Guiding Principles

The following principles guide OPAL's priorities and goals:

• An inclusive and affirming educational environment leads to better learning outcomes for all students.

• Students who are supported and challenged appropriately are best positioned to meet their educational, personal, and career potential.

• Understanding where students are developmentally, as well as their socio-cultural context, increases our ability to positively enhance student learning and leadership development.

• Leadership development can be a bridge between students' curricular and co-curricular experiences, evidenced by the transfer of knowledge into applied skills.

• The development of key partnerships with campus colleagues maximizes learning outcomes for all students.