Newsletter March 15, 2024
cte.utah.edu

The Martha Bradley Evans Center for Teaching Excellence is excited to offer our 2nd annual Graduate Teaching Institute on May 6 – May 9. Spend the week with us and learn how to build and deliver courses, make the most of educational technology, and understand how to provide exceptional educational experiences for every student on campus. Last year’s attendees showed significant gains in their teaching self-efficacy and their confidence in critical skills related to teaching and working with students. Sessions will run from 10-3 Monday thru Thursday, and lunch will be provided. Registration is free for U of U graduate students, but space is limited. Register today!

Want to take your training to the next level? Starting in Fall 2024, MBECTE will be offering a 15-credit graduate certificate in Teaching in Higher Education. Courses are taught online and provide in-depth training in critical topics in higher education pedagogy. The application link for admission into the certificate program in Fall 2024 is coming soon!

CTE pedagogy workshops are open to ALL instructors on campus. Register with unid@utah.edu

Women’s Week is an annual, weeklong event focused on gendered issues and challenges faced in today’s climate and cultural movements. All are welcome to get involved and participate! Learn more about Women’s Week special events!

The University of Utah Chapter of the Utah Women in Higher Education Network is accepting applications for their 2024-2025 Chapter Board. Also, registration is open for the Annual UWHEN State Conference!

Is your department or program grappling with how to assess your learning outcomes? Come learn from other departments on campus, ask questions, and share ideas!  This workshop, which is  hosted by the Office of Learning Analytics and Outcomes Assessment in Undergraduate Studies, will be held on Wednesday, March 20, 2024, from.11:30 AM To 1:00 PM via Zoom.

Want to learn more about Open Education Resources (OERs), Pressbooks, and Utah open textbooks?
Plan to attend the OER Symposium that will take place during the week of March 25-28, 2024.
Visit the Symposium Website and Schedule and Register to attend.
Register once and you can attend any or all of the sessions that fit your schedule.
Click on the Past Symposiums button at the bottom of the page to see last year’s virtual showcases and recordings. 

The UALC OER Committee hopes to see you there!

Are you teaching this semester or over the summer? Request a classroom presentation with the Office of Undergraduate Research to learn about the various programs, resources, and opportunities we have available to support students in their research endeavors! Requests can be made here: https://our.utah.edu/about-us/request-a-class-presentation/

The Public Service Professor Award is designed to help a faculty member strengthen community-engaged learning experiences and foster stronger partnerships with the local community. This year’s Public Service Professor is Akiko Kamimura, Associate Professor of Sociology in the College of Social and Behavioral Science. For her Public Service Professor project, Dr. Kamimura will be working with Understanding Us - a grassroots (501) (c) non-profit organization that provides Tai Chi and physical activity programs to persons experiencing homelessness (PEH) in Salt Lake City. Together Dr. Kamimura, her research team, students, and Understanding Us will evaluate the effectiveness of the Tai Chi program for PEH’s physical, mental, and social well-being.

The Distinguished Faculty Service Award honors faculty members who have demonstrated sustained commitment to the campus-community connection through a life of active, unpaid community service and the integration of service with research and teaching. This year two exceptional faculty members will be honored with the 2024 Distinguished Faculty Service Award:  Randy L. Dryer, Presidential Honors Professor (Lecturer) in the S.J. Quinney College of Law and Honors College, and Teresa Molina Avella, Assistant Professor (Lecturer) in the College of Social Work and Associate Director at University Neighborhood Partners. 

Randy L. Dryer's service both on and off campus is a testament to his lifelong commitment to community engagement. His volunteer community service has focused on government transparency and addressing the unmet legal needs of underserved persons. He established a pro bono legal program to help the Salt Lake Tribune with requesting and litigating records requests. He was the inaugural chair of the Utah State Courts Forms Committee. He served for over ten years on the Utah Sports Authority, then 2002 Salt Lake Winter Olympic Organizing Committee, and finally the Utah Athletic Foundation. Prior to receiving his full-time faculty appointment, he served a combined total of 15 years as a member of the University’s Board of Trustees, six as chair or vice chair. After becoming a full-time professor in 2011, Professor Dryer served in several administrative and leadership roles at the University, including President of the University Academic Senate, Acting Dean of the Honors College, and President of the Board of Advisors of the Museum of Natural History of Utah.

 

Dr. Isabel Teresa Molina Avella’s long-term presence in the community has established trusting relationships with diverse partners to find creative solutions to existing challenges. In 2013 Dr. Molina expanded a resident-led partnership and, with the support of the University of Utah, founded Latino Behavioral Health Services (LBHS). Professor Molina’s scholarship is located within a community-based participatory action framework (CBPR) and is focused on Latinx mental health, how mental health is understood across diverse communities of immigrant and refugee backgrounds, and how organizational processes can be changed to improve access for individuals accessing services. She is one of the founding faculty members of Bridging Borders (BB), a global collective of educators, students and community partners working to create vital networks that lead to innovative opportunities and pathways in education for communities living at or working with those at the margins.