We are happy to be able to offer a professional development opportunity to all of our UP colleagues: the 2023 Inclusive Teaching Working Group.
Starting the week of March 13, we will be facilitating two professional learning communities with faculty who wish to broaden their understanding of inclusive teaching practices and adopt and skillfully implement these practices in their classrooms. We are leveraging funds from two NSF-funded projects to be able to pay faculty participants $500 for engaging with the Inclusive Teaching Working Group, which involves a free, six-week online course and concurrent in-person professional learning community discussions with colleagues from across campus.
While the online course—a MOOC using the edX platform—has a STEM focus, we note that the course content is valuable for educators in any department. We very much hope that faculty from all disciplines and ranks will consider joining us.
If the times we’ve selected for this semester don’t work, please consider clicking to the application and letting us know that you’d like to participate in a later cohort.
SUMMARY
Participants will enroll in the free, asynchronous online course (via edX) designed by the NSF-funded Inclusive STEM Teaching Project team. The course focuses on inclusive teaching in a STEM context but is relevant and accessible to all disciplines. The online course is open March 6–April 28. Each week’s module takes 2–3 hours to complete. See inclusivestemteaching.org for more info.
Participants will also join an in-person Professional Learning Community open to ALL FACULTY who enroll in the online course, with meetings on:
- Tuesdays from 12:45 p.m.–2 p.m.: 3/14, 3/21, 3/28 and 4/11, 4/18, 4/25,
OR
- Fridays 9 a.m.–10:15 a.m.: 3/17, 3/24, 3/31 and 4/14, 4/21, 4/28
We will not meet the week of 4/3 due to Founders’ Day and Easter Break.
A $500 stipend will be paid to faculty* who complete the online course, attend at least 4 of 6 PLC meetings, and complete a deliverable** on inclusive teaching
We can support up to 19 faculty members in the course and PLC this Spring, and will be balancing participation across disciplines, levels of current adoption of inclusive practices, and faculty positions.
- Application Deadline: 10 a.m. on Friday, February 17, 2023
- Application Link
If you have questions or concerns, reach out to the UP project coordinators, Stephanie Salomone (salomone@up.edu) and Valerie Peterson (petersov@up.edu).
*We welcome applications from adjunct faculty. Stipend eligibility for adjuncts is contingent on their current contract. We will reach out to discuss this with you.
**In order to model inclusive assessment practices, facilitators will provide options for final “projects” from which participants can select. Options will include the following:
- Completing a syllabus makeover applying the lessons of Universal Design for Learning creating an inclusive classroom climate.
- Completing an instructor identity reflection, including a consideration of the impacts of their identity on student inclusion.
- Completing student social identity interviews (either individually or as a focus group) and create a plan for welcoming and including students with similar identities in future courses.
- Aligning course learning objectives to Bloom’s Taxonomy and reflecting on the levels of the taxonomy at which students achieve the objectives and whether or not objectives are balanced across the Bloom’s levels.
Stephanie Salomone, mathematics, was selected as an Associate Director of Project NExT (New Experiences in Teaching), a national program of the Mathematics Association of America that provides professional development for new faculty in mathematics. Salomone was a Next fellow in 2005 and was offered the opportunity to apply for the associate director position last fall.
The University of Portland Robotics Team is hosting asynchronous Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) lessons which will be posted every other week, according to Stephanie Salomone, mathematics. Through this program, we aim to encourage more students to engage in STEM education and expand a love for STEM in kids in grades K-12.
Online registration for
The athletic department would like to acknowledge this year’s winners of the Difference Award. Each year, student-athletes nominate a professor on campus who they felt made a difference in their University of Portland experience. The definition is left intentionally vague, allowing students to reflect on the many ways a professor may have made a difference to them. This year, four people were selected as winners:
Online registration for “
Tara Prestholdt, biology, won the 2019 Excellence in Teaching Award at the 63rd Annual Meeting of the Association of College and University Biology Educators (ACUBE). The award is offered annually to honor faculty who both practice and promote effective, innovative teaching in the biology classroom.
Join the STEM Education and Outreach Center and the Garaventa Center for their Joy of Teaching brown bag lunch on Thursday, November 14, noon to 1 p.m., in Franz Hall 120. The theme of this lunch is “Hope.” Time to gather with like-minded joyful teachers for sharing of information, impressions, and the ends and pieces of leftover Halloween candy.
The Women in Leadership Forum welcomes UP mathematics professor and STEM Center director Stephanie Salomon on Tuesday, September 10, at 6 p.m., in Franz Hall room 120. The Women in Leadership Forum connects students, faculty, and staff with dynamic women who are leaders in the Portland community. The Forum is a place for sharing stories, building connections, and supporting the development of women in leadership. Salomone will share her experiences as a woman leader in STEM and academia, as well as insights she’s gained around inclusion, equity, and mentorship.