As the American designer Charles Eames observed, “Eventually everything connects—people, ideas, objects. The quality of the connections is the key to quality per se.”
Twice a year, we gather some of Westfield State University’s most compelling stories—stories about our current students, faculty and staff, and our alumni—to share with you. We do so to help showcase and strengthen connections that are essential to the quality of the University, including our enduring relationships with our alumni.
Each of the stories that follow can be read as a story about a set of connections—connections that are often at the heart of what the Association of American Colleges and University (AAC&U) calls “high-impact” educational practices. Many of these practices, including writing-intensive courses, undergraduate research, experiential learning and capstone courses, have long formed the foundation of a Westfield State education.
Others—intensive first-year courses and experiences, common intellectual experiences and global educational experiences, for example—are receiving renewed or increased attention as their role in student retention, engagement, learning and success becomes clear. This issue of Focus brings one high-impact practice—undergraduate research—to the foreground, highlighting the connections between students and faculty, between research
and community.
While our faculty has long been recognized for research conducted in and across disciplines, we are continuing to strengthen our focus on undergraduate research. For example, our Department of Mathematics has launched a Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program—a year-long experience designed to prepare students for complex mathematical work and graduate programs. In April, computer and information science students presented their undergraduate research posters for the first time at the prestigious Consortium for Computing Sciences in Colleges Northeastern Region (CCSCNE) conference. And the student research highlighted here was originally presented at the 21st Annual Massachusetts Undergraduate Research Conference in April, when more than 70 Westfield State students presented their research and connected with students and faculty from around the Commonwealth.
Pick any story in these pages, and you will see that it is story about powerful connections formed at Westfield.
Students with developmental disorders and mental health issues come together to establish the Autism Community Club and Active Minds student organization to help students, faculty and staff better understand the struggles students may face and to help erase harmful stigmas. Student athletes attribute their teams’ successes to unbreakable bonds between teammates and coaches. A graduate of our Urban Education program was so impacted by her experience, she joined the board for the Joan E. Fuller Urban Education Scholarship to allow more students the opportunity to participate in the life-changing program that shaped her career path.
As Eames reminds us, quality per se is dependent not just on creating connections but on the quality of connections, which shines through in each of these stories. Alumna and former Massachusetts State Police Superintendent Colonel Marian McGovern perhaps captures that best: when asked about working with the top professionals in the criminal justice field at the local, state and national levels, she noted that there was one common bond—Westfield State.
As you read through these pages, we hope you will give thought to the lasting connections in your lives that trace back to your time at Westfield State, and then to the ways that you can strengthen those relationships and create new ones. Perhaps that begins with a trip back to Westfield State for homecoming, attending the alumni holiday reception, or investing in student success through the Westfield State Foundation. There are many opportunities to engage that will enrich both you and the University. We are excited to begin the fall semester and look forward to connecting with you.
