ABSTRACT
For decades, the development of skills and abilities of faculty that were intended to accelerate student achievement has been ad hoc and the research results related to student learning have had scattered venues for dissemination. In addition, for many years structured faculty development activities were not a primary academic concern. Centers for Teaching and Learning were then understood and positioned as sources of assistance to faculty who had specific questions about improving their own capacity to teach. Revenue-positive and mission-critical are vitally important criteria in determining a program or center’s value. Yet, standards of valuation are so subjective that a case can be made for or against almost any institutional endeavor! I believe that Centers for Teaching and Learning and institution-wide faculty development are mission-critical. Faculty development can also be intentionally embedded in specific program initiatives created to advance institutional change.
