Programs listed below offered at both campuses, unless stated otherwise. For future programs, find the registration link on the Current Programs page for your campus website:
CUW Current Programs
CUAA Current Programs
Summer 2023 Programs
Faculty Summer Book Group
Three Wednesdays: June 14, June 28 and July 12, Noon – 1pm Central/1:00 – 2:00 pm Eastern on Zoom
With Kate Robertson
Book is included: Ritchhard, R. and Church, M. (2020). The power of making thinking visible: Practices to engage and empower all learners. Hoboken, NJ: Jossey-Bass. ISBN: 978-1-119-62604-6.
“I want my MTV!” No, it’s not an 80’s throwback, it’s the shorthand that authors and researchers Ritchhard and Church use for “Making Thinking Visible.” In this book, we learn about why making thinking visible is so crucial for our students’ learning, as well as multiple routines to bring the strategies into the classroom. Each routine includes steps for incorporating it into your teaching, assessment ideas, illustrations and vignettes from teachers in action. Bring your lunch to our Zoom meeting space and let’s talk “MTV”!
Reading Schedule (complete before each book group meeting):
June 14 – Read Chapters 1-3
June 28 – Read Chapters 4-5
July 12 – Read Chapters 6-7; review Chapters 3-5
Concordia Faculty Seminar: Vittoria Sipone, Sara Casali
Thursday June 8, 11:00 am – Noon Central/Noon – 1:00 pm Eastern on Zoom
Please plan to join us on Zoom for an hour to learn about the research conducted by two Mequon faculty colleagues who recently completed their doctoral degrees: Vittoria Sipone and Sara Casali.
- Vittoria Sipone, Assistant Professor of Psychology at the Mequon campus, recently defended her dissertation at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee toward a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology. The title of Dr. Sipone’s talk will be “Dancing Bees, Singing Whales. The Impact of Idiosyncratic Information on Children’s Attitudes toward and Moral Reasoning about Animals.”
- Sara Casali, Assistant Professor of Social Work at the Mequon campus, defended her dissertation last year and received a Doctorate of Social Work (DSW) from the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota. The title of Dr. Casali’s talk will be “Social Location: Why it Should Matter to Social Work Education.”
Concordia Faculty Seminars are informal interactive presentations and conversations on faculty and staff projects including grants, research, and service designed to promote scholarship, spark new ideas, provide opportunities for meaningful discussion, and increase collaboration. Faculty, staff, and students are welcome to attend.
Engaging Students at a Distance
Tuesday June 13, Noon – 1:00 pm Central/1:00 – 2:00 pm Eastern on Zoom
With Susan Gallanis, Kate Robertson, and Elizabeth Evans.
It’s easy to think of student engagement in terms of live interaction with your students, but what are best practices for asynchronous engagement? During this session participants will learn about research-based, practical strategies to engage students asynchronously. This session is ideal for those teaching courses which include online interaction such as online or blended courses, including those in programs using a master course template. Those teaching face-to-face and virtual courses will learn how to expand engagement beyond live (synchronous) interactions.
Introduction to VoiceThread
Thursday July 20, 11:00 am – Noon Central/Noon – 1:00 pm Eastern on Zoom
Presented by VoiceThread Staff.
VoiceThread is an interactive collaboration tool connected to Blackboard that enables students and instructors to build online presentations with various types of media. Other users can then add comments right in the presentation. Participants will learn how to create presentations, add comments, and navigate the VoiceThread interface. The session also covers how to create a VoiceThread graded assignment and other set-up options. Those new to VoiceThread and those with VoiceThread experience are welcome to attend.
New and Returning Faculty Development Day
Wednesday August 16, 8:15 – 4:00 Central/9:15 – 5:00 Eastern
All sessions are via Zoom
Designing/Refreshing Your Course and Syllabus
8:15 – 9:45 am Central/9:15 – 10:45 am Eastern
Learn about and incorporate best practices in course design, and syllabus development. Discussion includes how to improve your objectives, align course objectives with assessments, the Concordia University syllabus template latest revision, and how to connect to program and Global Learning Outcomes.
Blackboard Basics
Learn how to add content, Blackboard Assignments (“dropboxes”) and set up the gradebook for a Fall course! This is an ideal session for faculty new to using Blackboard. The session is for those who set up their own Blackboard courses.
Engaging Your Learners
11:45 am – 12:45 pm Central/12:45 – 1:45 pm Eastern
Effective teaching fosters learning; students need to be engaged for learning to happen. This session introduces strategies to engage students in multiple instructional modes.
Blackboard Tests and Respondus LockDown Browser with Monitor
1:00 – 2:30 pm Central/2:00 – 3:30 pm Eastern
The first half of this session will show how faculty can create Blackboard Tests using three commonly used question types. The second half of the session will cover Respondus LockDown Browser and Monitor. Faculty will learn the difference between LockDown Browser and Monitor, and how to enable the appropriate settings based on where students take the test.
Faculty Resources – CELT and ORSP (primarily for full-time faculty)
3:00 – 4:00 pm Central/4:00 – 5:00 pm Eastern
Learn what resources are available to you as faculty, including research/scholarship support, where to find them, and who to contact if you need more help.
Program Assessment Leader Roundtable 23 on Zoom
Thursday August 17, 11:30 am – 1:00 pm Central/12:30 – 2:00 pm Eastern on Zoom
For all program assessment leaders including faculty assessment committee members at each campus. This session will focus on a review of GLO #6 Analytical Fluency from the past year, including data submitted to date, and a look forward to 2023-2024 focus on GLO #3 Integrated Disciplinary Knowledge and GLO #1 Christian Faith. Leaders contribute to collegial conversations about assessment practices and experiences, their development in the phases of the assessment cycle, and share improvements made in the past year arising out of assessment results. Reminders about current year instructions, resources and support information available on the Assessment of Student Learning Outcomes channel on the portal (faculty tab), and the October 1, 2023 deadline for reports for 2022-2023 from programs (majors/graduate programs/stand-alone certificates).
Mequon Adjunct Orientation (In-Person Classes)
Monday August 21, 5:00 – 6:30 pm Central via Zoom
With Susan Gallanis, Elizabeth Evans, Ty Landers, Jason Lane, Jan Chapman, Andrew Wahl
Are you ready for teaching the spring semester that begins August 28? During this session for Mequon adjuncts teaching in-person classes, we will share important policies and where to find them as well as many resources that address first day teaching, student support, Academic Resource Center services, classroom AV, faith and learning, Blackboard, and more.
Academic Program Change, New Program Proposal and Suspension/Discontinuance Starting September 2023
Tuesday August 22, 9:00 – 10:00 am Central/10:00 – 11:00 am Eastern on Zoom
With Brooke Johnson, Michele Hoffman
This session will walk through the new process programs will use starting September 2023 to initiate, change or discontinue programs as of the 2024-2025 academic year (beginning August 2024). Come to this program to learn about the tools and deadlines for these curriculum processes. This program is for all program directors, department chairs and academic staff involved in managing our complement of programs.
Academic Program Review (APR) Process and Purpose
Thursday August 24, 10:00 – 11:00 am Central/11:00 am – Noon Eastern via Zoom
With Leah Dvorak, Brooke Johnson, Michelle Hoffman and Elizabeth Evans
This session is for faculty and program leaders and focuses on our new process for Academic Program Review (APR) beginning in September. Topics include why this process is vital to a healthy program and the complement of academic programs at our university, and how the process will work. You will learn what information is provided by OIE and what information needs to be uploaded by program representatives. The system used for this process is new for APRST and will be explained in the August 22nd program on Academic Program Change. Those programs assigned to participate in September, October or November APR should send representatives to this session as well as the 8/22 session.
Fall 2023
Showing Up: Creating Comfort and Care on Campus
Fall Study Group for Faculty using the book Showing Up by Jen Marr
In-person at the Mequon Campus
Has a student ever shared a personal struggle with you, and you did not know what to say or do? How can you support your students and colleagues when you already have your own personal challenges? Join us to explore these questions and discuss evidence-based recommendations to improve your skills in comfort and care.
Option 1 Tuesdays from 2pm to 3pm
- Tuesday September 12: Foreword and Part 1: The Case for Comfort
- Tuesday October 3: Part 2: The Process
- Tuesday October 24: Part 3: Showing Up
- Tuesday November 14: Part 4: A Culture of Care and Part 5: Who Shows Up Best?
With Holly Griskell
Option 2 Wednesdays from 3pm to 4pm
- Wednesday September 13: Foreword and Part 1: The Case for Comfort
- Wednesday October 4: Part 2: The Process
- Wednesday October 25: Part 3: Showing Up
- Wednesday November 15: Part 4: A Culture of Care and Part 5: Who Shows Up Best?
With Vittoria Sipone
Faculty Workgroup & Application: “The Power of Making Thinking Visible”
Three Tuesdays: September 19, October 17, and November 14; 8:30-9:30 am Central/9:30 – 10:30 am Eastern
All take place on Zoom.
With Catherine (Kate) Robertson
Book is included: Ritchhard, R. and Church, M. (2020). The power of making thinking visible: Practices to engage and empower all learners. Hoboken, NJ: Jossey-Bass. ISBN: 978-1-119-62604-6
All are welcome! This is a continuation of this summer’s book group on the text: The power of making thinking visible: Practices to engage and empower all learners. The text outlines multiple activities for instructors of all content areas to use in the classroom. Now is your chance to apply one or more of these strategies from the text during your fall courses and share experiences about the process with colleagues. There are no specific reading assignments! Instead, be prepared to share student work samples as evidence of “making thinking visible,” and ask for feedback and suggestions from the rest of the workgroup. Again, you need not have participated in this summer’s book group to join us this fall.
Year-long Book Group with Ted Hopkins (CUAA only)
The book discussion will take place 11:05-11:55 am in the CMAX, bring your lunch, once a month on Wednesdays: Sept. 6, Oct. 4, Nov. 1, Dec. 6 in the fall; and Jan. 10, Feb. 14, March 13, April 10 in the spring.
Rev. Dr. Ted Hopkins will lead a year-long book group, reading David Zahl’s book Low Anthropology: The Unlikely Key to a Gracious View of Others (and Yourself). Zahl’s book will help us see how our native understandings (and our disciplines’ innate notions) of what it means to be human sometimes collide with the Bible and other times overlap. As we better understand ourselves and our students through this scriptural perspective, we can discuss with colleagues how this perspective shapes our relationships with our students and how we integrate faith and learning in the classroom.
The Successful Department Chair/Academic Program Director
Friday September 8, Noon – 1:00 pm Central/1:00 – 2:00 pm Eastern via Zoom
With Leah Dvorak
The audience for this program is Department Chairs and Program Directors. What are the expectations for the role of Department Chair or Academic Program Director? An effective chair or academic program director manages faculty, staff, programs, courses, and processes vital to student success. The effective chair also fosters a healthy departmental culture and establishes efficient, collaborative decision-making processes. A strong department chair or program director uses both management skills and leadership skills to create and sustain a successful department in which faculty and staff feel engaged and energized.
ChatGPT: Boon or Bane? (CUAA only)
Thursday, September 14th 12:00-1:00 pm in the CMAX.
ChatGPT has quickly become one of the most debated technologies in higher education. Some faculty value it as a pedagogical tool. Others worry their students will abuse the technology and not write their own work. In this session, faculty will learn how to embed ChatGPT into their classrooms and how to set parameters for student use. Participants are encouraged to bring their lunches. Light refreshments will also be served.
Lunch ‘n Learn: Lutheran Spirituality: The Dynamics of Sin and Grace (CUW only)
Wednesday, September 20, 2023, 12:10 to 1pm The Lakeshore Room, Mequon Campus
With Brian German and Sandra Jahns
One of a series of Faith and Learning sessions for faculty, this session features Brian German (Theology) and Sandra Jahns (Communication), sharing on the Lutheran understanding of spirituality as a “dynamic” of sin and grace, and how this might affect teaching and learning.
Update to ARC Practice and Policy on Accommodations
Monday September 25, 3:00 – 4:00 pm Central/4:00 – 5:00 pm Eastern
With Jordan Beck, Elizabeth Polzin, and Erin Laverick
Recent changes to ADA law have impacted the ways in which CUWAA serves students through accessibility services. The Faculty Senate created an ARC Ad Hoc Committee dedicated to learning more about how these changes impact accommodations and faculty work. During this session, we will discuss the changes to ADA law, how the changes impact the accommodation process, and provide a summary from the Faculty Ad Hoc Committee. Time will be allocated for faculty questions, comments, and suggestions for further learning during the session.
Just in Time – Blackboard Grade Center Set Up
Wednesday October 11, 2:00 – 3:00 pm Central/3:00 – 4:00 pm Eastern
With Susan Gallanis
Mid-semester is approaching so now is a good time to review your Grade Center. During this session we will discuss the difference between a points-based and percentage-based Grade Center. We will show how to set up a percentage-based Grade Center, including the import settings for any Grade Center such as setting the “external grade”. Bring your questions! We will answer as many as we can during the session.
Designing Effective Writing Assignments (CUAA only)
Thursday, October 12th 8:00-9:00 am in the CMAX.
As ChatGPT becomes more and more prevalent, instructors need to consider how they design and implement writing assignments into their classes. This workshop will offer advice and tips about how to design effective writing assignments. Not worried about ChatGPT? This session is still relevant to those who teach writing intensive courses. Coffee and pastries will be served.
Pyramid Dashboard Training for Program Leaders/Chairs/Deans
Friday October 13, Noon – 1:00 pm Central/1:00 – 2:00 pm Eastern via Zoom
With Michele Hoffman and Katie Hause-Schott, Office of Institutional Effectiveness
During this session, get a tour of the Dean/Chair and Admission Dashboards so you can understand the reports and data elements on each and how to export lists of students. All program directors, department chairs and deans are encouraged to attend this session on accessing your program information through Pyramid.
Lunch ‘n Learn: Lutheran Spirituality: The Means of Grace (CUW only)
Wednesday, October 18, 2023 from 12:10 to 1pm in the Lakeshore Room
One of a series of Faith and Learning sessions for faculty, this session features Brian German (Theology) and Sandra Jahns (Communication), sharing on the Lutheran understanding of the Word and the sacraments, including how these play a foundational role in Lutheran higher education.
Syllabus Issues, Alignment with Catalog, and Updates to Banner Course Information Forms
Friday October 20, Noon – 1:00 pm Central/1:00 – 2:00 pm Eastern via Zoom
With Elizabeth Evans and Allison Wolf
The audience for this program is faculty, department chairs, program directors, academic support staff, and deans.
The Academic Office has seen an increase in syllabi submissions that contain information misaligned with Banner Course Information (BCI) data. BCI data is used by the Registrar’s office to create the catalog and scribe Degree Works program audits. Syllabi provided to students should match the catalog information for the year in which a course is offered.
This session will focus on our need to provide students with syllabi that match the current catalog year, the submission of syllabi to the Academic Office by Department Chairs and Program Directors, and what to do when changes to a syllabus, and its BCI data, are needed. Other areas that need attention for improvement of syllabi will also be covered in brief, and an explanation and demonstration of the updated BCI mach form will be provided.
Facilitating Acute Care Competencies & Confidence in Physical Therapy Doctoral Students: Outcomes of a CITG Project (CUW only)
Wednesday October 25, 2023 from 12 – 1 pm HS 109 – SHP Simulation Lab
With Stacy Stolzman & Physical Therapy Doctoral Students
Last year, the Concordia Intermural Teaching Grant (CITG) supported a teaching and learning project to expand student learning using the new School of Health Professions Simulation Lab. This presentation will show how DPT students gained acute care competencies and increased confidence in a graduate course taught by Dr. Stolzman which was supported by grant-funded faculty development at Mayo Clinic and grant-funded equipment used in the lab. See the students in action completing an acute care simulation scenario and learn the critical pieces of simulation learning. While food is not usually allowed in the Simulation Lab, you may bring your bag lunch for this event.
Classroom Observation of Faculty
Friday October 27, Noon – 1:00 pm Central/1:00 – 2:00 pm Eastern via Zoom
With Susan Gallanis and Catherine (Kate) Robertson
The audience for this program is Department Chairs, Program Directors, and Deans. During this session, we will review and discuss the teaching observation process and form used for summative faculty observations, primarily for in-person classes. We will also share effective strategies for the observation itself and the post-observation discussion. Best practices for sharing constructive feedback, and tips on how to use the form (link to observation form) for formative, peer observations will also be shared.
Service-Learning Experiences
Thursday November 2, Noon – 1:00 pm Central/1:00 – 2:00 pm Eastern via Zoom
With Julie Parve (Nursing), Robert Wahl (Computer Science), Heather Fortuine (Rehab Science), Elisabeth Bennett (Business)
The audience for this program is faculty. In alignment with CUW’s GLO “Service and Citizenship” you can now offer your students a chance to learn while serving others. Come join us and get inspired to add a transformative learning experience to one of your courses. We will discuss availability of grants for service-learning experiences and how to apply as well as examples of service-learning experiences that have been impactful to students and the community they served. Feel free to come share your ideas as well.
Getting Started with Panopto with Justin Frisque
Friday November 3, Noon – 1:00 pm Central/1:00 – 2:00 pm Eastern via Zoom
The audience for this program is faculty. Panopto is a tool used to record and share videos, including voiceover PowerPoint recordings. Participants will learn how to access Panopto to create recordings and integrate the Panopto tool in your Blackboard course. Also covered is the organization of videos within Panopto and setting viewing permissions.
Embedding Writing Instruction into your Classes (CUAA only)
Thursday, November 9th 12:00-1:00 pm in the CMAX.
Do you assign writing assignments or teach a writing intensive class? Are you frustrated when students do not turn in “what you’re looking for?” Attend this session and learn how to embed mini writing lessons into your course in order to ensure students find better success on their assignments. Participants are encouraged to bring their lunches. Light refreshments will also be served.
Best Practices for Managing Blackboard Course Size
Friday November 10, Noon – 1:00 pm Central/1:00 – 2:00 pm Eastern
With Justin Frisque, Tyler Shadick and Susan Gallanis
This session is for faculty. Blackboard courses have a finite amount of space before the maximum is reached. During this session, participants will learn best practices for sharing large files in their course such as videos and voiceover PowerPoints. We will also explain how using the course Content Collection can save additional course space and save you time when documents need updating or are shared in multiple locations within a course.
Faculty Lunch ‘n Learn: Lutheran Spirituality: The Hiddenness of God (CUW Only)
Monday November 13, 12:10 pm – 1:00 pm in the Lakeshore Room, Mequon Campus
With Brian German and Sandra Jahns
One of a series of Faith and Learning sessions for faculty, this session features Brian German (Theology) and Sandra Jahns (Communication), sharing on the Lutheran understanding of the hiddenness of God in one’s vocation and how this plays a foundational role in Lutheran higher education.
Creating and Sustaining an Effective Curriculum
Friday November 17 Noon – 1:00pm Central/1:00 – 2:00 Eastern via Zoom
With Leah Dvorak, Elizabeth Evans and Erin Laverick
Effective curricula at Concordia are rigorous, relevant, coherent, current, experiential, explicit and well-communicated to students. They are also aligned with mission, university learning outcomes and program learning outcomes. Effective academic programs result in healthy enrollment, retention and completion numbers, demonstrate learning as expected by the faculty, and use continuous improvement. At this session, we will present tools for planning, implementing and improving such curricula. The audience for this program includes faculty, department chairs/program directors, and deans.
Concordia Faculty Seminar: Erin Regis-Bailey and Amber Melick, New Doctorates
Wednesday November 29, 11:00 am – Noon Central/Noon – 1:00 pm Eastern via Zoom
Please plan to join us on Zoom for an hour to learn about the research conducted by two Mequon faculty colleagues who recently completed doctoral degrees, Erin Regis-Baily and Amber Melick.
- Erin Regis Bailey, Assistant Professor and Clinical Education Coordinator in the Department of Speech-Language Pathology on the Mequon campus, recently completed her Doctor of Speech-Language Pathology (SLPD) degree from Northwestern University. Her culminating project was entitled “Exploring the Teaching Motivations, Barriers and Benefits of Medical Speech-Language Pathology Community Clinical Educators: A Qualitative Descriptive Study Design.”
- Amber Melick, Assistant Professor of Health and Human Performance, who teaches in our Master of Science in Athletic Training (MSAT) program on the Ann Arbor campus, has recently completed the Doctor of Athletic Training (DAT) degree from Temple University. Her capstone paper was titled The Effect of Collaborative Patient Simulation on SPICE-R Scores of Health Education Students.
Concordia Faculty Seminars are informal interactive presentations and conversations on faculty and staff projects including grants, research, and service designed to promote scholarship, spark new ideas, provide opportunities for meaningful discussion, and increase collaboration. Faculty, staff, and students are welcome to attend.
Spring 2024
Mequon Adjunct Orientation (In-Person Classes)
Wednesday January 3, 5:00 – 6:45 pm Central via Zoom
Presenter: Elizabeth Evans, Catherine (Kate) Robertson, Jason Lane, Ty Landers, Andrew Wahl, Garrett Stremski, Elizabeth Kirk.
Spring semester begins January 8! Are you ready? During this session for Mequon adjuncts teaching in-person classes, we will share important policies, where to find them as well as many resources that address first day teaching, student support, Academic Resource Center services, classroom AV, faith and learning, Blackboard, and more.
New and Returning Faculty Development Day
Thursday January 4, 8:15 – 4:00 Central/9:15 – 5:00 Eastern
All sessions are via Zoom
Five sessions offered throughout the day. Register for all that you are able to attend. Session times and descriptions are included on the registration page.
- Designing/Refreshing Your Course and Syllabus
- Blackboard Basics
- Engaging Your Learners
- Blackboard Tests and Respondus LockDown Browser with Monitor
- Faculty Resources
Faculty Book Club: Instructional Moves for Powerful Teaching (CUW Only)
Facilitators: Kate Robertson, Ph.D. (CELT) and Jonny Balsman, M.A. (Education)
Meeting dates and times: 8:30 to 9:30 am Thursdays January 25, February 15 and March 14, 2024
What moves can you make to continue to grow your teaching practice? Join this book club to learn about instructional moves and strategies that are research based, high leverage, and focus on active learning. The book includes topics that relate to any content area, such as interactive lecturing and teaching with cases and simulations. Each chapter includes a vignette from a college classroom to further illustrate how these pedagogical choices look in practice and how they can positively impact student learning. The book will be provided to those registering: Murphy, J.T. & Levinson, M. (2023). Instructional moves for powerful teaching in higher education. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Faculty Book Group: The Canceling of the American Mind (CUW Only)
Date, Time, Location Fridays Jan 19, Feb 9, Feb 23, 2024
What is cancel culture? Does it even exist? How does it impact higher education? What, if anything, should university faculty do in response to cancel culture? Please join your fellow faculty members in a discussion of a timely book that addresses these issues. In this book club, we will read The Canceling of the American Mind by Greg Lukianoff and Rikki Schlott and meet three times to discuss sections of the book on Jan 19, Feb 9, and Feb 23. This program is in-person only.
Learn to Use VoiceThread (for Faculty)
Thursday January 18, 2:00 – 3:00 pm Central/3:00 – 4:00 pm Eastern
With Janice Weisenbach
During the session for faculty, participants will learn how access VoiceThread via Blackboard, create presentations, add comments, and navigate the VoiceThread interface. Participants will also learn how to create and grade VoiceThread assignments and other set-up options.
Updating the 24-25 Catalog
Tuesday January 23, 8:30 – 9:30 am Central/9:30 – 10:30 am Eastern via Zoom
With Stephanie Barnhill and Karen Ruona
The university Registrar and her colleagues present information for department chairs, administrative assistants and other departmental staff about how to update program information for the 2024-2025 academic catalog, including how to find the link, update to four-digit course renumbering, what information has already been entered through Banner, and the deadlines to observe.
Best Practices in Writing Multiple Choice Exams (for Faculty)
Thursday January 25, 2:00 – 3:00 pm Central/3:00 – 4:00 pm Eastern via Zoom
With Michael Brown
The audience for this session is faculty. Writing multiple choice exams can be challenging. What characteristics make “good” multiple choice questions good? What characteristics of exam questions should typically be avoided? What is an appropriate balance of question difficulty across the exam? After the exam, what characteristics may help decide whether to keep or throw out a question? This session will explore these topics and provide an opportunity for participants to review their own questions using these principles of best practice.
Eight Elements of Effective Program Assessment
Friday January 26, Noon – 1:00 Central/1:00 – 2:00 Eastern via Zoom
With Elizabeth Evans
Evaluating our students’ learning at the program level involves establishing learning goals, creating tools to evaluate student learning, collecting data using the tools, developing conclusions about the data, and making changes to improve student learning. Engaging faculty in the process and using the process for improvement are further vital elements. Please come to this winter faculty development program to learn more what creates effective assessment practice at Concordia in each major, graduate program, and stand-alone certificate. The audience for this program is department chairs, program directors, and faculty.
Leadership Challenges: Uncomfortable Conversations
Friday February 16, Noon – 1:00 pm Central/1:00 – 2:00 pm Eastern via Zoom
With Leah Dvorak
Effective leaders balance building positive relationships with delivering challenging information that needs to be communicated. When change is needed in individual performance or in the way a group works together, uncomfortable conversations may follow. This session provides department chairs and program directors with specific strategies for managing uncomfortable conversations while maintaining positive relationships with their faculty and staff. The audience for this program is department chairs and program directors.
Faculty Lunch n’ Learn: Living Our Mission (CUW only)
Monday, March 18, 2024, 12:10 to 1:00pm in the Lakeshore Room
With Rev. Dr. Aaron Moldenhauer
How can my academic program best live out the mission of Concordia? CUWAA has a new resource to help us remain mission-driven. In January Rev. Dr. Aaron Moldenhauer began serving as the first Vice President for Mission and Church Relations at CUWAA. His role is to serve as an internal theological advisor and to coordinate external relations to church organizations. Come to this session to learn more of the role and how it can assist you in living out Concordia’s mission.
Faculty Lunch ‘n Learn: Beyond “Discuss Amongst Yourselves” (CUW only)
Wednesday, March 20, 2024, 12:10 to 1:00pm in the Lakeshore Room
With Kevin Gries (Physical Therapy), Kate Robertson (CELT, Education), and Jeff Walz (Political Science)
Come to this session for strategies to freshen up your face-to-face classroom discussions. Are the discussion questions you offer to your students met with blank stares? If your students do engage in discussion, is it too “surface level”? This session will offer a variety of ideas to help take your class discussions to the next level. Tools and strategies useful across a variety of disciplines, such as case studies and debates, will be shared. This session will help your class discussions be purposeful and foster student learning.
Faculty Effectiveness and Evaluation Department Chair/Program Director Series
Friday March 22, 2024 Via Zoom from Noon to 1pm Central/1:00 to 2:00pm Eastern
With Leah Dvorak
This session will review CUWAA’s ranked faculty annual evaluation form, process and timeline. We will discuss sources of evidence used to ensure that our faculty are effective teachers addressing the mission of Concordia, productive scholars, and contribute service to the university, church, community and/or profession. We will also cover resources CUWAA provides to help faculty achieve their goals, including the CELT (for teaching), and the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs (for research, grants and scholarship), the ranked faculty first three-year development process, and how department chairs/program directors can (and should) be involved in observing, mentoring and supporting their faculty.
Academic Program Review (APR) Overview & Training Session
Monday March 25, 2024 Via Zoom from Noon to 1pm Central/1:00 to 2:00pm Eastern
With Brooke Johnson and Elizabeth Evans
Please come to this session to learn about the APR process for 2024 and how to complete the workbook for those programs scheduled for APR this semester. Workbooks are due on May 15. APR is a quality review process for degree programs/departments and provides the opportunity to evaluate program quality focusing on the student experience, mission fit, competitors, and program sustainability.
Encouraging Learning in the AI Age: Designing Assignments Post-ChatGPT
Thursday April 4, 2024 from 3:00pm to 4:00pm Central/4:00pm to 5:00pm Eastern via Zoom
With Bob Bruss (English) Sam Speckhard (Nursing)
As ChatGPT and other large language model chatbots become more prevalent, many faculty are reacting in ways both utopian (“AI will revolutionize the classroom”) and dystopian (“Students will use it to write all their work”). The truth is somewhere in the middle. Based on the work of the AI task force, this session will help faculty better understand ChatGPT and some of the opportunities and threats it presents. It will help faculty more intentionally design assignments with ChatGPT in mind, whether to encourage our students to learn how to use it effectively and ethically or to resist their ability to have it do the work for them (or both).
Concordia Faculty Seminar: April Gotzler and Jessica Schmidt, New Doctorates
Thursday April 11, 3pm Central DT/4 pm Eastern DT via Zoom
With April Gotzler and Jessica Schmidt
Please plan to join us on Zoom for an hour to learn about the research conducted by two Mequon faculty colleagues who recently completed doctoral degrees, April Gotzler and Jessica Schmidt.
April Gotzler, Assistant Professor of Health and Human Performance (HHP) at the Mequon campus, recently completed her Ph.D. in Global Leadership and Change from Tiffin University in Ohio. Dr. Gotzler’ s dissertation title was “Barriers to Female Leadership: Validation of an Original Instrument”.
Jessica Schmidt, Assistant Professor in Occupational Therapy at the Mequon campus, recently completed her Post-Professional Doctor of Occupational Therapy degree from Rocky Mountain University of Health Professions. The title of her capstone project was “Acute Care Rehabilitation Utilization, Functional Status, and Discharge Destination in COVID-19 Patients.”
Concordia Faculty Seminars are informal interactive presentations and conversations on faculty and staff projects including grants, research, and service designed to promote scholarship, spark new ideas, provide opportunities for meaningful discussion, and increase collaboration. Faculty, staff, and students are welcome to attend.
Rubric Roundtable for Faculty and Assessment Leaders (CUW only)
Tuesday May 14, 2024 from 1:00 to 2:30pm in the Friends of Concordia Room
With Kemery Sigmund, Elizabeth Eernisse, Jennifer Becker, Linda Hensel, Chris Scudella
Want to improve a rubric you use for a class assignment, paper, or presentation? Join the CUW Assessment Committee as we share tips and tricks to improve your rubric for course or program evaluation purposes. The Committee will first host a short presentation, followed by breakout sessions where you can receive feedback & ideas on a rubric you bring with you to the session. This is an in-person event only.
Workshop: Refresh Your Spring Course (CUW only)
Wednesday May 15, 10:30 am – 12:00 pm in PH 205 – Pharmacy Conference Room
With Kate Robertson and Elizabeth Evans
Whew! Your grades are in and you’ve finished the whirlwind of the semester. This is the perfect time to review and reflect on one of your courses and plan improvements for next time. Bring your reflections captured throughout the course, your syllabus and any course materials, teaching strategies and assignments to this session.
What does your course look like from the students’ POV? How did the course results align with your hopes/ goals? How did your organization, delivery of content, communication, evaluation strategies and instructional strategies make for effective learning?
After review of your course, you will develop at least three actionable changes to improve the student learning experience next time. You can use the plan as an example of your continuous improvement for your upcoming annual faculty evaluation in June. Discussion and workshop time are included. This workshop fits any course delivery, including online.
Faculty Writing Support Initiative Conversation (CUW only)
Wednesday, May 15 from 12:30 to 1:30pm in the CELT office – Rincker 213
With Elizabeth Evans and Catherine Robertson
The current strategic plan includes a goal to create a Faculty Writing Support initiative. Please come to this session to talk about your needs for support, your ideas, and what you would like to see included in this initiative.
Coffee and Collaboration with CELT (CUW only)
Thursday May 16, 9:30 am – 11:00 am in the CELT office – Rincker 213
With CELT staff
Whether you are teaching this summer, or have something on your mind from a spring course, please stop in for some coffee and collaboration time with the CELT staff. Some particular areas of focus will be setting up grade centers, linking textbook resources to your Blackboard course, learning how (and why) to set up group assignments, and creating course announcements that lead to student learning and engagement. We are looking forward to assisting you with all things course design!
Workshop: How To Make Your Documents Ally Friendly
Thursday May 16, noon – 1 pm via Zoom
With Taylor Richards and Mary Buenz
Ally is an application that allows for documents on Blackboard to be accessed by multiple devices in multiple formats, such as translated HTML, mp3 for audio, electronic Braille, e-pub for e-readers, formats for screen readers and more. In order for Ally to work effectively for students, documents must be designed using specific strategies. Join this session to learn how to create a document with a high Ally score. Workshop time is included – have a document on hand that you’d like to improve.
Assignment Design for AI Workshop
Thursday, May 16, 2024, 1:30 to 3:00pm Central in PH 039
With Bob Bruss and Faculty AI TaskForce
This workshop is hosted by the Faculty AI Task Force and the CELT. Come do collaborative work to update your assignment prompts. Bring a prompt you want to make more AI resistant, or bring a prompt to invite the appropriate student use of an AI tool. This program is part of the May Faculty Institute.
