Universal Design for Learning (UDL) 3.0 for Upper‑Level STEM Teaching
The S-STEM Grant Faculty Professional Development is part of the BELONG in STEM program, a five-year initiative funded by a $2 million NSF grant. This program provides merit scholarships and academic support to high-achieving, low-income STEM students. Recognizing that STEM faculty are often hired for their subject-matter expertise rather than their teaching skills, the Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning (CITL) offers compensated, grant-funded ongoing faculty professional development to the program. This initiative aims to support inclusive and effective STEM teaching by leveraging CITL's existing teaching support.
CITL's pedagogical specialists and teaching development experts collaborate with upper-level STEM faculty to create learning environments where all students can access rigorous content, overcome challenges, and succeed. Using the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) 3.0 framework, the program offers a cohesive three‑workshop series and ongoing course redesign support focused on removing barriers to access, sustaining motivation and mastery, and building students’ strategic and self‑directed learning skills. Through a multi‑year cohort model, faculty collaborate to strengthen inclusive, high‑impact STEM teaching that supports student success both in the classroom and beyond.
In support of the S‑STEM grant’s goals of advancing equity, persistence, and academic success among upper-level STEM students, this professional development initiative offers a structured, multi‑year faculty learning program grounded in the Universal Design for Learning (UDL) 3.0 framework.
The program supports faculty who teach upper division undergraduate STEM courses in designing learning environments that expand access to rigorous STEM content, strengthen students’ sense of belonging, and cultivate long‑term strategic learning skills—without diluting academic standards.
The S‑STEM Faculty Professional Development program consists of a three-workshop sequence, supported by course redesign time, instructional design consultation and a faculty learning community.
Across the series, faculty learn strategies for:
The workshops are designed for faculty teaching upper‑level undergraduate STEM students, many of whom balance coursework with employment, caregiving, financial pressure and variable prior preparation.
The S‑STEM Faculty Professional Development initiative aims to:
Learn more about each of the faculty workshops.
Early‑semester course decisions that shape clarity, belonging, and cognitive access.
Students encounter fewer invisible barriers and experience early success and clarity.
Making the First Weeks Count: STEM Course Design for Clarity, Access and Belonging
This session supports faculty in making intentional early semester course design decisions that foster belonging, clarity and cognitive access. Faculty explore practical strategies to clarify expectations, reduce unnecessary cognitive load, and present content in multiple formats (such as text, visuals, guided notes, and captions). The workshop emphasizes designing courses that welcome diverse student identities, make explicit expectations for background knowledge, and offer flexible pathways for engagement and participation. The focus is on equipping faculty with evidence-based approaches that proactively address common barriers and support early success in upper‑level STEM courses.
Supporting student motivation, conceptual understanding, and persistence through complex STEM material.
Students experience clearer pathways to mastery and sustained engagement.
Keeping Students Engaged When It Gets Hard: Instructional Design for STEM Persistence
Building on early‑semester access, this second session supports faculty in sustaining student motivation, deepening conceptual understanding and promoting persistence through challenging STEM content. Faculty explore ways to set clear goals, connect course material to real‑world relevance, and structure assignments with meaningful milestones. The workshop highlights instructional strategies such as clarifying discipline‑specific language, using worked examples to model expert thinking and offering multimodal options for demonstrating learning. The focus is on equipping faculty with tools to reduce symbolic overload and foster engagement through transparent criteria, structured learning pathways and growth‑oriented feedback.
Explicitly teaching planning, reflection, and self‑regulation skills essential for STEM success.
Students develop transferable learning strategies that extend beyond a single course.
Teaching Strategic Learning: Building Self‑Directed STEM Learners
This session assists faculty in teaching that goes beyond removing barriers to actively building students’ executive function skills, such as planning, reflection, and self-regulation. Drawing on S-STEM program data shows that the majority of S-STEM scholars, and generally upper-level STEM students, juggle coursework with work and family duties. Instructors are encouraged to consider how time, stress, and cognitive resources impact their classrooms. The workshop explores strategies for teaching planning and problem-solving, embedding metacognitive reflection, and designing courses that account for real-world challenges, ultimately helping upper-level STEM students become strategic, resilient, and self-directed learners.
Eligible participants include faculty and instructional staff who teach upper‑division undergraduate STEM courses, including:
The program runs across four cohorts (2026–2030), with each cohort following a repeating cycle.
Each cohort benefits from lessons learned and refinements from previous cohorts.
Assessment focuses on:
Cohort 1 serves as a pilot, with more limited data collection focused on the professional development experience itself.
Faculty participants are expected to:
Through multiple cohorts, the program will:
For more information or to express interest in participating in an upcoming faculty development cohort, contact Amanda Hirsch or Linh Nguyen.
Phone: 815-753-0595
Email: citl@niu.edu
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