Faculty Learning Communities

Faculty Learning Communities (FLCs) are small, interdisciplinary groups of faculty who engage in sustained collaboration around teaching, learning, and professional growth. They are a proven faculty development model that strengthens community, supports innovation, and improves student learning outcomes.

At the center of each FLC is the College’s Mission: EMPOWER students to forge creative, purposeful lives and careers in a diverse and changing world. THRIVE with Baltimore. MAKE the world we imagine.

Purpose

MICA supports the faculty’s continuous improvement in their teaching practice as this in turn moves the community towards improvements in student engagement, overall retention, and career outcomes. To that end, FLCs have these goals: through improved classroom opportunities and outcomes as well as student engagement and retention.

• Enhance teaching effectiveness through shared inquiry and reflection.

• Create structured opportunities for cross-disciplinary dialogue.

• Support faculty research and scholarship.

• Encourage faculty community and morale.

• Generate innovations in curriculum, pedagogy, and assessment.

Benefits to Faculty and to MICA

Benefits for Faculty:

• Professional development in teaching and learning.

• Cross-campus connections with colleagues from other disciplines as well as between Graduate Studies, Undergraduate Studies, and Open Studies.

• Safe space for experimentation and reflection.

• Tangible outcomes that can be shared in faculty contract review.

Benefits for MICA:

• Increased faculty engagement and retention.

• Innovations in curriculum and instructional practice.

• Evidence of commitment to teaching excellence.

• Stronger alignment with institutional mission and strategic goals.