PCLA receives $250,000 from the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations
The Pennsylvania Consortium for the Liberal Arts (PCLA) is pleased to announce that we have received a $250,000 grant from the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations to enrich consortial efforts in Faculty Development, Blended/Digital Learning, and Interfaith Initiatives.
The Faculty Development Project will augment the skills of the high caliber faculty across the consortium by “building a community of practitioner-researchers” focusing on high-impact pedagogies. The Blended/Digital Learning Project builds on a pilot distance-learning project, using a robust videoconference platform at three of our member campuses, by hiring and training student instructional technology assistants to allow faculty and professional staff the time to focus on pedagogy and effective deployment of available resources. The Interfaith Initiatives Project will further the results of a workshop with New York University’s Of Many Institute for Multifaith Leadership, incorporating the principles of their innovative “Faith Zones” program into the critical work of encouraging respectful discourse on divisive topics.
If you would like further information about the grant, please contact rdiggs@fandm.edu for assistance.
The Pennsylvania Consortium for the Liberal Arts (PCLA), founded in 2014, is a consortium of eleven small liberal arts colleges across the commonwealth of Pennsylvania (Bryn Mawr, Dickinson, Franklin & Marshall, Gettysburg, Haverford, Juniata, Lafayette, Muhlenberg, Swarthmore, Ursinus, and Washington & Jefferson Colleges.) We strive to find areas of collaboration across our members that enhance the core principles of the liberal arts experience provided to the ~20,000 students that our institutions serve.
The PCLA is governed by the eleven member Board of Presidents, which is in turn led by a four person executive committee. The daily administration of PCLA activities is guided by the executive director, assisted by the program coordinator. The PCLA office is hosted by Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster, PA with employment and financial services provided by Washington & Jefferson College in Washington, PA.