Engaged Learning Office 

Engaged Learning Office (ELO)

Since chartering in 1996, the School of Information has greatly emphasized practical engagement, or more recently, engaged learning. Launched in 2017, the Engaged Learning Office(ELO) is an initiative aimed to further enhance the UMSI curriculum through high-impact educational practices, including capstone courses, study abroad, civic engagement, and other applied and immersive educational opportunities for students that complement the classroom experience.  The office’s work is based on Engaged Learning Practices as defined by the U-M Provost's Office:

"The University of Michigan community has developed five engaged learning goals, identified key practices that promote this kind of unscripted education, and invested deeply in developing a culture of engaged learning on campus through the Transforming Learning for a Third Century Initiative."

Engaged Learning Office Resource Pages

• Engaged Learning in Courses

• International Teaching Resources and Opportunities

• Other Engaged Learning Resources for UMSI Courses and Programs

• Dataset Resources

• Guest Speakers and Field Trips

The ELO Mission

We facilitate transformational engaged learning experiences for the School of Information and enable innovative, sustainable, and mutually-beneficial information solutions for local and global communities.

The ELO Vision

We will lead the field of engaged learning at the University of Michigan and among information schools by developing socially-responsible alumni in the field of information and beyond.

The ELO Values

• Collaborative: We believe in working together to identify common goals and recognize the importance of each person in achieving those goals. We prioritize effective communication and the development of other essential skills, attitudes, and practices that contribute to being successful team members and partners.

• Experiential: We believe in the application of knowledge in practice. We create immersive, scaffolded, real-world experiences that draw upon and deepen existing capabilities.

• Reflective: We believe that reflection is an integral part of an engaged learning experience and emphasize reflective practices that foster lifelong learning. We encourage frequent and intentional evaluations of experiences to enable self-discovery and meaningful change.

Goals of the ELO

• All students at UMSI participate in multiple engaged learning opportunities that are intentional, reflective, equitable, mutually beneficial, and accessible;

• Faculty have the opportunity to incorporate pedagogically appropriate and ethically engaged learning practices in teaching and research through collaboration with the ELO and

• The local and global community engages in reciprocal partnerships with UMSI that increase information capacity and create sustainable outcomes.

Engaged Learning Office Student Programs

The Engaged Learning Office facilitates several engaged learning programs for UMSI students.  These include:

• Civic User Testing (CUT) Group: The Civic User Testing (CUT) group program utilizes user testing to enhance the accessibility and value of public apps for city residents. These include tools for mapping, open data, government forms, issue reporting, and other forms of civic engagement. The CUTgroup model aims to involve citizens in the creation of the tools designed for their use by applying a “build-with” approach. CUTgroup’s motto is, “If it doesn’t work for you, it doesn’t work!”

• Student Organization Engaged Learning Leaders (SO-ELL): The SO-ELL program helps student organization leaders establish or enhance a process to manage student-led projects within their organizations and implement this process through client-based projects. SO teams are assigned real-world information projects, allowing students to engage, practice skills ethically, and suggest or effect positive change. 

• Study Abroad: UMSI partners with universities worldwide that offer information courses taught in English that are directly applicable to the UMSI curriculum. UMSI offers semester-long and spring-term study abroad programs in various locations to BSI and MSI students

• Alternative Spring Break (ASB): UMSI annually hosts an ASB program, where students participate in a professional development experience while providing capacity-building services to nonprofit, cultural, governmental, and educational institutions during the week of spring break. 

• Alternative Fall Break (AFB): In the UMSI AFB program, UMSI students spend three days in Detroit learning about the city’s history and engaging in community service and community-based information consulting work. 

• Design Jams: A design jam is a short-term learning experience (two to five hours) where U-M students respond to real-world, societal, and industry challenges presented by sponsoring organizations. 

• UMSI Theme Year: New in 2023, the UMSI Theme Year aims to provide additional resources and depth for students’ course projects and self-initiated endeavors, connect students, faculty, and staff on an issue of worldwide importance and concern (measured in part through the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals), and use an information lens to address a large-scale issue. Each theme year features special events, course projects, a theme-specific category at the annual Exposition, and funding for students who seek to pursue projects related to the theme. UMSI partners with organizations and subject matter experts to promote shared awareness and action, aligning with the University Impact Area theme as of 2025.

• Exposition: Annually, UMSI students share posters, presentations, and videos of course and co-curricular projects, internships, and research. This event offers the external community an opportunity to learn more about the work of UMSI students and the possibilities it may present for external organizations to submit a project proposal to or hire UMSI students.

Contact Information

• ELO email: umsi.engagement@umich.edu

• Director: Kelly Kowatch (kkowatch@umich.edu)

• ELO staff and lecturer listing

Updated July 7, 2025 - K.Kowatch