University of Wisconsin Stout | Wisconsin's Polytechnic University

Celebrating Teaching

NTLC celebrates faculty achievements and strives to offer programs that nurture, inspire and encourage instructors. During 2012-13, the Center offered the First Year Faculty Pilot Program, Infusing Diversity across the Curriculum project, and the Universal Design project. Numerous faculty were involved in each of these programs/projects and it is their completion of these yearlong activities, individual and group project outcomes, and their positive professional growth that we celebrate!

Congratulations to the following new faculty for completing the First Year Faculty Program:

Julie Bates, Devin Berg, Melody Brennan, Debashish Burman, Kori Callison, Karunanithy Chinnadurai, Date Edenborg, Fassil Fanta, Mauren Hegsted, Ursula Husted, Anne Kerber, Masako Onodera, Dave Plum, Steve Salm, Deanna Schultz, Bethanne Shriner, Joseph Velasquez, Andrew Williams, and Amy Zimmerman.

First Year Faculty Program

During 2012-13, nineteen faculty members completed the First Year Faculty Program by participating in the following sessions:

• Preparing for the Classroom Experience
• Faculty as Evaluator--Assessing Student Learning
  
• Faculty as Participant--Embracing the Stout Culture
• Faculty as Advisor
• The Scholarship of Teaching and Learning
• Disciplined Based Research
• Tenure and Promotion
• Structure for Decision Making on Campus
• Academic Integrity and Tenure
  

Congratulations to the following participants:

Tamara Brantmeier, David Ding, Kristal Gerdes, Sharon Giroux, Polly Hashmi, Terri Karis, Virginia Lea, Mandy Little, Lama Othman, Thomas Pearson, Frederick Prassas, Ben Pratt, Dorothy Rombo, John Scheffler, Holly Teuber, Kate Thomas, and Tami Weiss.

Infusing Diversity across the Curriculum 2011-12

Renee Howarton (PI) and Virginia Lea and Holly Teuber (Co-Investigators). Elizabeth Steans served as the project's undergraduate research assistant.

From August 2011 to May 2012, seventeen UW-Stout faculty members explored diversity and multiculturalism and identified how they could integrate it within their specific courses and disciplines. These instructors participated in a multi-phase research project that was designed to infuse diversity concepts throughout their curriculum. Their disciplines included Social Sciences, Education, Hospitality and Tourism, Art and Design, Psychology, Speech Communication, Technology, Operations and Management, and Biology.

Funding for this program was provided by the UW-System Office of Professional and Instructional Development (OPID) with the grant supporting nine faculty members plus the hiring of a research assistant. The UW-Stout Provost and campus Deans provided funding for an additional 8 faculty. The project was facilitated by the Nakatani Teaching and Learning Center.

Congratulations to the following participants who completed this yearlong project:

Kitrina Carlson (Biology), Renee Chandler (SOE), David Ding (Operations & Management), Mark Fenton (Business), Glendali Rodriguez (Construction), Deb Stanislawski (SOE), Kevin Tharp (Communication Technology), Ana Vande Linde (Chemistry), Dean Wirtanen (Construction), and Julie Zaloudek (HDFS).

What is Universal Design?

Universal Design (UD) is a concept whose roots are grounded in three areas, design of physical environments (residential and commercial space), web development, and most recently, the field of teaching and learning. Its intent to create barrier-free environments is enabling today's teachers to apply universal design concepts in ways that support the needs of the widest range of learner differences. As classrooms become more diverse, application of UD principles creates more accessible curriculum.

Universal Design Summer Institute

Last August, the Nakatani Teaching and Learning Center in collaboration with UW-Stout Online hosted the Universal Design Summer Institute, August 8th and 9th. This workshop was facilitated by Dr. Dave Edyburn, a nationally recognized expert on infusing universal design concepts across the curriculum. He helped us launch a multi-phase pilot program for faculty who were currently or would soon be teaching on-line courses and sincerely wanted to learn more about effectively implementing universal design concepts into their courses. 

Funding for this project was provided by UW-Stout Online and participants did a variety of activities including reading the book, Universal Design in Higher Education: From Principles to Practice, attending the Universal Design Summer Institute workshop, meeting monthly during fall to discuss and plan teaching and learning activities as well as assessment tools. They also participated in a synchronized discussion with Dr. Edyburn during the fall semester, implemented universal design principles and activities into one of their courses during spring 2012, and disseminated project outcomes in a variety of venues including NTLC's MayDay Event. Several participants have had conference papers and presentations accepted. Finally, they completed the project by participating in a May follow-up session with Dr. Edyburn and information from their final reports will be used to develop a checklist of guidelines for infusing universal design into UW-Stout courses. This will be shared with campus colleagues.