Overview

Purdue astronaut Donald Williams remarked, “For those who have seen the Earth from space and for the hundreds and perhaps thousands more who will, the experience most certainly changes your perspective. The things that we share in our world are far more valuable than those which divide us."

Like the experience of seeing the Earth from the moon, when we allow ourselves to experience new perspectives we open ourselves up to what unites us. In step with Purdue’s rich history of expanding how we view the world, the Perspective Project seeks to unite the unique viewpoints of instructors, staff and students in a pioneering initiative to incorporate well-being concepts into the academic curriculum.

Experience

Students will be given reflective opportunities to make connections between their academic pursuits and personal well-being. Instructors will gain a deeper perspective of their students’ well-being and experiences through these reflections. Campus resource professionals will be allowed to share campus services that contribute to students’ pursuit of well-being. By sharing their unique perspectives, instructors, staff and students will create a richer human experience at Purdue and beyond.

Fall 2023 Launch

With the launch of the Steps to Leaps Perspective Project, Purdue instructors (i.e., tenure-track, clinical, lecturers) will now have the opportunity to receive resources and support to more actively integrate the Steps to Leaps (S2L) pillars into two of their courses. The timeline of the project includes spring 2023 application and selection, summer 2023 training, and fall 2023 and spring 2024 course modification implementation.

The 10 instructors selected as 2023-2024 Perspective Partners will receive a stipend of $2,000 and will be supported through:

• Perspective Partner summer training session scheduled for July 10, 2023, from 9 a.m.-1 p.m.
• Partnership with campus resource professionals who will assist with bridging classroom concepts with the S2L pillars and relevant campus resources.
• Community with other Perspective Partner instructors (six total meetings, three per semester).

Instructor Application and Selection Process

To apply for consideration as a Steps to Leaps Perspective Partner, please submit the following information by Monday, April 10 to Shelly Dunk at: sdunk@purdue.edu.

• A cover letter that includes:
  • Rationale for the courses you are submitting (e.g., topic, breadth and depth of potential impact on students).
  • Specific pillars to be integrated into the two courses (i.e., well-being and at least one other pillar)  
  • Initial thoughts about campus resource office(s) that could be considered as collaborative partners, including serving as a guest lecturer during a class session.
  • Tentative idea(s) for a course-based reflection assignment connected to the Steps to Leaps pillars.  
• Current syllabi for the courses you are submitting—with notes about potential points of Steps to Leaps integration. 
• CV  

Any questions should be directed to Heather Servaty-Seib servaty@purdue.edu, Will Evans evans240@purdue.edu, or Stephanie Knight stephanieknight@purdue.edu.