Lisa Saunders, associate professor of economics, has been selected as one of twelve 2018-19 TIDE Ambassadors (Teaching for Inclusiveness, Diversity, and Equity) faculty fellowship award.

Throughout the program year, participants will explore how they can enhance students’ learning and academic success across cultural, social, and learning differences by adopting a strength-based, inclusive and equitable approach to teaching and learning grounded in the value of diversity.

“I am grateful to TEFD for the opportunity to develop this work in a concentrated and focused way. Moreover, I look forward to collaborating with fellow TIDE Ambassadors and sharing what I learn with economics and other colleagues who are interested in the years to come”, said Saunders, on receiving the fellowship.

TIDE Ambassadors take what they learn from their experiences with the fellowship program and develop a project through which they share their growing expertise and contribute to the dialogue about and practice of teaching for inclusiveness, diversity, and equity at the departmental, school/college, or campus-wide levels.

Professor Saunders has participated in professional workshops and conferences about teaching economics inclusively at the national level for over 20 years. During the fellowship year, she will be teaching introductory and intermediate microeconomics theory classes, where building vocabulary and skills take extra time and effort. In the TIDE workshops, she plans to design and experiment with exercises and other assignments intended to foster belonging, competency, confidence and cooperation among students. “My main goals are to make economics accessible and appealing to majors and non-majors alike”, explains Saunders.