Pedagogical Partners
The Pedagogical Partners program aims to support faculty’s continuous engagement with their pedagogy as they work towards more inclusive, effective teaching. The first version of this page was written by our inaugural group of Student Partners.
Our Work and Mission:
In Pedagogical Partners, students are paired with faculty outside of their subject area and are responsible for attending lectures and observing faculty teaching. Student Partners meet with their Faculty Partner to provide thoughtful reflections, facilitate discussions, and provide resources that will support the goals of the Faculty Partners.
Student Partners offer student perspectives and provide insight to their Faculty Partner, and in return gain insight to the teaching ecosystem at a university level. Together, Partners set goals and reflect on strategies to provide students professional, engaging, inclusive, and research-informed teaching. This develops a classroom culture that will continue to foster mutually beneficial relationships between students and faculty in future years.
UO has engaged in years of dedicated work towards inclusive teaching, yet this process has lacked space for student collaboration. This project gives faculty access to student perspectives by supporting generative dialogue between faculty and students, resulting in reciprocal relationships that betters UO’s learning community.
Our Approach:
At the very foundation of this program are these concepts:
- Students have valuable knowledge of and important perspectives on teaching and learning.
- Student Partners are not subject matter experts.
- Reciprocity in Partnership does not mean exchanging exactly the same thing.
- Faculty Partners do not have to do whatever students say.
- Partnership is not about finding what is wrong and fixing it.
- Pedagogical Partnership is about exchange, not change for the sake of change.
- Partnership is about sharing power, not giving it up or taking it away.
- Partnership is a process, not a product (although it can lead to products)
From Cook-Sather, Alison, Melanie Bahti, and Anita Ntem. 2019. Pedagogical Partnerships. A How-To Guide. p 33-35.
How We Align with UO Teaching Excellence:
UO has identified four broad standards as key to effective teaching at UO: professional, engaged, inclusive, and research-informed. The Pedagogical Partners aligns with and supports faculty in enacting them.
- Professional: Student Partners can give a student perspective on the organization and quality of class materials and activities.
- Inclusive: Student Partners can help identify barriers to student participation and provide insight on methods that help students feel seen in their course and field of study.
- Engaged: Faculty Partners set goals for their own pedagogy, reflect on practices, and engage productive feedback.
- Research-informed: Pedagogical Partnerships will build knowledge about approaches to teaching and learning in a specific course's context.
Fall
We work to create our foundation as a cohort of student partners. During weekly meetings, we decide how to perform observations, debrief observation reflections with faculty partners, and learn about pedagogical practices that support student success. We will also match student partners to faculty partners and provide guidance on forming and sustaining partnerships.
Winter
If student partners have not already started attending faculty lectures and meeting weekly for feedback and discussion, they will start this term. The tools and framework student partners learned about and developed will guide this work. Student and faculty partnerships for the spring will be determined.
Spring
During the spring term, student and faculty partners will continue their work, building on the past two terms. If the program is able to continue, applications for the 2026-2027 cohort will open during spring term, with an aim to have the new cohort hired by the end of spring term.
2025-2026:
- Vincent Bottaro
- Logan Fisher
- Kaydyn Guelsdorf
- Maya McLeroy
- Josie Saccio-Devine
- Echo Senchai
2024-2025:
- Lucas Eliot was a Cultural Anthropology major and History minor who graduated in Spring 2025. He was also a Peer Advisor for the GlobalWorks International Internship Program. Outside the classroom Lucas has passion for sport, literature, cooking, and exploring the outdoors. Since moving to Oregon, he has also become a Wildland Firefighter. Through attending various international schools and working at summer camp, Lucas developed a curiosity and interest in pedagogical practice and the ways different approaches to the student-teacher relationship affect learning.
- Logan Fisher (They/Them) is a native Oregonian studying Linguistics and Music at the UO, graduating in 2027 with a double major. During their time at UO, Logan has been involved in many programs including the Oregon Marching Band, Oregon Basketball Band, the Yellow Garter Band where they have been a logistical director, and the Wayne Morse Scholars Program. They also play the French Horn in the university's ensembles. They are also minoring in Spanish and they are passionate about learning languages. Logan is passionate about education and its impact on students. As a product of a dual-language program, they have seen the importance of multicultural education and have been an advocate for diversity in the classroom ever since. They are also an advocate for underrepresented voices in the classroom, especially LGBTQ+ voices.
- Kaydyn Guelsdorf is a student in the Clark Honors College, majoring in multidisciplinary science and minoring in science communication, planning to graduate in spring 2026. Outside of the classroom, Kaydyn enjoys being outdoors, reading, and spending time with her friends. Throughout her time at the University of Oregon, Kaydyn has been involved in Class Encore and Pi Beta Phi sorority. Kaydyn is interested in understanding positive pedagogical practices and their implementation into the classroom. From the pedagogical partners program, she hopes to gain new perspectives about teaching and learning from faculty partners, through beneficial and reflective dialogue. Kaydyn's desire to learn from faculty about the formulation and execution of their curriculum, and how research-based practices can be employed in the classroom, drew her to becoming a Student Partner.
- Patrick Alemán Henslee (he/him) was a Comparative Literature and English major at UO who graduated June 2025. He was also a McNair Scholar and a Peer Academic Coach at the Tutoring and Academic Engagement Center. In his free time, Patrick likes to read short stories and essays, watch movies he hasn’t yet seen, or cook something delicious with his loved ones. As a Student Partner in the Pedagogical Partner Program, Patrick hopes to learn what elements instructors consider when they design their courses and navigate their classrooms in higher education, as well as how they plan for and respond to a diversity of student needs.
- Lydia Lewis was an Environmental Studies major with minors in Landscape Architecture and Earth Sciences graduating in fall of 2024. Both in and out of academics, Lydia has a huge passion for the outdoors and loves to share her excitement. She has been working with young students for over 5 years now and hopes to continue inspiring younger generations through exploration and investigation! Through the Environmental Leadership Program, Lydia took an education theory in practice course in which she learned valuable skills in pedagogical methods and strategies to support efficient, inclusive, and multidimensional learning.
- Hannah Shriver (she/her) was a student in the Clark Honors College majoring in environmental studies with minors in psychology and ethics who graduated in June 2025. Born and raised in Oregon, Hannah enjoys spending time outdoors, reading, and knitting. During her time at the University of Oregon, Hannah has been involved with the Craft Center, Student Orientation Programs, and the Student Sustainability Center.
- Kai Schrosk studied journalism, anthropology, and science communication at the University of Oregon, graduating in June 2025. During his time at the University Kai has gotten involved in various environmental justice and social justice movements, in which he has learned how vital good communication truly is. Kai deeply values spending time in the natural world and with his community. He grew up in a small town where he got the opportunity to experience generative and mutually beneficial learning communities. Kai is interested in using communication to build bridges to mutual understanding, instead of building walls in defense.
Join us
We are now taking student Pedagogical Partners applications for 2026-2027! We hope you’ll join us in partnering towards a new kind of support for teaching and learning.