Luddy ALIGN is another way the Luddy School of Informatics, Computing and Engineering makes a difference at Indiana University, and beyond.
ALIGN stands for Applied Leadership Industry Government Networking. Its mission is to use applied learning to solve real-world problems and prepare students for long, successful careers. It also seeks to engage alumni to deepen their involvement with the Luddy School.
Travis Brown, senior executive assistant dean of innovation, entrepreneurship and commercialization, said ALIGN and its staff are reviewing current initiatives with companies, and seeking additional opportunities for external constituents to engage with the school.
“We’re not starting over,” he said. “We’re supporting the initiatives we have, and are looking to launch new ones.”
ALIGN supports the Bloomington and Indianapolis campuses. Brown wants to streamline and strengthen external engagement to increase Luddy students’ experiential learning opportunities as well as boost employment opportunities. ALIGN works closely with Luddy’s Career Services and Development.
ALIGN houses cross-curricular educational programming such as community engaged learning, and student innovation and entrepreneurship. ALIGN also supports faculty-directed initiatives such as Data Science South Korean US Global Lab and Luddy’s AI Development and Experience Lab.
ALIGN facilitates practical, applied projects that create value for clients and technical professionalism for students. The focus is on students -- either through student startup development or university supported research -- using their classroom learning to impact society.
That involves three keys:
Client Engagement: Match opportunities provided by clients with on-campus partners such as a classroom guided by a professor, a lab led by a researcher, or a student organization advised by a faculty member.
Client Matching: Consult with faculty and students to place projects based on aligning established learning objectives with clients’ needs and expectations.
Student Preparation: Teach students to professionally engage clients and deliver solutions based on scientific method and polished through workshops designed to reinforce the importance of providing and demonstrating client value.
If you are interested in supporting the Luddy School’s mission to provide applied-learning opportunities for IU students, please contact ALIGN@iu.edu.