Jensen to serve as coordinator of First-Year Initiatives

Jane Jensen, assistant professor with the Department of Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation, recently accepted an assignment to be the coordinator of First-year initiatives for the University of Kentucky, according to a release from Philipp Kraemer, Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education.

Jensen’s responsibilities as coordinator is to help develop, implement, and evaluate the effectiveness of programs designed for first-year students at UK. The goal of these programs is to assist students with their first year experiences at the university, to help students make a successful transition to university life and increase their academic success and retention. Much of the work will, according to Kraemer’s release, involve a study of student’s perceptions of intellectual work at the University of Kentucky.

Jensen, who holds a doctorate in anthropology and higher education, focuses her research on “the ways individuals come to understand post-secondary education…and includes a study of student retention and academic success.” She has worked extensively with students on academic probation and has published work on community perceptions of educational achievement.

As part of her role as coordinator, Jensen will offer a graduate research seminar on the first-year experience next spring.