Decades of educational research sponsored by the American Association of Colleges and Universities has identified 11 high-impact practices (HIPs) recognized for their positive impact on student learning. Many of these activities are offered at Georgia Tech at the institutional level: study abroad, co-ops and internships, first-year seminars, learning communities, and undergraduate research. Some HIPs can be incorporated into classroom learning environments, the adoption of which the TTL faculty initiative supports. Tech students already encounter capstone courses, collaborative assignments, writing-intensive courses, and community-based learning courses. The HIPs course attribute initiative aims to build an efficient mechanism to accurately track these courses in the student registration system.
Tracking HIPs courses will allow the institution to:
- Gather coherent and reliable data to help understand student engagement and faculty offerings of HIPs courses
- Broaden awareness, deepen the understanding, and enhance recognition of HIPs as a teaching strategy
- Collect and analyze data providing insights that inform strategic planning, reporting and enhance student learning outcomes.
HIPs TAG Faculty Committee
The TTL project was awarded a grant from the University System of Georgia to create a HIPs course attribute tracking process. An ad-hoc committee comprised of one faculty representative from each college has been established to study other universities’ course attribute approval process, identify viable HIPs approaches and key elements, and recommend a process for awarding HIPs attributes that ensures data fidelity. The committee launched in September 2025 and aims to complete its work in spring 2026. Committee members include:
- College of Computing: Melinda McDaniel, SCI
- College of Design: Danielle Wilkens, ARCH
- College of Engineering: Amit Jariwala, ME
- Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts: Melissa Ianetta, LMC
- College of Sciences: Mary Peek, CHEM
- Scheller College of Business: Dori Pap, ILSI
For more information about HIPs course attributes, contact Kate Williams at kate.williams@gatech.edu