Press Release

Debra Humphreys
Vice President for Communications and Public Affairs
202-387-3760 ext. 422
Humphreys@aacu.org     

Three New Faculty Fellows Appointed for Spring Semester 

Fellows working at American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, NeighborWorks, and Council on State Taxation

Washington, DC—February 6, 2006—The Washington Internship Institute (WII) and the Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) have announced the appointments of faculty fellows for the Spring 2006 semester.  Lynn Bachelor is professor and chair of political science and public administration at the University of Toledo and is spending her semester with NeighborWorks.  Laura L. Behling is a professor of English at Gustavus Adolphus College in Minnesota and is spending her semester at the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE).  Sandra Bland is an accounting professor at Bemidji State University in Minnesota and is spending her semester with the Council on State Taxation.

The WII Faculty Fellows Internship Program is co-sponsored by AAC&U and enables faculty to broaden their professional, disciplinary, and personal horizons, reinvigorating their own work as scholars, teachers, and educational leaders. Fellows spend one full semester in a challenging professional environment in the Washington, DC, area. In collaboration with local leaders, faculty fellows investigate applied areas of knowledge, develop skills, and explore the systems and policies of their host organizations or agencies. Through these professional internship experiences, fellows gain new insights into how the aims of liberal education can be enhanced by high-quality experiential learning programs.

Dr. Bachelor’s extensive background in community development working with organizations such as the Community Outreach Partnership Center, and Habitat for Humanity, among many others, will enrich her time with NeighborWorks. During the semester, Dr. Bachelor hopes to increase her practical knowledge of community development strategies, explore institutional arrangements that foster university-community engagement, identify strategies for expanding student internships and professional development programs, and become better informed about professional competencies required of students.  Dr. Bachelor received her undergraduate degree at Mount Holyoke College, her master’s in political science at the University of New Hampshire, and her doctorate in political science at the University of Chicago.

Dr. Behling has worked at three liberal arts colleges during her career and spent a semester at Palacky University in the Czech Republic as a visiting Fulbright Lecturer.  She has a deep commitment to student learning and campus leadership, and during her semester with AACTE, Dr. Behling hopes to gain knowledge about the connections between politics and the humanities. Dr. Behling received her undergraduate degree from Kalamazoo College, master's in journalism from Boston University, and her master’s and doctorate in English and American literature from The Claremont Graduate School.

Dr. Bland hopes that the experience and knowledge she gathers from the Council on State Taxation will be incorporated into her curriculum and enhance her teaching effectiveness. She is particularly interested in understanding how Federal tax laws are made.  She would like to be able to incorporate the most current global accounting practices into her classes to provide a more challenging educational experience for her students so that they can become better prepared for their chosen professions.  Dr. Bland received her undergraduate degree in English, the MBA in Accounting from Eastern Illinois University and her doctorate from Illinois State University.

“I am always amazed by the transformative experiences that the internships provide for the fellows,” says WII President Mary Ryan. “The fellows are able to use their vast knowledge in their discipline and apply it to the national agenda.  They model and practice the best principles of liberal education – issues on developing intellectual and practical skills across-the-curriculum; cultivating social responsibility and civic engagement; and, fostering integrative and culminating learning.  The internships do all of that and more!”

For information about the program, see www.wiidc.org/faculty-about.shtml. For more information about AAC&U's projects and initiatives, see www.aacu.org.

WII is a recognized leader in the field of experiential education, creating Washington, DC-based learning opportunities for U.S. and international students. Its highly successful academic programs include the Embassy and Diplomatic Scholars Program, which arranges student internship in embassies and international organizations, and the Capital Experience, which places interns at sites such as the National Institutes of Health, the Smithsonian Institution, and legislative offices on Capitol Hill. WII is committed to individual development through excellence in experiential education.

AAC&U is the leading national association concerned with the quality, vitality, and public standing of undergraduate liberal education. Its members are committed to extending the advantages of a liberal education to all students, regardless of academic specialization or intended career. Founded in 1915, AAC&U now comprises more than 1,000 accredited public and private colleges and universities of every type and size.

AAC&U functions as a catalyst and facilitator, forging links among presidents, administrators, and faculty members who are engaged in institutional and curricular planning. Its mission is to reinforce the collective commitment to liberal education at both the national and local levels and to help individual institutions keep the quality of student learning at the core of their work as they evolve to meet new economic and social challenges.

Information about AAC&U membership, programs, and publications can be found at www.aacu.org.