I’ve always been about information-informed decision making. The current health crisis reminded me of a much smaller and less harmful situation I was involved with back in 2002 at Dartmouth College. An outbreak of conjunctivitis was spreading rapidly through the campus and we just did not have the information we needed to deal with the crisis. The Center for Disease Control came to campus to try to help when we quickly realized we needed more information.

Evidence has been mounting to show the positive outcomes for college students engaging in experiential education programs such as internships or co-ops. Such experiences have been designated “high-impact practices” based upon extensive research using the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) and one of the “big six” college experiences that lead toward higher levels of engagement in your job and wellbeing by the Gallup-Purdue Index. Time and time again work and learn programs demonstrate powerful and long-lasting effects.