Director, Burgess Institute for Entrepreneurship & Innovation
Lauren Pelon, President, Residence Halls Association
Maggie Harris, Assistant Director, Internships & Career Education, College of Arts & Letters
Maria O'Connell, UIA Fellow & Student Success Strategic Initiatives Manager, Undergraduate Education
Marisa Brandt, Associate Professor, Lyman Briggs College
Melanie Cooper, Professor, College of Natural Science
Monica Mills, Engagement & Assessment Educator Development Specialist, Center for Teaching and Learning Innovation
Nwando Achebe, Associate Dean, Access, Faculty Development, and Strategic Implementation, College of Social Science
Portia Watkins, Assistant Dean, Transitions & Transfer Student Success
Rachel Minkin, Associate Dean, Teaching and Learning, University Libraries
Rebecca Dean, Director of Assessment and Data Analytics, Undergraduate Education
Rob Glew, Senior Associate Dean, Academic Programs, International Studies and Programs
Sam Carrell, Registrar, Office of the Registrar
Shannon Lynn Burton, University Ombudsperson
Stacia Moroski-Rigney, Assistant Provost, Accreditation, Assessment, Curriculum, and Compliance
Terah Venzant Chambers, Professor, Department of Educational Administration, College of Education
Terance Brown, Assistant Director, Office of Admissions

Engagement

Mini-Survey 2: Connection: Your Work with Students and MSU Undergraduate Learning Goals

Contribute to ongoing input by participating in the monthly mini-surveys. These brief surveys provide insight and data to inform the Learning Goals Working Group’s deliberations.

Mini Survey 2: Connection: Your Work with Students and MSU Undergraduate Learning Goals

Complete Mini-Survey 2

Feedback Survey for Learning Goals Project Leads

Share general feedback with the Learning Goals Project Leads by completing the Feedback Survey. Submitting the survey will also add you to future email updates about the project: Feedback Survey for Learning Goals Project Leads.

Feedback Survey

Mini-Survey 1: Familiarity, Usage, Alignment, and Gaps in ULGs

Contribute to ongoing input by participating in the monthly mini-surveys. These brief surveys provide insight and data to inform the Learning Goals Working Group’s deliberations.

Mini-Survey 1: Familiarity, Usage, Alignment, and Gaps in ULGs

Complete Mini-Survey 1

Anonymous Survey for Feedback and Suggestions

Feel welcome to engage in the conversation around the development of MSU’s Undergraduate Learning Goals (ULGs) by sharing your feedback via this Anonymous Survey.

Anonymous Feedback

Get in touch

Email

Wasek Sazzad
Project Manager - MiLEAP Learning Goals
LG.Initiative@msu.edu

Phone

(517) 353-5380

On Campus

Michigan State University
426 Auditorium Road, Room 345
East Lansing, MI 48824