C-START Program Finds New Funding

The program, Carolina Students Taking Academic Responsibility through Teaching, known as C-START, was started by former student Kristin Miller using a one-time grant from former Provost Dick Richardson.

But because the funding from the Office of the Provost was only temporary, coordinators were forced to find money quickly to keep the program going.

The program is operating now with funding from the Academy of Distinguished Scholars and the Johnston Center for Undergraduate Excellence.

C-START offerings for the spring will be "Quantum Mechanics and Cosmology," taught by Jeff Milbourne; "The Model Minority Myth," led by John Yu; "Heroes in Sports," taught by Sarah Schwartz; "21st-Century Slave Trade," taught by Reena Arora; and "Alternative Energy" taught by Ken Varner, said Jim Leloudis, director of the Johnston Center.

These teachers were selected from a pool of 15 applicants who submitted class plans to a committee last spring, said Donna Lefebvre, political science professor and C-START adviser. She said that she wishes more students could have been teachers but that money constraints limit the number to five.

"We had such good applications last year," Lefebvre said.

Students slated to teach in the spring will be attending workshops throughout the fall semester, including two at the Center for Teaching and Learning and one at which faculty advisers for the program will critique the syllabi the student teachers plan to use, Lefebvre said.

"They're getting really intensive guiding and mentoring," Leloudis said.

C-START teachers also go through an advising process similar to the instruction given to students writing senior theses.

Throughout the semester, the students will meet individually with a faculty member who will help in choosing readings and preparing a syllabus and lesson plans, Leloudis said.

Varner said he has wanted to teach a course about renewable energy sources since he heard about the program. He said he hopes to show that the energy sources currently in use are inferior to renewable alternatives.

Varner said he is glad the committee selected his course because it showed its members are interested in the issue. "It was very nice to see that."

He said he will dedicate a lot of time to the project to ensure that his students understand both sides of the issue but also can grasp his stance. "This is my baby," he said.

Leloudis said he expects to secure money for future years both within the University and externally. "I think we will find a way to keep this going.

Junior Nathan Cherry, who is serving as student coordinator this year, said he will work this year both on finding a source of permanent funding for the future and on increasing publicity for the program. "Everyone I know that's dealt with the program has loved it," Cherry said. "But most people don't know what it is."

Leloudis said the performance of former student teachers has shown the value of C-START. "The students who have taught the last couple of years have been exceptional."

The University Editor can be reached at udesk@unc.edu.