Skip to main content


Repost Message
will copy the article into draft mode and enable you to edit/change dates and information.
Do not change the dates
of this posting because it will affect the original.

MCC Daily Tribune

Undergraduate Research, Scholary Inquiry, and Creative Activity at MCC

The Undergraduate Research, Scholarly Inquiry, and Creative Activity (URSICA) Committee at MCC is looking for faculty interested in promoting URSICA principles in their courses and eventually in seeking formal "UR" designation for these courses.

URSICA represents a High Impact Practice (HIP) at Monroe Community College which includes all disciplines and encompasses a variety of activities in the lab, the field, performances on the stage, and creations in the art studio. It provides an active, inquiry-based learning environment emphasizing the language and processes of research/creative activity in the classroom and/or teacher-mentored student research in or outside the classroom. It encourages creative and critical thinking, improvement of written and speaking skills, establishment of collaboration between faculty and students, pride in ownership and accomplishment, and reinforcement of course information. It prepares a student for the next level of challenges including four year college, work, and life.

The "UR" designation identifies courses that incorporate the above by providing an active, inquiry-based learning environment and by emphasizing the language and processes of research/creative activity in the classroom. The purpose of a "UR" designation is to promote a culture in which students are encouraged to explore, enter, and advance dialogues in academic disciplines.

For a "UR" designation, assignments, projects, and/or classroom activities that incorporate Undergraduate Research, Scholarly Inquiry, and/or Creative Activity must amount to a minimum of 20% of the course work and account for 20% of the grade.

More information about all of this will be forthcoming. For now, any faculty member with questions or interested in moving forward towards URSICA-implementation should contact Maria Brandt at mbrandt@monroecc.edu.

Maria Brandt
URSICA
10/15/2019