They come together to form all sorts of alliances. Sometimes this happens through academics, through working on projects together. Students mentor each other in classes, form teams that have all the necessary skills for a particular project. Somebody strong in educational theory will team with somebody strong in computer programming languages so that learning becomes exponential. You're not only learning from the faculty, you're learning from each other.
Students know how to find one another.
Everybody is pulling for one another, so in that respect, it's extraordinarily collaborative. An average of 30 to 40 people show up per time. This includes not only TIE students but also their roommates, families, next-door neighbors, prospective students, faculty. I'm organizing a three-day TIE orientation that starts before the general Ed School orientation is scheduled. The middle day will be spent discussing assigned summer reading about educational theory and issues relating to the TIE program.