Professional Development and Scholarship Committee

Minutes

September 13, 2006

The Professional Development and Scholarship Committee met on Wednesday, September 13, 2006 from 3:00 pm to 4:15 pm in Room 240. All faculty members attended: Mary Hayes, Konia Kollehlon, Deborah Litt, Roxana Moayedi, V.R. Nemani, and Raul Tovares. They were joined by the ex officio members of the Committee, Sue Blanshan and Anne Henderson.

The Committee selected Mary Hayes as Chair, agreed to an alphabetical rotation to minute-taking, and reviewed potential agenda items including a review of the policy for funding faculty participation at professional meetings and brainstorming goals for the Center of Teaching and Learning Excellence.

In response to Sue Blanshan’s request, the Committee agreed to brainstorm ideas for

possible goals for Center of Teaching and Learning Excellence. Dr. Blanshan explained that she is developing a proposal to support the Center; in so doing, she requested the Committee to identify four or five goals for the Center and to suggest ways to assess the work of the Center.

Possible Goals :

Ensuing Committee discussion generated the following possible goals: (Disclaimer: this discussion was a brainstorming session, not a decision-making session, so that the following articulation of goals is not absolute. It is the minute-taker’s organization of the discussion.)

1. The Center would be a place for faculty to seek help by serving as a depository of materials: It would provide a space to consult for issues arising in class and offer strategies for effective ways to teach. It would provide concrete materials including databases, journal articles, course materials, data on service learning and on new research on pedagogies. It would also support faculty research on teaching and learning.

2. The Center would be a place for faculty to seek help by serving as a repository for assessment. It would assist faculty in interpreting raw data. This assistance would provide documentation for what works and what doesn’t. Should there be a support person to evaluate the raw data?

3. The Center would be a place for faculty to seek help by providing faculty assistance in their teaching and enabling them to understand the learning process.

It will provide knowledge and support teaching core competencies and the curricular goals with a special focus on foundational skills, that is, developing pedagogies for foundational skills. The Center would also provide materials for academic success beyond the core competencies.

4. The Center would provide a reward structure for teaching and learning.

5. The Center would provide service to adjuncts. There is a need to create multiple strategies to assist adjuncts.

6/7. Potential goals : Should there be a goal specifically related to technology enhancement? Should there be a goal related to international education?

Assessment of the Center : Assessment of the Center would include data about the number of faculty who use it and the number of programs it sponsors. Faculty satisfaction should also be included in assessment

Respectfully submitted,

Mary Hayes