The IAC fellowship program has been in operation at Montclair State University since 2015 and fellows have been participating in courses since 2017. They have audited more than 70 courses in more than 15 departments across nearly every college.
For Montclair State University Course Instructors of IAC Fellows
IAC Fellows are admitted to the university as non-matriculated students. They have student IDs and are able to access Canvas and most university resources. The main purpose for Fellows to participate in courses is to have a multi-faceted experiential learning opportunity to enable them to understand what college has to offer. IAC Fellows typically audit the New Student Seminar in their first semester. This enables them to learn about the campus and acclimate to college alongside other students who are also new to campus. With advising by IAC staff, each fellow is then able to choose other courses to audit, which are ideally aligned to their interests.
Creating an Inclusive Experience
IAC Fellows usually attend class with a companion. The companion may be a peer – another MSU student – or a paid staff member. The companion is there to facilitate the IAC Fellow’s participation in class by supporting them during in-class activity and assisting with preparation and assignments outside of class. Fellows will usually approach course instructors early in the semester to discuss the expectations of what auditing the course will mean for them, specifically. Some fellows complete all course requirements and receive feedback equivalent to other students taking the course for credit; Other fellows complete only some assignments and may or may not receive feedback from the instructor. Fellows and instructors are able to flexibly determine what the course experience and expectations will be. IAC Fellows audit courses, which means that they are not assigned a final grade and their fellowship experience does not lead to the creation of an official academic transcript.
The IAC Project encourages course instructors to utilize universal design principles to ensure course design and instructional activities are designed with disability access and inclusivity in mind. Implementing universal design begins with recognizing how diversity of learners with regard to race, culture, language, gender identities, sexual identities, disability, and neurodiversities shapes student and instructor experiences in teaching and learning. Universal design principles promote intentional development of learning activities that presume differences between learners and feature variety, flexibility, and access in the ways that learners encounter new information and experiences and can be assessed in their learning. The Office for Faculty Excellence features more information about Universal Design for Learning.
For On-Campus Personnel who Accompany IAC Fellows
IAC Fellows are co-enrolled in the IAC Fellowship and in a public school-based transition program. It is usually expected that IAC Fellows are accompanied on campus by personnel from their transition program. The IAC Project welcomes job coaches, paraprofessionals, teaching assistants, one-to-one support staff, and work-based learning professionals, who are most often the people on campus with fellows. The role of transition program personnel is often to assist with transportation to and from campus, initially navigating the campus, and working with IAC staff and Montclair State University peers involved with fellowship students to facilitate IAC Fellows’ academic and social engagement and sense of belonging when on campus. The IAC Project encourages transition program personnel to promote independence and interdependence for IAC Fellows by enabling individuals to make decisions about how they spend their time when on campus and to learn-by-doing alongside other Montclair State students.