The Learning Ecosystem for Empowering Futures (LEEF) is a new model in higher education that provides expertise, assistance and community to faculty, staff and students in pursuit of a better campus.

UNT Battle Flag

LEEF Logo that says "Learning Ecosystem Empowering Futures"LEEF is motivated by a goal established by President Harrison Keller:

“We must create transformative value for students and enhance innovation and economic impact for our region, our state, and our nation — to make UNT a leader in a new generation of great American universities. To realize this vision, we need to redesign our approach to supporting teaching and learning at UNT to better support student success and learning outcomes.”

To achieve this mission, UNT requires a new teaching and learning structure. LEEF will:
  • Empower people and support projects that have the potential to change how we understand learning, teaching and the purpose of higher education. 
  • Put this knowledge to use, reshaping curricula and pedagogies to help achieve the university’s core goals of student success, research excellence and societal impact.

Five faculty members sit at a table, brainstorming ideas.

This new learning ecosystem is both proactive and responsive to the needs of the UNT community, as well as the broader North Texas education and industry environments. It builds multidisciplinary partnerships within and beyond the university.

LEEF creates and supports communities of practice that address the most critical challenges in teaching, learning, and curriculum design. It facilitates and supports academic programs aimed at curricular and pedagogical innovation. It harnesses the power of the learning sciences to translate theory into practice while providing individual consultation and support to foster educator innovation.

Three Centers of Work

LEEF brings together faculty, staff and student-educators who are committed to supporting student success through research, practice and curricular connections at UNT. The ecosystem is modeled around three centers of work:

The Curriculum Connector

This space brings together educators and employers from across the region to engage with UNT faculty in the design of an integrated curriculum to guide our students along their educational journey, from high school through college and into their professional careers.

Co-Directors

  • Dr. Michael Monticino, Data Analytics and Statistics
  • Dr. April Prince, Music History
The Learning Institute

This institute creates, supports and funds a community of interdisciplinary learning scientists dedicated to research that can directly contribute to student and faculty success.

Co-directors:

  • Dr. Yunjo An, Learning Technologies
  • Dr. Carrie Allen, Learning Sciences



The Teaching Hub

This hub creates a community of educators who come together to better understand pedagogical practices, develop new skill sets, and design and test curricular structures that innovate student experience.

Co-directors:

  • Dr. Amy Petros, Chemistry
  • Dr. Kathryn Raign, English 

The Teaching Hub is also supported by Dr. Yolanda Mitchell from the Faculty Success Office.

Get Involved

LEEF and its centers of work are available via email:

Come visit us in Sage Hall, rooms 166 and 167.