The Learning Ecosystem for Empowering Futures (LEEF) is a new model in higher education that places learning and innovation — and the faculty, students and staff involved in this work — at the center of our student success mission.

UNT Battle Flag

LEEF Logo that says "Learning Ecosystem Empowering Futures"LEEF is motivated by a charge 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 meet this charge, UNT requires a new teaching and learning structure that supports agility, innovation, and impact. A structure that

  • Empowers people and supports projects that have the potential to change how we understand learning, teaching, and the purpose of higher education.
  • Puts this knowledge to use, reshaping curricula and pedagogies to help achieve the university’s core goals of student success, research excellence, and societal impact.

Person talking in front of a group, brainstorming about LEEF

This new Ecosystem is both proactive and responsive to the needs of the UNT community and the broader North Texas education and employment ecosystem.

It creates and supports communities of practice that address the most critical challenges in teaching, learning, and curriculum design to advance student success, and builds multidisciplinary partnerships within and beyond the university. LEEF facilitates and supports academic programs aimed at curricular and pedagogical renewal and 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 educators – both faculty and staff – who are committed to supporting student success through research, practice, and curricular connections at UNT and is modeled around three centers of work:

The Curriculum Connector

This area of work brings together educators and employers from across the region to engage with UNT faculty in the design of an integrated curriculum to support 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 a community of learning scientists dedicated to the discovery of knowledge about learning that can be used to directly drive innovation that supports student success.

Co-directors:

  • Dr. Yunjo An, Learning Technologies
  • Dr. Carrie Allen, Learning Sciences
The Teaching Hub

This hub creates a supportive community of educators who come together to better understand pedagogical practices, develop new skill sets, and design and test curricular and pedagogical structures in support of student success.

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 will be sending out invitations inviting individuals and teams to suggest projects for the three centers of work and will be hosting events throughout the fall.

You may also share your suggestions by emailing:

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