About Us:
The University of Massachusetts Boston's Institute for Community Inclusion is currently in its fourth three-year cycle of federal funding from the US Department of Education, Office of Postsecondary Education. The aim of this Universal Course Design (UCD) project is to expand faculty awareness around issues of inclusive course design, instruction, assessment and the environment in which the course is taught. By recognizing that no two students learn alike faculty can begin to appreciate the benefits of diversify their instructional practices. The UCD website is a direct result of faculty request for a tool that makes adding components of UCD to different aspects of a course easy and fast.
History of the Project
Project Partners:
Over the years the project has worked with over 30 different community colleges, colleges and universities including but not limited to:
- The University of New Hampshire
- The University of Vermont
- The University of Maine
- Rhode Island College
- New Hampshire Technical Institute
- Holyoke Community College
- Mass Bay Community College
- Oakland University
- Dartmouth University
- Northeastern University
We have also worked with and advised AHEAD, TASH, the National Downs Syndrome Society and the Council for Exceptional Children.
Project Resources:
The project has put together a number of resources that you may use to replicate and integrate UCD on your campus. Everything we have done is available on the UCD website (www.universalcoursedesign.org) including:
- A short introductory video on UCD
- Information about what UCD is (useful to share with faculty)
- 30 tutorials on how to use technology to incorporate UCD into your course
- Information for establishing a UCD Core Team
- Examples of UCD syllabi
- Examples of UCD strategies for instruction, assessment and the environment
- Examples of technology that can enhance UCD strategies
- UCD resources
In addition, project staff are available as consultants as you work to integrate UCD onto your campus. Please contact Debra Hart (debra.hart@umb.edu) for more information.
