Faculty and Staff Mentors

Faculty/staff mentors, not students, are responsible for applying for the co-curricular ELA designation. Applications for co-curricular ELAs will be considered on a rolling basis.

Apply here

We imagine ELA approval will function much like Gen Ed approvals. Using a process and a form currently in development, units will propose courses to be reviewed by a curricular ELA committee. The form will serve two purposes:

• It populates our SIS with accurate coding information for ELAs, graduation requirements, and the Experiential Learning Record.
• It collects basic information to evaluate ELAs for adherence to common characteristics and quality assurance at the campus level.

Please note that certain elements are subject to change with on-going unit feedback, registrar and UITS technical needs, accreditation considerations, and other policy changes.

In the meantime…

1. Review EL Framework and requirements: Ensure that instructors and unit administrators understand the criteria for each ELA type and the core learning outcomes, design principles, and appropriate activity classification. 
2. Identify Courses: Unit heads should compile a list of courses that may qualify for the Experiential Learning Attributes (ELAs).
3. Assign Attributes: Unit heads should make sure that all Experiential Learning courses running in Fall 2025 and Spring 2026 have the correct attributes attached. This will prepare campus for a potential graduation requirement. See table below.

Special Cases:

• Community Engaged/Service Learning: Faculty are stronRequires review by Service Learning Program for CEL designation. Sustaining Hoosier Communities courses are eligible for CEL designation.
• Study Abroad: Follows existing approval protocols via the Education Abroad office.

Prioritization Guidance

Units are encouraged to prioritize:

• Courses early in the curriculum
• Applied/Professional level courses that support a potential graduation requirement.

Tip: Consider assigning unique course numbers to sections that consistently qualify for ELA to improve transparency and tracking.

ELA Course Attributes

There are two main categories of course attributes used to identify experiential learning:

1. University-Level High Impact Practice (HIP) Attributes: these are used across all Indiana University campuses to track High Impact Practices (HIPs). Note: Not all HIP attributes are applicable to experiential learning. A selected subset relevant to experiential learning is listed below.
2. Campus-Level Experiential Learning (EXLR) Attributes: these are additional attributes that capture experiential learning elements not covered by HIP definitions.

In some cases, a course may need to carry both EX and HIP attributes to ensure accurate classification.