Newsletter March 6, 2025
cte.utah.edu

In the Martha Bradley Evans Center for Teaching Excellence, we get more than our share of tricky student behavior stories. In the last week, we have heard an inordinate number of stories about students just getting up and walking out during class, with questions about policies and advice. In thinking about this, we have to consider:

What’s happening with the student. Is the student upset, or overwhelmed? Are they dealing with a personal situation? Do they come back? Students may leave during class time for a variety of reasons. If their leaving is becoming a habit or is disruptive, you might check in with them outside of class via a Canvas message or email. As we’ve noted in previous newsletters, a check-in with students can serve as an important lifeline when students are struggling. You can also revisit our post on supporting students in unpredictable times.  Pitt et al. (2017) noted that students report major stressors related to academic, financial/work, personal, and more, and that these stressors tend to increase over the course of the semester. As student stressors increase, behavior issues are also likely to increase.

What’s happening in class. Is the topic being discussed a difficult or divisive one, where strong opinions are being assessed? Or is it “business as usual”?  Alvarez-Hevia et al. (2021) found that students’ attendance in higher education classes depended on their own personal life complexities (see previous bullet point) and university imperatives that boiled down to performance and accountability. That is, beyond their own “stuff,” students see class attendance as a mean to an end. If attendance is not required and/or not productive for learning, they are less likely to show up or stay. As frustrating as that can be, can you blame them? I challenge you to consider the number of Zoom meetings or webinars that you have abandoned mid-stream or that you zone out of to do other things, because they weren’t worth your while. Think about how you can make class time valuable for students – beyond what they can get from Canvas or the course readings.

Class policies. If course grades depend on attendance or participation make that clear to students via your syllabus.  See our Syllabus Design Pages for more information about sample attendance and participation policies.

The Martha Bradley Evans Center for Teaching Excellence (MBECTE) is seeking one graduate student to join our team as Graduate Fellow. This paid position begins in the Fall 2025 semester. The position is designed to be flexible with graduate students’ program responsibilities.

This unique opportunity allows you to strengthen the teaching and leadership components of your CV, increase your own knowledge of best practices in higher education pedagogy, and assist faculty and other graduate students refine their teaching skills. It may also provide exposure to online and hybrid teaching environments.

Graduate Fellow / Generalist (20hrs/week) – work closely with MBECTE staff to support instruction across disciplines on the Salt Lake City campus. Potential responsibilities include:

The benefits of working as a MBECTE Graduate Fellow include:

Strong candidates will possess the following:

To apply, submit the following materials by March 15, 2025 via the button below.

Faculty grants of up to $2,500 per year are available.  The University of Utah Sustainability Office offers funds to instructors who wish to integrate sustainability into their courses or renew a Sustainability Course Attribute (SUST). The funds can be used for a variety of purposes, including, but not limited to:

The streamlined application consists of three questions. There are two upcoming deadlines:

Congratulations to the Community Engaged Learning Award recipients!

Dr. Udita Gupta received the Public Service Professor Award

Dr. Sonia Solari and Dr. Leslie Francis received the Distinguished Faculty Service Award

For more information, please see the @theU story highlighting the award winners and their accomplishments.

Community Based Participatory Research Workshop Series

The Spring 2025 CEL Workshop Series will be on Community Based Participatory Research and will be led by Dr. Ana Antunes, who has recently published the book All In: Community Engaged Scholarship for Social Change

Zoom Registration

Workshop 3: Youth Voices: Research by Youth for Youth

Hear from local youth conducting research about the research process, what they learned, and their hopes for the future of community based research.

Friday, March 28; 11:30-1:00pm; GC 4490

Register for lunch

Are you leaving the U? If you are, you will lose access to various accounts and resources like Adobe, Box, and Google Workspace, content in Canvas, university libraries, and certain software products and Wi-Fi networks. You will have a limited period to secure your documents and data before you leave. Access this IT Knowledge Base article (login required) for more information, noting specific exceptions for Board of Trustees-appointed emeriti.  

On Thursday, March 13, 2025, from 9:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m., UIT will upgrade the interface and functionality of several University of Utah password- and authentication-related applications, including Forgot Password?, Forgot your uNID?, and the following applications accessed via Campus Information Services (CIS):

Users may experience a brief (up to 5 minute) delay during the maintenance window when attempting to access these applications.

Though the look and feel of the applications will change, the login process will remain the same. The IT Knowledge Base article Reset or change uNID password (login required) will be updated after March 13 to reflect the new user experience, enhanced functionality, and IT security improvements.

Please note that new or updated uNID passwords must be longer than previously required. Users are not required to change existing passwords. The IT Knowledge Base article uNID password requirements and guidelines (login required) will be updated after March 13 to reflect password and IT security guidelines.

If you have questions, your local IT support staff may be able to assist, or you may contact your respective help desk: UIT Help Desk (801-581-4000) or ITS Service Desk (801-587-6000).

Please visit the University IT Services Status page for information during this and future maintenance events.

The Office of Undergraduate Research (OUR) is excited to announce the Education Series for Spring 2025.  The OUR Education Series includes topics of interest for undergraduate student researchers and their faculty mentors. These events are open to all and are designed specifically with undergraduate students in mind.  Faculty are welcome to incorporate these events into their classes and/or encourage their students to participate.  

University Teaching Grant applications due March 7