Introducing Students for a Whole New Education

Students for a Whole New Education (SWNE) launched in January 2015 with a mission to empower students to take ownership of their education. SWNE is an organization of student advocates of Big Beacon. This is the first of many blog posts about our journey to achieve the changes we hope to see in our education. 

Who are we?

We are a growing network of students who believe in the power of the student voice in education reform. Currently, we are engineering students spanning across three countries – Canada, Brazil, and the United States – with plans to expand in the near future. In branding ourselves as Students for a Whole New Education, we are inviting all students who are passionate about education to join the movement. Big Beacon’s values extend to education in general, not just engineering education. Our diversity in background gives us unique perspectives about education that we bring to our conversations about approaches for change. In our next post, we will share our stories about our personal motivations and goals for engaging in education reform. 

What is our vision?

We believe that students are powerful agents of change in education. Many issues in higher education seem to stem from the cultural environment of institutions. We are affected daily by the culture of higher education. We know what kinds of environments can foster our learning and growth. We are aware of challenges we face in the classroom and on campus. We have ideas to create a culture that celebrates students and the joy of learning. Yet we haven’t always felt that our voices could be heard and that we could make a difference. 

We aim to empower students to change conversations in education to include the student voice and reach out to people who are willing to listen to us. Our goal is to inspire students to reflect on their education and identify areas for change. We want to help all students make the most of their education. We believe we can create opportunities for students to take initiative and instigate change. SWNE is a network that connects independent change efforts to create a space for collaboration among students.

Will you join us?

We welcome the voices of all students who want to help us transform higher education! We are a supportive community that fosters conversation and collaboration. If you are interested in joining our movement, please contact Athena (athena@bigbeacon.org), one of our students, or tweet us at @studentswne!

If you are not a student but have ideas that our aligned with our vision, please reach out to us so we can discuss opportunities for you to get involved! To disrupt the status quo, we will need as many collaborators as possible!

Follow us on Twitter at @studentswne to stay posted as we grow our community! Join us for our bimonthly Twitter chats centered around student issues in education. Our next Twitter chat will be on March 18 at 8pm EST, hosted by the Engineering Education Students’ Society at the University of Calgary.