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TLI was created in 2006 as part of a larger initiative conceived by a group of faculty, staff, administrators, and students committed to building community and enriching education through fostering dialogue and collaboration among faculty, staff, and students.

The Initiative was founded on the following core commitments and processes:

• To create new campus spaces and structures within which all members—faculty, staff, and students—interact as teachers, learners, and colleagues
• To collaborate and create relationships that move beyond the limitations of traditional roles available in higher education
• To link everyone within the College community to educational opportunity and the opportunity to foster it for others

One of the key programs to emerge from this set of commitments was the Empowering Learners Partnership Program. Through ELP faculty and staff were paired with students based on common interests. Both partners shared their knowledge, allowing each participant to step into the role of teacher and learner.

For further discussions of this program, see:

• Alice Lesnick and Alison Cook-Sather, “Building Civic Capacity and Responsibility through a Radically Inclusive Teaching and Learning Initiative,” Innovative Higher Education, 35, 1 (2010), 3-17.