STEPP Program

What is STEPP?

STEPP (Students and Teachers Engaged in Pedagogical Partnership) is a pedagogical partnership program at Vassar College that centers intentional dialogue about teaching practices in a semester-long faculty-student collaboration. It focuses on building student-faculty relationships and empowering student voices while offering faculty an opportunity to receive constructive feedback and work collaboratively with a student partner to address teaching goals.

A grid of photos. Each shows a student standing against a wall, smiling and holding a hand-lettered sign with a word on it. Words include “Exploration”, “Better Together”, “Collaboration”, and “Growth”.

Traditionally, in STEPP, a student partner attends a class weekly to observe their faculty partner’s teaching practices. During a weekly meeting with the faculty partner, the student partner shares observations and reflections from class, and both partners work together to adapt classroom pedagogical practices. The student partner receives independent research credit for their work in one of their faculty partner’s academic disciplines. As the student partner is not enrolled in the faculty partner’s class, they are able to provide an open and empathetic perspective on the class. Student partners attend weekly meetings with the STEPP facilitator to share concerns and learn from one another’s experiences.

STEPP stemmed from Vassar College’s Engaged Pluralism Initiative (EPI) Inclusive Pedagogies Working Group. It was piloted during the Spring 2020 semester based on the research conducted by Alison Cook-Sather and modeled after Bryn Mawr and Haverford Colleges’ program SaLT.

Apply for STEPP

Faculty Partners: Partner with a student next semester to receive formative feedback on your teaching!

Faculty application deadline: Friday, September 4, 2026

Student Partners: No matter what your experience in the classroom has been, simply bring your authentic self and share your perspectives on pedagogical work! You can even receive half a unit of credit for your efforts.

Student application deadline: Friday, May 1, 2026

STEPP Leadership Team

Dorien Laurens
STEPP Student Coordinator

Dorien Laurens with short dark hair wearing a patterned shirt, smiling against a plain background.

Hi! I’m Dorien Laurens, and I’m a Math and History double major. I row on the Vassar crew team and play viola in the orchestra. I joined the STEPP program in my junior year and have been both a student partner and STEPP Student Leader before becoming the STEPP Student Coordinator. As Student Coordinator I work on the logistics of STEPP. I coordinate and arrange faculty-student pairs, orientation, and collect feedback to improve the STEPP program. Please do not hesitate to reach out with any questions or concerns!

Jackie Rosenblum
STEPP Student Leader

Jackie Rosenblum with long brown hair and glasses wearing a light blue floral dress, smiling in front of wooden doors with glass panels.

Hi everyone! My name is Jackie (she/her), and I am a sophomore majoring in Neuroscience and Behavior with a Sociology correlate on the pre-med track. Outside of the classroom, I participate in research with Professor Lori Newman, work as a Student Fellow, and engage with many student organizations, including Grey Matters Journal, Vassar Hunger Action, Refugee Solidarity, and Ceramics Club. My experience last year as a STEPP student partner inspired me to take on the role of STEPP Student Leader. In this position, I support STEPP student partners by helping with scheduling, fostering reflection on what is working well and what could be improved, and facilitating collaboration on strategies that ensure each participant gains the most from their experience. Additionally, I work closely with STEPP Student Coordinator, Dorien Laurens, to continue growing our program. Please reach out with any questions, and I look forward to meeting you!

STEPP Testimonials

“My partner and I had many rich discussions about pedagogical ideas and challenges. It was helpful to brainstorm together and hear their perspective as a student on things I do well and things I could improve.”

“We were able to openly discuss ideas and challenges. I appreciate that my student was not self-conscious about raising issues of concern.”

“I consider this an opportunity to not only listen to and learn from my STEPP partner, but also to try to mentor them as much as they’d like—including talking about what they’re interested in academically or in their future career, talk over any questions they have about teaching and being a professor, etc.”

“With my STEPP partner, it really feels like an opportunity to break down those expectations and try to flip the script—I try to show that I’m just a person trying to figure what I’m doing teaching, and I often make mistakes; so, I need help and guidance from my STEPP partner to help me learn how to teach better.”

“I feel as though great changes were made during this semester, and I am really excited about the ideas we have for [my faculty partner] to continue improving [their course] moving forward.”

“I gained a lot more sympathy for professors when dealing with accommodations but also learned a lot about how to give constructive criticism. ”