Professional Skills as Cornerstones of Liberal Education: Moving Students from Theory to Action

This article presents the Simmons World Challenge curriculum, an intensive, interdisciplinary program for sophomore undergraduate students that emphasizes student-directed collaborative learning and skills development. The authors present the curricular approach and assessment outcomes, and they relate this program to goals of the AAC&U's Liberal Education and America's Promise (LEAP) Initiative. Beyond introducing students to content and sensitizing them to social challenges, the Simmons World Challenge supports students in developing transferable problem-solving, team work, and project management skills that they can apply to future academic and real-world challenges.