By Ed Finn, Executive Director, CITAL I was fortunate to attend the 26th Annual International Leadership Association (ILA) Global Conference in Chicago, November 7-10. The impact of leadership in higher education cannot be overstated. In this article, I will mention just a few takeaways and implications that struck me as particularly timely. The title of […]
Category: 2024
Check-Ins to Foster Community and Building Your Students’ AI Toolbox
By Cynthia Rutz, Director of Faculty Development, CITAL I recently attended the Lilly Conference on Evidence-Based Teaching and Learning in Traverse City, Michigan. In this blog I will share with you two sessions that could be helpful for your own teaching. The first gives some ideas for simple check-ins with your students that can both […]
Getting the Grant: Try and Try Again
By Cynthia Rutz, Director of Faculty Development, CITAL Kudos to Patrice Bouyer, who recently received an NIH grant for $318, 554. The journey to this grant was not an easy one, so we asked Patrice to tell us about it so that all of us can benefit from his experiences. EARLY ATTEMPTS: LESSONS LEARNED Patrice […]
Two Responses to AI and An Innovative Approach to Teaching Ethics
By Cynthia Rutz, Director of Faculty Development, CITAL In this blog I will share with you three more sessions from the recent Lilly Conference that could be helpful for your own teaching. The first two sessions have very different approaches to AI. The first provides some practical classroom tips, while the second suggests that faculty […]
What is Your Favorite Feature of Canvas?
By Cynthia Rutz, Director of Faculty Development, CITAL Many of you are trying the Canvas LMS for the first time this semester. So we asked you what features of Canvas you have found work best for teaching and learning in your classes. Twelve of you responded. Here are some of the features that your colleagues […]
Improving your Writing with Valpo’s Writing Circle
By Cynthia Rutz, Director of Faculty Development, CITAL This summer, a group of faculty and staff met weekly to work on their writing. In this article Stacy Hoult (FORL), Natalie Krivas (English), Margarita Rayzberg (Sociology), Stefanie Heinrich (Graduate & Online Education), Mike Longan (Geography), and Matthew Ringenberg (Social Work) describe how Valpo’s writing circle helped […]
Improving Retention Through A Sense of Belonging: The EPIC Program
By Mike Watters, Professor of Biology Student retention is important to any university, especially keeping commuter students who are traditionally less anchored in campus life. Even more at risk, given the leaky STEM pipeline, are STEM commuter students. To address this issue, a group of Valpo faculty and staff proposed a National Science Foundation grant. […]
Teaching Underprepared Students and The Hidden Curriculum
By Tiffany Kolba (Math & Stats), Jenna Van Sickle (Lilly Fellows), Jesse Sestito (ME), & Lauren Sestito (ME) This academic year, fifteen Valpo faculty and staff members met biweekly for a Faculty Learning Community (FLC) on “Teaching Underprepared Students and The Hidden Curriculum.” During the fall semester, we focused on reading two books: Teaching Unprepared […]
Reimagining the Curriculum
By Theresa Carroll (CONHP), Alberto López Martín (World Lang & Culture), and Karen Hernes (CONHP) Several of your colleagues have been working to increase underrepresented voices in their courses as part of the “Reimagining the Curriculum” (RIC) Initiative. These faculty attended a three-part workshop series last spring and then implemented their curricular projects this year. […]
Fostering Community and Student Engagement
By Natalie Krivas (English) & Stacy Hoult (World Languages & Cultures) For the past year, a group of Valpo faculty and staff have been meeting as a Faculty Learning Community (FLC) to discuss Fostering Community and Student Engagement. FLC members learned about and experienced the Solutionary Process, to “identify inhumane, unsustainable, and unjust systems and […]