New SCUE chair hopes to increase engagement with students

Last week, Wharton junior Scott Dzialo was elected the new chair of the Student Committee on Undergraduate Education.

Dzialo, who formerly served as vice chair of SCUE, sat down with The Daily Pennsylvanian to discuss some of his goals for the year ahead.

Daily Pennsylvanian: Why did you decide to run for SCUE chair?
Scott Dzialo: I love Penn and I want to make sure that I leave Penn better than when I found it. I discovered the best way to do that was through joining SCUE and ultimately running for chair. I love the idea that you can make really tangible, long-lasting change at this school in a less visible way.

DP: What are your goals for SCUE this year?
SD: I’m really looking forward to starting a dialogue. Students, professors and administrators all have a say in this school and collaboration is key. One of the things I’m working on is increasing our partnerships so that we can really collaborate with undergraduate advisory boards and other branches of student government. For instance, we want to create more overlap between what SCUE is doing and what the Netter Center is doing.

DP: What are some of the specific initiatives that SCUE is planning to implement?
SD: One of our projects, that is in its ninth year running, is problem-solving learning. It is a pedagogical method that involves a more interactive and hands-on approach to learning. For example, say you’re taking an Art History course. Well, for spring break, what if you actually took a trip to Italy with your class and got to see firsthand what you study? You could then apply that understanding about what you’ve learned to teaching inner-city kids about the value of art.
The PSL initiative helps us to be global in our thought. We fully believe in the three tenants that President Gutmann put forward and we’re hoping to make a substantial difference not only at Penn, but locally in Philadelphia and in the world.

DP: As Penn prepares to enter the beginning phases of its reaccreditation review for the 2013-14 academic year, the Provost’s Office will be working with SCUE on a two-year self-study of undergraduate education. What is his plan, if any, for engaging the larger student body in the self-study?
SD: We’re still in the early stages of it so it’s hard to know. There will be committees that SCUE serves on as well as top administrators and we will be working very directly with the student body to make sure that we get an accurate portrayal of where the University is now and where we can go in the future. The Provost’s Office is really keen on the idea of analyzing the academic experience in an earnest way and proposing a really forward-thinking, thoughtful plan for the future.

DP: Are there any particular issues in undergraduate education that the Provost wants to use this review as an opportunity to address?
SD: Nothing is really set in stone yet. Especially from SCUE’s point of view, we’re going to work with the Provost to look at all aspects of undergraduate life and the undergraduate academic experience.

DP: Are there any specific challenges SCUE is facing this year?
SD: A challenge that SCUE often faces ­— that’s not unique to this year — is our lack of visibility. Some students don’t know we exist and yet the impacts of our decisions are seen in day-to-day life. Fall break, New Student Orientation, Pass/Fail grading and Take Your Professor to Lunch are all SCUE initiatives. Our goal is to hopefully have students be more aware of the ways that they can engage with us so that we can improve their educational experience on campus. SCUE might not be the most visible to the student body, but we’re actively working for the student body every single day.

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