Geaux Communicate QEP

LSU is accredited through the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC). A key part of the reaffirmation of accreditation requires institutions to develop and implement a Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) every five years to demonstrate their commitment to academic excellence and student learning and success. You can learn more about LSU’s comprehensive SACSCOC reaffirmation processes here.

Being able to effectively communicate is a skill that transcends any single field. It enables us to find, acquire, share, and apply knowledge. However, being able to effectively communicate is not a trait we are simply born with—it is a learned skill and one that is more important than ever given the rapidly evolving nature of our world. Communication skills are also among the top skills and competencies ranked by hiring managers across a variety of public and private sectors.

While the specificity of what qualifies as effective communication can differ across disciplines, overarching themes include being able to successfully articulate ideas and knowledge through written, spoken, visual, and technological forms. That could range anywhere from delivering a comprehensive project pitch or collaborating on a research funding proposal to authoring industry-specific reports or producing data visualizations for public audiences. These are the types of multimodal communication projects that many LSU faculty are integrating into their teaching to help students better learn, communicate, and apply course content within and beyond the classroom.

Undergraduate communication skills development was selected as the QEP topic based on evidence demonstrated via LSU’s strategic priorities, analysis of assessment findings, and exploratory activities with various constituent groups conducted in the 2022 Spring and Summer semesters. As a nationally recognized leader in communication-intensive teaching and learning, we have a strong foundation on which we are building and expanding across the campus.

As a teacher of a certified C-I course you are a valued member of the LSU CxC family. We see you and appreciate your efforts, energy and intention. Our hope is that this, QEP will provide new and enhanced opportunities to support and celebrate the good work you are already doing. As a champion for C-I teaching on this campus, you may be asked to share your expertise with colleagues as we continue to extend communication-intensive experiences across the campus to all LSU undergraduate students.

While Communication-Intensive (C-I) pedagogy at LSU is a demonstrated high-impact teaching practice, it is not the best approach for every undergraduate course. If C-I isn’t the right fit for your course content or your instructional approach, that’s okay. While you may not be teaching a certified C-I course, you likely do many things to help students learn about and practice communication, and you can encourage your students to seek the free support services available to all LSU undergraduates via the CxC Studios. If you’re unsure whether C-I is a good fit for you or you want to learn more about what resources are available to your students and how you can leverage them, reach out to the CxC Team.

LSU is committed to helping students to achieve the highest levels of intellectual and personal development. Regardless of your chosen degree path or life plan, effective communication will be at the forefront of your journey. Research from the American Association of Colleges and Universities, the National Association of Colleges and Employers, and the World Economic Forum (just to name a few) shows just how in-demand communication skills are across fields, industries, sectors, and global regions. This is why LSU will be enhancing and expanding free resources and opportunities to help all LSU undergraduates advance their communication skills inside and outside of the classroom.

Whether you realize it or not, you play a critical role in the skills development of undergraduate students across campus. Through this initiative, you will have the opportunity to build on those outcomes with intentional collaboration across departments, and to work alongside fellow staff and faculty members with the unifying goal of ensuring LSU students have the tools they need to cultivate their communication skills within the classroom and beyond.