Dear Evergreen Colleagues,
Many of us are feeling the inharmonic convergence of multiple deadlines at the end of winter quarter and struggling to keep afloat. Let’s acknowledge this work and recognize that we’re doing our best in challenging times. The Learning and Teaching Commons will lead off our spring quarter conversations by asking “What can your commons do for you?” What resources or tools do you need to make your work easier? Let us know during the 1 – 1:50pm Wednesday, April 7 “What can your commons do for you” session. You can also email learningandteaching@evergreen.edu at any time with ideas or suggestions.

The end of the quarter brings the usual routine of conferences and evaluations. Please see our December 2020 newsletter for tips on writing narrative evaluations. The Writing Center site has helpful guidelines for students writing self-evaluations and evaluations of faculty. See further in the newsletter for additional recommendations regarding the end of quarter evaluation process.

Students begin registering for spring quarter classes next week. Given the remote learning environment and student sense of disconnection, it could be especially helpful for faculty to send out a welcoming letter of introduction to registered and waitlisted students prior to spring quarter that shares academic fair information and other details, particularly for those students unable to attend the fair.

The due date for summer institute proposals is coming right up next week, on March 10. At this particular juncture in the history of the college, there is much to share, process, and learn. While there is no perfect substitute for the face-to-face community building work that characterize our typical summers, online institutes offer a place to connect with faculty and staff outside of our routine spaces of operation around issues that truly matter to us as an interdisciplinary public liberal arts college. We look forward to reading your proposals, and attending your institutes! 

Eric Stein, 2020-21 Learning and Teaching Commons Faculty Scholar

The Learning and Teaching Commons newsletter is delivered to your inbox on the Friday of odd weeks of the quarter.  Click here to read past newsletters.

Last Call for Summer Institute Proposals

There is still time left to submit a summer institute proposal before the March 10th deadline! Contribute to this crucial work. Summer institutes give our community the vital opportunity to both contemplate and to reinforce our pedagogical commitments to our students. 

More information and the submission guidelines can be found in the 2021 Call for Proposals. Any questions can be sent to the Learning and Teaching Commons.

Submit a Proposal

Highlights

  • The Academic Deans shared faculty resources and reminders to support students at the end of the quarter. For information on helping students write faculty evaluations, awarding incompletes, and more, review this recent email
  • Winter quarter's MES thesis presentation session on March 9th, at 5 pm will feature graduating MES student, Gretchen Helpenstell. Information on this event can be found here
  • Hannah Simonetti, Director of Campus Climate & Belonging, will host an Unlearning Racism Workshop on March 12, at 12 pm. For more information on this workshop, review this recent email.
  • Vernon Press is accepting proposals that focus on transdisciplinary approaches to the teaching of writing across the Humanities through the lens of inclusion and equity in higher education. For more information and submission details visit this page.
Nikkita Oliver delivers the keynote address for the 2019 Equity Symposium on Thurs., Nov. 14, 2019.
Nikkita Oliver delivers the keynote address for the 2019 Equity Symposium

CAMPUS SPOTLIGHT


Registration is Now Open for the 2021 Equity Symposium: Wade in the Water 

This year's symposium draws its inspiration from the situatedness of Evergreen on the Salish Sea. Our waters embrace the currents of change, while reminding us of the interconnectivity of our ecosystems, our Indigenous and local communities. Just as water carries a seed downstream along a rough and tumble journey to new shores, it provides nourishment for the seed to take root, blossom, and realize its transformative and lifegiving potential. This is how we envision equity work at Evergreen.

The acclaimed photographer and visual storyteller Matika Wilbur (Swinomish & Tulalip) will deliver the opening keynote address on Tuesday, April 13, from 4:00 - 5:00 pm.
Register Here!

ANNOUNCEMENTS & EVENTS 

Washington Center Collaborative Series: Winter 2021

Each month, the Washington Center Collaborative host monthly conversations that provide a space for you to engage with fellow higher education scholars, practitioners and administrators on topics relevant to our collective work supporting student success.

Affective Labor: The Need for, and Cost of, Workplace Equanimity

Dr. Lee Skallerup Bessette, Learning Design Specialist with the Center for New Designs in Learning and Scholarship (CNDLS) at Georgetown University
DATE: Wednesday, March 17
TIME: 12:00 pm PST | 1:00 pm MST | 2:00 pm CST | 3:00 pm EST
LOCATION: RSVP for Zoom link
What is affection and emotional labor, and how have staff in particular been asked to perform this form of labor during COVID-19 and beyond? Join us for a discussion about what we can do to start recognizing and rewarding this important form of labor we perform. 
RSVP for the Washington Center Collaborative Series

SAVE THE DATE

Washington Learning Community Consortium 

Curriculum Planning Retreat

April 22, April 29, & May 6 | 3:30-5 pm
Registration Fee: $25

The Washington Center for Improving Undergraduate Education has repackaged our popular curriculum planning retreat this year into three virtual sessions in the spring. We are thrilled to announce that the first session will be a Washington Center "all-star" panel that includes Barbara Smith, Emily Lardner, Joye Hardiman, and Jean MacGregor who will speak to the value of integrative learning and the special role Evergreen and Washington State played in realizing learning communities as a high-impact practice. Subsequent sessions will focus on designing integrative assignments and effective team teaching in face-to-face and remote learning environments.

More information to follow.

TEACHING RESOURCES

Prepare for Fall In-person Instruction

The curriculum team will present an information session during the Week 10 faculty meeting, to discuss planning for fall instruction and gather feedback on the planning process. More information can be seen in this recent email

EdPuzzle is Now Available Through July 2021

EDpuzzle is a teaching tool used to place interactive content into pre-existing videos from a variety of sources, such as TED or YouTube, or into videos you have made. More information can be found here.  

Library and Media Services Support

The Library and Media Services now has a four-week minimum, rolling deadline. Library and Media Services offers many supports, including book purchases, media equipment proficiency instruction, media equipment workshops, media support for academic events, etc. Place requests four weeks in advance of the needed date. More information can be found in this recent email.  

Request a Teaching Consultation 

Do you have a teaching puzzle? Is there an activity you are struggling to translate to remote teaching? Do you need some help designing asynchronous activities?
The Learning and Teaching Commons offers individual and small group remote teaching consultations. Consultations provide an opportunity to get direct feedback on your teaching puzzles. Click here for details.

STUDENT RESOURCES

These individuals and offices are eager to support students remotely. Keep this list handy when advising students or reach out to schedule a visit to your program or course.

Cultivating Voice Tutoring Class

Please let your students know that the tutoring class, Cultivating Voice, is coming up in Spring Quarter. This 2-credit course is open to students on the Olympia and Tacoma campuses. For more information review this recent email

Spiritual Care Appointments 

Faculty, please let your students know that they can now schedule confidential, virtual appointments where they can explore issues related to belonging, purpose, identity, grief/loss, joy/celebration, personal and communal values, religious/spiritual discernment, and self-care. It can be a space for students to vent, be present to and process their own feelings, or learn practices that assist with grounding & centering. Students can email Chaplain Melissa Bennett directly to schedule an appointment.

Other Resources:

DATES & DEADLINES

03-09
03-10

Faculty Meeting | 3-5pm 

03-12
03-15 - 03-19
Evaluation Week
Send events to learningandteaching@evergreen.edu for inclusion in the calendar.
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