In this edition of the Pew FTLC Newsletter:

Love, Joy, and Care. April brought me to several academic conferences/gatherings and I can’t say that I was expecting such strong thematic threads of expressing love, finding joy and attending to courageous care. During one keynote at the AAC&U Conference on Learning and Student Success, I wrote down a few key phrases: “love is at the intersection of leadership and organizational culture,” “love is not just a feeling, but an action” and “to care is to name, to bear witness and to listen.” I also heard about the book Unearthing Joy at two different conferences and loved one presenter’s description of joy as foundational, not decorative, and what makes the hard/real work of learning possible. I returned to campus with a treasure trove of resources; here is a sample worth considering:  

Access is Infrastructure, Intersectional, Responsive, Flexible, Communal, Fair, Contextual, and Refreshing. As we all work to ensure digital accessibility of resources (e.g., websites, course materials, and other student-, faculty- and staff-facing items), I wanted to remind you that the Digital Accessibility Committee landing page has the most up-to-date information on requirements and resources. At one of the conferences I attended, I heard Anne-Marie Womack speak. The accessibility principles she detailed provide the introductory sentence of this paragraph. One of the best parts of her presentation was her adherence to the Assertion-Evidence approach to slide design. Now I can’t unsee it and it has made sitting through other conference presentations challenging. If you use PowerPoint in any capacity, I urge you to resist the default formatting options and encourage you to review the model, originating in engineering but applicable to any presentation context. Lastly, Dr. Womack’s Accessible Syllabus is an absolute gem of a resource and I encourage everyone to review/bookmark it.  

I look forward to seeing some of you at our May events or hearing from you via email, Zoom, or other means. The Pew FTLC is here all summer and we are available for individual (or group) consultations. As you might suspect, we have plenty of resources at the ready to share and it would be a joy to connect with you!  

Take care- 

-Christine  

Are you looking for community building opportunities this summer? Consider joining a Summer 2026 Learning Community!

Learning Communities (LCs) bring faculty together for a 1-2 semester-long conversation on a topic of mutual interest and encourage an application of the knowledge gained. Past participants report this experience to be supportive, fun, and restorative! New Summer LCs continue to be added. You can view the complete list of open LCs by visiting our Current Learning Communities webpage.

It's not too late to propose your own, either! If you’ve got an idea—or just the start of one—we invite you to propose a Summer 2026 LC by Monday, May 11, 2026. Submit a Letter of Intent using our online form. If you're wondering what’s possible, browse our Past LCs webpage for inspiration from years past.

We invite you to register now and join us on Thursday, August 13, 2026 for the 32nd Annual Fall Conference on Teaching and Learning.

Because the Eberhard Center is under construction, we are shifting locations for this year's conference to the L. William Seidman Center. With that comes some restrictions on how many attendees we can accommodate in the Seidman Forum. One easy thing we can all do to ensure those who want to attend get to attend is combat the culture of the no-show. We admit we’ve been guilty of signing up for events and then forgetting we registered, deciding we don't actually want to/are unable to go, or simply thinking no one will notice if we don't show up. We notice.

So, we are challenging you as a community to take this opportunity to practice living the mantra; if you sign up, show up.

Registering means you are committing to attending the event. We understand things come up or emergencies arise, and if they do we simply ask you let us know you are no longer able to attend by emailing ftlc@gvsu.edu so we may enable others to attend. 

Are you feeling like there just aren’t enough hours in the day to get everything done? You’re right! And you’re not alone. Faculty life is unique in that you are largely in control of how you spend your time. Unlike other professions with a consistent Monday to Friday, 8:00am - 5:00pm schedule, faculty have the benefit of being largely in charge of how they spend their time. However, this fringe benefit is also a challenge. Having to decide how you spend your time can easily lead to accepting additional projects when your plate is full, taking too much time to complete certain tasks, and struggling to make progress on your goals, to name a few. 

In this workshop you will learn evidence-based strategies for planning your semester, establishing and maintaining healthy boundaries and role clarity, and exercising conscious control over your activities. Beginning with a short presentation on sustaining meaningful habits (of mind and practice), participants will spend most of the workshop engaged in active goal setting and planning. Led by Dr. Maggie Goss, Assistant Director in the Pew FTLC and Dr. Bradford Dykes, Associate Professor of Statistics and Student Success Data Director in the CLAS Voyage, our goal is to grow this summer workshop into a continuing series offered throughout the academic year. Faculty of all ranks and disciplines are welcome.  

Date and Time: Tuesday, June 2, 2026 10:00-11:30am

Location: Zumberge Hall 3068, Valley Campus

Student Success Network

Consider serving as a Faculty Partner in the Student Success Network. The Student Success Network (SSN) aims to provide opportunities to connect our newest Lakers with faculty who play an integral role in educating first-year students about “How to College”. Faculty partners are asked to commit to sending messages (provided) about student success to their groups throughout the year and be an active resource when necessary. The SSN team provides extensive support to faculty partners along with professional development opportunities. Previous participants report the time commitment to be light.

We hope that you will consider this invitation to become a Faculty Partner in the SSN and join us in enhancing the 1st year experience for our newest Lakers. This is a valued University service activity that can have a significant impact on our students. If this is something you would consider, please share your interest by May 15th. You can learn more about the program on our Student Success Network webpage.

CTE 101 Workshop
Tuesday, September 29
Pere Marquette Room 2204, Kirkhof Center, Valley Campus

GVSU faculty and staff are invited to attend the CTE 101 Workshop to explore how Career & Technical Education (CTE) connects K-12 pathways with student success at GVSU. Local Career & Technical Education experts will provide an overview of CTE, address common misconceptions, and highlight how CTE programs align with university-level learning and workforce needs. Participants will gain insight into Michigan’s CTE landscape, learn more about the students served through these programs, and hear real examples of successful partnerships, credit alignment, and student impact. The workshop will conclude with opportunities for faculty and staff to get involved—whether through course review, partnership development, or engagement with local CTE centers—followed by a networking lunch.  A registration form will be available towards the end of August.