Please consider proposing a First-Year Seminar (FYS) for fall 2022; proposals from CLAS are always encouraged and particularly in the natural, mathematical, and social science areas.

As you know, First-Year Seminars allow students and faculty to engage with each other in a small and supportive course, helping first-year students to transition to university-level learning. The student engagement provided by these classes is especially important for new students entering UI. Faculty also report gathering surprising insights about today’s students, which in turn inspires change to help students in multiple and creative ways.

Additionally, First-Year Seminars may be delivered as a Research-Focused or Honors course (or both). Additional information on these two criteria can be found at: https://fys.uiowa.edu/what-are-honors-and-research-focused-seminars.

Before submitting a proposal, please read the following information about FYS learning outcomes, guidelines, policies, and proposal procedures.

• To submit a proposal, please go to https://fys.uiowa.edu/proposals. Even if you have taught the same FYS previously, a new proposal and its approval is still required.
• First-Year Seminars should be designed around the four pillars of a First-Year Seminar: 1) Academic Inquiry, 2) Active Learning, 3) Community and Connectedness, and 4) Exploration of Identity. Additional explanations for these pillars, which offer structure and guidance for course design, can be found at https://fys.uiowa.edu/instructional-pillars.
• All First-Year Seminar instructors are expected to attend an informational session during spring 2022 and an enrichment session at the start of fall 2022. Instructors will be asked to select a spring session as part of the proposal submission process. https://fys.uiowa.edu/trainings
• Please note that there have been some updates on compensation for First-Year Seminars taught by CLAS instructors (see: https://fys.uiowa.edu/compensation and https://policy.clas.uiowa.edu/clas-policies-and-procedures/undergraduate-education/academic-programs-and-curriculum/first-year).
• NEW: The First-Year Seminar proposal form is now in workflow. Please review the website for important information before submitting your proposal. Proposals must be submitted and through workflow (all required signatures complete) by 11:59pm on Monday, January 31^st. For more information about proposals, please free to contact me; I am happy to meet with you to discuss ideas and possible course topics (cornelia-lang@uiowa.edu).
• Additionally, information is available from University College, which administers the FYS program; please contact Andrew Beckett (andrew-beckett@uiowa.edu) or Angie Lamb (angela-lamb@uiowa.edu).

I know our students will appreciate this opportunity to make friends in an academic setting and to learn more about UI while exploring a unique and interesting topic.

Many thanks to all of you able to participate.