SACA Background
The University of Nottingham Students as Change Agents programme has been running since 2014-2015. It was set up to play an involvement in achieving the University’s goal to put students at the heart, through staff-student co-creation projects. This programme is dedicated to supporting local initiatives at the level of course, Department or School for the enhancement of education and student experience. It now exists as part of the priorities of our Education and Student Experience Strategic Delivery Plan (ESE SDP) on student voice and partnership. Over the years it has been running, the programme has fundamentally influenced great change within the University, with staff and students working in partnership to improve student experience
Funding is available for projects which are targeted at partnering with students to co-create and improve the teaching and learning experience within the University. The Students as Change Agents funding is a great resource to ensuring students play an active role in bringing about change and it is also exhibits good professional practice for staff involved.
You should ensure you are familiar with the aim and purpose of the Students as Change Agents (SACA) programme, available on the SharePoint, before submitting a request to outline how your proposal will support with the achievement of targets.
Core values of the programme
The scheme pays the Student Engagement Associates (SEAs) above the national living wage and provides meaningful career experience in a professional business environment. As well as this, the scheme strives for transparency in the process of recruiting the SEAs to ensure as fair a process as possible.
To work in partnership, the recruited SEAs are treated and valued as colleagues and not as the stereotype of interns. This is achieved by providing them with meaningful work informed by university strategy and involving and empowering them in decision-making.
We look to recruit in an open and inclusive fashion to ensure that the voices of people from different backgrounds are heard and to give everyone an opportunity to actively engage in bringing about change. We also ensure that the recruitment process is representative by having SEAs on the recruitment panel who are equally valued as staff.
The programme strives to promote a rich and effective higher education learning environment within the university, whilst allowing the recruited students to develop and exhibit good professional practice.